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This folded lettersheet / stampless letter has a circular date stamp for PHILADEa. 5cts (and has a 5 cent rate added below it, to make a 10 cent rate) and is addressed to Russell Smith, Millstown, and is a one page letter written by Thomas Gilpin. The headline is, at the end, 20 March 1851.

The writer of this letter is well known to historians, 's one thing you can find in the history books: " THOMAS GILPIN , the second son of Thomas Gilpin, of Philadelphia, was born on the 10th of September, 1776, and died at Philadelphia
on the 3d of March, 1853."

And t's a lot more in the history books on him.

The addressee of this letter was the artist William Russell Smith . From an online biography, in part: ".... painter of grand-scale landscapes in the mid 19th century, Russell Smith was born in Glasgow, Scotland, and emigrated with his parents in 1819 to western Pennsylvania w he grew up in Pittsburgh. His birth name was William Thompson Russell Smith. He was self-taught as an artist, and became a highly successful scenic designer, scientific illustrator, as well as panoramic landscape painter ..."

For more details on his life you could find the book "Russell Smith, Romantic Realist" , by Virginia E. Lewis, University of Pittsburgh Press, c. 1956.

Some abstracts:

"I enclose thee the letter to Charles Gilpin which I hope will be of much service to thee, if thou should not go up to London before fixing some abode in England I think it would be as well to send it to him with thy address ...."

"... if any letters pass thro' his hands on which the postage is not paid, be sure to return it to him for the English people are morbidly sensible on this head. I have had a demand on me from London for fifty cents ."

I think what he means by that -- a letter had arrived from overseas with 50 cents due, a considerable sum of money at that time; but it was the usual thing, to send letters and have the postage collected when they were picked up. And it's interesting, that just a few months later (1 July) the postal rates for mailing letters in the U.S. would come down considerably. Also, it's rare to see an added 5 cent rate to Philadelphia date stamps which have the 5 cts in the circle.

Condition of the letter rates good. As usual with stampless letters, after writing on one or more sides of a sheet of paper, the letter was folded several times and mailed. Please note that most stampless letters have faults such file folds, tears at and opposite the sealing wax area, and some stains / wear / tear and t I hope the scan gives you a general idea of the condition.

An interesting letter good for genealogy and history research. See my other auctions for similar items.

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