Pony Express Cover to Lieutenant Catesby ap Roger Jones with Running Pony Handstamp and Two Different 1857 Issue Stamps for 10¢ and 3¢ Rates

Lot 4

10c Green, Ty. V (35). Straight edge at right and small flaws around perforations, tied by bold strike of blue “The Central Overland California & Pikes Peak Express Company, San Francisco, Cal. Oct. 27” (1860) oval datestamp, perfect matching strike of “Pony Express, San Francisco, Oct. 27” Running Pony oval datestamp on back of folded letter (can be folded open for display), addressed to “Catesby Ap R. Jones, , Washington City, Distr. Columbia” with sender’s route directive “Pony Express”, the trip was 11 days, one day after arrival the “The Central Overland California & Pikes Peak Express Company, St. Joseph, Mo. Nov. 8” oval datestamp was applied, lightly-inked but clear strike of “Saint Joseph Mo. Nov. 10” double-circle datestamp to the left of stamp, which was not cancelled by the St. Joseph post office—there are a few covers from this period that have stamps cancelled by the San Francisco Pony Express office oval, but do not have the St. Joseph grid—after reaching Washington D.C. the U.S. Navy Department applied forwarding instructions “Forward at once, New York, No. 12 West 35th St”, additional 3c postage paid by 3c Dull Red, Ty. III (26), scissors-separated with some clipped perfs, tied by large grid in circle cancel with second strike tying 10c stamp and matching “Washington D.C. Nov. 13, 1860” circular datestamp overlapping St. Joseph oval, pencil receipt docketing inside “B. W. Mudge– Oct 25th/60, Received–Nov 14th/60”, minor cosmetic improvements including lightened toning and rejoined separations along folds of address panel (no paper added), small repairs in crossed-out part of address where the ink has eroded the paper

A VERY FINE APPEARING AND REMARKABLE PONY EXPRESS LETTER ADDRESSED TO CATESBY Ap ROGER JONES, A UNITED STATES NAVAL OFFICER FROM WHO RESIGNED IN APRIL 1861 TO BECOME A LIEUTENANT IN THE CONFEDERATE STATES NAVY, AND WHO EARNED FAME FOR HIS ROLE IN THE BATTLE OF THE MONITOR AND THE MERRIMACK. THIS IS ONE OF ONLY THREE RECORDED PONY EXPRESS COVERS WITH MORE THAN ONE DENOMINATION OF THE 1857 ISSUE. IT IS ALSO THE ONLY FORWARDED COVER WITH A COMBINATION OF THE 10-CENT AND 3-CENT 1857 ISSUES.

FKW Census E33. Trip ET-43. Illustrated in Nathan-Boggs book (p. 23). Ex Haas.

Estimate $50,000-75,000

Lieutenant Catesby ap Roger Jones Catesby ap Roger Jones (1821-1877; the “ap” is a Welsh term for “son of ”) was born in Virginia and descended from a long line of prominent Americans, including three governors of Virginia, George Mason (the “Father of the Bill of Rights”) and General Robert E. Lee (first cousin of Jones’ mother). Jones was appointed U.S. Navy midshipman in 1836 and received his promotion to lieutenant in 1849. During the 1850’s, Jones was involved in naval weapons development and served as an ordnance officer on the U.S. steam frigate Merrimack. On April 17, the day

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SIEGEL AUCTION GALLERIES – 57 – MARCH 20, 2013 Lot 4 continued his native state of Virginia seceded, Jones resigned from the U.S. Navy in the office of Virginia’s governor, John Letcher, and joined the Virginia State Navy the next day. Shortly after, he received his commission as a C.S.A. Navy lieutenant. In 1861 Lieutenant Jones was ordered to convert the steam frigate USS Merrimack into an ironclad. He was the ship’s executive officer when it was commissioned as the CSS Virginia. During the Battle of Hampton Roads in March 1862, Jones assumed temporary command of the Virginia when the commanding officer was wounded in the attack on the USS Cumberland and Congress. Jones was at the helm during the Virginia’s epic battle with the USS Monitor, and he was rewarded for his heroism Lieutenant Catesby ap Roger Jones with a promotion to the rank of C.S.A. Navy Source: U.S. Naval Historical Center Commander. Jones spent the rest of the war overseeing the Ordnance Department at Selma, Alabama, where he met his future wife and eventually settled after the war. On June 20, 1877, Jones was shot and killed as a result of a feud between his son and another man’s son.

Chromolithograph of the Battle of Hampton Roads, published by Louis Prang & Co., Boston. In this epic battle, Lieutenant Catesby ap Roger Jones assumed temporary command of the CSS Virginia after his commanding officer was wounded.

SIEGEL AUCTION GALLERIES – 58 – MARCH 20, 2013 The Pony Express Letter from Benjamin W. Mudge This three-page letter was written to Lieutenant Jones by Benjamin W. Mudge in San Francisco, concerning the modification of a limited power of attorney for real estate transactions. Mudge, an attorney and Republican Party advocate, was subsequently appointed by President Lincoln as Appraiser of Merchandise for the Port of San Francisco on July 29, 1861. When he received this letter, Lieutenant Jones was visiting New York City after serving on the USS Pawnee. His mail, including Mudge’s letter sent by Pony Express, was forwarded from the Navy Department in Washington D.C. to 12 West 35th Street. The transactions in San Francisco might have been related to the estate of his uncle, Commodore Thomas ap Catesby Jones, another famous naval officer who signed the first U.S. treaty with the King of the Hawaiian Islands in 1824. Thomas Jones died in 1858 in San Francisco, and his estate was still under public administration in 1860 (San Francisco Bulletin, August 6, 1860).

Arrival of October 27 Eastbound Express on November 7 The eastbound Pony Express carrying this letter left San New York Commercial Advertiser, November 12, 1860, reporting arrival of October 27 Francisco at 4 p.m. on Saturday, October 27, and arrived at eastbound express at St. Joseph on St. Joseph at noon on Wednesday, November 7 (New York November 7 at noon. Commercial Advertiser, November 12, shown right). Lincoln was elected president on November 6, and the results reached St. Joseph the morning of November 7, coinciding with the arrival of the October 27 express. News of Lincoln’s election was telegraphed to Fort Kearney, the western end of the telegraph line, and at noon on November 7 the “special” Pony Express left from there, bound for Fort Churchill in Nevada (formerly Buckland’s Station), the nearest telegraph station. The Deseret News (November 14) reported that the special election-news express arrived at Salt Lake City on Sunday, November 11, at 3:50 p.m. Relying on the accuracy of this report, the 825-mile trip from Fort Kearney took 76 hours. It reached Fort Churchill at 8 a.m. on November 14, and Deseret News, November 14, 1860, reporting the news of Lincoln’s election immediately went out by wire. arrival of the November 7 “special” Pony The regular westbound express left St. Joseph at 8 a.m. Express from Fort Kearney, which carried the first news of Lincoln’s election, followed on Thursday, November 8, and arrived at Salt Lake City on by the regular November 8 westbound November 11 at 11:10 a.m. express from St. Joseph.

A Rare Combination of Adhesive Stamps on Pony Express Mail Pony Express covers with adhesive stamps used for U.S. postage, instead of embossed stamped envelopes, are relatively scarce. According to the FKW census, this is the only Pony Express cover with a 10c adhesive stamp and an additional 3c adhesive used for forwarding (one other forwarded cover has a 3c adhesive on a 10c embossed stamped envelope). The stamps pay the 10c over-3,000 miles rate required on Pony Express mail from California and the 3c under-3,000 miles rate for forwarding from Washington D.C. to New York City.

SIEGEL AUCTION GALLERIES – 59 – MARCH 20, 2013