A 1p typed letter signed by William H. Taft (1857-1930), former 27th U.S. President and sitting Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, as "Wm H Taft" at the center. Written at Taft's summer home in Pointe-au-Pic, Quebec, Canada on August 6, 1927 on a single sheet of "Supreme Court of the United States / Washington, D.C." letterhead. Expected wear including gently flattened paper folds, else near fine. 8" x 10.5."

Taft wrote this letter to his nephew, Walbridge S. Taft (1886-1951), the youngest son of Taft's younger brother Henry Waters Taft (1859-1945).

In part: "Mr. Seymour's address is George Dudley Seymour, Second National Bank Building, New Haven, Connecticut. I am afraid that the picture which he is circulating is not one that testifies greatly to the pulchritude of the Class of '78…"

It is unknown what exactly prompted William H. Taft's comments about Seymour's critical portrait of Yale University's Class of 1878, Taft's graduating class. Both William H. Taft's brother Henry and nephew Walbridge had also attended Yale (Classes of 1880 and 1907 respectively.) While at first glance the tone of the letter appears disapproving, it is more probable that Taft was being humorous since George Dudley Seymour was a close personal friend. George Dudley Seymour (1859-1945) was a historian, philanthropist, and prominent citizen of New Haven, Connecticut who had received an honorary graduate degree from Yale University in 1913. A champion of the arts and letters, Seymour was a leading advocate of urban beautification programs.

William H. Taft and his wife Helen H. Taft vacationed for over forty years at a summer residence at Pointe-au-Pic near Charlevoix facing Murray Bay in southern Quebec. Their summer home, Fassifern Cottage, was a hodgepodge of add-ons and ells, ever-expanding to accommodate the growing Taft family and their house guests. The Midwestern Tafts were famous for their warm hospitality and enthusiastic entertaining. The Taft’s summer season usually culminated with William’s birthday bash on September 15th, where it was not uncommon for Helen to feed up to eighty guests.

In 1927, William H. Taft was over halfway through his tenure as 10th Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court; he would die on the bench three years later. He had served as president from 1909-1913.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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