Secretarial Signatures of Presidents of the United States

While the Autopen has been a relatively new phenomenon, the use of secretaries by the US President to handle correspondence has been a standing tradition dating back to George Washington. Most secretaries will not attempt to imitate the president's handwriting but will instead act as a proxy signer. The trend in the Twentieth Century has been the opposite however and many false signatures are very close to the real thing and have deceived autograph collectors who wish to obtain a legitimate handwriting specimen. The following are a few examples of secretarial signatures of presidents of this century.


 


Herbert Hoover


Bernice Miller signed some of Herbert Hoover's post presidential correspondence, sometimes noting her signatures with her initials "BM"

Reference: Pen and Quill, Sept-Oct. 1997, page 53.

Franklin Roosevelt


Here are some secretarial signatures as documented in the March 1998 issue of Autograph Collector Magazine, in an article by James Lowe (page 56).

John F. Kennedy
 
 

Perhaps no other president employed secretarial signatures as did Kennedy. He had literally dozens of secretaries sign correspondence for him, a fact which was first discovered by the late Charles Hamilton.


This particular autograph was signed by Evelyn Lincoln. These signatures are particularly deceptive because they often came with letters of authentication from Mrs. Lincoln.


This signature is perhaps the most deceptive of all Kennedy secretarial signatures and was used during his Congressional tenure. The key to identifying this forgery is the fact that the final "e" is separate from the rest of the signature.

. Reference: Charles Hamilton, The Robot that Helped to Make a President, reprinted July 1995.

Lyndon Johnson


Lyndon Johnson employed secretaries extensively throughout his political career. This example was probably signed by his secretary John Connally, who later became governor of Texas.

 Reference: Pen and Quill, Sept-Oct. 1997, page 53. Johnson hired at least three other secretaries who forged his name--specifically Dorothy Nichols, Juanita Roberts, and Mary Rather. Samples of their forgeries are currently unavailable.

Jimmy Carter

 Jimmy Carter's secretary Susan Clough produced excellent forgeries for her boss Jimmy Carter. She was active during his administration and perhaps soon after he left office.

 This is an example of a forgery by Clough. She had the uncanny ability to write his name so as to appear genuine, but note the telltale mark of the "t" in his last name--in a forgery the "t" will point upwards. Also, the "r" in "Carter" will appear to "lunge forward."

 Here is another forged example.

 Here is an authentic example for comparison.

 Reference: Pen and Quill, Nov.-Dec. 1990, page 10.

Ronald Reagan

 Ronald Reagan is unique among presidents in that he was a pop icon long before he assumed the presidency. While he was in Hollywood he hired his mother to execute his correspondence. Nelle Reagan imitated her son's handwriting quite well.

 Illustrated above are examples of Nelle's handwriting. In the top example she is imitating Ronald's handwriting, and in the bottom example she is writing as herself. Note the similarities.

 This illustrates the differences between the handwriting of Nelle and Ronald. The top example is authentic handwriting from Ronald Reagan, while the bottom is a forgery by his mother. The key to differentiating between the two are the different shapes of "y" and "s."

 Also key to detecting a Nelle Reagan forgery is content. Ronald Reagan seldom wrote to fans. One should immediately suspect any "chatty" letter, perhaps pertaining to the Reagan fan club or other matter. Also, beware of cordial inscriptions, as Reagan usually only wrote a simple "Best wishes" or "Good luck."
 
 

Nelle Reagan letter #1 to fan, signed "Ronald" (jpeg size=81 kb)

Nelle Reagan letter #1 to fan, signed "Ronald" (jpeg size=59 kb)

 Nelle Reagan autographs are commonly sold on the autograph market as legitimate. Here is an example:

Nelle Reagan forgery on photograph (jpeg size=51 kb)


During Reagan's tenure as governor of California and early in his presidency he employed Helen Von Damm as his secretary. She often signed his name quite skillfully. The key to a Von Damm forgery is the slurred "on" in Reagan's first name. Von Damm was later made an ambassador to Austria.

Von Damm forgery on photograph

 Reference: Pen and Quill, March-April 1991, page 25.

I recommend reading the original articles referenced above. Back issues of the Pen and Quill may be purchased from the UACC. Please refer to the official UACC web site for information on purchasing back issues.

 Special thanks to Mike Navarro and Kevin Santry.