President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863. With this Executive Order, he took a decisive stand on the most contentious issue in American history, redefined the Union’s goals and strategy, and sounded the death knell for slavery.The “Authorized Edition” was created in 1864 to aid Union troops. It was signed by Abraham Lincoln, Secretary of State William Seward, and John Nicolay, the President’s private secretary, to be sold at the Philadelphia Great Central Sanitary Fair. In Lincoln’s words, the fairs raised money “to relieve and comfort our brave soldiers.”Of only 48 copies signed by Lincoln, 26 are known to survive. Nearly all are in (or are expected to be donated to) institutional collections. Thus, this is a rare opportunity to own the document that saved America.
