Signatures By Political Notables From 1970's - 80s

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Day 1- Fine Art, Rare Books, Silver & Pottery...

By Sarasota Estate Auction

Aug 5, 2023

Set Reminder 2023-08-05 11:00:00 2023-08-05 11:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Day 1- Fine Art, Rare Books, Silver & Pottery https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/sarasota-estate/day-1--fine-art-rare-books-silver-pottery-13292
Featuring a Lifetime Collection of Early American Pottery, a Fantastic Georg Jensen Sterling Tea Set - 23 OZT, Important Books and Ephemera, and Exquisite Estate Jewelry. Also including art from artists including Roy Lichtenstein, Camille Pissarro, Karel Appel, Victor Vasarely, and many more. Sarasota Estate Auction sarasotaestateauction@gmail.com

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• Lot Description
  This lot consists of three autographed letters, one signed by Francis Sargent and two more signed by Dick Thornburgh. Francis Williams Sargent (1915 - 1998) was an American politician who served as the 64th governor of Massachusetts from 1969 to 1975. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts, and in 1969 he became acting governor when John A. Volpe resigned to become Secretary of Transportation in the Nixon Administration. In 1970, he was elected governor in his own right, defeating the Democratic Party's nominee Kevin White. He lost reelection in 1974 to Democrat Michael Dukakis, who would go on to be the Democratic Party's nominee for President in 1988. He studied architecture at MIT in the 1930's, then served in World War II, where he earned a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart; he was a member of the ski troops and rose from private to captain while serving with the 10th Mountain Division in Italy. Sargent served as the Director of Marine Fisheries for ten years, from 1947 to 1957, and was appointed to run the Public Works in Massachusetts in 1964, a position he held for two years. In 1962, Sargent ran for a seat in the Massachusetts state Senate, but lost, yet it showed he aspired to more in public life and that served as a stepping stone to the Governor's house later on. According to a biography of Barney Frank, White was the first mayor to declare the city had a race problem, and people wanted to keep him as mayor instead of making him governor. Sargent retired from politics after running for reelection and being defeated by Democrat Michael Dukakis in the 1974 gubernatorial election; among the factors was voter distaste for the Watergate scandal and an economic slowdown. Dick Thornburgh (1932-2020) was a Republican politician who served as the 41st governor of Pennsylvania from 1979 to 1987, and then as the United States attorney general from 1988 to 1991. His first wife was killed in an auto accident, which also left one of his sons with disabiltities, and as Attorney General of the United States, Thornburgh played a leading role in the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act. In 1969 President Nixon appointed Thornburgh as the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania, where he earned a reputation for toughness on organized crime. In 1971, Thornburgh successfully prosecuted Pittsburgh steel companies for polluting rivers based on a law from 1899; this was before the passage of the major environmental laws that are the foundation of the EPA and was a sign of future environmental enforcement. In 1978 he was elected governor of Pennsylvania, and a year later, following the unprecedented Three Mile Island nuclear power plant disaster near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Governor Thornburgh was described by people as "one of the few authentic heroes of that episode as a calm voice against panic." In 1988, President Reagan appointed Thornburgh as the United States Attorney General, a position he served for three years, and Thornburgh was known for mounting a vigor attack on white-collar crime. Thornburgh served for one year as Under-Secretary General at the United Nations (1992-1993) at the personal request of President Bush, so he had a long and storied career. All three letters measure 10 1/2 x 7 1/4 in. wide, and the two letters from Francis Sargent are both on letterheads from the Executive Department of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts when he was governor of the state, and the May 8, 1970 letter has light brown spots in the lower left and the May 20, 1970 letter has a slight corner crease at the top, otherwise both letters are in very good condition. The letter signed by Dick Thornburgh has very light browning along the right edge, otherwise that letter is in very good condition too. Size: 7 1/4 x 10 3/8 in. #1653
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