Address to the Citizens of Pittsburgh, July 9, 1833, by Daniel Webster

Daniel Webster came to Pittsburgh on the evening of July 4, 1833, and was met by a Committee who presented him a letter which read, in part, "...It will be very gratifying if your convenience will permit you to partake of a Public Dinner at any period during your stay...". Mr. Webster's reply, delivered by letter the next day, read, in part, "...It is my purpose, gentlemen, to stay a day or two among you, to see such of your manufactories and public institutions, as it may be in my power to visit. I most respectfully pray leave to decline a public dinner; but shall have great pleasure in meeting such of your fellow-citizens as may desire it, in the most friendly and unceremonious manner...". A meeting at a "spacious grove" , with "refreshments of a plain kind" was then set up where Mr. Webster, after an introduction by the Mayor, addressed the citizens of Pittsburgh.

This First Edition copy of the 32 page, 5 x 8 ¼ inch booklet contains the Committee's letter, Mr. Webster's reply, the Mayor's introduction, and the complete text of Mr. Webster's Address to the Citizens of Pittsburgh, July 9, 1833.

The booklet, which was published by Joseph T. Buckingham of Boston in 1833, is without covers. The pages are very slightly tanned, but the text is clear and easily read. There is errata listed on page 6. There are markings on the title page that represent the prior ownership of the booklet by the Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio. The overall condition of the item is good to very good.

The illustrations accompanying this description show the title page and the first page of Mr. Webster's Address.

Daniel Webster (January 18, 1782 – October 24, 1852) was a leading American statesman during the nation's Antebellum Period. His increasingly nationalistic views and the effectiveness with which he articulated them led Webster to become one of the most famous orators and influential Whig leaders of the Second Party System. As a leader of the Whig Party, he was one of the nation's most prominent conservatives, leading opposition to Democrat Andrew Jackson and the Democratic party. During his forty years in national politics Webster served in the House of Representatives for ten years (representing New Hampshire), the Senate for nineteen years (representing Massachusetts), and served as the Secretary of State for three presidents. As with his fellow Whig Henry Clay, Webster's desire to see the Union preserved and civil war averted led him to search out compromises designed to stave off the sectionalism that threatened war between the Northern States and those of the South. Webster tried and failed three times to become President of the United States. In 1957, a Senate Committee selected Webster as one of the five greatest U.S. Senators, along with Henry Clay, John C. Calhoun, Robert La Follette, and Robert Taft. [Wikipedia]