26 items
The Abraham Lincoln collection contains 26 items by or pertaining to Abraham Lincoln, and spanning [ca. 1845] to 1865, with the bulk of materials concentrated in the years 1856 to 1865. See the "Detailed Box and Folder Listing" for an inventory of the items.
2.25 linear feet
The Bird family papers are made up of correspondence, documents, ephemera, and other materials related to members of the Bird family of East Smithfield, Pennsylvania. A number of letters written between George Niles Bird and Frances Rowe depict their lengthy, occasionally difficult, courtship in the late 19th century. Letters from other friends and family members are interspersed, including a letter from Hope Rowe recounting the funeral of President James A. Garfield (October 9, 1881).
Nancy N. Bird's correspondence consists primarily of incoming personal letters. Nancy's cousins wrote many of the letters, with the family's religiosity influencing much of their writing. The Bird family papers include many of Nancy N. Bird's speeches, including a series of talks delivered to fellow members of the Women's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) between 1886 and 1912. She discussed temperance, religion, and topics of local interest, including the history of Smithfield, Pennsylvania. Nancy N. Bird's printed materials consist primarily of ephemera, programs, and newspaper clippings, largely related to her work with the WCTU and to the Bradford Baptist Association. Also present are three items written by Nancy: a short book entitled A History of the Sunday Schools in East Smithfield, PA. Since 1822, and two copies of The History of the Baptist Church of East Smithfield, PA. Other materials related to Nancy include journal pages, a photograph, and Sunday School papers.
Helen Bird's letters, written to her mother, chronicle her year at the West Chester Normal School, 1912-1913, and include frequent complaints about the atmosphere, the people, and the food.
Materials relating to George Bird consist primarily of incoming correspondence from friends and from his cousin Geraldine ("Jerry"). Jerry, who financially supported George during his time at Pennsylvania State University, also offered advice and updates on her academic life at Cornell University, while George's friend Eugene Edgar Doll discussed his experiences at the University of Chicago and his patronage of the arts. The collection also includes reports from George Bird's early studies and from his time at Pennsylvania State.
Personal letters from other members of the Niles and Bird families include early letters from Hannah Niles to her husband Samuel, and letters addressed to George N. Bird, his wife Frances, and their daughter-in-law Carrie. Two printed letters from "Robert and Bernie" in Impur, India, describe the country and their educational and missionary work; on January 7, 1921, they mentioned Gandhi's non-cooperation movement.
The collection contains diaries and journals, account books, and albums. The diaries include an 1844 unsigned journal, Hannah Minor Niles' 1866 diary, Nancy Niles Bird's 1851 diary, and Carrie M. Bird's 1921 diary. An account books tracks John Bird's expenses between 1846 and 1858, and a record book kept by Nancy Niles Bird includes the meeting minutes from the Soldiers Aid Society during the Civil War and household accounts. George Bird's autograph album covers the years 1879-1881 and Nancy Niles Bird's scrapbook, kept between 1850 and 1925, contains newspaper articles about her mother Hannah, members of the Bird family, and acquaintances from Pennsylvania and Kansas.
Other miscellaneous items include a printed map, a document related to the military chapel at Ellington Field, Texas, genealogical items, and manuscript poems.
1.25 linear feet
The Charles F. Tew papers contain letters and documents related to Union officer Charles Tew and his family (1837-1905). The 1985 series is comprised of 448 letters, 2 diaries, 19 military documents (including orders, supply notes, commissions, and furloughs), 1 roll call notebook, 1 subpoena, 9 financial records (receipts), 3 printed items, and 11 items of ephemera.
The letters begin in 1841, during Tew's early career in the United States Navy, and were written to and from Tew, his mother, and his brother. Tew's letters detail his experiences as a young sailor aboard the Columbus, and include descriptions of ship life. In one letter, Tew complained to his mother that they begin scrubbing the deck early in the morning, and that "if you go below the mate will lick you with out mercy…I am sick of a sailor's life" (September 16, 1841). Several letters deal with his attempts to obtain a discharge. He explained to his mother that if he is not released from service he will simply run away again: "I will never consent to stay here five years on any account whatever I had rather they would throw me overboard with a forty two pound shot tied to my neck" (January 17, 1842). Soon after, the navy agreed to discharge Tew.
Most of the 1850-1860 items are incoming letters to Tew from friends and family, dealing with daily life, town gossip and scandals (such as an illegitimate birth (January 9 and 10, 1851)), firefighting, and cockfighting. Of note is a letter discussing "spirit rappings" (February 22, 1850), and a letter about newly instated fugitive slave laws (November 28, 1850).
The Civil War letters begin on November 5, 1861, when Tew wrote that he and his regiment had reached Annapolis, Maryland. The majority of the letters from this period are from Tew to his wife and family, with some letters addressed to either Tew or Amelia from other friends and family members. The letters indicate that, though Tew missed his family greatly, he was proud of his service for his country: "I am winning an inheritance for my children, and for them a name and a country that they may never be ashamed of" (November 28, 1861). Tew often exhibited frustration at the men who did not enlist, as he believed their reluctance to join the cause only lengthened the war. Tew suggested that their civilian pay should be cut in order to encourage them to enlist (November 21, 1863). Though the series does not include Amelia's letters to Tew, his responses indicate that she was often frustrated by his absence. Tew's letters contain vivid descriptions of army and officer life, battles and expeditions, and his illnesses and injuries. Tew described his part in the capture of New Bern and the ensuing skirmishes (March 16, 1862), Drewry's Bluff (May 22, 1864), Cold Harbor (June 5, 1864), and the siege of Petersburg (June 12-August 11, 1864). Tew wrote that many of his men had grown hard and accustomed to battle: "They are without fear as you may say, heardened to the sight of blood…O Wife you know not what it is to meat death face to face, yet I fear it not…" (April 9, [1862]). Beyond the battlefield, Tew discussed his impressions of and dealings with Southern civilians. He described commandeering houses and burning the homes of those who gave information to the Confederate Army (June 15, 1862). He noted the capture of several Confederate prisoners, mentioning that he wished he could have killed them in revenge for the death of Union soldiers (July 30, 1862). African Americans and slaves are also a frequent topic of discussion, and Tew claimed that, though the people in Maryland have slaves do all of their work, "they cannot be as happy as we are at home with our wives and daughters to do our work so neat for us" (November 1861). Tew occasionally discussed his views of African American troops.
Tew resigned from the service in August 1864, but reenlisted in 1865, to the consternation of his wife. In a letter from March 18, 1865, Tew defended his actions, claiming that he was not a bad husband, nor was he deserting his family. After his reenlistement, Tew felt unwelcome in his new regiment (March 23, 1865). The letters from this period contain a discussion of Lincoln's assassination (April 26, 1865), as well as a first-hand account of the execution of the assassination conspirators (July 10, 1865).
After the war, the series consists primarily of family letters, including several from Charles F. Tew, Jr (1877-1880), who traveled around the United States working odd jobs, including painting, piano tuning, and picking cotton, until he died suddenly in Colorado of an illness. His last letter is dated February 21, 1880, and is followed by a payment for transporting his body back to Massachusetts, and a letter from the hospital containing information on his death (May 17, 1880). Family letters, written primarily by Amelia, Charles, and their children, continue through the next few decades, providing accounts of late 19th century family life. Topics include illnesses, romances and marriages (accounts of Mabel Tew's wedding are provided in letters from January 8 and 15, 1888), work, births, vacations, and general family events.
Also included in the series are several printed documents, including a navy broadside (1837); a pamphlet providing "Instructions for Officers on outpost and patrol duty" (March 25, 1862); and a subpoena to appear at a court martial for men who had gone AWOL (October 19, 1865). Also present are three bound volumes: Tew's roll call notebook for the 2nd Massachusetts Regiment (1862-1865), and two diaries from 1862 and 1865 that contain occasional brief entries.
The 2015 series consists of approximately 250 items, primarily Civil War-era military documents and returns related to ordnance, camp equipage, and clothing. Other military documents concern details, furloughs, and passes for Tew and members of his companies. Application materials for pensions, disability, and other matters area also included. The series also features seven letters from 1849 relating to Charles F. Tew's travels to California to participate in gold mining. Ten letters from Amelia M. Tew to her mother in the mid-1850s detail her young and growing family. These are accompanied by various other family letters, documents, and receipts from 1809 to 1902.
The series also includes several photographs, ephemera, and two essays. One, "An Incident at New Berne, N.C." relates to a Civil War battle in which Tew commanded. The other, "My Childhood Days in the First Third of the Century," is a partial memoir written by a mother for her child. Two autograph albums, one from ca. 1833-1836 and ca. 1874-1878, are at the end of the series.
Approximately 113,000 photographs and 158 volumes
The subject contents of different photographic format series within the Tinder collection vary, depending in part upon how each format was historically used, and the date range of that format's popularity. For example, cartes de visite and cased images are most often formal studio portraits, while stereographs are likely to be outdoor views. Cabinet photographs are frequently portraits, but often composed with less formality than the cartes de visite and cased images. The postcards and the mounted prints contain very diverse subjects. The photographers' file contains many important and rare images of photographers, their galleries, promotional images, and the activities of photographers in the field. See individual series descriptions in the Contents List below for more specific details.
Included throughout are images by both professional and amateur photographers, although those by professionals are extant in far greater numbers.
3 linear feet
The DuBois-Ogden-McIlvaine papers (852 items) center on the writings and affairs of Sarah Platt Ogden DuBois, George Washington DuBois, Charles Pettit McIlvaine, and their extended families. The collection is comprised of 656 letters, six letter books, five diaries, four account books, one logbook, 29 genealogical records, and 46 poems, prayers, drawings, cards, and other miscellaneous items. The collection conists of items from family members in New York, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, and Louisiana.
The Correspondence series (656 items) contains letters written by the extended DuBois-Ogden-McIlvaine families. The earliest letters concern Cornelius DuBois, Sr. (1786-1794), and Sarah "Sally" Ogden, and are from friends and family (1799-1807). Of interest are the letters that discuss the birth and death of Sarah’s son Robert (March 14, 1804, and September 6, 1804).
The series contains 25 letters between Sarah P. O. DuBois on Long Island and her husband Cornelius DuBois in New York City (1812 and 1813). In these, the couple discussed domestic matters such as childbirth, child rearing, and Sarah's poor health. The bulk of the letters between 1813 and 1836 are addressed to Sarah from friends and family members. These provide a glimpse into the family members’ personal lives as well as their views on religious matters, manners, and child rearing.
Many of the letters from 1835 to1845 concern Reverend Charles P. McIlvaine and his siblings Henry, George, and Mary Ann DuBois. Also throughout the 1840s are letters relating to George W. DuBois, including 16 letters from his father, 33 from his wife, and 71 letters written by DuBois to various family members. Of interest are several letters written by Dubois during a European sojourn in 1847-1848 in which he discussed the political turmoil afflicting the Continent. From 1846 through September 1848, many of the letters are between Dubois and his love interest Mamey McIlvaine, in Gambier, Ohio, as well as a few to Mamey from her father, Bishop Charles McIlvaine.
Of special interest are five letters written by George W. Dubois during his time as the chaplain of the 11th Ohio Regiment Volunteers in 1862. The collection also contains several Civil War era letters from the family members on the home front.
Between 1891 and 1892, the series contains 10 letters from George W. Dubois living in Redwood, Colorado, to his mother, father, and siblings. These relate to family health, crops, a new camera, the exercise of bicycling for health reasons (Victor Safety Bicycle model C.), and religious matters. Several items concern DuBois' management of the Marble Cemetery, and describe logistics on moving bodies and selling portions of the cemetery.
Many of the 20th-century items are personal and business letters from Cornelius DuBois, Jr., and Mary S. DuBois. The items from 1960 to 1983 relate to family genealogy collected by the ancestors of the DuBois, McIlvaine, and Ogden families. These also provide provenance information for items in this collection.
The Letter books series (6 items) contains copy books of letters written by Sarah P. O. DuBois, Charles P. McIlvaine, and George W. DuBois. The Sarah P. O. DuBois letter book (92 pages) is comprised of letters to family members spanning 1782 to 1819. McIlvaine’s letter book (125 pages) contains autographs and letters from various prominent religious, government, military, and academic leaders from 1830 to1873. Also present is a binder of typed copies of letters to and from McIlvaine. Many of the original incoming letters are in the correspondence series.
The "Commercial Manifold" copybook (4 pages) contains a fragment of a letter by an anonymous author (October 1879). The final two letter books are both from George W. DuBois. The first (165 pages) spans January 1883 to April 1885, and includes letters, poems, prayers, music, and drawings. The second (99 pages) spans November 1886 to January 1887, and contains letters, a recipient index, and one poem written by DuBois' daughter Mary Cornelia DuBois.
The Diaries, Account Books, and Ships' Logs series (10 items) is comprised of bound volumes that contain personal and financial information on family members:
The Documents series (42 items) contains of 33 legal documents, George W. DuBois' commission in the Ohio Army as a chaplin in 1861, Cornelius DuBois’ war deeds, and the will of Charles P. McIlvaine. Twentieth-century items include wills and executor documents for Mary Cornelia DuBois, Henrietta DuBois Burnham (draft), Mary Constance DuBois, Peter DuBois, and a copy of Cornelius DuBois ' (father to George W. DuBois) will.
The Genealogy series (29 items) consists of several manuscript books and loose notes, documenting the genealogy of the families represented in the collection. Of interest are notes for the McIlvaine, Reed, and Coxe families beginning in the 14th century and following the line to the early 1700s (9 pages); a comb bound booklet containing "genealogical charts prepared for the decedents of Floyd Reading DuBois and Rosilla Marshall" with annotations; and a DuBois Family Album, which contains copied letters, biographies, and genealogical notes, including copies of letters between siblings Robert and Sarah Ogden and from Sarah to her son Henry Augustus Dubois.
The Photographs and Engravings series (10 items) contains an engraving of Charles P. McIlvaine and Robert J. Chichester, photographs of C.E. McIlvaine, Charles P. McIlvaine, and George Washington DuBois, and five photographs depicting rustic life on a lake.
The Miscellaneous and Ephemera series (46 items) is comprised of 12 poems, prayers, manuscript music, and drawings (undated); 23 printed holiday cards and calling cards (1904 and undated); 18 newspaper clippings, including family death and marriage announcements (February 4, 1910-July 1983 and undated); 14 religious announcements and pamphlets (1873-[1925]); and 10 writing fragments and ephemeral items, such as dried flowers and lace handmade coasters.
0.5 linear feet
The George Albert Thomas papers (283 items) consist of the personal letters and writings of George Albert Thomas of Portland, Maine. The letters relate to art, politics, philosophy, and cultural activities in Portland.
The Correspondence series (226 items) consists largely of letters written to George A. Thomas by his brothers, Charles, Edward, and John; his sister Charlotte; his mother Elizabeth; and college mates. George wrote a few of the letters. The Thomas family and their friends were interested in the pursuit of education and the cultivation of the mind, and their correspondence revolves around the currents of the intellectual life and the social bonds among the educated elite. Letter topics include the state of national and regional politics; current events and movements, such as anti-slavery and temperance; education at Bowdoin College and elsewhere; and contemporary literature, poetry, music, and opera. Thomas was also involved with organizing concerts at the Third Parish of Portland and at St. Stephen’s Church. George Thomas wrote his letters while he was studying law in Portland; he described his studies and his interest in his new career. Charlotte Thomas typically wrote about family matters and her education. This series contains 24 undated letters.
The School Essays series (19 items) contains Thomas’ writings from his time at Bowdoin College, 1840 to 1841, with 14 undated items. These essays include poetry and literary criticism, a defense of capital punishment, an essay on chivalry’s place in history, an assessment of the author Richard Cumberland, and thoughts on the worth of such intellectual pursuits as the study of art and philosophy.
The Writings and Extracts series (10 items) consists of handwritten excerpts of poetry and prose from Goethe, Percy Shelley, Voltaire, and others. Of note is a four-page account of Thomas’ “serenades” of 1835-1837, which are accounts of feasting, drinking, and socializing with friends in Philadelphia.
The Documents, Printed Items, and Ephemera series (28 items) contains 12 miscellaneous items from Thomas’ time at Bowdoin College and Harvard Law School, including tickets of merit, printed event programs, and library lending permissions. Also present are 16 items related to church congregations and businesses in Portland, Maine.
1 volume
The George Edward Burr scrapbook contains over 130 labels for various alcoholic products, assorted clippings mainly related to facets of the alcohol industry, handwritten notes including recipes for alcoholic beverages, and several patent designs by Burr.
The scrapbook (33.5 x 21 cm) has marbled paper covers with "Spiritual Guide No. 1" written on the front and contains approximately 100 pages. Labels for an extensive array of different alcoholic products can be found pasted in between pgs. 1 and 52. The majority of labels are for various French wines and brandies, though other alcoholic products (predominately spirits) from the Netherlands, Spain, Germany, England, Italy, Jamaica, Switzerland, Mexico, and the United States are also represented. Of particular note are a number of labels for products imported by George Edward Burr into Mexico. While it remains unconfirmed, this may have been the same George Edward Burr who was involved with the management of the Pedrigal Mining Company in Mexico.
approximately 5,000+ items in 23 volumes
The Gerald T. and Charlotte B. Maxson printed ephemera collection contains over 5,000 pieces of assorted ephemera, the majority of which were commercially printed in the United States during the mid to late 19th-century.
The Maxson collection provides a valuable resource for the study of 19th-century visual culture, commercial advertising, and humor in addition to the role of gender, ethnicity, and race in advertising. American businesses are the predominant focus of the collection, though many international businesses are also represented. While trade cards are by far the most prevalent type of ephemera found in this collection, an extensive array of genres are present including die cut scrapbook pieces, photographs, engravings, maps, serials, and manuscript materials.
The 23 binders that house the Maxson collection were arranged by the collectors themselves. Items are organized somewhat randomly in terms of topical arrangement. While pockets of related materials can be found here and there (for instance, the entirety of Volume 16 contains circus-related items while Volume 11 contains an extensive number of Shaker-related materials), for the most part any given subject may appear in any given volume. In some cases, items are clustered as a result of having been acquired together or due to a documented common provenance. Occasional typed annotations written by the Maxsons help provide additional context for certain items.
The Maxson Collection Subject Index serves as a volume-level subject index for materials found throughout the binders. The subjects indexed here are generally representative of both visual and commercial content. In addition to more general subjects, many names of specific people, places, buildings, events, and organizations that appear in the materials have also been listed. Researchers engaging with this collection should be aware that they will encounter numerous examples of racist caricatures, especially ones depicting African American, Native American, Irish, and Chinese people.
2 boxes
The Hair Documents, Ephemera, and Prints collection is comprised of 103 items, mostly printed materials related to hair, shaving, and wigs. Included are ephemeral advertisements, trade cards and price lists, government acts from British monarchs George II and George III relating to hair and wigs, manuscript letters and indentures, caricatures and cartoons, broadsides, sheet music, other miscellaneous prints, and one braided lock of hair. The material spans from 1717 to the late 1980s, with the bulk of materials dating from the late eighteenth century to the end of the nineteenth century. A majority of the materials are from England, although some are from Belgium, France, Switzerland, and Scotland. Many of the items are satirical and are commentary on fashion and the idea that the local barber was the "jack of all trades." Two similar items, a comical manuscript resume of "Isaac Morgan" and a fictitious advertisement for the varied services of "Isaac Factotum" offer exaggerated illustrations of how a barber did more than cut hair. Of interest is a series of mid-nineteenth century Valentines which center around the love-lives of barbers. Also included is a letter from Alex Campbell to his relative John Campbell, the Cashier of the Royal Bank of Scotland during the Jacobite rising of 1745. There is also sheet music from the composer (Franz) Joseph Haydn (1732-1809), A Pastoral Song, better known as My Mother bids me bind my hair. Of note are prints by British satirists William Hogarth, Isaac and George Cruikshank, and Thomas Rowlandson.
approximately 800 items
The Rewards of merit collection consists of approximately 800 hand-illustrated and printed rewards of merit originating in the United States during the 19th and early 20th centuries.
The collection includes rewards of merit decorated with ink, watercolor, and fraktur art as well as lithographic and chromolithographic rewards. The bulk of materials are dated between 1830 and 1900.
Series I of the collecton contains approximately 200 rewards housed in binders that are primarily grouped around specific students and teachers. Also present is a group 100 examples of early 19th century rewards acquired from dealer Alfred P. Malpa Ephemera.
Series II contains approximately 600 19th century rewards of merit housed in binders. Materials are organized by size and include "small" and "large" groupings. Also present are two instructional cards for a rewards of merit system and blank uncut printed rewards of merit sheets.
Other students and teachers represented in the collection include the following: O. C. E. Baker, Minnie Bates, Edgar Blanchard, Sarah Bods, Hiram Bradley, Lydia P. Burnham, Sallie Burnham, Eliza W. Burrage, Amelia Burt, Joseph Busk, Frances M. Caulkins, Anna Chamberlain, Eddie Clock, William Duncan, Annie Earle, Della L. Farwell, Leva Ferro, Frances F. Fitch, Abraham E. Fox, Clarissa French, Lillie Gerz, Aletta Green, Isaac Goodchild, Henry S. Gouver, Celia Griswold, L. Hasbrouck, Jane Hayden, Joseph Heaton, Flora Hemmings, George Hibbs, Janell M. Hopkins, Frank Houghton, Katie Houghton, Lydia C. Huntington, Chelsey Hutching, Ellen K. Kanchett, Sidney Keith, Lucy Kendall, Henry Kimball, Edith Konter, Lizzie Kraybill, Euphema J. Lament, Grace Laverny, Walter Leonard, Della Lewis, Bertha Lockwood, Bessie C. Lord, Lilly McDonnell, Maggie S. Mitchell, Lizzie Morse, Llewallyn Moulton, Jennie C. Perry, Hallie A. Purinton, Amanda Reed, John Reed, Mary E. Richardson, Eva H. Roberts, Abbie F. Rupell, W. H. Rutherford, Andy Salisbury, Adolphus Sayre, Ella Sherman, Mary E. Shipman, Emogene F. Spakin, Sophia Strong, Edward Van Soligen, Lizzie P. Whillemore, Cira B. Whitney, Emma Yeaton, Georgie Young, and James Young.
Educational institutions represented include Belknap School, Bennington (Vt.) Graded School District, D.C. Academy, Excelsior School System, Hartford Centre School, Kingston Grammar School, Marblehead Academy, Miss Sanders' Seminary, Mrs. Cranch's Academy, Pollsville Institute, and "Town School No. 12."