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Descriptions of Oyster Survey Signals, State of New York is a two-volume survey of signals located along the north coast of Long Island in the 1880s and early 1890s. The volumes contain descriptions of each signal (written by multiple individuals), drawings, and maps.

Descriptions of Oyster Survey Signals, State of New York (600 pages, not all of which are used) is a two-volume survey of signals located along the north coast of Long Island in the 1880s. Each volume is 300 pages long and has a title and the names of Eugene G. Blackford and W. G. Ford., Jr., stamped in gold on the front cover. Together, the volumes comprise a survey of many oyster signals, arranged alphabetically by name.

Most descriptions are dated 1881-1887, but the commission revisited some signals as late as 1892. Each entry contains a detailed description of a signal's location and composition (painted poles, flags, etc.). Some entries note the signal's distance from nearby towns or its location along bays and inlets. Manuscript maps and drawings of signals and their locations are present throughout the volumes. Descriptions are attributed to various persons, including J. P. Bogart, G. Bradford, W. C. Hodgkins, Charles Hosmer, I. C. McCorkle, J. A. Sullivan, C. H. Van Orden, and Charles Wyeth. Each volume contains a print of a tripod signal topped with flags.

Private Edgar H. Klemroth drew this collection of "Very Rough Sketches" while serving in the 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry Regiment near Winchester, Virginia, during the winter of 1864-1865. The sketches depict soldiers, horses, army camps and headquarters, equipment, African Americans, and winter scenes.

Private Edgar H. Klemroth drew these "Very Rough Sketches" (45 pages) while serving in the 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry Regiment during General Philip Henry Sheridan's campaign in Shenandoah from August 1864 to March 1865. Klemroth later presented them to Captain Rudulph Ellis of the 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry. The materials include pencil sketches, ink drawings, and wash drawings; a few of the pages contain more than one image. The original black leather binding (15.2 x 24.5 cm) is included in the back of Volume 3. Underneath some of the sketches are faint, hand-written lines of poetry pulled from works of various poets. Klemroth's illustrations show a variety of military scenes, including army camps, winter headquarters near Winchester, and wagons and supply trains in the Virginia countryside. Many sketches highlight the hardships of camp life. Soldiers are shown on horseback and at leisure, sometimes eating, talking, or watching equestrian and mule races. Images 26 and 27 feature soldiers firing during a skirmish, and another (image 10) shows a dog mourning over its dead Confederate owner's body. African Americans, including a young boy and men racing on mules, appear in a few of the drawings. Portraits of General Philip Henry Sheridan, General George Custer, Captain Rudulph Ellis, Brigadier General David Allen Russell, First Lieutenant John Spreadbury, and men in Klemroth's regiment (including scouts) are also present. Some of the items are dated November 1864 or December 1864, and some have descriptions of images written on the back.

Edith A. Moore Frost's commonplace book includes material dating from 1860 to 1893, with signatures, poetry, and comments predominantly written by her classmates and teachers from Ashland High School in Ashland, Massachusetts, and the Massachusetts State Normal School in Framingham, Massachusetts. Acquaintances in Kansas wrote additional entries in the 1880s. Thirty-two photographs of signatories are pasted or tipped into the volume, along with other materials like a fabric swatch with a hair clipping attached, embellished paper, and a pressed leaf.

Edith A. Moore Frost's commonplace book includes material dating from 1860 to 1893, with signatures, poetry, and comments predominantly written by her classmates and teachers from Ashland High School in Ashland, Massachusetts, and the Massachusetts State Normal School in Framingham, Massachusetts. Some entries include notations written in another hand, primarily indicating if someone was a teacher. Acquaintances in Kansas contributed additional entries in the 1880s.

Many persons signing the album added elements to their entries, such as poems, proverbs, comments, and drawings. Twenty-seven photographs of women were pasted into the volume alongside their signatures, with an additional five photographs enclosed in a letter written by Mrs. E. A. Husey to Mrs. F. W. Frost in 1893 (concerning classmates from the State Normal School). The volume includes various other materials tipped or pasted in, such as a fabric swatch with an attached hair clipping, embellished paper, and a pressed leaf.

Edith A. Moore Frost first inscribed the volume on December 25, 1860, indicating this "Forget Me Not Album," which features engraved illustrations of women, may have been given to her as a Christmas gift. She later wrote, beneath a photograph of herself, "Edith A. Frost. Class of 1868. Mass. State Normal School. Framingham Mass. Pictures of graduating Class 1868."

This journal is Edward Nicholas Heygate's illustrated, narrative account of his travels in Canada, the United States, and the Caribbean from May 1853 to February 1855. Heygate, an Englishman, described the stops on his itinerary as well as his modes of transportation, life in the Bahamas, and return to London. An Index of Illustrations contains additional information on visual works within the Heygate journal.

This volume (approximately 80 pages) contains Edward Nicholas Heygate's narrative account of his travels around Canada, the United States, and the Caribbean from May 1853-February 1855. Ink drawings appear throughout the journal.

Edward Heygate composed his narrative based on a diary he kept while traveling from England to North America, living in the Bahamas, and returning to Liverpool. The first section, entitled "Notes and Illustrations on America" (pp. 99-145), covers April 28, 1853, to July 17, 1853. During that time, Heygate recorded his experiences on his journey from Liverpool to the Bahamas. Following his arrival in Canada in mid-May, he visited Boston, New York City, Niagara Falls, Charleston, Montreal, and other locations. Heygate recorded his impressions of the major cities and attractions, giving particular attention to his modes of transportation, which included steamboats, railroads, and carriages. He also noted his general impressions about Americans and local culture. Among other leisure activities, Heygate attended several chariot races and a lecture by Lucy Stone on women's rights (June 18, 1853). The account ends upon Heygate's arrival in Nassau, Bahamas, in July 1853.

The second section of the journal, "Notes on the Island of Nassau. Bahamas. 1853" (pp. 149-169), recounts Heygate's life in the Caribbean, including his description of Nassau and a recapitulation of his visit to Havana, Cuba. These passages are dated from July 18, 1853-February 1855, and conclude with his arrival in Liverpool, England. This portion of the volume begins with regular diary entries, though Heygate wrote less frequently as time went on.

Heygate interspersed ink drawings throughout his account, and captured images of many of the sights he witnessed during his travels. He also composed ink and watercolor maps of North America and the Caribbean, which he annotated to show his traveling routes (pp. 6-7), and of New Providence, Bahamas (p. 13). Two items are laid into the journal: a pencil sketch and notes on Heygate's modes of transportation.

An Index of Illustrations (.pdf) contains additional information on visual works within the Heygate journal.

This volume contains diary entries and essays about sea travel between New York City and San Francisco, railroad travel between California and Florida, and life in Florida during the late 1880s. The volume also includes drawings, several incomplete acrostic poems about Grover Cleveland, two laid-in essays, and a list of theatrical performances.

This volume (80 pages) contains diary entries and essays about sea travel between New York City and San Francisco, railroad travel between California and Florida, and life in Florida during the late 1880s. The volume also includes drawings, several incomplete acrostic poems about Grover Cleveland, and a list of theatrical performances.

The bulk of the volume consists of diary entries and essays about the author's trip from New York City to San Francisco on the St. David between July 13, 1887, and December 17, 1887 (pp. 1-39); his time in San Francisco from December 1887 to January 1888 (pp. 41-46); his visit to the New Almaden quicksilver mine in December 1887 (pp. 47-50); his railroad trip from San Francisco to Jacksonville, Florida, in January 1888 (pp. 52-58); and his life in Florida from January 1888 to May 1889 (pp. 59-61). The diary of the voyage on the St. David documents weather conditions; sightings and captures of birds, porpoises, and fish; and leisure activities (such as card playing). When describing San Francisco, the author noted the population density of Chinatown and the city's preference for gold bits over paper money and pennies. During his visit to the New Almaden mine, he descended into a shaft, where he saw Mexican laborers carrying ore to the surface, a mule that had been underground for around a year, and a group of miners preparing a blast.

The author's account of his railroad voyage from California to Florida focuses on the cold temperatures and snowfall that caused him to miss all but one of his intended connections. During the trip, the author stopped at and briefly described Salt Lake City, Denver, Kansas City, and St. Louis. A clipping from a Denver & Rio Grande Railway circular contains a description of the route. While in Florida, the author noted how little Lake Geneva, his primary residence, had changed since his visit four years previously; he also commented on the effects of a yellow fever epidemic.

The travel writings are followed by a group of unfinished acrostic poems utilizing the name "Grover Cleveland" (pp. 62-65), an excerpt of dialogue (pp. 67-68), and a list of plays and theaters, including several that starred Edwin Booth (pp. 75-80). Pages 71-74 have been removed from the volume. Two loose essays laid into the book concern the purchase of hunting dog and a story about the author's travels with an itinerant dentist named Henry Carter. The names John Moore (Brooklyn, New York), Edward R. Wilbur, Jr. (New York City), and Mrs. Samuel Clemens are written on the final page of the volume.

The volume contains several illustrations, including a laid-in watercolor drawing of a sailor making a sail onboard the St. David. Drawings of "A Frisco Beauty" (p. 40) and "From the Car Window (Injuns)" (p. 57) are pasted into the book; the latter drawing shows Indians standing near a group of tepees. A sketched outline of part of a horse (p. 64) is drawn directly into the volume. The author's description of his trip to the New Almaden mine is illustrated with ink drawings of a canyon, the buildings over a mineshaft, and the mine's condenser.

This collection is made up of manuscript essays and writings, original artwork, and printed proof sheets by Edwin Whitefield, an artist who specialized in bird's-eye views and landscapes in North America. The manuscripts largely concern Whitefield's travels in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and the Dakota Territory, as well as Whitefield's interest in the Bible.

This collection (approximately 200 items) contains 24 manuscript essays and writings, original artwork (approximately 40 items), and around 140 printed proof sheets by artist Edwin Whitefield between the 1840s and 1880s. The collection also includes 2 autograph albums that Mabel Whitefield kept between 1876 and 1883.

The Manuscripts series (24 items) contains essays, charts, notes, and fragments; a draft of Edwin Whitefield's The Bible Its Own Interpreter; and 2 autograph albums kept by Mabel Whitefield. The essays mainly relate to Whitefield's travels in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and the Dakota Territory in the 1840s and 1850s; Whitefield described landscapes, and some of his writings refer to specific drawings. A series of essays concerns immigration to Minnesota, including several short pieces about opportunities for settlers. Whitefield's other writings include an argument for increasing workers' wages; a letter about his son's conduct; notes about the Bible; 2 manuscript tables of the populations of major U.S. cities at each national census between 1790 and 1890; and a copied extract from the Encyclopedia Britannica about Moses.

Edwin Whitefield's The Bible Its Own Interpreter manuscript (approximately 220 pages) is made up of notes and clippings about passages from scripture and Biblical subjects. The volume contains a preface, index, and printed title page. Mabel Whitefield kept her 2 autograph albums, which contain inscriptions and poetry from family and friends, between 1876 and 1883.

The Original Artwork series is made up of Edwin Whitefield works, including 2 oil paintings; approximately 35 graphite, ink, and watercolor sketches; and 2 sketchbooks. One oil painting (1885, 20"x16") is a country landscape with a man herding cows over a bridge. The other painting (undated, 30"x20") is a mountain landscape, with a man and cows resting beside a river or lake. Approximately 35 individual graphite, ink, and watercolor sketches depict houses, bridges, landscapes, and buildings. Whitefield identified many of the views as locations in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Edwin Whitefield's 2 sketchbooks contain illustrations of buildings, persons, and bird's eye views of cities and landscapes.

The Printed Items series includes proof sheets from the 1880, 1882, and 1889 editions of The Homes of Our Forefathers (approximately 75 colored or tinted lithographs), approximately 65 colored lithographs of botanical specimens by Whitefield, and one printed view of Newburyport, Massachusetts.

Edward E. Wilcox, a native of Franklin County, New York, wrote narrative recollections of hunting trips, painted watercolors, created sketches and drawings, and pasted photographs and newspaper clippings in this volume around the 1890s. Most of the material concerns hunting and fishing excursions in northern New York and southern Québec.

Edward E. Wilcox, a native of Franklin County, New York, wrote narrative recollections of hunting trips, painted watercolors, created sketches and drawings, and pasted photographs and newspaper clippings in this journal from approximately 1893-1896. Most of the material concerns hunting and fishing excursions in northern New York and southern Québec. The volume contains 200 pages, not all of which are used.

Wilcox wrote a 2-page introduction on June 2, 1893, intending to record details of his life for friends and family to discover after his death. In approximately 43 additional pages of prose, he wrote about his courtship with and wedding to Clara Stuart, his early years in New York City, numerous hunting and fishing trips in northern New York, and a summer vacation in New Hampshire and Québec. Two of the accounts describe a salmon run and an encounter with bears, and one pertains to a youthful prank. Some of the journal's watercolors, drawings, and sketches illustrate aspects of Wilcox's travel stories; most depict hunters, fishers, fish, rowboats, cabins, and woodland scenery. One pencil drawing utilizes shading to create the illusion of a nighttime view and appropriate shadows. Photographs include a picture of a man in a military uniform posing by a paper globe and paper cannonballs (possibly taken around 1917), studio portraits of an unidentified man and woman, a studio portrait of a man in his underwear, views of steamboats in a canal or lock, pictures of cacti in a desert, and a picture of hunters in a wooded area. Also present are interior shots of a shipping or similar commercial office and a man working in an enclosed office space, as well as street scenes. Two newspaper clippings concern E. E. Wilcox's use of shed human skin as a painting canvas and a painting he made as a young man.

Eleanor I. Moss collected poems, sketches, and engravings in this volume in the early 19th century. Male and female acquaintances contributed poems about friendship, nature, and religion. The visual material depicts buildings, people, and nature.

The Eleanor I. Moss autograph book contains 54 pages of poems, proverbs, engravings, and manuscript drawings and sketches. Moss's acquaintances contributed poems and extracts in the late 1820s, on subjects such as friendship, nature, and religion. Some entries are dedicated to "Ellen." "Caroline W." wrote a poem entitled "Thoughts by a sailor" (page 13), and "Life" (attributed to Byron) was copied with gold ink (page 39). Pages 108-109 and 115 have proverbs and prose passages with moral advice, dated 1845. The volume includes hand-drawn sketches and illustrations. Several engravings are pasted in. Most illustrations depict buildings in the British isles and country scenes.

• Couple under an arch (page 1)
• Dublin Castle (page 7)
• Two men and a woman, colored (page 11)
• Quarry Hill, Kent (page 11)
• Building by a body of water (page 21)
• Castle Acre Castle, Norfolk (page 29)
• Castle by a body of water (page 49)
• Stone building and cemetery (page 61)

• Open book (page 3)
• Boy holding paper (page 7)
• Bird, colored (page 59)
• People on a bridge, next to a man in a small boat, colored (page 63)
• Various flowers (page 122-125)

The Elmer Neill sketchbook, dating between 1893 and 1896, contains pencil, ink, and crayon/pastel drawings likely produced as educational exercises. Also in the volume are manuscript maps of North America, South America, and Africa, as well as calligraphic drawings of birds.

The Elmer Neill sketchbook, dating between 1893 and 1896, contains pencil, ink, and crayon/pastel drawings likely produced as educational exercises. Also in the volume are manuscript maps of North America, South America, and Africa, as well as calligraphic drawings of birds. The drawings in this volume include landscapes, geometric shapes, animals, flowers, a woman outside a log house, a ship, and others. The name Elmer Neill appears once.

This collection consists of letters, manuscript maps, embroidery, and a photograph and calling card produced by or relating to the young Emily Hockaday Blair of Columbia, Missouri. The bulk of the collection is comprised of letters Emily wrote to her parents, Frank and Florence Blair, often addressed using nicknames "Faver" and "Murgee" or "Mudgie," and sent to them at various places like New York, Illinois, Missouri, and Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma). In addition to commentary about Emily's daily experiences, hopes for visits, education, and acknowledgment of gifts, the letters also demonstrate her evolving handwriting.

This collection consists of letters, manuscript maps, embroidery, and a photograph and calling card produced by or relating to the young Emily Hockaday Blair of Columbia, Missouri. The bulk of the collection is comprised of letters Emily wrote to her parents, Frank and Florence Blair, often addressed using nicknames "Faver" and "Murgee" or "Mudgie," and sent to them at various places like New York, Illinois, Missouri, and Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma). In addition to commentary about Emily's daily experiences, hopes for visits, education, and acknowledgment of gifts, the letters also demonstrate her evolving handwriting. In her letter of November 11, 1892, Emily mentioned visiting local asylums and acquiring souvenirs from them. An undated letter includes several drawings of figures, including one of a Native American woman, and another includes a copy of a Rose Hartwick Thorpe's poem, "The Queen's Gift." Two maps that Emily drew as school exercises are also present--one of the United States of America (March 13, 1893), and another of New England (March 20, 1893). On occasion, other family members who were helping to care for Emily wrote brief notes within the correspondence, and an Aunt Lizabeth penned some letters dictated by Emily.

• One of Emily Hockaday Blair's calling cards, inscribed "To Mudgie & Faver"
• A cabinet studio portrait of Emily as a young child, taken by the photographer Douglass in Columbia, Missouri
• A handkerchief embroidered by Emily as a New Year's gift for her parents in 1892