Collections

This commonplace book belonged to Emile M. Tauzin of Natchitoches, Louisiana, and at least one other author in the 1850s and 1860s. The volume contains French poetry and horoscopes, parlor games, and a letter draft about a Natchitoches resident's experiences during the Civil War.

This commonplace book (37 pages) belonged to Emile M. Tauzin of Natchitoches, Louisiana, and at least one other author in the 1850s and 1860s. The volume contains French poetry and horoscopes, parlor games, and a letter draft about a Natchitoches resident's experiences during the Civil War.

Four French poems (pages 1-2 and 34-36) include a tribute to the state of Louisiana, a poem dedicated to the author's father (dated September 6, 1854), and a poem about a small fowl. One poem, entitled "Tous les Braves," is attributed to Charles D. Paradis, who dedicated the poem to Tauzin. Horoscopes for men and women, also in French, appear on pages 19-29; the men's horoscopes are incomplete. One owner used the book to record several questions for a parlor game (pp. 3-18), each accompanied by 40 possible answers, both humorous and serious. The questions are supposed to foretell topics such as personality, marriage, future disposition, and the number of slaves the respondent would own.

A later owner used the volume for a draft letter to his or her aunts Mary and Josephine (pages 30-37). The letter begins on page 32, and is written over the French poetry on pages 34, 35, and 36. After expressing pleasure about hearing that the recipients also sympathized with the Confederacy, the author recounted his or her experiences during the Union Army's occupation of Natchitoches during the Civil War. According to the letter, federal troops raided stores for goods to distribute to former slaves, threatened to shell the town, and disinterred a child's body to search for valuables.

This collection includes 2 letters that Lieutenant Colonel John Herries wrote to Charles Herries while serving with the 102nd Regiment of Foot in Canada during the War of 1812, as well as a later manuscript service record.

This collection includes 2 letters (7 pages) that Lieutenant Colonel John Herries wrote to Colonel Charles Herries while serving with the 102nd Regiment of Foot in Canada during the War of 1812, as well as a later manuscript service record (1 page).

Herries wrote his first letter (4 pages) from Moose Island, Passamaquoddy Bay, on October 30, 1814, and his second letter (3 pages) from St. John, New Brunswick, on August 5, 1815. Herries reflected on his military activities and reported recent war news, such as the Royal Navy's defeat at Lake Champlain in September 1814. Herries described New Brunswick as a "rascally country," and noted that its main population consisted of pioneers. In his second letter, he reported that he had read about the Duke of Wellington's victory at Waterloo. The final item is a manuscript document that provides details about Herries's military career, which included service in India, Europe, and North America. The record was compiled after his death; according to the docket, the document was "Read 12/2 51."

The George Erving collection consists of letters and a document about Erving's financial affairs, such as his attempt to receive compensation after fleeing his Boston home during the Revolution. Other items include letters that Erving wrote to his nephew, Samuel Waldo.

This collection contains 12 letters and 1 document about George Erving's financial affairs and Boston commerce in the early 19th century. Eight items pertain to Erving, including letters that he wrote to his nephew, Samuel Waldo, and incoming letters from merchants in Boston and England. In one letter to Waldo, Erving complained about his inability to receive compensation from the British government following the British evacuation of Boston in 1776 (February 19, 1796), and one document grants him power of attorney for his nephew. The remaining 5 items relate to life in Massachusetts in the early 19th century; writers commented on the tea trade (January 26, 1802), vacationing (August 23, 1816), and the death of Salmon Chase (August 12, 1806), among other subjects.

This collection contains 5 official copies of letters exchanged by United States Army officers regarding African American regiments in the Carrollton District of New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1864. The writers discussed topics including courts martial, troop transfers, commemorations of the Emancipation Proclamation, and soldiers' wives and families.

This collection contains 5 official copies of letters exchanged by United States Army officers regarding African American regiments in the Carrollton District of New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1864. The writers discussed topics including courts martial, troop transfers, commemorations of the Emancipation Proclamation, and soldiers' wives and families.

The box and folder list for this finding aid includes information about the contents of the letters in the collection.

The Alaska collection consists of three letters written by an Alaskan fisherman to his brother describing life in Alaska during the late 19th century.

The Alaska collection consists of three letters written by an Alaskan fisherman to his brother describing life in Alaska during the late 19th century. The author, who signed himself "Will," wrote the three letters to his brother Sam, from Fort Wrangle, Alaska (now Wrangell). Will's letters relate to life in Alaska during the early days of its settlement, with a particular focus on employment and on local Indians. Will, who owned a boat and fished for salmon, described his work and provided a picture of his life in the sparsely settled country. He focused on several aspects of life in Alaska, including the natural terrain and his encounters with local Indians, whom he believed to be immoral: "[in] some cases when the squaws are broke they are mighty glad to put in a night with a fellow & get two bits or some beans & bacon in the morning" (February 16, 1889). Will also repeatedly discussed the salmon industry and employment, including his occupation assisting the local marshal.

This volume primarily contains information on the ancestors of Robert Leet Patterson, who included members of the Williams family, Herron family, Wilson family, and Baird family. Other entries pertain to the establishment of European colonies in North America, United States coinage, and the history of Derry, Ireland.

This volume (with enclosed items) contains information on the ancestors of Robert Leet Patterson, including members of the Williams, Herron, Wilson, and Baird families. Other entries pertain to the establishment of European colonies in North America, United States coinage, and the history of Derry, Ireland. The volume contains 468 numbered pages, but only around 110 are used. See the Detailed Box and Folder Listing for a table of contents.

The notebook includes extracts copied from historical and biographical publications, newspapers, and other sources. Most of the material pertains to family histories, including family trees, genealogical notes, and biographical sketches of members of the Patterson, Stockton, Williams, Herron, Huntington, Head, Wilson, Given, Nicholas, Chestnut, Leet, Anderson, Way, and Baird families. Other items pertain to European exploration and land claims in North America, early relationships between European powers and Native Americans, the history of the New Haven colony, differences between old and new dating systems, and the history and economic output of County Londonderry and the city of Derry, Ireland. One brief note concerns the establishment of Presbyterianism in Philadelphia. The volume also contains a list of the number and type of coins issued by the United States government every year from 1793-1883.

Materials enclosed in the volume include 9 newspaper clippings respecting the Highland Presbyterian Church's 1903 centennial celebrations; "Reports from Florida" in 1879; obituaries for members of the Patterson, Wilson, and Heron families, dated 1900-1909; 6 pages of genealogical notes, one of which is a fragment of a letter; and a draft letter responding to a family member's request for advice about purchasing a grocery store.

The Manuscript Sheet Music collection is made up of manuscript music scores, correspondence, and composers' autographs.

The Manuscript Sheet Music collection (approximately 140 items) contains manuscript music scores and composers' autographs, as well as correspondence and other items.

The bulk of the collection is comprised of around 80 music scores, which range in length from one line to several pages; some are complete works, and some are fragments. Most of the brief melodies are accompanied by the composers' signatures and may have been intended as autograph gifts. The longer works are mainly piano and/or vocal scores, and some include lines for violin with piano accompaniment. Lyrics, when present, are written in English and German. Some of the scores are dated and signed, and a few were written in German cities. The cover of the score for "Barcarola" includes an engraving of "The Great Western crossing the Atlantic," and Harry Keyser's "Two Etudes for Pianoforte" is accompanied by a letter by the composer. A manuscript music book belonging to "Th. Hämb, Junior" contains several short pieces with lyrics in a Nordic language.

Additional autographed items include 25 autograph cards, 8 autograph musical quotations, 10 sheets of paper (some with inscriptions), and a photograph of violinist A. Rivarde. Many of the autographed cards, which are the size of business cards or visiting cards, are dated at Chicago in the mid- to late 1880s. The collection's 8 letters (in English, German, and Italian) include one man's opinion of a performance of "Wanda" and a letter illustrated with lines of music. Additional items are a program for a Manchester, New Hampshire, performance of the comic opera Jonah, an ink drawing of a decaying stone building, and lines of poetry or musical lyrics.

The July 1, 1874 kidnapping of four-year-old Charles Brewster "Charley" Ross from a sidewalk in front of the family home in the Germantown neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania became the first nationally publicized kidnapping for ransom case in the United States. This collection contains six items: one letter, a manuscript reward advertisement, handwritten notes, a pencil sketch portrait of Charley, a manuscript account of experiences with the main suspects, and an undated newspaper clipping related to the continuing investigation of the child's abduction, ca. 1909.

The July 1, 1874, kidnapping of four-year-old Charles Brewster "Charley" Ross from a sidewalk in front of the family home in the Germantown neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania became the first nationally publicized kidnapping for ransom case in the United States. This collection contains six items: a letter, a manuscript draft of a reward advertisement, handwritten notes, a pencil sketched portrait of Charley, a manusscript account of experiences with the main suspects, and an undated newspaper clipping-related to the continuing investigation of the child's abduction, ca. 1909.

The one Letter in the collection is from Charley Ross's father Christian K. Ross to Rev. Henry Whitney Cleveland, October 20, 1877; Philadelphia. 2 pages. In it, Mr. Ross states that he cannot help Cleveland publish a book as his time is spent searching for his missing son. Ross mentions the book he published on the case, lamenting that he published it using a subscription service as it limited its circulation.

Written on the verso of printed, illustrated stationery of the Haynes Hotel, Springfield, Massachusetts, the manuscript draft of a Reward Advertisement stipulates a $10,000 reward for the return of Charley Ross alive, promising not to seek out or discover the identity of the kidnappers. The page is headed "For Local Article."

Notes: Six pages of pencil notes on checkbook stubs, measuring approximately 9x4 inches. Dating from July 1, 1874, to an unknown point in 1909, the notes begin from the point of Charley's kidnapping, chronicling accounts of the case. First remarking that Christian Ross had "run down false clews [in a] vain attempt" to locate Charley, the unidentified writer continues with a sparse summary of the alleged kidnappers capture "at Fort Hamilton, L.I. [Long Island]" and Joseph Douglas's confession that "Mosher & I stole Charly [sic] Ross." The next entry, dated 1909, discusses one Wm. G. Eyster, whose claim to be the lost Charley Ross was rejected.

The notes conclude with a sketch of a man wearing glasses and a bow tie, with the caption "3 days to get it ready, $20,000," followed by what appears to be notes related to other kidnappings and reference to a "Jessy James."

Manuscript: On October 9, 1932, James H. Hall wrote a nine-page summary of George W. Murdock's recounting of his experiences with the main suspects in the Charles Brewster Ross kidnapping case, Bill Mosher and Joe Douglas, while his mother was in charge of the lighthouse in the Hudson River. Murdock recalled Mosher and Douglas attempting to sell them a boat, described the two men, and described encounters with detectives who searched their premises and read their mail. Hall speculated about the possible role of the boat in the kidnapping.

Newspaper Clipping: An undated clipping regarding one Mr. W.C. DeWitt, claiming to be the lost Charley Ross and giving a lecture, titled "The True Story of My Abduction."

Portrait: A pencil sketch of Charley with an inscription that reads,"at the time of his abduction. Then 4 yrs. and Walter, his 6-yr-old brother. Disappeared from the sidewalk, near their home. July 1, 1874."

The Pennsylvania Iron Furnace collection is made up of accounts, receipts, and correspondence pertaining to iron furnaces in the state of Pennsylvania in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

The Pennsylvania Iron Furnace collection is made up of accounts, receipts, and correspondence related to iron furnaces in the state of Pennsylvania in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Of the 11 financial records, 9 pertain to the Joanna Furnace in Berks County, Pennsylvania, including tax receipts and accounts related to its founders. An early document between Samuel Van Lear and James Old (September 11, 1777-May 25, 1782) and records of iron received from the French Creek Slitting Mill (June 4, 1802-December 14, 1802) are also present. The collection has letters written by Peter Astor at the Green Lane Forge (July 30, 1783), Robert Coleman at Elizabeth Furnace (February 7, 1798, and April 14, 1798), and Waters Dewees at Laurel Forge (April 11, 1803). The correspondence mostly concerns financial affairs.

This collection is made up of correspondence, documents, financial records, newspaper clippings, and other items related to Salem, New York, and its residents, primarily from the 1780s-1890s.

This collection is made up of correspondence, documents, financial records, newspaper clippings, and other items related to Salem, New York, and its residents, primarily from the 1780s-1890s. Many of the items were once bound together.

The Correspondence series is comprised of around 60 incoming and outgoing letters related to Salem, New York, and to the history of the state of New York. Early letters between residents of Salem and other locales concern a wide range of topics including education, political offices and appointments, and legal cases. After 1856, most items are incoming letters to James Gibson, a native of Salem who was state senator, judge, and president of the Washington Academy. Three letters written during the Civil War concern military commissions and officers. Many of Gibson's incoming letters, particularly later items, relate to his genealogical work; some correspondents offered or requested information about their ancestors.

The Documents series contains over 140 indentures, financial records, petitions, and other items, primarily related to residents of Salem, New York, in the 18th and 19th centuries. Many of the indentures concern land ownership in Washington, County, New York, and personal financial agreements. Other material relates to the Washington Academy, including a list of pupils. Legal orders largely concern private debts, and one document pertains to a local election. Some documents have newspaper clippings pasted onto them, and others were once bound together. One item is a diploma that the Washington Academy issued to James McEl. A group of land indentures is housed in a large bound volume.

The collection's Printed Items include articles, programs, and newspaper clippings. The majority of newspaper clippings concern the Washington Academy in Salem, New York. Other articles concern the "Bench and Bar of Washington County," the Bancroft Public Library, and the family of William Williams. Some clippings are pasted onto large sheets of paper, with manuscript annotations; a small number of complete newspapers are present. The series also has several copies of a program from the dedication ceremony of the Bancroft Public Library in July 1890.

The Photograph, Essay, Notes, and Fragments series is made up of items pertaining to Salem, New York. The carte-de-visite photograph depicts J. B. Steele. The various notes, essay, and fragments pertain to genealogy.