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Scarce free franked mailing envelope, 5.25 x 3, addressed in the hand of Abraham Lincoln to “Hon. W. J. Otto, 308 F Street, Washington,” and signed crisply in the upper right with his franking signature, “A. Lincoln.” In very good to fine condition, with expected opening tears to the top edge, impinging on but not touching the signature. Encapsulated in a PSA/DNA authentication holder.
The recipient, William Tod Otto (1816–1905), was a judge and the eighth reporter of decisions of the United States Supreme Court. A Pennsylvania native, Otto moved west and practiced law in Indiana, eventually becoming a judge. A personal friend of fellow Indiana attorney Abraham Lincoln, Otto headed the Indiana delegation to the 1860 Republican National Convention that nominated Lincoln for the presidency. Subsequently, Otto was among those instrumental in delivering Indiana, a key swing state, to Lincoln in the presidential election.
Lincoln appointed him Assistant Secretary of the Interior after the previous man in the position, John Palmer Usher, was promoted to Secretary of the Interior. Anticipating the outbreak of southern hostilities, Lincoln wanted Otto to be involved in military organization. He served in the Interior Department from 1863 to 1871. According to The New York Times, Judge Otto was among those surrounding Lincoln's bedside when the President died after being shot by John Wilkes Booth.
