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1920 Letter to New York Yankees Acknowledging Receipt of Payment for Babe Ruth (ex-Barry Halper Collection)
<p>One-page typed letter, dated October 30, 1920, from James Henney, vice president of the Federal Trust Company of Boston, Massachusetts, to the New York Yankees regarding the club's most recent payment for the purchase of Babe Ruth's contract. In his letter, Henney acknowledges receipt of payment in the amount of $26,295.83, but informs the Yankees that their request for a reduction in the interest will have to be taken up with the Fourth Atlantic Bank. He concludes by writing "If we are unable to do so [secure a reduction], we would suggest that you get in touch with the Boston American League Baseball Club and have them arrange for the difference." Signed by Henney in black fountain pen. The letter (8.25x11") displays two vertical and three horizontal folds, as well as a few light creases, a tiny edge tear, and paperclip impressions. </p><p>On December 26, 1919, the Boston Red Sox received $100,000 from the New York Yankees for purchase of Babe Ruth's contract. $25,000 was paid in cash at the time of the sale, while the remainder was to be paid in yearly installments of $25,000, with each note due on November 1st of 1920, 1921, and 1922, respectively. Immediately after receiving the notes from the Yankees, Frazee was forced to discount them, as he needed cash immediately. Here, the Yankees are making completion of their first payment, plus interest, to the institution holding the note due on November 1, 1920. </p><p><span style="font-size: 10pt;">This letter, along with nearly every other surviving document relating to the sale of Babe Ruth to the New York Yankees, originates from the estate of Ed Barrow, who was manager of the Boston Red Sox at the time of the transaction, and soon after became the longtime business manager/general manager of the New York Yankees. Many years after Barrow's death, legendary collector Barry Halper purchased his entire business archive from the Barrow family, which included dozens of documents relating to Boston's historic sale of Ruth. (Barry Halper's collection is considered by many to have been the finest private baseball-memorabilia collection ever assembled.) In 1999, Halper sold nearly his entire collection at auction through Sotheby's in New York (the collection was so vast that it took over a week of twice-daily live auctions and three months of weekly internet sales to liquidate it). Lot 560 in the live-auction portion of the sale featured a large collection of documents relating to the sale of Ruth, from which this promissory note, as well as every other "sale of Ruth" document featured in this auction, originates.</span></p>
Past Sports Card, Memorabilia, Non-Sports Card and Collecitble Auction Items
Other past auction items that may be of interest to you.
February 25, 1920, Colonel Tillinghast Huston Handwritten Letter to Jacob Ruppert Regarding The Sale of Babe Ruth - From The Barry Halper Collection (PSA)
Barry Halper's "Copy" of the 1919 Babe Ruth Sale to New York Yankees Contract (ex-Barry Halper Collection)
Historic December 26th, 1919, Jacob Ruppert Sale of Babe Ruth Letter to Harry Frazee the Day Yankees and Red Sox Owners Agreed to Terms - Ruppert Loans Frazee $300,000 for Fenway Park Mortgage (ex-Barry Halper Collection)
Tentative Payment Schedule of Notes for Babe Ruth (ex-Barry Halper Collection)
December 30th, 1919, Colonel Huston Letter "Consummating a Certain Important Base Ball Deal" aka The Babe Ruth Sale (ex-Barry Halper Collection)
1920 Harry Frazee Promissory Note Directly Relating to the Sale of Babe Ruth (ex-Barry Halper Collection)
December 26th, 1919, Promissory Note from Yankees Co-Owner Colonel Tillinghast Huston to Boston Red Sox for The Sale of Babe Ruth - The Day Yankees & Red Sox Agree to Terms (ex-Barry Halper Collection)
