Oliver R. Barrett
 | This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these template messages)
|
_(cropped).jpg)
Oliver Roger Barrett (1873-1950) was a lawyer, author, and prolific collector of Abraham Lincoln artefacts.[1]
Barrett was born in Jacksonville, Illinois on October 14, 1873,[2] but grew up in Pittsfield, Illinois.[3] By his late teens, Barrett developed a passion for collecting and frequently advertised in weekly newspapers for autographs, artefacts, letters, and other materials, particularly those connected to Abraham Lincoln. He eventually received his law degree from University of Michigan in 1896, though his law work was temporarily interrupted while he in the Spanish–American War as a private in the Fifth Illinois Volunteers in 1898.[2]
Barrett continued his career as a lawyer in Peoria, Illinois,[2] and developed an obsession with building his Abraham Lincoln collection. This collection earned him fame among Lincoln scholars and researchers, most notably Carl Sandburg, and they met in 1924[2], becoming friends and collaborators in mid-1930s[4], with Sandburg also becoming a client of his law practice. With Sandburg's help, Barrett wrote a book entitled Lincoln's Last Speech in Springfield in the Campaign of 1858 in 1924. Sandburg also wrote a book about Barrett's collection, Lincoln Collector: The Story of the Oliver R. Barrett's Great Private Collections, published 1949.
Oliver R. Barrett died in 1950. His collection was sold at auction by Parke-Bernet Galleries on February 19-20, 1952.[5]
References[edit]
- ^ "Members of the Hall of Distinction - The Manuscript Society". The Manuscript Society. Archived from the original on May 10, 2024. Retrieved May 10, 2024.
Oliver Rogers Barrett (1873-1950) was a Chicago attorney and Lincoln collector extraordinaire.
- ^ a b c d "Oliver Barrett: Lincoln Collector - Illinois History & Lincoln Collections". publish.illinois.edu. April 30, 2019. Archived from the original on May 10, 2024. Retrieved May 10, 2024.
- ^ "Members of the Hall of Distinction - The Manuscript Society". The Manuscript Society. Archived from the original on May 10, 2024. Retrieved May 10, 2024.
Barrett, who grew up in Pittsfield, Illinois.
- ^ "Barrett, Oliver R. Papers, 1933-1952 | Illinois History and Lincoln Collections". Illinois Library. Archived from the original on May 10, 2024. Retrieved May 10, 2024.
Barrett's collection of Lincoln materials caught the interest of Sandburg, and the two became friends and collaborators starting in the mid-1930s.
- ^ Lincoln, Abraham (2008). The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln (4th ed.). Wildside Press. pp. viii. ISBN 9781434476982.
External links[edit]
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
