COLUMBUS, Ohio — For more than 150 years, the descendants of General William Tecumseh Sherman — Union Army hero and scourge of the Confederate States of America — have preserved and protected his personal effects and collection. But the time has come for these family heirlooms to move to new homes. Fleischer’s Auctions will bring nearly 250 lots to market Tuesday, May 14 as part of its Civil War & African American History: Sherman sale. A second day has been added as well, for Wednesday, May 15. The catalog is now available for review and bidding at LiveAuctioneers.
The Sherman family collection has many important and historic items, but two lots are incredible standouts. The first is Sherman’s personal first-edition copy of photographer George N. Barnard’s monumental work documenting Sherman’s Atlanta Campaign, the famous ‘March to the Sea,’ and Carolinas Campaign. Published in 1866 and primarily held by institutions, intact copies of Barnard’s work are exceedingly rare. Signed on the front end free paper by General Sherman’s son and custodian of his library, Philemon T. Sherman, this copy is offered at $60,000-$80,000.
The second star lot is General William T. Sherman’s wartime saber and military trunk. Offered directly by General Sherman’s descendants through his daughter, Maria ‘Minnie’ Ewing Sherman Fitch (1851-1913), both the sword and chest were preserved by generations of the Fitch-Sherman family until now. General Sherman’s wartime saber is a seldom-seen variant of a standard cavalry officer model produced by Christopher Roby of West Chelmsford, Massachusetts. This ‘special order’ saber features a 30.5in blade and would have been an ideal weapon. Sherman himself stated he did not wear a sword after he succeeded General Grant in command of the Western Theater of the war in early 1864, dating it to the period of Sherman’s service when he saw action in numerous engagements such as the Battle of Shiloh, in which he was wounded twice and had three horses shot dead underneath him. The sword carries an estimate of $40,000-$60,000.
In 1865, likely after the surrender of General Robert E. Lee at Appomattox, Sherman had his lieutenant general rank-insignia shoulder straps conveyed to a dark-velvet presentation mount and fitted with an engraved plaque reading W. T. Sherman / 1865 / Minnie Sherman Fitch. Later, his major general straps were added, possibly around 1872. This spectacular relic is estimated at $15,000-$30,000.
A final highlight is Sherman’s first edition copy of the Memoirs of U. S. Grant, in which he made numerous corroborating annotations as he read his friend’s accounts. On the last page of Volume I, Sherman wrote Read at St. Louis Mo. Dec 5 + 6, 1885. / This account of the Civil War is wonderfully accurate and him. W.T.S. The two-volume set with notes is estimated at $7,500-$15,000.
Day 2’s top lot is a remarkably well-documented First National Confederate flag captured in Nashville, Tennessee by Captain Charles Gibbs of the 69th Ohio Infantry. An August 13,1862 article in The Nashville Daily Union describes this flag’s capture: “On last Monday Captain Gibbs of the Sixty-ninth Ohio, on information given them searched the grocery of Mr. Buddeke on Market Sreet, and found a large and elegant rebel flag, which formerly belonged to one of the rebel companies of this place, concealed in the upper story of the building.” The flag is estimated at $15,000-$30,000.
