Collections : [University of Michigan William L. Clements Library]

The Barrett family papers contain the correspondence between Joseph Chandler Barrett and his fiancée, Sarah A. Hillard, during their courtship and the early years of their marriage, as well as personal letters written by family members and friends.

The Barrett family papers contain the correspondence between Joseph Chandler Barrett and his fiancée, Sarah A. Hillard, during their courtship and the early years of their marriage, as well as additional letters written by family members and friends. Joseph often wrote and received letters about education in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, and on one occasion mentioned attending a lecture about Germany delivered by Charles L. Brace (January 10, 1852). The enclosure in the March 3, [1859] letter is a four-page printed "Report of the Superintending School Committee" of Durham, New Hampshire. A large portion of the collection consists of the Barretts' correspondence during their courtship, and family letters about news and events, with occasional remarks about religious habits and views. Additional letters from family members and from acquaintances provide a picture of daily life in New England in the decade preceding the Civil War.

The Gideon Aldrich collection contains material related to Aldrich's time at the Friends' Boarding School in Providence, Rhode Island, in the early 1850s, the bulk of which consists of his incoming correspondence from family and friends.

The Gideon Aldrich collection contains material related to Aldrich's time at the Friends' Boarding School in Providence, Rhode Island, in the early 1850s. His mother Phebe and several of his siblings, particularly Mary, wrote many of the earliest letters in the collection. In their letters, they updated him on the events that colored their daily lives, and often alluded to their devout Quaker beliefs; several of the letters from December 1850 relate to a measles outbreak reported at the Friends' School. Gideon's friends wrote most of the later letters, in which they expressed their affinity for a variety of personal interests, including baseball (March 17, 1852), sleighing, and other leisure activities. One letter from Huldah H. Sawyer paints a picture of early San Francisco, extolling the weather but lamenting the frequency of death in the city and the questionable morality of local women (February 11, 1853). Together, the letters represent the concerns and daily happenings of Quaker life in mid-19th century Massachusetts. In addition to the correspondence, the collection also holds three books used by Gideon Aldrich while at school; these include two penmanship exercise books and a composition book, which contains essays on topics such as a Quaker quarterly meeting, a description of Uxbridge, and a "Skating Party" (1851). Other material within the collection includes an 1853 valentine, several quotation cards, and a newspaper clipping.

This collection contains 20 letters, 1 document, and 1 essay fragment related to members of the extended Jackman family, who lived in Massachusetts, Vermont, Illinois, Minnesota, and Washington during the late 19th century. The material, which includes many letters by women, concerns topics such as religion, family life and news, the Civil War, family history, and education.

This collection contains 20 letters, 1 copied document, and 1 essay fragment related to members of the extended Jackman family, who lived in Massachusetts, Vermont, Illinois, Minnesota, and Washington during the late 19th century. The material, which includes many letters by women, concerns topics such as religion, family life and news, the Civil War, family history, and education. Most correspondents wrote only 1 or 2 letters.

The first item is a letter David McDonald wrote about Indiana University School of Law in 1848, addressed to an unidentified recipient. A notarized document dated April 4, 1851, provides genealogical information about the family of Elijah and Eunice Hall, and most remaining items are letters written to and received by their daughter Mary Ann and her descendants. The letters concern a variety of topics related to daily life throughout the latter half of the 19th century, including educational experiences (Ada's letter of February 14, 1858, from Moline, Illinois, for example) and the problems associated with earning a living in Illinois and Indiana (Mary A. Jackman's letter of July 10, 1859, for example). Some correspondents discussed religion, such as their spiritual beliefs and skepticism about Universalist teachings (January 5, 1862). During the war, one person wrote about an acquaintance who had briefly served in the Union Army, and Mary A. Merriman shared her opinion that the Civil War was a chastisement of the nation for "pride and naughtiness of heart" (June 5, 1863).

Later letters include mentions of Elijah Hall's War of 1812 service and its detrimental effects on him, and William Grupe's Civil War service. One letter concerns an unidentified woman's life in San Francisco, California, in 1878, and 6 late items reflect the Grupe family's life in Dayton, Washington. Among the latter are a letter about social life at the Washington State Normal School in 1900, and an undated essay fragment entitled "When a Western Girl Comes East" (4 pages) about regional differences and misconceptions between the residents of the Pacific Coast and the state of New York.

Leo Engleman worked trigonometric and surveying exercises in this cypher book from 1847 to 1848, possibly while a thirteen-year-old boy living in Pennsylvania. Many of the exercises include mathematical drawings and illustrations, and surveying examples often include additional features done in pencil and watercolor.

Leo Engleman worked trigonometric and surveying exercises in this cypher book from 1847 to 1848, possibly while a thirteen-year-old boy living in Pennsylvania. Many of the exercises include mathematical drawings and illustrations, and surveying examples often include additional features done in pencil and watercolor, such as trees, rivers, buildings, and lighthouses. A number of headings also feature watercolor embellishments and abstract or geometric designs, and the final pages of the volume include full-page watercolor designs of geometric shapes and a rose bush.

The Wood family papers contain correspondence and other items related to the family of James A. Wood of Lebanon, Connecticut, and his descendants from the mid-19th to the early 20th century. Much of the content pertains to education, family news, and politics.

The Wood family papers (4 linear feet) contain correspondence and other items related to the family of James A. Wood of Lebanon, Connecticut, and his descendants from the mid-19th to the early 20th century.

The Correspondence series comprises almost all of the collection. Early items are incoming letters to James A. Wood, Rebecca D. Pillsbury (later Wood), and their daughter, Helen Elizabeth Wood, from family members and acquaintances. James A. Wood's siblings wrote with updates on their lives, such as Caroline E. Wood's teaching career in numerous towns throughout New York. Rebecca D. Pillsbury also received letters from her brothers and sisters, and both Wood's and Pillsbury's correspondents discussed family matters, religion, and local news. Margaret Ann's letter of December 3, 1860, concerns her affection for a deceased baby sister, and an unidentified author's letter of September 4, 1861, describes the recent death of a grandmother. James A. Wood received an increasing amount of business-related correspondence, including letters from Charles W. Pierce, in the 1870s.

After the 1870s, most letters are addressed to Rebecca D. Wood and her daughter, Helen Elizabeth Wood. Rebecca's children often wrote letters to their mother, and Helen received letters from cousins and friends from around the East Coast. George P. Wood, Helen's brother, often shared stories of his young son James and of his life in Baltimore, Maryland; Washington, D. C.; and Peekskill, New York. In one letter, George included a map showing the location of his home in Washington, D. C. (November 13, 1899).

In addition to family and social news, letters occasionally referred to current events. "Dana," one of Helen E. Wood's cousins, wrote from his United States Army post during World War I (December 28, 1917), and other friends discussed the impact of the war. Among Helen's correspondents were Ida McCollister of New Hampshire and Harry Sawyer, an old friend who shared news of his life in Kearney, Nebraska. In one later letter, George P. Wood expressed some of his political views about the 1924 presidential election (October 27, 1924). Correspondence was less frequent after Helen E. Wood's death in 1933, with most incoming letters addressed to Winchester R. Wood of Lynn, Massachusetts, a member of the family's Connecticut branch. Undated items include similar family correspondence, as well as one letter written on a printed program for the Public Meeting of the Philadelphian Society at Kimball Union Academy at Meridian, New Hampshire, on June 12, 1878.

The Essays series includes an "Autobiography of a Sofa," written by R[ebecca] D. Pillsbury, as well as a manuscript draft of the "Common School Repository...Published semi-monthly by L. J. Boynton & R[ebecca] D. Pillsbury," containing 8 pages of short pieces attributed, often only by first name, to various contributors.

Among the six Receipts, addressed to A. Wood (1 item) and Helen E. Wood (5 items) are two receipts for Helen E. Wood's educational expenses and two slips crediting her account at Citizens National Bank, Boston.

Maps and Blueprints comprise 7 items. These are several drawings of house layouts, one map showing the locations of two buildings, and two blueprints.

The Newspaper Clippings series has 6 items, one of which is an article entitled "What They Say: How Girls of Various Cities Behave When They are Kissed."

The Ephemera series contains 52 Christmas cards, greeting cards, postcards, calling cards, programs, and other printed items. Specific items include 2 Red Cross membership cards, a pamphlet advertising The Art of Living Long by Louis Cornaro, and a blank order sheet for Sears, Roebuck and Co. from the 1920s.

The collection consists of six penmanship and cypher books kept by William L. Shimer, Susanna M. Shimer, and Nathan M. Shimer of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in the 1840s and 1850s and one alphabet card with lower-case and upper-case letters. The blank books include illustrated covers and several have calligraphic titles for their sections. Four of them are dated and range from 1846 to 1853. The cypher books include exercises for arithmetic, fractions, accounting, and weights and measures, with many examples relating to practical issues like farming, business, and estates. Penmanship exercises include the copying of moral proverbs, common business abbreviations, strings of letters, and phrases. Two of the penmanship books are associated with writing systems: George J. Becker's The American System of Penmanship, and Bayson, Dunton and Scribner's National System of Penmanship.

The collection consists of seven penmanship and cypher books kept by William L. Shimer, Susanna M. Shimer, and Nathan M. Shimer of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in the 1840s and 1850s and one alphabet card with lower-case and upper-case letters. The blank books include illustrated covers and several have calligraphic titles for their sections. Five of them are dated and range from 1846 to 1853. The cypher books include exercises for arithmetic, fractions, practical geometry, accounting, and weights and measures, with many examples relating to practical issues like farming, business, and estates. Penmanship exercises include the copying of moral proverbs, common business abbreviations, strings of letters, and phrases. Two of the penmanship books are associated with writing systems: George J. Becker's The American System of Penmanship, and Bayson, Dunton and Scribner's National System of Penmanship.

• Uriah Hunt & Son, Booksellers, Philadelphia
• Leary's Cheap Book Store, Philadelphia
• Brower, Hayes & Co., Booksellers and Stationers, Philadelphia
• Henry J. Oerter's Cheap Book & Stationery Store, Bethlehem
• Crosby & Ainsworth, Publishers, Boston

The cover of William L. Shimer's 1848 exercise book includes an inscription "L. Shimer, Co. A 10 reg. Militia Pa." William L. Shimer's 1850-1852 cypher book includes notations that he was attending the Gen. Taylor school and was being instructed by A. Stout, as well as geometrical drawings, calligraphic headings, and a pen-and-ink drawing of an eagle's head holding a banner that reads, "Let teh Stars and Stripes proudly float over you."

This collection is made up of 23 letters that Charlotte York wrote to her fiancé and husband, Stiles P. York, in the mid-19th century. She discussed her life in Tarrytown, New York, while her husband was in New York City.

This collection is made up of 23 letters that Charlotte York wrote to her fiancé and husband, Stiles P. York, in the mid-19th century. She discussed her life in Tarrytown, New York, while her husband was in New York City.

Charlotte wrote 5 letters from November 6, 1845-March 22, 1852, and 18 undated letters during the couple's courtship and after their wedding. In one undated letter, identified as "Thursday 2 o'clock," Charlotte anticipated their upcoming wedding and her transition from single to married life, and she later wrote one letter on their anniversary, May 12. Before and during their marriage, she reflected on her feelings for her husband and on her role as a housewife. She also reported the weather conditions and provided news about her neighbors and family members, particularly her mother and her sister Alletta. One letter is about her visit to Newburgh, New York, in March 1852. Charlotte occasionally referred to the Tarrytown Female Seminary, which she ran out of her home, and the collection includes a manuscript advertisement for her services, accompanied by a list of references.

This collection is made up of personal letters that Samuel Abbot Smith received from friends and family members while attending Phillips Exeter Academy, Harvard College, and Harvard Divinity School in the mid-1800s. His correspondents discussed their daily activities, Smith's education, and other subjects.

This collection is made up of 10 personal letters that Samuel Abbot Smith received from friends and family members while attending Phillips Exeter Academy, Harvard College, and Harvard Divinity School in the mid-1800s. The first letter, written by Horatio H. Whitten of "Great Falls," mentions Whitten's new schoolteacher and local factories (November 6, 1843). The letter includes a small drawing of a face in profile.

Samuel Abbot Smith's grandfather, Abiel Abbot, and his "Aunt Abby" wrote 5 letters to Smith from Peterborough, New Hampshire, between October 15, 1844, and January 9, 1853. They provided news of their lives and of family members' and friends' health and activities. Abby referred to social groups, her religious activities, Smith's education, and, on one occasion, fashionable summer coats (May 25, 1846). Abiel Abbot advised his grandson to read Roman history and take courses in elocution. He also provided suggestions for his grandson's salutatory address and discussed Samuel's mother's finances. In one letter, he shared his distaste for political mass meetings (October 15, 1844). Abiel and Abby's final letter encloses a German-language letter from Marie A. Peabody to Samuel Abbot Smith.

Smith received 2 letters from "Mother," likely his father's second wife and widow, Elizabeth Dow, on September 10, 1848, and July 9, 1849. Writing from Exeter, New Hampshire, she noted the recent anniversary of her husband's death; mentioned her attendance at a lecture by "Bushnell" that touched on Calvinism and other tops; and discussed her plans to travel to Cambridge, Massachusetts, for her son's graduation from Harvard College. She shared a story of an acquaintance who had served in the Mexican War and reported that the man desired a Canadian revolution so he could earn a commission as captain in a New York militia company.

Smith's final correspondent, Julius Crone, wrote twice from Peterborough, New Hampshire, on October 6, 1850, and February 21, 1851. He discussed his work, local news, a meeting of a social group (the "R. C."), and his envy for Smith, who was associated with "amiable scholars" such as Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. He expressed his concern for Smith's health and his desire that Smith could continue his studies despite his ailments.

The Pollard family papers contain correspondence, indentures, and financial records related to Asa D. Pollard and his children, including Joseph G. Pollard, Cyrus W. Pollard, Emily F. Pollard, and George F. Pollard. Members of the Pollard family corresponded about their lives in New Hampshire and Massachusetts from the 1840s-1860s.

The Pollard family papers (334 items) contain correspondence, indentures, and financial records related to the Pollard family of New Hampshire and Massachusetts.

The Correspondence and Documents series (228 items) includes personal letters between siblings Joseph G. Pollard, Cyrus W. Pollard, Emily F. Pollard, and George F. Pollard. From 1849-1865, the Pollard siblings wrote to each other about their daily lives, social activities, health, local travel, and family news from cities and towns in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and New York. Some of George F. Pollard's letters concern his education in New Hampton, New Hampshire. Joseph Pollard wrote about his work teaching in a country schoolhouse; in one letter, he mentioned his plans to attend a lecture by Ralph Waldo Emerson, though he suspected it would be "beyond ordinary comprehension" (December 8, 1857). During the Civil War, the Pollards sometimes mentioned topics such as the draft, particularly as it related to Cyrus Pollard and his relocation from Woburn, Massachusetts, to Albany, New York; they also discussed George Pollard's attempt to obtain a commission in the Union Army. The Pollard siblings received letters from other acquaintances, occasionally pertaining to business matters.

The series also includes indentures regarding Asa D. Pollard and land in New Hampshire and Massachusetts; one document pertains to his purchase of a pew in the First Congregational Church in Woburn, Massachusetts (November 1, 1860). Undated items include a manuscript "Report of the School Committee of Woburn," a printed circular letter to children attending Sabbath schools, and a report about Emily Pollard's academic progress at the Charlestown Female Seminary.

The Financial Records series (106 items) is comprised of receipts, invoices, accounts, and promissory notes. Most of the items pertain to the financial affairs of Asa D. Pollard, including receipts for Pollard's tax payments in Derry, New Hampshire. Many of the remaining items, including most of the items dated after the mid-1850s, relate to Joseph G. Pollard's financial affairs in Boston.

This collection is comprised of 12 incoming and outgoing letters of Alexander Lyman Holley, and 1 report card. Holley wrote 7 letters to his father, Alexander Hamilton Holley, about his educational experiences in Farmington, Connecticut, and about his life in New York City in the early 1860s. He received letters from his father (2 items), stepmother (1 item), and grandfather (1 item), who provided advice and news. His wife Mary wrote 1 letter to her father-in-law.

This collection is comprised of 12 incoming and outgoing letters of Alexander Lyman Holley, and 1 report card. Holley wrote 7 letters to his father, Alexander Hamilton Holley, about his educational experiences in Farmington, Connecticut, and about his life in New York City in the early 1860s. He received letters from his father (2 items), stepmother (1 item), and grandfather (1 item), who provided advice and news. His wife Mary wrote 1 letter to her father-in-law.

Alexander Lyman Holley composed 7 letters to Alexander Hamilton Holley between 1841 and 1862. His first 4 letters concern his education and social life at Furnace Village, [Massachusetts], and Farmington, Connecticut. He wrote about his social life, progress in school, and travels (including his June 19, 1847, letter regarding a trip to the "Bristol copper mines"). In 2 later letters, he reflected on anti-Union rioting and railroad destruction in Baltimore, Maryland (April 27, 1861), and on the difficult birth of his daughter Gertrude (October 28, 1862).

Holley's stepmother, Marcia Coffing Holley, shared her anticipation of his upcoming visit (April 28, 1849). His father wrote 2 letters dispensing life advice on alcohol, socializing, and other topics (11 pages, July 7, 1849, and July 23, 1849). Other correspondence items are a note Holley received from his grandfather, Erastus Lyman, concerning financial matters (October 9, 1854), and a letter Mary H. Holley wrote to her father-in-law about family news. The final item is an undated report card for Alexander Lyman Holley, with a brief note Holley wrote on the back.