Lincoln, Abraham: Baylor, Thomas G.:

$15,000 · Offered by William Reese Company

[ENGRAVED COMMISSION ON VELLUM, ACCOMPLISHED IN MANUSCRIPT AND SIGNED "ABRAHAM LINCOLN," APPOINTING THOMAS G. BAYLOR AS SECOND LIEUTENANT IN THE ORDINANCE ... A very fine military commission printed on vellum and signed by Lincoln in the tense weeks leading to the outbreak of hostilities at Fort Sumter in April. After South Carolina officially adopted the Ordinance of Secession on December 20, hopes for a peaceful cure to the nation's ills were slim. Small skirmishes and strategic maneuvers, punctuated by more and more states joining the Confederacy, made the imminent need for an empowered military, and more military officers, abundantly clear by March.This document appoints Thomas G. Baylor as a Second Lieutenant in the Ordnance Department on March 19, and is evidence of that need. Baylor (1837–1890), born in Virginia, graduated from West Point in 1857, and was positioned at the Fort Monroe Arsenal from 1858–1861. Baylor took command of that Union stronghold behind Confederate lines on August 15, and remained its leader until October 20, 1863. He was then appointed Chief Ordnance Officer of the Army of the Cumberland, and was acting Chief Ordnance Officer of the Military Division of the Mississippi until August 1864. During this time, he fought at Missionary Ridge and was on Sherman's staff throughout the Carolina and Georgia campaigns. He was Brevetted Major for his services at Atlanta, then Lieutenant-Colonel for "gallant services in the capture of Savannah," eventually re

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