Richard M. Nixon

The resignation of President Richard Milhous Nixon (1913-1994) remains one of the darkest moments in American History.

As the Watergate story continued to dominate headlines, Nixon tried to reassure a suspicious public by continuing to deflect himself from any wrong doing. On November 17, 1973, at a televised question and answer session with the press, Nixon said, “People have got to know whether or not their President is a crook. Well, I’m not a crook. I’ve earned everything I’ve got.”

The House Judiciary Committee controlled by Democrats opened formal and public impeachment hearings against Nixon on May 9, 1974. Despite his efforts, one of the secret recordings, known as the “smoking gun” tape, was released on August 5, 1974, and revealed that Nixon authorized hush money to Watergate burglar E. Howard Hunt, and also revealed that Nixon ordered the CIA to tell the FBI to stop investigating certain topics because of “the Bay of Pigs thing.” In light of his loss of political support and the near certainty of both his impeachment by the House of Representatives and his probable conviction by the Senate, he resigned on August 9, 1974, after addressing the nation on television the previous evening. He never admitted to criminal wrongdoing, although he later conceded errors of judgment. 

On September 8, 1974, a blanket pardon from President Ford, who served as Nixon’s second Vice President, ended any possibility of indictment. The pardon was highly controversial and Nixon’s critics claimed that the blanket pardon was quid pro quo for his resignation. No evidence of this “corrupt bargain” has ever been proven, and many modern historians dismiss any claims of overt collusion between the two men concerning the pardon.

These authentically-signed souvenir resignation letters are hard to find, and represent a pivotal point in American history.

Befitting its value and historical significance, this letter has been professionally framed using the finest archival conservation-quality standards. Measuring 28″H x 25″W, this beautiful and historic presentation features a crisp color photograph of President Nixon alone in the Oval Office. This photograph was obtained directly from the Nixon Presidential Archives after a long and exhaustive search for just the right image to capture what must have been a time of wrenching decision for the President. Mounted adjacent to the letter of resignation is an original, extremely scarce Invitation to the Inauguration of Richard Nixon and Spiro Agnew.

Each window is bordered with wooden fillets matching the overall framed display. The top mat is lined in a deep presidential blue fabric, and the whole presentation comes together in an exquisitely carved, redwood burl frame with the highest-quality conservation glass.

If kept out of direct sunlight and maintained in a clean, temperate environment, this historic presentation will provide awe-inspiring reactions for generations.

Guaranteed to pass PSA/DNA or any prominent authentication service. Moreover, all Vintage Memorabilia autographs are unconditionally guaranteed to be genuine. This guarantee applies to refund of the purchase price, and is without time limit to the original purchaser. A written and signed Guarantee to that effect accompanies each item we sell.