Ulysses S. Grant Signed Presidential Pardon Order for Ku Klux Klan Convict – PSA/DNA Certified Authentic Signature

Description:
An exceptional presidential pardon order boldly signed by President Ulysses S. Grant, directing the Secretary of State to affix the Seal of the United States to a pardon warrant. Dated March 7, 1873, this partially printed and manuscript-completed document reads in part:

“I hereby authorize and direct the Secretary of State to affix the Seal of the United States to a Warrant for the pardon of Henry Warlick, dated this day and signed by me; and for so doing this shall be his warrant.”

Signed clearly in ink at the bottom right, “U.S. Grant,” this directive invokes one of the gravest constitutional powers of the presidency: the power to pardon federal crimes. Grant’s signature is bold, fluid, and highly legible—making this document a striking and display-worthy artifact.

The item is certified and encapsulated by PSA/DNA as an authentic autograph and housed in a protective tamper-proof slab. Certification number: 85448826.

Historical Context:
Ulysses S. Grant (1822–1885), Civil War hero and 18th President of the United States, led the nation through the volatile Reconstruction era following the Civil War. This document, signed just three days after his second inauguration on March 4, 1873, was issued during a critical juncture in the administration’s battle against white supremacist violence in the South.

The subject of the pardon, Henry Warlick, had been convicted of Ku Klux Klan crimes in South Carolina and sentenced to federal imprisonment. As reported in The Boston Globe on March 4, 1873:

“The President has pardoned Miles Carroll, Miles McCulloch, Henry Warlick and James A. Sanders of South Carolina, convicted of Ku-Klux crimes, and sentenced to confinement in the Albany penitentiary.”

This pardon is directly tied to the landmark South Carolina Klan trials—a sweeping series of federal prosecutions aimed at dismantling the Ku Klux Klan’s campaign of racial terror during Reconstruction.

The Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871

Passed by Congress and signed into law by President Grant, the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871 (also known as the Third Enforcement Act) was a defining moment in the federal government's effort to protect civil rights in the postwar South. The Act empowered the president to suspend habeas corpus, deploy federal troops, and use federal courts to prosecute individuals who conspired to deny others their constitutional rights—particularly the right to vote, hold office, and receive equal protection under the law.

The Act was a direct response to the Klan’s widespread violence, intimidation, and murder campaigns targeting African Americans and their white Republican allies. Grant invoked the Act to declare martial law in nine South Carolina counties, enabling hundreds of arrests and setting the stage for the South Carolina Klan trials of 1871–1872.

The South Carolina Klan Trials

These trials, the most extensive federal criminal prosecutions of the Reconstruction period, saw over 600 individuals indicted for Klan-related crimes. The federal government, led by U.S. District Attorney David T. Corbin and supported by the testimony of Black citizens and former Klan informants, secured numerous convictions. Many of the convicted—including Henry Warlick—were sent to Albany Penitentiary in New York.

While initially hailed as a triumph of federal justice, the trials provoked backlash from Southern whites and eroded support for aggressive Reconstruction in the North. President Grant’s decision to pardon several convicted Klan members at the outset of his second term, including Warlick, likely reflected these shifting political pressures. Even so, the existence of this document, personally signed by Grant, remains a rare and tangible link to this pivotal episode in American legal and racial history.

Authentication & Encapsulation:
This document has been certified by PSA/DNA as bearing an authentic Ulysses S. Grant signature. The encapsulated label reads:
“CUT – ULYSSES S. GRANT – PSA/DNA CERTIFIED – AUTHENTIC AUTO”
Certification number: 85448826, verifiable through PSA’s online database. The document is housed in a PSA tamper-evident slab, ensuring archival preservation and visual presentation.

Closing Appeal:
This extraordinary presidential pardon order, bearing the signature of Ulysses S. Grant and tied directly to the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871 and the federal Klan prosecutions in South Carolina, offers a powerful glimpse into one of the most consequential legal and civil rights campaigns in U.S. history. Its bold, display-worthy autograph and direct association with Reconstruction-era justice make it a standout piece for collectors of presidential documents, Civil War and Reconstruction history, and the evolution of federal civil rights enforcement.