1903 Robert E. Peary Autograph Note Signed – Arctic Explorer and North Pole Expedition Leader
Original autograph note signed by Robert E. Peary, the renowned American Arctic explorer whose 1908–1909 expedition produced one of history’s most famous—and most debated—claims of reaching the geographic North Pole.
Peary wrote this note in Washington, D.C., on May 11, 1903, using official letterhead of the Navy Department’s Bureau of Yards and Docks. Addressed to the Engineering News Publishing Company, it reads:
“Kindly send copy of your catalogue of publications, & oblige. Yours truly, R. E. Peary, U.S.N.”
Peary was then serving as a commander in the United States Navy’s Civil Engineer Corps. He had already completed several major Arctic expeditions and demonstrated that Greenland was an island. Only six years later, accompanied by Matthew Henson and four Inughuit men, Peary would claim to have reached the North Pole on April 6, 1909. Congress formally recognized his achievement and promoted him to rear admiral in 1911, although the precise extent of his final journey remains debated.
An appealing, fully handwritten example connecting Peary’s naval engineering career with the period between his major Arctic expeditions.
Condition: Tipped onto a backerboard. Original mailing folds, toning, scattered staining and handling wear. Separation or old repair along the upper edge and apparent mounting or adhesive residue near the lower margin. The writing and bold signature remain readily legible. Please examine the photograph carefully.
Original autograph note signed by Robert E. Peary, the renowned American Arctic explorer whose 1908–1909 expedition produced one of history’s most famous—and most debated—claims of reaching the geographic North Pole.
Peary wrote this note in Washington, D.C., on May 11, 1903, using official letterhead of the Navy Department’s Bureau of Yards and Docks. Addressed to the Engineering News Publishing Company, it reads:
“Kindly send copy of your catalogue of publications, & oblige. Yours truly, R. E. Peary, U.S.N.”
Peary was then serving as a commander in the United States Navy’s Civil Engineer Corps. He had already completed several major Arctic expeditions and demonstrated that Greenland was an island. Only six years later, accompanied by Matthew Henson and four Inughuit men, Peary would claim to have reached the North Pole on April 6, 1909. Congress formally recognized his achievement and promoted him to rear admiral in 1911, although the precise extent of his final journey remains debated.
An appealing, fully handwritten example connecting Peary’s naval engineering career with the period between his major Arctic expeditions.
Condition: Tipped onto a backerboard. Original mailing folds, toning, scattered staining and handling wear. Separation or old repair along the upper edge and apparent mounting or adhesive residue near the lower margin. The writing and bold signature remain readily legible. Please examine the photograph carefully.
