Certificate of Appreciation
- Signed
- Used
Seller: Main Street Fine Books & Mss, ABAA, Galena, IL, U.S.A.Main Street Fine Books & Mss, ABAA
AbeBooks seller since March 11, 1998
Condition: Used
£ 535.14
Quantity: 1 available
Add to basketItem description from seller
This son of a wealthy Minnesota hardware merchant was a childhood friend of F. Scott Fitzgerald, who lived nearby. They were born months apart, hung out together along with Donald's sister Alida in the summers at the Bigelow's White Bear Lake home (the setting for Fitzgerald's 1922 story "Winter Dreams," a kind of blueprint for "The Great Gatsby"). Both graduated high school in 1914, both attended Princeton University and both departed in 1917 -- Bigelow to join the American Ambulance Corps of the American Field Service, Fitzgerald to join the U.S. Army, accepting a commission as a second lieutenant. After the war, Bigelow joined the foreign service and in the mid-1920s became a consular officer in the passport division at the U.S. Consul in Paris, while Fitzgerald became a literary sensation with "This Side of Paradise" and with Zelda lived in Paris around this same time, though whether the two childhood friends reconnected is not known. Large framed partly-printed certificate (entirely in French), 28" X 24", n.p., n.d. Near fine. Printed entirely in French on a creamy buff stock, this ornate certificate features at top the large bald eagle of the American Ambulance Corps and draped French and American flags, with partly-printed text running below this. At left are two standing colonial military figures (with dates "1776-1783" in red) and at right two standing military figures (an A.F.S. volunteer with arm around a French soldier) and the dates in red "1914-1917." Roughly translated, the text reads top to bottom, in a variety of type sizes, some in red: "For France / and the Absolute French Way / Mr. Donald Fairchild Bigelow / Served as a Volunteer in / The American Field Service / from 10 May 1917 to 19 November 1917 / Faithful to the Ancestral Friendship of France and the / United States, and preceding the American Army, / He Served the French Army in the / War for Rights / in a Fast Campaign in the Aisne Region, / on the Ladies' Path, Serving as a / Truck Driver in the Section / T.M.U. 133." Signing boldly below this is A. Piatt Andrew and below him Stephen Galatti. Below this is the French coat of arms and the A.F.S.'s early motto, "Acta Manent" (Deeds Remain). The printed artwork is all by Bernard Naudin (1876-1946), a French painter and caricaturist known for his wartime illustrations showing life in the trenches. Andrew (1873-1936) was the Harvard economics professor who founded the American Field Service and made it a force with hundreds of ambulances and drivers under the umbrella of the French military. Ivy League college students led the pack, eager for adventure and to support the war that America had not yet entered and, since a recruitment tour lasted six months, able to leave college for one semester and return the next. While some drove ambulances -- including future 1920s literary figures Ernest Hemingway, E.E. Cummings, Archibald MacLeish and John Dos Passos -- others such as Bigelow were assigned the dangerous task of driving munitions and supplies to the front. Galatti (1888-1964) was a Harvard star quarterback who became Andrew's second in command, later becoming the A.F.S.'s second director and greatly expanding its scope during World War Two. When James H.D. Seymour's 3-volume "History of the American field service in France, 1914-1917; told by its members" was published in 1920, selections from Bigelow's writings between June 11 and November 7, 1917, appear as "Camion Diaries" (Volume III, pp. 29-61.) Certificates of service were given to volunteer drivers who served in the ambulance corps during the war, but whether the certificate of appreciation here described was given to all volunteers is unclear -- in any case, this is an intriguing WW1 memento with interesting Fitzgerald connections.…
Seller Inventory # 52700
Bibliographic details
- Title
- Certificate of Appreciation
- Author
- (AMERICAN FIELD SERVICE / WORLD WAR ONE / F. SCOTT FITZGERALD). BIGELOW, Donald Fairchild (1896-1979)
- Signed
- Signed
- Item weight
- 1 pound
- Seller catalogs
- Autographs, Government & Politics
Main Street Fine Books & Mss, ABAA
Galena, IL, U.S.A.
Shipping rates within U.S.A.
| Item | 5 to 14 business days | 3 to 6 business days |
|---|---|---|
| First item | £ 4.49 | £ 10.47 |
Payment methods
- Cash
- Check
- Money Order
Store description
Main Street Fine Books & Manuscripts has been buying and selling quality books, autographs and ephemera since 1991. We specialize in general antiquarian, first editions, signed books and autographs and documents. We are members of the Antiquarian Booksellers' Association of America (ABAA), Midwest Antiquarian Booksellers Association (MWABA), Universal Autograph Collectors Club (UACC) and The Manuscript Society.
Specialty
Americana, Civil War, Abraham Lincoln, U.S. Grant, American History, Literature, Military History, Autographs, Letters, Documents, Historical Manuscripts, General Antiquarian and O.P.Association member
Seller's business information
Main Street Fine Books & Manuscripts, Ltd.
9304 Saturn Ln
Galena, IL U.S.A. 61036
Terms of sale
Main Street Fine Books & Manuscripts accepts most credit cards. Checks are welcome. Institutions will be accommodated as their procedures require. Shipping is additional and will be quoted at the time an order is placed. EU customers: you are responsible for return shipping for "Right of Withdrawal" returns. Every effort has been made to describe each book and any defects accurately. If an item proves unsatisfactory for any reason, it may be returned pursuant to ABEBooks' policy. We would appreciate a courtesy notification if an item is being returned.
Attention dealers: we do not drop ship.
Member ABAA/ILAB.
Right of withdrawal
If you are a consumer you can withdraw from the contract in accordance with the following. Consumer means any natural person who is acting for purposes which are outside his trade, business, craft or profession.
Information regarding the right of withdrawal
Statutory right to withdraw
You have the right to withdraw from this contract within 14 days without giving any reason.
The withdrawal period will expire after 14 days from the day on which you acquire, or a third party other than the carrier and indicated by you acquires, physical possession of the last good or the last lot or piece.
To exercise the right of withdrawal, electronically fill in and submit a clear statement on our website, under "My Purchases" in "My Account". We will communicate to you an acknowledgement of receipt of such a withdrawal on a durable medium (e.g. by e-mail) without delay.
To meet the withdrawal deadline, it is sufficient for you to send your communication concerning your exercise of the right of withdrawal before the withdrawal period has expired.
Effects of withdrawal
If you withdraw from this contract, we will reimburse to you all payments received from you, including the costs of delivery (except for the supplementary costs arising if you chose a type of delivery other than the least expensive type of standard delivery offered by us).
We may make a deduction from the reimbursement for loss in value of any goods supplied, if the loss is the result of unnecessary handling by you.
We will make the reimbursement without undue delay, and not later than 14 days after the day on which we are informed about your decision to withdraw from this contract.
We will make the reimbursement using the same means of payment as you used for the initial transaction, unless you have expressly agreed otherwise; in any event, you will not incur any fees as a result of such reimbursement.
We may withhold reimbursement until we have received the goods back, or you have supplied evidence of having sent back the goods, whichever is the earliest.
You shall send back the goods or hand them over to Main Street Fine Books & Mss, ABAA, 9304 Saturn Ln, 61036, Galena, Illinois, U.S.A., without undue delay and in any event not later than 14 days from the day on which you communicate your withdrawal from this contract to us. The deadline is met if you send back the goods before the period of 14 days has expired. You will have to bear the direct cost of returning the goods. You are only liable for any diminished value of the goods resulting from the handling other than what is necessary to establish the nature, characteristics and functioning of the goods.
Exceptions to the right of withdrawal
The right of withdrawal does not apply to:
- The delivery of newspapers, journals or magazines with the exception of subscription contracts; and
- The supply of digital content which is not supplied on a tangible medium (e.g. on a CD or DVD) if you accepted when you placed your order that we could start to deliver it, and that you could not withdraw once delivery had started.
Shipping terms
Shipping costs are based on books weighing 2.2 LB, or 1 KG. If your book order is heavy or oversized, we may contact you to let you know extra shipping is required.