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The Charles Snyder papers contain correspondence between Snyder, a soldier in the 50th New York Engineers, his future wife, and other family members, concerning soldiers' duties and attitudes, religious activities, and other topics.

The Charles Snyder papers contain 182 letters to and from Snyder, 1857-1866, and one carte-de-visite photograph of him in uniform. Charles wrote 67 letters; his future wife, Hannah Wright, wrote 77; his sister Lizzie wrote 10; and his brother Steve wrote 8. Miscellaneous friends and family contributed an additional 20 letters.

The 14 letters predating Snyder's enlistment concern his teaching career, study at the University of Albany, religious activities, and family news from several of his sisters. After the outbreak of the Civil War, Snyder commented regularly on the conflict; he stated that the "strongest moral power" would be needed by soldiers in order to resist the temptations of camp life (September 17, 1861) and described a visit to the barracks of his brother William, a soldier in the 97th New York Infantry (January 25, 1861).

Between Snyder's enlistment in August 1862 and the end of the war, almost all of the correspondence is between Charles Snyder and his future wife, Hannah ("Nannie") Wright. In his letters, Snyder gave his frank opinions of various aspects of the war, often influenced by his strong religious convictions. Snyder initially felt that a recruiter had deceived him about the character of the regiment he had joined, particularly objecting to the men's swearing and drinking, and in several early letters, expressed his disillusionment with their behavior, as well as with the Union's mounting defeats. In other letters, he described his duties with the 50th Engineers, including building and destroying roads and bridges, constructing rafts, unloading trains, clearing brush, filling ditches, and moving boats, but wrote "that our country is receiving the full benefit of our sacrifices is not so clear to me" (November 27, 1862).

Snyder's letters provide many rich details of his experiences, such as the taunting by Confederates wielding a sign reading "Burnside stuck in the mud" (January 25, 1863), the universal dislike of the strict pass system instituted by the army (August 30, 1863), and the eating of a Thanksgiving turkey that he and his friends named "Jeff Davis" (November 28, 1863). On several occasions, he wrote to Hannah regarding the morale of the Army of the Potomac, discussing their "unabated" confidence in General Joseph Hooker (May 7, 1863) and stating that they did not consider Chancellorsville a total defeat, especially with the death of Stonewall Jackson, which he considered "equivalent to the loss of many thousand men" (May 20, 1863). Many of Snyder's 1865 letters relate to his promotion to first lieutenant and his desire to return home to Hannah, whom he intended to marry.

In her letters, Hannah Wright discussed religious activities (including involvement with the Tract Society), teaching, and family news, and she also expressed concern and affection for Charles. Later correspondence indicated her increasing involvement in the Union cause, including going to meetings of the U.S. Sanitary Commission (December 21, 1864), and knitting for soldiers. Wright shared Snyder's religious devotion and strict moral code. She reacted strongly to his news that Mary Todd Lincoln had worn makeup to a reception held for soldiers by President Lincoln, writing "It is a sad pity Mrs. Lincoln isn't a true woman" and calling it a "sin" (February 19, 1864). Letters from Snyder's brother Steve and sister Lizzie are primarily personal, regarding health, social visits, and news about other enlisted friends and neighbors.

Collection of correspondence belonging to De Witt and Sarah Clarke, who were residents of Battle Creek, Michigan during the Civil War. Bulk of collection consists of letters Sarah sent De Witt from Michigan while he was serving in the 2nd Missouri Cavalry. Remainder of the collection includes personal correspondence with other family members and friends as well as De Witt's business correspondence. Bulk of business correspondence dates after De Witt relocated the family to the developing town of Le Mars, Iowa in 1871, where he was a prominent merchant and community leader.

The collection consists of Sarah and De Witt Clarke's personal correspondence and De Witt's business correspondence. The bulk of the collection consists of letters from Sarah to De Witt, written from Michigan while De Witt was away with Merrill's Horse in Arkansas and Tennessee from 1864 to 1865. In her letters, Sarah expresses anxiety for her husband, reports on home and family life, and describes caring for their child in his absence. The collection includes De Witt Clarke's letters to his wife and personal correspondence with other family members and friends during and after the war. De Witt Clarke's business correspondence dates from after the Civil War and includes receipts, ledgers, price lists, notices, and advertisements, as well as correspondence with typewriter manufacturers in New York and Ohio.

Also included in the collection are typewritten transcriptions and lists of letters compiled by Anne Meis Knupfer.

Don Werkheiser was a teacher, writer, and philosopher-reformer active in the last half of the 20th century. He is best described as an individualist anarchist and libertarian. Most of his writings center on the philosophy of Mutual Option Relationship, which he developed and promoted throughout his life. It is multidisciplinary in its nature but based mainly on principles of equal rights and freedom of the individual. The eight linear feet of papers consist primarily of Werkheiser's writings (in the form of notes, drafts, and finished typescripts), correspondence with friends and colleagues, and related ephemera. A small number of photographs, materials documenting Werkheiser's interests and activities, and works by associates of Werkheiser are also present.

Don Werkheiser, like many of his peers, received little recognition for his ideas and efforts during his lifetime, even among the relatively small circle of individualist anarchists within which he interacted. The papers consist mainly of various iterations of his Mutual Option Relationship philosophy and methodologies for realizing it, as well as his thoughts on the numerous social, economic, and political problems that he saw in contemporary American society. There is also correspondence with friends and associates in his intellectual and ideological sphere. The ephemera in the collection--consisting of newspaper clippings; pamphlets; and extracts from periodicals, books, and monographs, are significant because of their subject area (mainly freedom of speech), their relative obscurity, and also Werkheiser's extensive annotations. These materials are supplemented by a very small number of photographs.

The Don Werkheiser Papers (8 linear feet) have been divided into six series: Writings, Correspondence, Other Activities, Works by Others, Photographs, and Ephemera. Originally included with the Don Werkheiser Papers was a large collection of books and pamphlets by Theodore Schroeder, an important influence on Werkheiser, as well as published works by other authors. These have been removed and cataloged separately.

There is a significant amount of material in the Don Werkheiser Papers having to do with Theodore Schroeder. In addition to championing free speech causes, Schroeder developed a system of psychological thought which he named "evolutionary psychology." He was also interested in erotogenic interpretations of religious practices, and his writings on this topic generated much controversy in his day. Werkheiser was profoundly influenced by evolutionary psychology and other areas of Schroeder's thought, especially his advocacy of free speech. This is indicated not only in Werkheiser's own writings, but also in his substantial files of material by and about Schroeder and in a small amount of correspondence between the two, and between Schroeder and others. (As a point of clarification, Schroeder's evolutionary psychology appears to be entirely unrelated to the discipline of the same name established by Leda Cosmides and John Tooby in the 1990s.)

There is also a substantial amount of material related to the School of Living (mainly the one in Brookville, Ohio) and the ideas associated with it: decentralism, cooperative living, monetary and tax reform, alternative education, permaculture, wilderness and farmland preservation, and the environment. Its founders, Ralph Borsodi and Mildred Loomis, are also well-represented in the collection--particularly Loomis, who was a close friend of Werkheiser's. (As another point of clarification, the School of Living's journal-newsletter, Green Revolution, is unaffiliated with--and even in direct ideological opposition to--the Green Revolution in agriculture begun in the mid-1940s that encouraged large-scale chemical applications as a means to boost agricultural productivity.)

Other important influences on or associates of Werkheiser represented in the collection are Georgism and Henry George (on which Werkheiser wrote extensively), Laurance Labadie, Ralph Templin, and Arnold Maddaloni. There is also some material by the science fiction writer Robert Anton Wilson.

The Edmund Whitman papers contain personal and military accounts and records concerning Whitman's teaching, Civil War service as chief quartermaster, and post-war work locating the graves of Union soldiers.

The Edmund Whitman papers contain 23 personal account books/diaries, 3 military account and letter books, a document, and 38 newspaper clippings. The materials span 1830-1881.

The Personal Account Books/Diaries series contains 23 volumes covering 1830-1876. They primarily contain information on Whitman's financial transactions, but also record major life events and feature occasional brief diary entries. While most of the volumes contain information on only one year, Volume I covers 1830-1855 in many brief entries, and several pages in the back of the volume note events such as his wedding to Nancy Russell, which took place "in a Hurricane at K[ingston]" (September 30, 1839), the deaths of his parents and wife, and the dates and places of his children's births and school attendance. The volumes for the years 1851 and 1853 contain only financial entries, which document the economic aspects of running the Hopkins Classical School in Cambridge. In addition to accounts, the 1855 volume contains a page of genealogical information, compiled by Whitman, which sheds light on several generations of the Whitman and Russell lines. Other volumes contain lists of publications and books that Whitman wanted to purchase (1858), and beginning in 1862, scattered military transactions mixed in with personal accounts. Tucked into the pocket of the 1865 volume is a table of the burial locations of approximately 20 Union soldiers who died in Missouri. In late July 1866, Whitman wrote a lengthy entry about cemeteries in Knoxville and Chattanooga, Tennessee. The later books in the series, 1872-1876, document Whitman's travel, interest from investments, and general transactions. The collection also contains two ongoing accounts, placed at the end: one spans 1856-1880, and records transactions related to the National Kansas Committee, and later, the schooling of Whitman's children; and another volume primarily records tuition transactions from the 1840s to the 1870s.

The Military Account Books and Letterbook series contains three items. The first account book covers May 1, 1863-December 1864 and lists payments made by Whitman, mainly to soldiers, on behalf of the United States government. The second volume contains similar records for the period of January 1, 1867-August 20, 1868, when the government undertook efforts to identify the graves of Union soldiers and rebury many of them in national cemeteries. Unlike the previous volume, this book provides information on the reason for each payment, whether "postage," "service," "hired men," "towing," or "purchase." The letterbook covers April 11, 1865-April 25, 1868, and records and summarizes the content of incoming letters to Whitman. The letters mainly contain requests for such items as fuel, clothing, and livestock, or for payments by the government for requisitioned items.

The Miscellaneous series contains a promotion document for Whitman, signed by Ulysses S. Grant (November 15, 1867), and 38 newspaper clippings from the 1850s to the 1870s, mainly pertaining to the Kansas controversy and its aftermath.

The collection also includes nine large format volumes kept by Edmund B. Whitman, containing correspondence, letter abstracts, and accounts of the office of the Assistant and Chief Quartermaster, District of Tennessee.

Ella Reeve "Mother" Bloor (1862–1951) was an American activist dedicated to the labor movement, the Socialist Party, and numerous radical groups.

The Ella Reeve Bloor Papers consist of two linear feet of personal and professional correspondence, notebooks and pamphlets, clippings, publications, and printed ephemera.

The collection, divided into 4 series, documents her activities as suffragist, free speech advocate, and labor organizer.

The Correspondence series consists of manuscript letters betweeen Bloor and her family, and correspondence between Bloor and her colleagues.

The majority of the family letters are to/from her children. Her letters, written during her travels, provide information about individuals and events associated with her work. Most of the family letters include the month and day written, but not the year. As a result, the letters are arranged in non-specific order.

Bloor's correspondence with colleagues and organizations are arranged chronologically. Included are letters from various Socialist societies, state and local government offices, newspapers, and labor unions, such as the New York State Committee Socialist Party, United Cloth and Cap Makers, Tailors’ Union. In addition, there are handwritten letters from other activists involved in socialist and labor causes (e.g., letter from Joseph W. Sharts, counsel for Eugene V. Debs in his trial at Cleveland, Ohio; Theodore H. Lunde, officer of the Peace Council in Chicago).

The Publications series includes several small booklets, articles, a journal, and a report on the professional achievements of Harold M. Ware.

The Elsie Leake papers consist of 44 incoming letters to Elsie Leake, a young woman from Rochester, New York. The letters range from 1861 to 1865, and are primarily from Union soldiers from Rochester, New York, but also from several female friends.

The Elsie Leake papers are comprised of 44 letters written to Elsie Leake, dated between 1861 and 1865, primarily from Union soldiers, but also from several female friends. Leake seemed to have a “pen-pal” relationship with a number of the soldiers from Rochester, New York. The most prolific correspondent was Henry Tracy, of the 13th New York Infantry, who wrote 14 letters to Leake between 1862 and 1864. In his correspondence, he describes a stay in the hospital on David’s Island, fighting in the Bermuda Hundred campaign, but above all, his heath, the weather, and food. Another of Leake’s correspondents is Tracy’s friend Richard Ambrose, also of the 13th New York Infantry, who wrote 12 letters about his adjustment to army life and its hardships (“The muck was knee deep but it is all for my country it is a big thing but i can not see it,” May 17, 1862). Elsie Leake’s nephew, Alonzo D. Baker, of the New York 89th infantry, also wrote three letters, briefly describing his regiment’s movements and his duties (“last night i was on picket it was purtey rough for the first time.” April 12, 1864). Two letters from William Simpson (26th New York Cavalry) and five from James Simpson provide similar views of the everyday experiences of soldiers.

Several letters from female friends and relatives shed more light on Elsie Leake herself. Both “B.” and “Louise” informed Leake of their attempts to find a husband for her. In a letter of December 9, 1861, Louise wrote, “I have a nice young man here for you. I was showing all of my likenesses one day and he fairly fell in love with you no joking.” Their letters also describe dinners, parties, and other social events.

Politically and socially radical underground newspaper founded in Detroit, Michigan, in 1965. The tabloid reflected an anarchist-libertarian philosophy during the 1970s under the influence of the "Eat the Rich Gang," which included editors Peter and Marilyn Werbe. Throughout the 1980s, the Fifth Estate continued to cover local issues and events, along with critiques of modern industrial society and articles covering the radical environmental movement. In 1999, the "Alternative Press Review" described the paper as an "anti-technology, anti-civilization, anarcho-primitivist quarterly."Collection consists of correspondence, business and office records, submissions for possible publication, clippings, flyers, posters, and photographs documenting the activities of the Fifth Estate primarily from the mid-1980s to the early 2000s. Financial documents, advertising, subscription and book orders, as well as legal documents regarding lawsuits are included. Correspondents include Bob Black, Peter Werbe, Marilyn Werbe, David Watson, John Zerzan, Lorraine Perlman, and editor (2002- ) Andy Smith (also known under the pseudonyms Sunfrog, Anu Bonobo, and Andrew Smith). The bulk of the audiovisual and digital media relate to Peter Werbe's Late Night radio show that dealt with similar topics as Fifth Estate.

The Fifth Estate Records document the activities of the Fifth Estate newspaper, one of the oldest underground newspapers in the United States. The records date primarily from the mid-1980s to the early 2000s. The record group has been divided into eight series: Historical, Correspondence, Publishing Material, Business and Office Records, Topical File, Miscellaneous Anarchist and Social Protest Ephemera, Photographs, and Audiovisual and Digital Media. There is a good deal of overlap among the series due to the work processes of the staff at the Fifth Estate and the lack of organization among the various accessions received by the library.

The Tyler-Montgomery-Scott family album chronicles multiple generations of the Tyler, Montgomery, and Scott families of the Philadelphia area from the 1860s through the 1930s. It includes approximately 275 items including studio portrait photographs, informal snapshots, newspaper clippings, postcards, letters, and other ephemera.

The Tyler-Montgomery-Scott family album chronicles multiple generations of the Tyler, Montgomery, and Scott families of the Philadelphia area from the 1860s through the 1930s. It includes approximately 275 items including studio portrait photographs, informal snapshots, newspaper clippings, postcards, letters, and other ephemera.

The album (33 x 25.5 cm) is string-bound with grey cloth covers. Most photographs in the album have detailed handwritten captions identifying people, often with their middle or maiden names as well as the location and date. The presentation of the album is not strictly chronological, especially in the latter half. The early generations of Tylers are represented in photographic formats such as cartes-de-visite, tintypes and cabinet cards, while later generations are represented in snapshots and postcards. When the album reaches the mid-twentieth century, it begins to resemble the modern family album with various forms of ephemera (newspaper clippings, drawings, letters, Christmas cards, etc.) supplementing the photographs of family and friends.

The album begins with a portrait of Frederick Tyler, his daughter Sarah Sophia Cowen, granddaughter Kate “Gwen” Cowen Pratt, and great-granddaughter Kate Pratt. George F. and Louisa R. Tyler as well as their children (including Sidney F. and Helen Beach Tyler) are also featured in the initial section of the album, along with many extended family members, friends, nurses, and pets. Among the family friends pictured are painter Frederick Church, writer Bret Harte, Leonor Ruiz de Apodaca y Garcia-Tienza, Gen. William Buel Franklin, patent lawyer and historian Woodbury Lowery, and the Duke and Duchess of Arcos (Jose Ambrosio Brunetti and Virginia Woodbury Lowery Brunetti). Several interior views of rooms in George F. and Louisa R. Tyler’s home on 201 South 15th St. taken in 1896 are also present, including a photograph of the “Children’s play room” that features their granddaughter Hope Binney Tyler Montgomery holding a doll. Hope, her parents Mary W. and Sidney F. Tyler, her husband Robert “Bob” L. Montgomery, and their children Mary, Ives, and Alexander are well-represented in the album.

Of particular interest are a number of photographs in different sections of the album that depict Theodore Roosevelt and his family. Some of these images are formal studio portraits, while others are more candid snapshots of Roosevelt with other people. One snapshot shows the family at play on the grounds of Sagamore Hill in 1897. Two photos taken at the White House including Helen Beach Tyler, daughter of George F. and Louisa R. Tyler and second cousin to Edith Kermit Carow Roosevelt, are labelled “taken by Ted Roosevelt,” possibly referring to President Roosevelt’s son Theodore Roosevelt III. Helen Beach Tyler may be the “Nellie” who was the recipient of a partial letter included in the album which describes conditions at a wartime hospital (most likely in Italy) in 1915. Only the first two pages of this letter are included, and there is no indication of the identity of the writer. Helen Beach Tyler may also have been the principal compiler of this album. Supporting this possibility is the presence of an interior view of a bedroom at 201 South 15th St. (George F. and Louisa R. Tyler’s home) captioned as “Mother’s bedroom,” a signed portrait of Englishman Lytton Sothern captioned “Given to me by Mr. Sothern June 1872. Mr. Edward Sothern & his son Lytton Sothern sat at our table on ‘Oceanic’ my first trip to Europe,” and a portrait of Sara Schott von Schottenstein, Baronin von Prittwitz-Gaffron, bearing the inscription “to her friend Helen Tyler 1880.”

Other items of interest include portraits of Col. August Cleveland Tyler; several portraits of Brig. Gen. Robert Ogden Tyler; a portrait of French pianist Antoine Marmontel captioned “Mr. Marmontel Professor au Conservatoire gave us music lessons in Paris 1873-74”; a group portrait of Helen Beach Tyler, Mary L. Tyler, Alice Seward, Kitty Seward, and Ida Vinton posing with a silhouette of Sidney F. Tyler; photographs of painted portraits of George F. Tyler and Hope Binney Tyler Montgomery; a series of photos taken at the Spanish Embassy in Mexico City, some of which include the Duke and Duchess of Arcos, Woodbury Lowery, and Archibald Lowery; portraits of the Prittwitz-Gaffron family in Germany; photos taken around the world in various locations including Egypt, India, Germany, and Italy; images taken during an exhibition of sculpture by Stella Elkins Tyler (wife of George Frederick Tyler, Jr.), as well as a program from the event; and photos showing the family of Helen Hope and Edgar Scott.

The Frederick North collection contains four letters written by North between 1775 and 1783 and a financial record for extraordinary military services and provisions incurred by and paid for by North and George Cooke as Paymasters of Forces, 1766-1767.

The Frederick North collection contains 4 letters from North to various recipients, 1775-1783 and one 1766-1767 record of payment for services. In the first letter (April 17, 1775), written to an unknown recipient, North mentioned transferring a "Dr. Tatten" to Westminster, which he considered "more profitable" than other institutions. He also expressed regret that John Burgoyne did not attend a meeting at which Lord Dartmouth gave "explicit & proper" instructions. In his letter of August 22, 1782, also to an unknown recipient, North referred to a month-long "Tour of visits," which prevented him from writing sooner. He pledged his assistance in recruiting men for the 40th Regiment of Foot, recently renamed the 2nd Somersetshire after Somerset County, but opined that he could "do but little" because of his residence outside the area. In the next piece of correspondence, dated January 19, 1783, North congratulated William Eden on the birth of a son, accepted the role of godfather, and noted that their friendship was a "principal happiness" in his life. North wrote the final letter to the Duke of Portland, September 23, 1783, informing him of the material needs of emigrants from East Florida to the Bahamas, and inquiring if the army's extra provisions could be sent to the Bahamas for the settlers.

Also included in the collection is a 7-page "Account of Extraory Services incurred & Paid by the right honble Lord North & Geo. Cooke," covering 1766-1767, when North and Cooke served as Paymasters of the Forces. This document contains sums paid to various military officials for services and supplies in Germany and colonies such as Grenada, East Florida, and Jamaica. Also provided in the document is a list of names of the compensated and dates of warrant.

The George C. Nichols papers document Nichols' service with the 25th Massachusetts Infantry, including participation at the battles of Roanoke Island and New Bern, stays in hospitals, and changing attitudes toward the war.

The George C. Nichols papers consist of 36 letters written by Nichols to family members during his service with the 25th Massachusetts Infantry. His letters span October 5, 1861, to February 21, 1865. The tone of Nichols' correspondence changes drastically over the three years that it represents. Early letters describe the "fun" and "good times" that he had while occupied as a guard (October 5, 1861) and as a sailor on the steamer New York (January 10, 1862). However, by the summer of 1862, news of bad food and illness dominates the correspondence, as Nichols had begun a series of hospital stays. On August 10, 1862, Nichols wrote, "I wish I was out of this damd hot place & out of this war[.] don't you tell aney one for it would go al over the street that I was sick of it…" (August 10, 1862). In letters from this point on, Nichols wrote about such topics as his treatment at Beaufort Hospital, including care by nuns (September 21, 1862), his thoughts on the progress of the war (June 21, 1863 -- "The Rebs are making a raid up into Pennsylvania. I am glad of it the North are a sleep and hav [sic] been for the last six months they dont seem to care much about the War…"), and his desire to return home. Although Nichols barely mentioned the action that he saw as a soldier, his letters clearly document his morale and medical treatment. Several sources state that George C. Nichols of the 25th Massachusetts Infantry was captured at the siege of Petersburg on May 16, 1864; unfortunately, his letters, which are concentrated around 1862-1863, never address his capture or time in prison.