HENRY E. HUNTINGTON (1850-1927). Railway executive; Financier. Assisted from the very beginning by his uncle, Collis P. Huntington, the talented and hard working Henry moved quickly up the ranks: construction superintendent for the Chesapeake, Ohio & Southwestern Railway (1880-84), and then vice president and general manager of the Kentucky Central Railroad (1887-90). During this latter period, and up to 1892, Huntington held numerous directorships and positions in the various roads which his uncle had an interest. In 1892, he joined his uncle's greatest system, the Southern Pacific Railway, in which he held major positions of increasing importance, until he left in 1898 to devote himself to the development of intercity transportation lines. Beginning by purchasing lines in Los Angeles, he assembled and became sole owner of the Pacific Electric Railroad, one of the largest urban transportation systems in the country. Under Huntington's guidance, the Railway eventually linked hundreds of towns in southern California and operated over 1,100 miles of track. He sold his interests in 1910 in order to devote his energies to other interests, among them to the development of electric power and to his collections. Interested primarily in books and manuscripts related to England and the U.S., he assembled one of the finest libraries in America for materials on English literature, and for original sources in the history of America. Among his treasures were the original manuscript of Franklin's autobiography, the first major collection of Washington manuscripts, and the largest private collection of Lincoln letters and manuscripts. At his death, his collections were valued in excess of $30 million, and were transferred to the Huntington Library and Art Gallery in San Marino. Signed card. 5" x 3 1/4" "H. E. Huntington". Choise fresh condition.