Oliver Rogers Barrett (October 14, 1873 – March 5, 1950) was an American lawyer, author, and prolific collector of
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...
artifacts.
Early life
Barrett was born in
Jacksonville, Illinois
Jacksonville is a city and the county seat of Morgan County, Illinois, United States. The population was 17,616 at the 2020 census, down from 19,446 in 2010. It is home to Illinois College, Illinois School for the Deaf, and the Illinois Sc ...
on October 14, 1873, but he grew up in
Pittsfield. As a child, he visited
Springfield and purchased some of his first Lincoln artefacts, which marked the beginning of his collection. By his teens, Barrett developed a passion for collecting and frequently advertised in weekly newspapers for autographs, artefacts, letters, and other materials, particularly those connected to Abraham Lincoln. He eventually received his law degree from
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...
in 1896, and made his career as a lawyer in
Peoria. His law work was temporarily interrupted while he in the
Spanish–American War
The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...
as a private in the Fifth Illinois Volunteers in April 1898. He left the army in November 1899 without having fought.
Lincoln collection
In 1905, Barrett moved from Peoria to
Chicago
Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
and developed an obsession with building his Abraham Lincoln collection. This collection earned him fame among Lincoln scholars and researchers, most notably
Carl Sandburg
Carl August Sandburg (January 6, 1878 – July 22, 1967) was an American poet, biographer, journalist, and editor. He won three Pulitzer Prizes: two for his poetry and one for his biography of Abraham Lincoln. During his lifetime, Sandburg w ...
, and they met in 1924, becoming friends
and then collaborators in the mid-1930s, with Sandburg also becoming a client of his law practice. With Sandburg's help, Barrett wrote a book entitled ''Lincoln's Last Speech in Springfield in the Campaign of 1858'' in 1924. Sandburg also wrote a book about Barrett's collection, ''Lincoln Collector: The Story of the Oliver R. Barrett's Great Private Collections'', published in 1949.
Death
Oliver R. Barrett died on March 5, 1950. State-wide efforts were made to have his collection purchased by the
Illinois State Historical Library, however these efforts failed, and his collection was sold at auction by
Parke-Bernet Galleries on February 19-20, 1952. Barrett's collection was valued at over $400,000.
References
Citations
Bibliography
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External links
Oliver Barrett-Carl Sandburg Papersat
Newberry Library
The Newberry Library is an independent research library, specializing in the humanities. It is located in Chicago, Illinois, and has been free and open to the public since 1887. The Newberry's mission is to foster a deeper understanding of our wo ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barrett, Oliver R.
1873 births
1950 deaths
University of Michigan Law School alumni
American military personnel of the Spanish–American War
Illinois lawyers