Description
Inscribed by President William H. Taft, the program for the Union League of Philadelphia: Golden Anniversary, February, 12, 1913, one of the final public addresses of President Taft during his term in office.
Octavo, [4], 30pp, [12]. White vellum, title printed in gilt on the front cover. Includes frontispiece portrait of the Union League and engraved portrait of Abraham Lincoln, both with tissue covers. This program includes a list of officers, a copy of the Gettysburg address, and an address by former Governor of New York, Frank S. Black, on the life of Abraham Lincoln. Includes the publisher’s original white cardboard box, with light soiling to covers, wear at hinges.
This work is signed on the front cover of the program: “Sincerely yours / Wm H. Taft / July 12, 1913 / For Geo. K. Johnston.”
On February 12, 1913, President William Howard Taft was the keynote speaker at the Union League of Philadelphia’s annual Lincoln Birthday Banquet. This engagement marked one of Taft’s final public appearances as President, with the inauguration of Woodrow Wilson to follow on March 4th, the next month. The event at the Union Club, marking the 50th Anniversary of the club, President Taft remarked that he “foresees a reunited republican party in the near future,” after the divide between progressive and establishment concerns during the 1912 election year. During the 1912 Republican primary, the Union Club endorsed Taft over Roosevelt, which divided the club and reflected the division within the party.
