J Edgar Hoover Signature / Letter

Item Details

A hand signed letter to one Mr. Harry Holt, by the notable American figure John Edgar Hoover (January 1, 1895 – May 2, 1972), the first Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of the United States. Appointed director of the Bureau of Investigation—predecessor to the FBI—in 1924, he was instrumental in founding the FBI in 1935, where he remained director until his death in 1972 at age 77. Hoover is credited with building the FBI into a large and efficient crime-fighting agency, and with instituting a number of modernizations to police technology, such as a centralized fingerprint file and forensic laboratories. Late in life and after his death Hoover became a controversial figure, as evidence of his secretive actions became known. His critics have accused him of exceeding the jurisdiction of the FBI. He used the FBI to harass political dissenters and activists, to amass secret files on political leaders, and to collect evidence using illegal methods. Hoover consequently amassed a great deal of power and was in a position to intimidate and threaten sitting Presidents. According to President Harry S Truman, Hoover transformed the FBI into his private secret police force; Truman stated that ‘we want no Gestapo or secret police. FBI is tending in that direction. They are dabbling in sex-life scandals and plain blackmail… J. Edgar Hoover would give his right eye to take over, and all congressmen and senators are afraid of him’ Our letter, suspiciously clipped of its central contents, is dated 1968, and includes the original envelope. Please note that EBTH does not authenticate signatures; this example has been compared to examples online and we believe it to be authentic. Please preview personally for the best sense of the piece.

Condition

Good, with toning, etc

Dimensions

Item #

13CIN045-248