Author Lew Wallace Cashes A Check Upon His Return From Turkey

LEWIS WALLACE (1827-1905). An author from Indiana, he was elected to the state senate in 1856 and made a high-ranking military official during the Civil War. Wallace is best known for his popular book Ben Hur: a Tale of the Christ, which sold over 300,000 copies in less than ten years.DS. 1pg. 8 x 3. December 6, 1886. Melrose, MA. A check endorsed Lew. Wallace on the back for one hundred dollars. Wallace had recently returned from serving as a diplomat to Turkey. Written on an official Melrose Savings Bank check, the document is in very fine condition with two punch holes that do not affect the dark signature.