Height x Width: 3 1/8 x 5 1/2 in. (7.94 x 13.97 cm)
Type:
Covers & Associated Letters
Date:
February 25, 1973
Description:
This cover was franked by Senator Roscoe Conkling in 1873. It has a hand applied Washington, D. C. Congress Free cancellation. On January 31, 1873 the free frank was abolished by Congress, so this is among the last free franks of that era. Conklin was a Whig who was elected to the Senate as a Republican in 1867 after serving six years in the House of Representatives. He was a strong supporter of Abraham Lincoln's conducet of the Civil War. He resigned in 1881 after a policy dispute with President Garfield. He declined a nomination to the Supreme Coute in 1882.
