THE DEMOCRATIC WATCHMAN, Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, July 31, 1885 

* General Ulysses S. Grant death w/ portrait print

The most notable content is on page 2 which features a print of President Ulysses S. Grant headed: "THE ILLUSTRIOUS DEAD ! " and captioned: "The Sad Story of His Last Hours--Scene at the Death Bed When the Flame of Life Flickered Out".
The article is very descriptive, headed: "Nearing the End - Scene in the Chamber of Death--How General Grant Passed Away". And page4 has half a column: "Grant's Letter on His Waning Life" signed in type: U.S. Grant, followed by: "Jeff Davis's Tribute" and then: "Grant's Coffin".
Eight pages, very nice condition.

Background: The nationwide mourning of Ulysses S. Grant in July 1885 marked a profound psychological turning point in American history, serving as the ultimate catalyst for post-Civil War reconciliation. As the victorious Union General who successfully preserved the nation and later served two terms as president, Grant’s impending death from throat cancer captivated a public that watched his final weeks unfold in real-time through the press. When he passed, the journalistic coverage—exemplified by northern papers highlighting tributes from former Confederate President Jefferson Davis alongside accounts of Grant's final days—symbolized a conscious effort to heal the deep fractures of the sectional conflict. By framing Grant not just as a Northern conqueror but as a national hero whose magnanimity at Appomattox paved the way for peace, the media helped forge a unified national identity out of the trauma of civil war. Consequently, his death became less about the loss of a single man and more about the symbolic burial of wartime animosities, solidifying a collective, cross-regional narrative of a restored and reconciled Union.