PBA Galleries

In full: "Dear Sir, I am very glad to do as you desire. H. Melville." Provenance: The John H. Gourlie collection. John H. Gourlie of New York City was an author and ardent supporter of the Union cause during the Civil War. He served as Chairman of the Finance Committee of the New York Metropolitan Fair in 1864, which raised $1,183,506.23 for the United States Sanitary Commission. Gourlie was an avid collector of autographs from 1850 to 1880. Herman Melville autograph letters are quite rare.