Copy
P.O. Burke, Va.
Aug. 13th 1907
Dear Capt. Meade:-
Your letter1 of the 10th inst., with accompanying circular, was received yesterday.
I do not own a portrait in oil of my father, do not know of one worth copying, and do not know of a portrait painter who has ever seen Gen. Lee. If your Committee can find an artist to make a satisfactory portrait of my father, I will undertake to bear the expense of the picture, including suitable frame. Mr. Edward V. Valentine, Sculptor, Richmond, Va., might undertake a tablet with portrait medallion, in bronze or other material; if so, the work would be worth having.
Please let me know about the cost of whatever portrait you may decide upon, before concluding contract, and accept my regrets for inability to do more towards complying with your request.
Very truly yours,
(Signed) G. W. C. Lee
Capt. W. T. Meade,
Chairman, Ac.,
Louisa, Va.
1. Lee is writing to Confederate Captain William T. Meade (1841-1917), a native of Clarke County, Virginia. Meade attended Washington College and served in the 4th Virginia regiment. He joined the army in 1861 and by November of that year was on the staff of General Pendleton. He mostly served in the First Corps as an ordnance officer. He worked as a farmer after Lee’s surrender, dying in Louisa County on 1917 July 4. He is buried in the Clark Family Cemetery.
Source: Valentine Museum archives, Richmond, Virginia
Transcribed by Colin Woodward, 2022 April 18
