27th President of the United States (1857–1930) and the only man to serve as both President and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. TLS signed “Wm. H. Taft” in brown ink, one page, 8 x 10.5 inches, on official White House / Washington letterhead, dated April 9, 1910. Addressed to Mr. John A. Stewart, 135 Broadway, New York, the letter reads in full: “My dear Mr. Stewart: The delicious maple syrup has been received, and I am very much obliged to you for your thoughtfulness. We shall all enjoy it. With all good wishes, believe me, Sincerely yours, Wm. H. Taft.” Light folds, some toning and a paper remnant at lower right from prior album mounting; text and signature fully legible. Good to Very Good condition.
The letter dates from the second year of Taft’s single presidential term (1909–1913), a period in which he was simultaneously managing a vast legislative agenda while presiding over one of the most contentious splits in Republican Party history — the growing rift with his predecessor and former patron Theodore Roosevelt that would eventually fracture the GOP and cost Taft re-election in 1912. Against that turbulent backdrop, the warmth and easy humor of this note, the President of the United States personally acknowledging a gift of maple syrup with genuine good cheer, is entirely characteristic of the man his contemporaries knew as the most affable occupant of the White House in a generation. The recipient, John A. Stewart of 135 Broadway, was a prominent New York financier and civic figure, adding a further layer of social context to an already delightful document.
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