By: Sarah Brumfield, Associated Press
WASHINGTON, D.C. (AP).- A letter to President Abraham Lincoln from three military surgeons requesting a chaplain to tend to the wounded and dying soldiers after the Battle of Antietam, accompanied by the president’s signed response, were returned to the National Archives on Thursday. Bill Panagopulos, president of Alexander Historical Auctions, in Stamford, Conn., helped negotiate the return and handed the documents over to David Ferriero, archivist of the United States, at a ceremony at the National Archives. “I’m not just returning it to the Archives, I’m returning it to the United States,” Panagopulos said. “This building is where it belongs. It’s coming home.” Investigators watch carefully for records that should be held at the Archives, Ferriero said. “But we also benefit from dealers who recognize what they have,” he added. Officials believe the documents came from the file of R