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Lot #539
Charles Lindbergh

A momentary stop during his historic air survey: “We are very anxious to see some of the people who live in the vicinity where my father and grandfather came from”

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Description

A momentary stop during his historic air survey: “We are very anxious to see some of the people who live in the vicinity where my father and grandfather came from”

ALS signed “Charles A. Lindbergh,” two pages, 5.5 x 8.75, Kungl. Automobilklubbens Hotell letterhead, September 16, 1933. Letter to Laurence Steinhardt, US Minister to Sweden. In full: “The authorization for landing at Leningrad came this afternoon. I have been unable to reach you by phone so I will outline our plans in this note. We expect to fly to Karlskrona tomorrow. We are very anxious to see some of the people who live in the vicinity where my father and grandfather came from. I hope that we may do so this time without also meeting the entire press. We would rather not meet people at all than do so in front of a battery of cameras and sentimentalists. We hope to spend a day or two at Karlskrona and in Skane; then fly direct to Leningrad. We have been in contact with the Norwegian minister and have received tentative authority to fly over and land in Norway. We will notify him of the exact time and route as soon as we can be sure ourselves. We want you to know how much we appreciate all that you have done for us in Stockholm. We enjoyed greatly meeting the Legation staff and the other guests at the dinner at the grand hotel.” Impressively double-cloth-matted and framed with an image and nameplate to an overall size of 37 x 22. In fine condition, with an unobtrusive diagonal crease to lower right.

In the summer of 1933, Lindbergh and his wife made a lengthy scouting tour of Europe in their Lockheed Sirius, flying around Greenland, Denmark, Sweden, and Finland to survey air routes for Pan Am—then they went on to visit Leningrad, Moscow, Wales, Holland, Switzerland, Spain, and Portugal before departing from the continent for western Africa, where they prepared for what was to be a successful flight across the South Atlantic to Brazil. By the time they arrived home five months later, they had clocked 29,000 miles and been to 23 countries in one of the most remarkable air journeys of all time. While on the trip, Lindbergh decided to seek out his ancestral homeland and visited the house where his grandfather, August, had lived before fleeing for the US under accusations of bribery and embezzlement. An especially interesting letter as it combines his personal and professional lives, discussing both his genealogy and the course for the next leg of his journey. RR Auction COA.

Auction Info

  • Auction Title: Rare Manuscript, Document & Autograph
  • Dates: #420 - Ended December 11, 2013