Richard H. Anthony papers (Ms.2008.024)

The Richard H.Anthony papers, a small collection consisting of only six items, the bulk of which covers the first half of the twentieth century, includes two letters written to Anthony: one, dated October 6, 1923, from Charles Evans Hughes (Brown class of 1881) when he was United States Secretary of State; and the other, dated April 28, 1958, from Bernt Balchen, a renown aviation pioneer. Other items of interest in this collection include an original presentation copy of The American’s Creed, inscribed by William Tyler Page to Anthony and a small collection of autographs of Richard E. Byrd, a pioneering American polar explorer, aviator, and recipient of the Medal of Honor, and the co-pilots, Bernt Balchen, Bertand B. Acosta and George O. Noville, who accompanied Byrd on his famous transatlantic flight from New York to Normandy in 1927.

The collection also contains a tidbit of early Anthony family memorabilia: a personal, hand-written document, with an affixed, hand-made illustrated seal of the House of Anthony, signed by Anthony and his brother Gardiner when they were children, officially declaring their intention of respecting each other’s property rights. In addition, the collection includes a sales receipt from the car dealership, Dutee W. Flint of Providence, Inc., recording Anthony’s purchase of a Model A Ford Coupe on February 11, 1929.