Lindbergh kidnapping document archive to sell

A collection of documents relating to the Lindbergh Kidnapping is offered at Lyon & Turnbull.

It’s expected to sell for around $3,000-4,000 in the February 17 sale in Philadelphia.

Rosner Lindbergh Lyon

The lot includes a facsimile of the ransom note

Charles Arthur Lindbergh jr was 20 months old when he was abducted from the Lindberghs’ home in East Amwell, New Jersey on March 1, 1932.

Lindbergh senior was one of the most famous people on the planet at the time, having become the first person to fly non-stop across the Atlantic in 1927.

The case was a sensation.

While the police investigation was underway, Lindbergh and a number of well-wishers – including various retired detectives – started their own enquiries.

They believed the kidnappers originated from the Chicago underworld and got in touch with a local small-time criminal named Mickey Rosner to mediate for them.

All of the items in the sale, including a facsimile of the original ransom note left for the Lindberghs, come from Rosner’s own collection.

There is also a handwritten letter to Mrs Lindbergh claiming that her servants were in on the kidnapping and another anonymous letter suggesting that Rosner was himself involved.

Sadly, while the Lindberghs paid the ransom, Charles jr was found dead a couple of months later.

A German-born carpenter named Richard Hauptmann was convicted of his abduction and murder.

Hauptmann went to the chair protesting his innocence.

While there have been endless revisions of the case, the evidence he was convicted on was damning. 

We have this signed piece of fabric from Lindbergh’s Spirit of St Louis for sale.

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