Alexander (Hamilton) Stephens Autographed Letter Signed (ALS) - $550.00

Alexander Hamilton Stephens (1812-1883).  American lawyer & politician from Georgia. He was Vice President of the Confederate States of America during the  Civil War. He also served as a U.S. Representative from Georgia (both before the Civil War and after Reconstruction) and as the 50th Governor of Georgia from 1882 until his death in 1883
 Stephens,  orphaned at 14 years old, frail & left in dire financial straits but precocious, acquired his continued education through the generosity of benefactors. One of them the Presbyterian minister Alexander Hamilton Webster. Out of respect for his mentor, Stephens adopted Webster’s middle name, Hamilton, as his own 

 As a lawyer he gained a reputation as a capable defender of the wrongfully accused. Not one of his clients charged with capital crimes was executed.  A notable case was that of a female slave accused of attempted murder.  Stephens volunteered to defend her despite the circumstantial evidence presented against her.  Stephens persuaded the jury to acquit  her and saved her life. 

Stephens  became a near-constant force in state and national politics for a half century  rising  to political prominence, having been a Whig, Constitutionalist & Democrat!
 After the Civil War Stephens was elected to the U.S. Senate, but that body refused to seat the former vice president of the Confederacy. He then was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives and finally as governor, an office he held for only a few months before he died. 

The ALS offered is an answer to an apologetic request for an autograph of  Stonewall Jackson.   In part:  My Dear Sir, Your….letter ….arrived this morning and I want to say that I cannot ….. the information to desired – Very Truly  Alexander Stephens.  The letter is dated  19 April  1873   Liberty Hall  Crawfordville, GA

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