This includes John Lentall estate papers who was an Naval Architect. This is a great historical find attributing to the history of a signed Samuel Colt along with board of Naval and Marine officers. This collection of vintage documents contains patents, experiment, military correspondents and the new safety and reliability of Modern weapons of the day. This is a great quality signature. John Lenthall (1807–1882) was an important American shipbuilder and naval architect in the mid-19th century. He was responsible for the construction and repair of United States Navy ships during the American Civil War (1861–1865), as well as in the years immediately before and after it. His career spanned the U.S. Navy?'s transition from sail to steam propulsion and from wooden ships to ironclads, and in retirement he participated in early planning for an eventual steel navy. The younger John Lenthall began his career in 1823, when as a teenager he became an employee of the United States Department of the Navy at the Washington Navy Yard in Washington, D.C., where his father had once worked as Superintendent of Shipwrights. Report 1: 14 pages Great assortment of original reports dating to 1840 - 1850s May 18th 1840 Samuel Colt’s Letter to the Secretary of Navy, Board of Navy and Marine Officers documenting 6 part testing experimental breech loading rifles having higher force in reguards to the patent on repeating rifles The Report goes in detail to the safety, force, accuracy, and reliability of Samuel Colt Improved design. Samuel Colt Signed “On Blue” Letter to the President attached signature. Correspondents between Samuel Colt to members of Board of Navy detailing the experiments and testing 6 phases atFort Jupitor, Lieutenant Colonel Harney commanding 2nd Dragoons Colonel D. E. Twiggs Lieut and Secretary 2 Dragoons The Letters speak about features of Samuel Colt’s repeating rifles’ durability and speed of reload. Report 2: 15 pages: The President Franklin Pierce February. 23 1854 U.S. Steam Frigate Susquehanna Legation Of the United States Honorable Daniel Webster, Secretary of State and Robert C. Schenck Minister of Foreign Affairs detailing Rio De Janeiro Repairs. This list of correspondents give record of eleven thousand four hundred two dollar and ninety cents at conversion rate of 1000 Reis to the dollar in expense repairs. Report 3: 1st Patent 1802 Prefected 1815 Feb 13, 1857 Patent Document to Mr. Stranahan from Committee of Naval Affairs Charles Olcott First conceived idea constructing Sea-going vessel of iron and filed Patent in 1802 Report 4: 6 pages Jan 25th 1858 to Secretary of war John B. Floyd Calling for surveys of Potomac River. Report 5: Historic map hand drawn of Circa 1824 Map of North America extending north to Canada and as far south as Panama along with Caribbean Sea by Lowell Coolidge No. 2.