AUBURN, JANUARY 18, 1869 - DAVE BREED AND HIS GREAT FUTURE

A young man’s promise to study hard for the ministry is a lively pen-and-ink drawing of a bespectacled man seated at a desk, smoking a pipe. The drawing appears to be his humorous picture of himself preparing for that “great future.”

  • The future Reverend Breed

    AUBURN, N.Y., JAN 18, 1869 - Cover to Henry A. Breed, Pittsburgh, with upside-down 3-cent rose Washington, grilled, grill type unassigned, canceled by bold round crossroads. With three-page letter dated January 18, 1869, signed “Dave,” strongly attributed to David Riddle Breed, then an Auburn Theological Seminary student, writing to his brother Henry Atwood Breed. Original pen-and-ink drawing of a bespectacled pipe-smoking man at a desk, apparently a humorous self-portrait, beside his resolve to prepare for the ministry. Describes ten days in Grand Rapids; requests the name of a Pittsburgh Indian Herb Doctor and church plans with dimensions, organ size, and seating capacity. Envelope and letter show toning, wear, folds, and localized marks. Doctor, church, Johnnie, and bonnie unidentified.

  • DAVID BEFORE HIS MINISTRY

    David Riddle Breed was born June 10, 1848, making him twenty when he wrote this letter. The family record places him at Hamilton College, graduating in 1867, and at Auburn Theological Seminary, graduating in 1870. It records his call to the House of Hope Presbyterian Church in St. Paul on December 28, 1869, and the beginning of his work there after leaving the seminary in 1870. His January letter therefore belongs to the year immediately before his first pastorate. [1] The seminary’s own history independently identifies him as an Auburn graduate of 1870 and records that he declined a later appointment to its faculty in 1890. He became a Presbyterian minister, teacher, and author; his later writings included The History and Use of Hymns and Hymn-Tunes. I find the contrast especially engaging: the future religious author is here simply “Dave,” drawing himself with a pipe and joking that he had to leave his holiday or “the ministry must suffer.” [2, 6] HENRY AND THE PITTSBURGH BREED FAMILY The family genealogy lists Henry Atwood, Richard Edwards, and David Riddle among the children of George Breed and Rhoda Ogden Edwards. Henry, born in 1842, was David’s older brother. Richard Edwards, born in 1837, is a strong identification for the “Dick” asked to send church plans, although the letter supplies only the nickname. The same record describes Richard’s return to Pittsburgh in 1863 to succeed his father in the earthenware trade. [1] Henry had served as a second lieutenant in Company F, 155th Pennsylvania Infantry. The official army register records Second Lieutenant Henry A. Breed’s discharge on October 3, 1863. A published June 1863 letter from David to Henry supplies another example of the brothers’ correspondence. That earlier piece has wartime content; this January 1869 letter is postwar family and seminary correspondence. I would preserve that distinction in any description. [4, 5]

  • TRANSCRIPTION

    Auburn Jan’y. 18. 1869 Dear Henry— Back again! I stayed in Grand Rapids just ten days and had as magnificent time as I ever enjoyed. We had splendid weather and very fine driving but no snow. And now I am fully ready to buckle down to work. I have plenty of time to rusticate and am now rather anxious than otherwise to study hard—fitting myself for the great future which is before me. It was awful tough to leave Grand Rapids, Hen, but I had to do it or the ministry must suffer. Found Johnnie at the depot to meet me. His moustache is sprouting wonderfully! Now I have a couple of little things which I want you to do for me. First—find out for me the name of the Indian Herb Doctor whose office is on the corner of your alley & Liberty St. Second—ask Dick to send me a couple of plans of the church—and if he has such a thing as a printed acc’t of the dimensions send it too. I want to know any way—the length, breadth, height, size of organ, number of sittings &c &c. I know of nothing more which can be said—Your loving bro with much love to bonnie Dave

  • Collector's appeal

    What makes this Auburn cover especially appealing to me is the letter still with it. Beside a young man’s promise to study hard for the ministry is a lively pen-and-ink drawing of a bespectacled man seated at a desk, smoking a pipe. The drawing appears to be his humorous picture of himself preparing for that “great future.” I would call it an apparent self-portrait, since the manuscript does not label the figure. It is an original drawing within the letter, not printed stationery or a design on the envelope. The envelope is addressed to Henry A. Breed, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The letter is dated Auburn, January 18, 1869, opens “Dear Henry,” closes “Your loving bro,” and is signed “Dave.” I attribute it with strong confidence to David Riddle Breed writing to his older brother Henry Atwood Breed. The name, family relationship, Auburn location, date, and preparation for the ministry all fit the documented family and school records. This is a historical attribution supported by converging evidence, not a forensic handwriting certification. [1, 2]

  • POSTMARK, CROSSROADS CANCEL, AND GRILL

    The circular town marking reads AUBURN / N.Y., with the periods after N and Y, and JAN 18 at center. The letter supplies the year 1869. The stamp is applied upside down and is struck by a round crossroads cancellation.. The front image shows irregular texture under the heavy cancellation, but does not reveal a complete grill boundary or enough points for a reliable count. I cannot identify the grill. I would describe it as “3-cent rose Washington, grilled, grill type unassigned,” rather than choose Scott 88 or 94. The USPCS distinguishes E grills by fourteen points across, and F grills by eleven or twelve across, with overlapping vertical counts. Those counts are useful only when the full impression can be read. The January 1869 date is compatible with grilled stamps, but cannot decide the type. Physical examination with oblique light is the next useful step; I would keep the stamp on the cover. I have included no scarce-grill premium in the description. [7] CONDITION AND WHY I LIKE IT The envelope shows general toning and soiling, edge wear, handling creases, and a small brown spot toward the lower right of the address. The reverse retains its flaps and has visible creasing and discoloration. The stamp’s perforations are uneven, and there may be a small short or pulled perforation; the scan alone does not settle every fault. The letter has fold lines, show-through from the writing on the other side, and a noticeable brown mark crossing a line on the second scan. A small raised or embossed mark appears near the upper-left portion of the first page. I do not assign a stationer from it. The writing and drawing remain readily appreciable. The supplied scans show three written pages; there is no independent proof that an additional enclosure ever accompanied them. I see this as a pleasing combination of postal history, illustrated family correspondence, and the early life of a documented minister. The commonplace denomination and simple cancellation frame an enclosure with much more personality. I would call the drawing distinctive and engaging, without claiming it is unique or that no comparable illustrated letters survive.

  • REFERENCES

    [1] A Record of the Descendants of Allen Bread, who came to America from England in 1630 (Philadelphia, Hathaway & Brothers / Evans Printing House, 1892), family entries 192-193; PDF pages 144-146. Lists George and Rhoda’s children, Richard’s business, David’s studies, marriage, and first pastorate. https://louisamayalcottismypassion.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/00-a-record-of-the-descendants-of-allen-bread.pdf [2] John Quincy Adams, A History of Auburn Theological Seminary, 1818-1918 (Auburn Seminary Press, 1918), printed p. 144, PDF p. 182. David R. Breed, class of 1870; declined 1890 faculty election. https://www.christianebooks.com/pdf_files/historyofauburn.pdf [3] Kent County court marriage records, abstract 6:86, David Riddle Breed / Mary Elizabeth Kendall, June 16, 1870. An online abstract, not inspection of the original register image. https://www.migenweb.org/kent/marriages/court/1845-1870/b.html [4] Official Army Register of the Volunteer Force of the United States Army for the Years 1861-1865, Pennsylvania section, printed p. 994: Henry A. Breed discharged October 3, 1863. https://archive.org/stream/cu31924092911092/cu31924092911092_djvu.txt [5] Spared & Shared 22, “1863: David Riddle Breed to Henry Atwood Breed,” June 8, 2021, reproducing and transcribing the letter dated June 15, 1863. A related correspondence example; not provenance for this item. https://sparedshared22.wordpress.com/2021/06/08/1863-david-riddle-breed-to-henry-atwood-breed/ [6] Herringshaw’s National Library of American Biography, David Riddle Breed entry, printed p. 416, lists education, pastoral and teaching career, and publications. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/af/Herringshaw%27s_National_Library_of_American_Biography.pdf [7] United States Philatelic Classics Society, “The 1861-1868 Issues,” Types of Grills. https://www.uspcs.org/stamps-covers/uspod-issued-adhesives/the-1861-1868-issues/