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Historic lottery ticket neatly signed at the conclusion in ink, "G:o Washington," one page, 3.75 x 1.25, for the "Mountain Road Lottery" held in 1768. In full: "This ticket [No. 349] shall entitle the Possessor to whatever Prize may happen to be drawn against it's Number in the Mountain Road Lottery." These lottery tickets were printed several at a time on larger sheets before being cut. Mounted within an antique frame to an overall size of 7.5 x 4.75. In fine condition. Accompanied by a full letter of authenticity from JSA.
A 1938 newspaper clipping affixed to the frame's reverse attests to its provenance: "The first session of the sale of the Erskine Hewitt collection was held last night at the Parke-Bernet galleries, 742 Fifth Avenue. There will be seven sessions. The first offerings were historical Americana from the Hewitt collection. Proceeds of the sale totaled $4,447, and the item that brought the most money was a lottery ticket dated 1768, signed by George Washington. The lottery was run for the building of a mountain road in Virginia. The ticket was bought last night by a private collector of Americana, for $280."
With Captain Thomas Bullitt and others, Washington conceived a lottery as a way to raise funds to build a road through the Allegheny Mountains in Virginia and to construct a resort in the area now known as The Homestead, Hot Springs, Virginia. The effort ultimately met with little success, hampered by competition from other lotteries, and in 1769 King George III prohibited lotteries altogether. Though 6,000 Mountain Road Lottery tickets were intended for sale, surviving examples are remarkably few, with only about 25 known today. This is an unusually desirable and displayable Washington autograph format—scarce and directly tied to his early interests in the development of Virginia.
This item is Pre-Certified by PSA/DNA
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