Lot
165 
San Francisco, Cal./Aug 1 (San Francisco). Black cds (Williams SAF-260) on folded letter datelined "Sullivans Camp near San Joaquin River, July 4th, 1849" with red crayon manuscript "40" rate to New York, fascinating letter regarding voyage & mining, "San Francisco is a very busy place. There are about 150 houses and as many tents. Goods are left promiscuously about the streets, all being honest - nothing stolen. Gambling and drunkenness predominates. Liquor sells for 4/- a drink, yet there are more drunken men to be seen in the streets than any place in the United States…The gold diggings are all in the borders of the mountains among the hills and resemble the highlands on the North River, there being no rain here between the months of April and November - the rivers get dry in the bed of which they dig for the gold among rocks, roots and stones. They dig from 4 to 16 feet deep until they come to clay, the surface of which they wash and find the gold, principally not larger than a pin's head.", folded letter stained with small hole in address panel & edge faults, Fine, the was the first day of use of the cds postmark in San Francisco & the last day of use of the straight line marking. Estimate $200 - 300.
Realized: $650