1890s Hotel Registry COMMERCIAL HOUSE NASHUA IA Robber Baron JAY GOULD Civil War

Description

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Welcome to this
NO-RESERVE
auction for the pictured
Early
1890s
HOTEL REGISTRY
from the
COMMERCIAL HOUSE
in
NASHUA, IOWA
.
*
I am
selling this for a friend
who is retiring--and moving--soon and wants to clear out his basement full of antiques and other collectibles. He could not remember exactly when or where he came to own this item.
* Entries in the Registry begin on
April 12, 1890
. They fill only about
1/3
of the book. The latter 2/3rds are either blank or have
calligraphy/writing
practice--some in ink and some in pencil--or what appears to be the
doodlings
of a small child; likely the child/children of the
Spaulding
family which looks to have run the place most of the time covered by the registry.
* There are a number of entries which appears to be those of
Theater
or
Circus
troupes passing through and playing in the area. You will see a pic of one such group performing
Uncle Tom's Cabin
.
* There are also several entries for persons identified with the
27th IOWA INFANTRY REGIMENT
which fought on the
Union
side in the
CIVIL WAR
. As you can see in one of the pics, "Community will pay" is written next to the entries. In addition to those pictured, there is
one other singular entry
of someone identifying themselves as a member of the same regiment.
* There is of course a lot of
local advertising
targeted at those passing through the area.
*
Most notably
... I was told that there "
might be a presidential candidate signature
" in the book. I was given the names of several candidates of the time period; most notably
JAMES G. BLAINE
of Maine (who narrowly lost in the 1884 election to Grover Cleveland) and
JAMES B. WEAVER
of Iowa (Populist Party candidate in 1892).
* I searched and analyzed the entries in the register and did
NOT
find anything looking like the name or signature of a presidential candidate...
* But then I stumbled across the
adjoining
names of (1) one of the most infamous of the late 1800s
ROBBER BARONS
--
JAY GOULD
of New York--and (2) an associate of his--
BOB INGERSOLL
of Chicago--who is also affiliated with
James Blaine
. I am guessing that this is the "presidential candidate affiliation" that I was told about.
* Regarding the connection between Gould and Ingersoll... Gould was of course a railroad magnate with major political influence.
Robert G. "Bob" Ingersoll
--note registry is signed Ingerso
l
(one L)--was the
Illinois Attorney General
and a prominent
Republican
with ties to
JAMES G. BLAINE
(see:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_G._Ingersoll
). In addition, I found a book review on a prominent book on the life of Gould in which Ingersoll is prominently quoted (but I cannot include a link due to it being from a "competitor" of eBay).
* I have taken close-up pics of the registry entries for
Gould
and
Ingersoll
. I checked the entries with signatures of the two found online and neither is what I think could be called a "close match." However, it seems clear that the two were likely at the Hotel and were signed in--
by someone
--on the day of
August 23, 1891
.
* If you are asking yourself why would these two major power brokers be doing in a small NE Iowa town, understand that in the late 1800s,
Nashua
was a
stop
on the
railroad line
for those going, say, from Council Buffs, IA or Omaha, NE--and other points West--to/from Chicago and Milwaukee.
* You will also see pictured an entry for a
JOHN L. SULLIVAN
(with place of residence listed as Buffalo, NY). The legendary champion boxer of the day was from
Boston
. I seriously
doubt
that it is the same John L. Sullivan.
* A
large, thick,
and
VERY
HEAVY
item... Measures approximately
12"
x
19"
x
3.5"
...
* Please
see pics
for additional details. Let me know if you have any
questions
(or
insight
you would like to share).
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See pics for condition
.
This is the
exact item
the winning bidder will receive.
HEAVILY USED & WORN
...
COVER
and
SPINE
are all connected/attached but with significant staining and cracking.
INNER PAGES
exhibit significant staining from ink--in the first third of the registry--and likely water/moisture throughout much of the entire piece. Most of the pages remain attached to the spine; maybe
10%
are
loose/detached
.
Please inspect pics carefully
BEFORE
bidding and
do not bid
if
you expect to receive items that are somehow "better" than the ones pictured and described here.
NO RETURNS...
SOLD
"AS IS"
WITH
NO GUARANTEE
OF ANY SORT...
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Packing & Shipping:
Buyer pays
$
25.00.
Ships in a sturdy
BOX
via
UPS
GROUND
service.
Ships to
USA
ONLY
.
YES,
I will
combine
auctions.
Please
wait
to pay until
after
you have received an updated invoice--with
discounted
shipping--FROM
ME
.
NOTE:
Due to the ongoing public health pandemic,
there may be delays in shipping
. We will do our best to send your item out within 1-2 business days but there maybe delays in transit with
USPS
. Thank you for your understanding and
please stay healthy
.
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