An amazing piece of USS Indianapolis history in the form of a signed 1933 letter from. Smeallie Captain US Navy, Commanding Officer USS Indianapolis. To well known American artist Lucy Taggart , the daughter of Indiana political boss of the Democratic Party Thomas. More specifically Miss Taggart was the. Typed on September 5, 1933 on official. Logo letterhead the letter reads as follows. My dear Miss Taggart. We have decided that a bulkhead space just outside my cabin and adjoining the trophy cabinet should be set aside for photographs of notable persons connected with the ships life and history. Of course, we must have a photograph of you. As ships sponsor your picture belongs there first of all. So, this is a request that you add to your many other kindnesses this additional one. I hope you have no objections; your compliance will make us most happy. We are enjoying a delightful cruise with the Secretary of the Navy on board. Base of letter signed by Smeallie and boasts a brilliant full length signature as well as his title. Letter boasts official Presidental seal watermark when held to the light. Letter in Excellent overall condition. Exhibits only gentle signs of wear and horizontal fold lines. Named for the city of. Launched in 1931, the vessel served as the. For the commander of. For eight years, then as flagship for. In 1943 and 1944 while he commanded the. In battles across the. Completed a top-secret high-speed trip to deliver parts of Little Boy. The first nuclear weapon. Ever used in combat, to the United States Army Air Force Base. On the island of Tinian. And subsequently departed for the Philippines. By the Imperial Japanese Navy. And sank in 12 minutes. The remaining 890 faced exposure. While stranded in the open ocean with few lifeboats and almost no food or water. The Navy only learned of the sinking four days later, when survivors were spotted by the crew of a PV-1 Ventura. On 19 August 2017, a search team financed by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. Located the wreckage of the sunken cruiser in the Philippine Sea. Lying at a depth of approximately 18,000 ft (5,500 m). On 20 December 2018, the crew of the. Was collectively awarded a Congressional Gold Medal. Provenance comes directly from the family of the Honorable Thomas Taggart (Senator, Mayor of Indianapolis and Chairman of the National Democratic Committee) and more specifically his great grandson David Chambers b. Chambers is a retired college professor of Law who taught at the University of Michigan for nearly 40 years. His grandmother was Nora Taggart, his great uncle was Thomas Taggart Jr. And his great aunt was Lucy Taggart. Please note we will be listing several letters from this collection with the majority addressed to Thomas Taggart as well as his son and daughter Thomas and Lucy. Chambers is a graduate of Princeton University and Harvard Law School. He practiced in Washington and served on the staff of the National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders. He is the author of. An empirical inquiry into the enforcement of child support. He is noted for work on the differing experiences of men and women in the law profession as well as for work on AIDS and on child custody, same-sex marriage, and other issues in family law. He has served as president of the Society of American Law Teachers and as co-chair of the Task Force on Diversity in Law Schools for the Association of American Law Schools. He began his academic career at Michigan in 1969 and retired in 2002 to write fiction. The Old Whitaker Place. Is the co-winner of the 2009 Miami University Press Novella Contest. It was published in June 2010. Source: University Michigan Law Faculty Biographies. (November 17, 1856 March 6, 1929) was the political boss of the. For the first quarter of the twentieth century and remained an influential political figure in local, state, and national politics until his death. Taggart was elected auditor of. His mayoral administration supported public improvements, most notably the formation of the city’s. Park and boulevard system. He also served as a member of the. (19001916) and as its chairman (19041908). Taggart was appointed to the. In March 1916, but lost the seat in the November election. Born immigrant, came to the. In 1861 at the age of five, grew up in. And moved to Indiana as a teenager. In 1877, he began a successful career as an hotelier, financier, and politician. As the party’s county chairman during. Taggart helped him carry Marion County over. In 1908 Taggart assisted in securing the Democratic nomination of. He was also involved in securing the nomination of. And Marshall for vice president in 1912, as well as. S nomination in the 1920. In addition to his political activities, Taggart was the owner and developer of the. French Lick Springs Hotel. He also maintained a summer home at. Thomas Taggart was born on November 17, 1856, to Thomas and Martha Kingsbury Taggart in. And immigrated with his family to the United States in 1861 at the age of five. The Taggarts settled in. Where Thomas senior worked at a local railroad depot. Young Taggart left high school early to work full-time at the depot’s hotel and restaurant. In 1875, when young Thomas was 18, his employer, the N. Ohmer Company, sent him to. To work in the restaurant at DeKalb House, a depot hotel. Thomas remained at Garrett until 1877, when he was transferred to. To work as a clerk for the Ohmer company’s dining hall/restaurant at the city’s. Known as a hard worker, Taggart became the depot restaurant’s manager and eventually its sole owner in the new Union Station. In 1878, a year after his move to Indianapolis, Taggart married Eva Dora Bryant (18531937). Whom he met while living in Garrett. Thomas and his wife were the parents of six children, five daughters and one son. Florence Eva (18781899) died tragically in a yachting accident in the Gulf of Mexico. (18801960) became an accomplished artist and art educator at the. John Herron Art Institute. In Indianapolis; Nora (born 1881), a. Graduate, married David L. Chambers, who became president and chairman of the. Irene Mary (born 1883) married a physician from. Emily Letitia (born 1888) married William R. Sinclair, an executive with Kingan and Company, an Indianapolis-based meatpacker; and Thomas Douglas (born 1886) graduated from. And in 1912 assumed management of the. Thomas and Eva Taggart also had nine grandchildren. (March 7, 1880 October 9, 1960) was an artist and art educator from. And the daughter of. A successful hotelier and influential Indiana politician. Recognized as a talented and versatile artist during a career that spanned the first three decades of the twentieth century, she studied with several noted artists, such as. Taggart, who was especially known for her portraiture, received the. Irving Holcomb Prize in 1922, the. S Merit Award for figure composition in 1925, and the Hoosier Salon’s Merit Award in 1926 for best picture painted by a woman. Her work is represented in the collections of the. Indianapolis Museum of Art. Measures 10 1/2 x 8. Please enjoy the photos for further item details and if you have any questions feel free to ask. This item ships Worldwide. Thank you and be sure to check out our other listings! The item “1933 USS Indianapolis Honolulu Signed Letter J. M. Smeallie US Navy Lucy Taggart” is in sale since Saturday, August 29, 2020. This item is in the category “Collectibles\Transportation\Boats & Ships\Military\Other Naval Collectibles”. The seller is “massachusettsantiques” and is located in Northfield, Massachusetts. This item can be shipped worldwide.
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- Country/Region of Manufacture: United States