This collection (139 items) is primarily made up of incoming letters to Nathaniel Jarvis Wyeth of Cambridge, Massachusetts. Wyeth corresponded with his siblings, cousins, and other family members about his travels to Oregon, their personal lives, and finances.
Between September 1831-February 1832, Nathaniel received 4 letters from Jacob Wyeth, his brother, about preparations for their expedition to Oregon. Jacob later provided news from Galena, Illinois, where he married and settled down after his time in Oregon. From 1834-1848, Nathaniel J. Wyeth, his wife Elizabeth, and other family members received personal letters from members of the Wyeth, Jarvis, and Clark families, often concerning travel, religion, and family news. In 1841, Nathaniel Jarvis Wyeth wrote a series of letters to his wife about a visit to New Orleans, Louisiana. The bulk of the letters from 1848-1851 are short missives from Nathaniel's brother Leonard regarding the brothers' financial affairs.
Nathaniel Jarvis Wyeth was born near Cambridge, Massachusetts, on January 29, 1802, the son of Jacob Wyeth and Elizabeth Jarvis. He had at least three siblings, including Jacob and Leonard. The elder Jacob Wyeth operated the Fresh Pond Hotel. Nathaniel joined him in managing the hotel in the mid-1820s and married Elizabeth Jarvis Stone, a cousin, in 1824. During the winters, he collected ice from a nearby pond, which led to his invention of a horse-drawn ice cutter; he sold the patent in 1832. In 1831, he organized an expedition to Oregon with his brother Jacob and his cousin, John Bound Wyeth, with the intention of exploring trade possibilities. After several unsuccessful attempts to enter the fur and salmon trades, Nathaniel finally returned east in 1836, living in Cambridge and working in the ice and shipping industries for the remainder of his life. Nathaniel Jarvis Wyeth died on August 31, 1856.
