Mamie Eisenhower letter needs more personal touches

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Dear Helaine and Joe:Enclosed is a copy of a letter I discovered among my dad's possessions. It is from Mamie Doud Eisenhower concerning an orchid that was grown by my father and brothers' greenhouse in Bergenfield, N.J. Does it have any monetary value?Thank you,G. G.-S., Port St. Lucie, Fla.Dear G. G.-S.:Mamie Geneva Doud was born on Nov. 14, 1896, in Boone, Iowa, into a family that had become wealthy in the meatpacking industry. When she was 7 the family moved to Colorado and eventually settled in Denver after brief stays in both Pueblo and Colorado Springs.The family escaped the harsh Colorado winters by traveling to San Antonio, Texas, and visiting relatives. While visiting there in 1915, Mamie met a young second lieutenant named Dwight David Eisenhower. They became engaged on Valentine's Day in 1916 and married just a few months later.For years, Mamie was just a typical army wife following her husband as he went from post to post and climbed the chain of command. She and her ambitious husband lived in France, the Philippines, and Panama, and she once estimated that she had to pack up the household and relocate 27 times over the course of her marriage.Her husband reached the zenith of his military career when he became supreme commander of allied forces for the invasion of France in 1944. After his retirement, he became president of Columbia University and later commander of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.The Eisenhowers moved into the White House in 1953, and Mamie became a popular first lady. She can be imagined as a kind of "June Cleaver" as first lady. She had her signature bangs, and an army officer's wife approach to life. She was known for her "million dollar" fudge (one of the few things she could cook well), her love of clothes, and for her frugality (she actually clipped coupons while in the White House).The letter from her to G. G.-S.'s father is a charming and gracious thank you for the gift of an orchid that the family had left for the first lady during a tour of the White House. It is on White House stationary (a plus) but it is addressed to "Dear Friends," which unfortunately, is a little generic and impersonal.The value of such a letter would be increased if the content were more interesting and personal -- perhaps insights into her life in the White House or maybe even her thoughts on her husband's army career. The real issue here is whether she signed it herself or if the sprawling autograph was actually made by a secretary or by mechanical means.We have studied this bold signature closely and it appears to be in her own hand, but a closer in person scrutiny would be necessary to be absolutely certain. In any event, the insurance replacement value of this letter is rather modest and is in the $100 to $125 range.Perhaps, it should be noted that a similar signature or a typed "thank-you" by her husband, the president, would be worth 10 times as much, and more important hand written documents are worth considerably more.(Helaine Fendelman and Joe Rosson are the authors of the "Price It Yourself" (HarperResource, $19.95). Contact them at Treasures in Your Attic, P.O. Box 27540, Knoxville, TN, 37927)