Note: Please see Day 3 (October 11) of the sale that features rare material relating to the Gettysburg Address.

1865. Inauguration Day. Engraved ticket inscribed. Signed by Sergeant at Arms of the U.S. Senate, George T. Brown. [Washington, D.C.], 4 March 1865. 3 7/8 x 2 1/4 in. With original envelope addressed to the Hon. M. Kalbfleisch. 4 3/8 x 2 5/8 in. 

A rare ticket of entry to Abraham Lincoln's second inauguration in Washington, D.C., on 4 March 1865. The ticket was issued, together with the original transmittal envelope, to the family of the Hon. Martin Kalbfleisch (1804-1873). A large number "4" is also inscribed on the card, probably indicating a seating section they were assigned to. 

Kalbfleisch was a Dutch immigrant who settled in New York City in 1826 and became a successful manufacturer of paints and later chemicals, establishing a factory in 1844. In the 1850s, he launched a political career serving as a Brooklyn alderman from 1855 to 1861 and was elected Mayor of Brooklyn in 1862, serving until 1864. In 1863, he was elected as a Democrat to the U.S. House of Representatives, notably voting against the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. He was elected to another term as Mayor of Brooklyn near the end of his life, serving from 1867 to 1871.  

RARE. We located only one other such invitation sold at auction. 

[Ephemera, Pamphlets, Publications, Booklets] [Abraham Lincoln, Politics, Mary Todd Lincoln, 1860 Election, Election of 1860, 1864 Election, Election of 1864,  Lincoln Assassination, John Wilkes Booth]