Collections

The first portion of this volume dates from 1816 to 1854 and contains records on African Americans registering with the Jackson County, Ohio, Court of Common Pleas, in accordance with the state's restrictive Black Laws. The bulk of the entries are copies of evidence used to prove free status with brief notes about the officials who attested to the information in the originating state and recorded the information in Ohio. Occasionally the entries provide physical descriptions of the registrants, including general age, skin tone, height, hair, and scars or marks on their bodies. The second portion of the volume primarily contains copies of the commissions for Jackson County justices of the peace from 1816 to 1842. Occasional justices' resignations appear as well as documentation of ministers authorized to solemnize marriages.

The first portion of this volume dates from 1816 to 1854 and records information on African Americans registering with the Jackson County, Ohio, Court of Common Pleas, in accordance with the state's restrictive Black Laws. The first entry is apparently a copy of an 1816 document (Wm Sterett was county clerk in Mason, West Virginia) that was recorded by the Jackson clerk in 1818. The bulk of the entries are copies of evidence used to prove free status, with brief notes about the officials who attested to the information in the originating state and recorded the information in Ohio. Evidence provided includes manumission deeds, brief notes about manumission papers, portions of wills, oaths, court certificates, registration records from other states, and statements made in open court. Occasionally entries also provide physical descriptions of the registrants. Such descriptions often include the registrants' general age, skin tone, height, hair, and scars or marks on their bodies. Registrants in the volume appear to have migrated from Virginia, Kentucky, and North Carolina or have already been residents of Ohio.

• Benjamin Johnston, enslaved and manumitted by Lawrence Augustine Washington "because of the solemn and entire conviction that I feel of the justice and propriety of the act"
• Lewis and Jinsey Burchett, enslaved and manumitted by John Burchett
• A number people enslaved and manumitted by John Poindexter, including Charles; Edy and her son Tarlton; and Jack
• Charles, husband to Edy named above, manumitted by her "in consideration of the natural love and affection which I bear to my husband Charles whom I purchased of David Shepherd"
• Walter, enslaved by Alexander Catlett and manumitted by his children Alexander Catlett, Jr., and Horatio Catlett
• Children of Lucy Morris (alias Yancy), born free: William Henry Yancy, Martha Jane Yancy, Charles Alexander Yancy, Lucy Ann Yancy
• Ann Carter, daughter of Hannah Grant, "a free woman of colour"
• Sam Cale, son of Sam Cale, "a free man of Colour"
• William Mitchel, "a Coulered man about to travel to the northwestern Country . . . born of free parents"
• Various men, women, and children enslaved by John Skurry and emancipated by his will, including Mack Skurry; the children of Eliza Skurry (William, Giles, Richard, Jane, Betsy Ann, Nancy); and Sally Ann
• Various men, women, and children enslaved by Joseph Perkins and emancipated by his will, including Isham; Milly, mother of five children, Ann, Martha, Jacob, John, and Isham; and Polly and her child Dick. Notably Polly appears to have registered in Jackson four years after Isham and Milly.
• Charles Roberts, born free
• Various men, women, and children enslaved by William Morrow and emancipated by his wife Elizabeth Morrow: Samuel Cale, his children Sam and Ester, and his grandchild Susan; Hannah Grant and her children Ann Carter, Jonathan, Reuben, Sam and Mary, and her grandchildren Frances or Sally; Sina and her child Fayette; Rachel and her five children, Betty, Sam, Agnes, Patton, and James
• Milly, enslaved by Richard Hawks and emancipated by his will
• Julius, enslaved by Thomas Whittington and emancipated by his will. Over fifty other additional men, women, and children were also named as being manumitted in the will.
• Richard Grant (alias Dick), enslaved and manumitted by James Withrow
• Ison McGhee, enslaved and manumitted by James Stephenson
• Jesse Artist, "of free Parentage"

The second portion of the volume primarily contains copies of the commissions for Jackson County justices of the peace from 1816 to 1842, while occasional justices' resignations also appear as well as documentation of ministers authorized to solemnize marriages. Denominations represented include Lutherans, Baptists, Methodists, Presbyterians, and the United Brethren in Christ.

The collection also includes a single disbound page of financial accounts relating to court fees, ca. 1841.

The Perkinsville (Vt.) School District documents consist of 46 receipts, committee meeting reports, meeting requests, and grand lists of taxes relevant to operation of the 1st school district in the village of Perkinsville between 1823 and 1851. A single document dated March 10, 1818, grants David Graves permission to open a "publick Hous" in the town of Ira.

The Perkinsville (Vt.) School District documents consist of 46 receipts, committee meeting reports, meeting requests, and grand lists of taxes relevant to operation of the 1st school district in the village of Perkinsville between 1823 and 1851. School expenses reflected in the documentation include payments for teachers' wages, supplies, and services rendered. A single document dated March 10, 1818, grants David Graves permission to open a "publick Hous" in the town of Ira.

Local townspeople covered school costs, labor, and other needs. They cut and delivered fuelwood, boarded teachers, and transported educators to and from the school. They also repaired and cleaned the schoolhouse, and built desks and chairs. Supplies specified in the documents include brooms, blackboards, dippers and pails, nails, and glass. A letter dated August 6, 1841, to Mr. Horace Phelps contains a request for a supply of wool.

The bulk of these documents were generated by district clerks and superintending committee members, including Solomon R. Demary, Benjamin Chillson, J. F. Chillson, Luther Perkins, Charles Barrett, and Earle Woodbury. The receipts were signed and dated with the payment amount on the verso by the recipient. Many committee meeting reports were recorded on lined paper with dates in the left margin.

Two items of note include a meeting request for the purpose of building a house for the convenience of smaller scholars dated September 5, 1846, and a meeting request to discuss the opening a second school in District One, dated January 1, 1848.

The Pöpplein & Brothers Day Book and Account Ledger are a record of business conducted by this Baltimore, Maryland, dry goods store and mercantile firm between 1806 and 1843. The volumes document client purchases, services, goods sold on commission, investments, insurance, and aspects of importing goods directly from Germany. The Pöppleins' clientele stretched as far west as Missouri and as far south as Alabama. They imported farming tools and other supplies to Joseph Bimeler at Zoar, Ohio, and pianos and parts to the Huppmanns of Baltimore. They also arranged legal and practical affairs for German and other immigrants, handled bank stock investments and dividends, and offered other services.

The Pöpplein & Brothers Day Book and Account Ledger are a record of business conducted by this Baltimore, Maryland, dry goods store and mercantile firm between 1806 and 1843. The volumes document client purchases, services, goods sold on commission, investments, insurance, and aspects of importing goods directly from Germany.

The 519-page daybook is a record of daily transactions as they occurred between 1824 and 1839. The entries typically include the date, the name of the customer/contact, the goods/services provided, and payment information. The 191-page account ledger covers 1806 through 1843. It begins with an alphabetic index, which is followed by entries arranged by customer name. The double-entries typically include date(s), goods/services provided, and method(s) of payments/credits. Regular customers' accounts were tallied annually.

The Pöpplein brothers sold goods and sent products on commission to Baltimore and Hagerstown, Maryland; Philadelphia and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; Lynchburg, Virginia; Washington and Georgetown, D.C.; Boston, Massachusetts; New York; Alabama; Cincinnati, Royalton, and Zoar, Ohio; and elsewhere. They sold clothing, textiles, foodstuffs, writing supplies, household goods, farming implements, and more. Some examples include gloves, oil cloth, ribbon, wadding, black wadding, bolting cloth, milled and woolen stockings, iron lamps, silk, wool, gold and silver lace, Maryland tobacco, scrap tobacco, snuff boxes, hosiery, casks, coffee mills, metal leaf, quills, postage for letters, thread, and lead pencils. The accounts include the sale of a small number of books, such as Trollope's Refugee in America ("Dutchman's Fireside" copy) and a set of "Lady Guion's books" in 1821 to a female purchaser.

The store imported a variety goods from Germany and France, with a few scattered items from elsewhere in the world, such as specie from Lima, Peru, and wool from the Netherlands. One of the brothers, Andreas Pöpplein, remained in Germany to acquire goods there and ship them to the United States with the help of S. F. Seebohm at Frankfurt. Seebohm was also a customer, purchasing Maryland tobacco and, on June 26, 1822, "a Box of Natural Curiosity." Among the customers for imported goods were George, Nicholas, and Valentine Huppmann, who paid the Pöppleins for piano fortes and upright pianos from Nuremburg, piano parts, and eolinas. They also received cash loans for travel and expenses, and they paid for currency exchange shipping Prussian dollars home to Frankfurt, drayage, and insurance for shipments of pianos to New Orleans and elsewhere. The Huppmanns made regular payments to the Pöppleins as "contribution towards the meeting" (NB: the volumes do not contain any references to the purpose or nature of the meetings). Baron von Uslar Gleichen of Celle, Germany, held an account on a box Nurnbergware (January 12, 1835; ledger page 164).

Customers tended to make payments in cash and by check. However, the Pöppleins' store functioned partly as a financial institution, serving as an intermediary in buying bank stocks, handling insurance, arranging loans and barter, and securing payments through dividends. Their customers received dividends from the Mechanics Bank, Bank of Baltimore, and the U.S. Bank, which were applied directly to their accounts with the Pöppleins. In one case, Samuel Edgar & Co. settled their 1817 accounts for sundry merchandise and interest by selling "claims on Jno. McDonal Attorney at Pittsburgh for 935 Reams Paper" amounting to $2,200, in 1824. A later entry for John McDonal represents the receipt of a note from Samuel Edgars & Co., interest, and the settlement of debt by 935 reams of paper.

The Pöpplein brothers offered valuable services to Germans and other immigrants working through the United States citizenship processes. The account books include payments to Swedish, Dutch, and German consuls, costs of preparing and executing documents, obtaining abdications of allegiance and copies of citizenship papers, payments to Württemberg consul general Chr. Mayer for attesting powers of attorney, and similar services.

The volumes also contain accounting related to the Pöpplein's rental of a house to C. H. Nestmann in the early 1820s. During one stretch of time, Nestmann's rent payments were balanced against construction, repairs, and handling a flooded cellar (see ledger page 51, for example). The Pöppleins at one time took Nestmann to court for unpaid rent and afterward are Nestmann's payments on monied owed.

Joseph M. Bimeler and Zoar, Ohio, Entries:

The Pöppleins had as a customer Joseph M. Bimeler, the founder and primary financial manager of the utopian communal society of German separatists at Zoar, Ohio. From the early 1820s onward, Bimeler paid for imported and domestic dry goods, hardware, groceries, postage on letters to/from Germany, freight for shipping various goods, a barometer, scythes, pineapples, cloth, stocking weavers and needles, wool cards, and much more. The Pöpplein brothers helped Bimeler purchase Ohio lands and the accounts include paperwork costs, such as acquiring deeds and paying commission. The account books also show Bimeler purchasing U.S. Bank stock and then regularly paying for goods/services with dividends. He also paid with mailed checks and with cash in person and by mail.

• Page 94: Joseph M. Bimeler of Zoar, Ohio. Covering June 15, 1827-August 22, 1828. Debts include balance from page 86, payment of Thomas and George's hardware bill, Charles Simon's bill for imported dry goods, Shaw & Tiffany & Co. bill for domestic goods, John T. Barr's bill for imported dry goods, F. König's bill for German dry goods, Mathew Smith's bill for chinaware, G.H. & J.S. Keerl's bill for drugs, John Henderson's bill for groceries, and commission to Pöpplein for purchasing all of those goods. Also, duty on steelyards, an additional list of bills, and "Sundry Mdze" from Pöpplein's store. Bimeler paid with checks by mail drawn on the Western Reserve Bank at Warren, and drawn on the Manhattan Company in New York. Cash was also collected by A. Pöpplein minus commission for collecting it. Cash in bank notes.
• Page 99: Joseph M. Bimeler of Zoar, Ohio. Covering August 22, 1828-January 28, 1830. Debts include commission for buying unnamed products for a list of sellers, including Thomas Irwin, S. T. Walker, Anthony Moore, Jno. Henderson, etc. Postage on letters received from brother A. Pöpplein. On freight paid by A. Pöpplein for boxes, steelyards from Ludwigsburg, "Ditto for 810 sent to him by J. Seyfang being for acct of Raizers Childerns," postage to and from Wurten. Purchase of 50 shares of U. S. Bank stock, sundry machine wool cards, and a 1-year subscription to Niles Register (1 year). Bimeler's credits included cash in bank notes, cash, checks on the Manhattan Company of New York and the Western Reserve Bank, dividends collected on U.S. Bank shares, and money received by A. Pöpplein from Seyfang. Pinned to page 99 is a small manuscript pertinent to accounts of Andreas Pöpplein and Seyfang (postwagen), 1827-1828—in English and German Kurrantschrift.
• Page 123: Joseph M. Bimeler of Zoar, Ohio. Covering February 7, 1831-April 28, 1832. Debts include services for certifying eight powers of attorney by Ch. Mayer consul (including those of C. & J.G. Ruof, J. Kiebach, Jb. Schneider, and Barbara Ackermann), 250 pr. Steyermark Scythes imported from Germany, sundry merchandise bought from sundry persons, six pineapples, cash paid to Peter del Vechio balance due on repairing barometer, bolting cloth, cash paid to Joel Crudenten of Georgetown, D.C., for a tract of land in Ohio, cost of deed and commission, interest due, commission for collecting dividends, 200 Sickles imported from Germany plus duty, and 800 stocking weavers and needles. Bimeler's credits included dividends on U.S. Bank shares minus commission, and "By 1 Vol. Theophrastus Paracelcius which Ando. Pöpplein received of Jb. Seyfang."
• Page 157. Joseph M. Bimeler of Zoar, Ohio. Covering September 17, 1834-January 1, 1836. Debts to Chr. Mayer consul for certifying/legalizing powers of attorney for E. Farion, J. F. Metzger, J. G. Stanger, Walzer, Eberlein & J. Kimmerle, and Hipp. and for abdications of allegiance. Bimeler also paid C. F. Hoyer, consul at New York, for legalizing the power of attorney for J. F. Lindemann. Purchases included cash for a draft in favor of H. Niles, 300 sickles imported per his order and his account from Germany, and cash paid per his order to W. Paust's wife at Bremen. Among Bimeler's credits were a "Bill of exchange on Paris in favor of F. Schlienz for frames" collected by A. Pöpplein, dividends on U. S. Bank stock, "By our Draft for his acct on E. & J. Griffith & Co. at New York at sight," and collection made by Barbara Wagner's Power of Attorney in Germany.
• Page 168: Bimeler, Roby & Pollock of Ohio. Covering April 1, 1835-April 2, 1835. Debts. To net proceeds of two loads of bacon. Credit by cash paid per their order to Gosnell & Hamilton; C. D. & I Slingluff; N. Pöpplein Jr; and Pöpplein & Bros.
• Page 174: Joseph M. Bimeler of Zoar, Ohio. Covering January 1, 1836-January 1, 1838. Bimeler's debts included drafts paid in favor of John C. Rickey, Jackson & Fawcett, and J. S. Sinclair; cash paid to Ch. Mayer consul, legalizing J. G. Roth, Seb. Strobele, Ann Wilmu Jacob Gunther powers of attorney and abdications; cash advances to pay for merchandise; and cash paid to Horatiah Robby of the firm Bimeler Robby & Pollock, merchandise. Bimeler's credits included dividends on U.S. Bank stock, as well as a string of receipts ending in Bimeler's credit: A. Pöpplein received of Jb. Seyfang a draft by G. F. Walzer on a bill of Chr. Mayer, a bill of exchange received by Bimeler, drawn by Arnold & Gutman on Lazarus Arnold in Philadelphia payable eight days sight.
• Page 188: Joseph M. Bimeler of Zoar, Ohio. Covering February 21, 1838-January 1, 1842. Bimeler's debts include payment to Hoyer consul for certifying Joh: Fritchel power of attorney, cash refunded to Cathe. Kusterer which he received of her from Joh. Kapp of Stark County, Ohio, to Mayer for legalizing powers of attorney for D. Kuhnle, Christ: Meke, and Joh Jb. Ade, for Sundry merchandise bought by the firm Bimeler Robby & Polack, and on interest balance. Bimeler's credits included dividends by U.S. Bank stock, cash sent by letter, and cash received on Bimeler's account from Consul Chr. Mayer.

These are only a few notes on entries related to Zoar, Ohio, and Joseph M. Bimeler. The account books contain more.

The Pratt & Kintzing Papers consist of correspondence, accounts, and receipts, largely relating to the Philadelphia mercantile firm of Pratt & Kintzing between 1797 and 1800. The collection also includes materials relating to the American Land Company (1796-1829); manuscript maps of Pratt's real estate holdings; correspondence relating to the partnership of Pratt and John Miller, Jr., involved in shipping gun powder to Europe (1797-1800); and correspondence relation to the Union Canal Company.

The Pratt & Kintzing Papers consist of three linear feet of correspondence, accounts, and receipts, largely relating to the Philadelphia mercantile firm of Pratt & Kintzing between 1797 and 1800. The collection also includes materials relating to the American Land Company (1796-1829); manuscript maps of Pratt's real estate holdings; correspondence relating to the partnership of Pratt and John Miller, Jr., involved in shipping gun powder to Europe (1797-1800); and correspondence relation to the Union Canal Company.

The Puffer-Markham family papers (1,875 items) is comprised of business letters, personal letters, legal documents, and financial records related to an extended family with business and agricultural interests in Massachusetts, New York, Michigan, and South Carolina. Also present are letters from five Civil War soldiers, containing descriptions of their wartime experiences.

The Puffer-Markham family papers (1875 items) is comprised of business letters, personal letters, legal documents, and financial records related to an extended family with business and agricultural interests in Massachusetts, New York, Michigan, and South Carolina. Also present are letters from five Civil War soldiers, containing descriptions of their wartime experiences.

The Correspondence series (1535 items) contains family business and personal letters. These largely document William G. Markham's business activities in selling wheat, cattle, and sheep, as well as personal letters from Guy Markham's children, grandchildren, spouses, and friends from upstate New York. The family letters report on news, daily life, sickness, and courtship. Also present are letters related to Charles C. Puffer's business activities: as a banker in Massachusetts before the war, and as a plantation manager in Reconstruction-era South Carolina. Among the personal papers are many Civil War-era letters, involving both business carried on during the war and letters from Union soldiers on the frontlines.

The papers concerning Guy Markham and his son William Guy Markham are almost exclusively related to business matters. Guy was involved with farming in and around Rush, New York. William G. Markham, who inherited much of his father's land, established himself in the cattle industry. Throughout the 1870s, he received orders for Durham cattle (shorthorn heifers) from New York, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Vermont, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Georgia, Ohio, Michigan, and as far as Denver, Colorado, and Walla Walla, Washington Territory. Letters concerning his interest in cotton are also represented. He was president of the Sea Island Cotton Company, trustee of the Port Royal Cotton Company, and an associate with the United States Cotton Company. Beginning around1880, Markham became heavily involved with wool production and corresponded with other national and international woolgrowers, including the National Wool Growers Association, headquartered in Springfield, Illinois, which lobbied the House of Representatives against a congressional act that would lift overseas wool tariffs. He had multiple dealings with selling sheep and wool in Australia and South Africa.

Other Markham letters relate to William's siblings Wayne and Mary. Wayne Markham described his agricultural activities and his life in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Mary wrote of her experiences at the Music Institute of New London, Connecticut, and frequently requested money to cover her school expenses.

The Charles Puffer letters cover his business interactions with the Shelburne Falls Bank, and the Puffer-Markham partnership, which purchased plantations in Beaufort and Hilton Head, South Carolina (summer of 1865). In 15 letters to his wife Emma Puffer (1870-1876), Charles, while living in Columbia, South Carolina, described managing plantations for his family, working as an activist for the state’s Republican party (particularly in the 4th congressional district), and his relationship with Governor Daniel Henry Chamberlain. He reported on a disorderly state convention in 1870, and of receiving $16,000 from Governor Chamberlain to distribute to county convention attendees with the promise that Charles would become county treasurer (September 4, 1874). By 1876, Charles had declared that he had left politics.

• January 2, 1870
• January 13, 1870
• March 11, 1870
• June 2, 1870
• July 27, 1870
• August 1, 1870
• January 1, 1871
• February 10, 1871
• August 22, 1874
• September 4, 1874
• October 7, 1874
• December 1874
• January 14, 1876
• April 12, 1876
• [1870s]

Between 1887 and 1890, the collection focuses on the lives of sisters Linda and Isabel ("Belle") Puffer, daughters of Charles and Emma Puffer. These comprise 12 items sent from and 39 items addressed to the sisters, while they were attending Wellesley College.

The collection contains 22 letters from five Civil War soldiers: Horace Boughton (9th and 143rd New York Infantry), Morris R. Darrohn (108th New York Infantry), Isaac R. Gibbard (143rd New York Infantry), Charles W. Daily (50th New York Engineers), and Samuel P. Wakelee (54th New York National Guard). Horace Boughton, who wrote eleven of these letters, described his regiment's activities and instructed his friend William Guy Markham on how to allocate his paychecks to his family and business interests. Below is a list of Civil War soldiers' letters.

• October 27, 1861: Horace Boughton at Fort Corcoran
• December 1, 1861: Horace Boughton at Fort Cass
• May 4, 1862: Horace Boughton at a camp near Fort Davis, Virginia
• July 27, 1862: Horace Boughton at Westover, Virginia, concerning recruitment problems and arguing that seasoned troops are much more valuable than new recruits
• July 27, 1862: Horace Boughton at Westover, Virginia
• August 6, 1862: Horace Boughton at Westover, Virginia
• October 28, 1862: Morris R. Darrohn on picket duty near Harper's Ferry; at Bolivar Heights he had a view of the house where John Brown took Louis Washington prisoner; he mentioned meeting the enemy at the battle of Antietam; that day he milked a stray cow so they could have cream in their coffee
• November 14, 1862: Horace Boughton now with the 143rd New York Infantry stationed at Upton Hill, Virginia, and president of a court martial
• February 25, 1863: Horace Boughton at New York 143rd Infantry headquarters, to Susan Emma Markham, discussing his ideas on womanhood and "the yoke of matrimony"
• March 27, 1863: Morris R. Darrohn at Falmouth, Virginia, concerning drills, dreaming of home, and being trapped along the Rappahannock River at the Battle of Fredericksburg
• March 29, 1863: Horace Boughton requesting photographs of the Markham family for his album
• June 5, 1863: Morris R. Darrohn near Falmouth, Virginia
• June 13, 1763: Isaac R. Gibbard near Williamsburg, Virginia, concerning leaving Yorktown with a division led by General Gordon; notes that "miasmas and diseases at West Point came very near whipping our regiment out…the Rebels said they would not attack us but let the diseases do it."
• July 30, 1863: Isaac R. Gibbard sick at the Seminary Hospital at Georgetown, mentioned starting a band of musicians
• August 16, 1863: Horace Houghton at New York 143rd Infantry headquarters, advising William not to join the war if possible
• January 3, 1864: Morris R. Darrohn near Stevensburg, Virginia, cautioning against joining the Masons or the military
• January 31, 1864: Horace Boughton at Bridgeport, Alabama
• April 16, 1864: Charles W. Daily at Rappahannock Station, Virginia, expecting a march on Richmond that may be "the greatest battle of the war within 10 days"
• [1864]: Samuel P. Wakelee to Puffer while guarding "Johnnys at Elmira" prison; he paid a prisoner tobacco to mould a Delta Kappa Epsilon ring in silver; he described the prison and wrote: "We have 10,600 Rebs in the Pen [,] Dirty, Lousy, Godforesakin crew[.] The majority of them are stalwart & robust…"
• January 19, 1865: Horace Boughton on board the ship St. Patrick and discussed traveling by railroad
• February 7, 1865: Horace Boughton at Bridgeport, Alabama
• February 26, [1860s]: Cousin William reported on visiting various corps and hearing members of Congress, "the negro minstrels have a dance" and meeting General Fitzgerald

• July 1, 1842: School essays by Margaret G. Greenman
• September 19, 1853: Homer Broughton to Guy Markham concerning picking out a tombstone for their grandmother
• June 7, 1855: Horace Boughton's description of a trip from Rush, New York, to St. Paul, Minnesota, with details on the town
• October 14 and 25, 1855: Wayne Markham in Kalamazoo, Michigan, to his brother, discussing moving into a new house, noting the price of meat in Michigan, and reflecting on the moral and industrious character of the citizens of the town
• December 4, 1860: Mary Markham to her father describing visiting family in Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, and Ionia, Michigan
• November 6, 1763: Certificate for William Markham joining the Lima, New York, chapter of Freemasons
• August 18, 1864: A letter from Mt. Morris, New York, concerning a lawsuit over a $50 cow killed at an Avon railroad crossing
• September 5, 1864: Henry Puffer to Charles Puffer concerning purchasing land in Hilton Head, South Carolina
• January 15, 1865: This letter from Henry M. Puffer and Company contains a drawing of a house on Gardner Plantation
• February 11, 1865: News sent to Charles Puffer concerning land purchased for plantation farming in Beaufort, South Carolina
• March 1, 1865: William Markham concerning returning soldiers purchasing land that is interest free for three years, and other news from South Carolina
• June 19, 1765: Robert C. Clark to William Markham regarding visiting Oil Creek, Pennsylvania, and noting the failure of the Genesee Valley Oil Well
• January 6, 1866: George Fisher of Rochester, New York, concerning the state of the local Delta Kappa Epsilon chapter
• September 13, 1866: Letter from the Cook and Martin Music Dealer in Rochester, New York, concerning the sale of a piano, on letterhead featuring a picture of a piano
• August 26, 1868: From a St. Louis member of Delta Kappa Epsilon providing for a member who can write in shorthand
• April 15, 1869: Brooklyn photographer E. Bookhout gives prices for his services
• [1860s]: M.F. Randolph to William Guy Markham detailing the price of cotton before the Civil War
• January 5, 1870: Homer Broughton in Topeka, Kansas, to his family in New York concerning his productive new farm on an "old Indian field" and the many new settlers in the area purchasing land at "government prices"
• January 13, 1871: A pencil sketch of people standing at podiums
• June 1891: Papers related to shipping ewes and rams to Cape Town, South Africa
• 1892: Print of an Atwood Ram named Wooly Bill, 1549, bred by C.W. Mason in Vergennes, Vermont
• December 28, 1893: Instructions for judging sheep at the World's Columbian Exposition at Chicago sent to W.I. Buchanan of the Department of Agriculture
• July 2, 1902: Francis E. Warren of the National Wool Growers Association to William G. Markham concerning a treaty with Argentina that would harm the American wool industry

The Correspondence series contains 172 undated items. Of note is a letter with a hand-sketched map of plots of farm land near St. Joseph, Michigan, and a series of school essays written by Margaret G. Greenman (Mrs. Sumner Clark) on "Broken Friendships," "Penmanship," "Envy and Deceit," and "Buds of Flowers" among others.

The Documents series (114 items) contains legal and business documents relating to the family's land holdings and entrepreneurial endeavors. Included are the land deeds and mortgages of William Markham, Guy Markham, Phoebe Markham, and William Markham (primarily in Genesee County, New York), records for debts, land purchases, whiskey purchases, estate documents, and business agreements between the Sea Island Cotton Company and the United States Cotton Company.

The Accounts and Financial Records series (199 items) consists of material related to the personal and business activities of the Markham and Puffer families, including materials documenting management of the cotton companies during Reconstruction. Personal records amount to accounts and bills for tuition, day labor, magazine and newspaper subscriptions, furniture purchase and repair, insurance, and groceries. The business accounts document the Sea Island Cotton Company, the Hilton Head Cotton Company, and the accounts of C.C. Puffer (1865-1767). Present are accounts for plantation supplies, office expenses, salaries, cotton sold on speculation, sales of stocks, lists of share owners, and various receipts. Of note are the records for salary advances made to South Carolina freedmen in 1866.

• April-October 1840: Accounts of C.S. Boughton
• September-December 1856: Accounts of William Guy Markham
• 1865-1867: Two accounts of William Guy Markham's accounts with D.W. Powers Bank of Rochester

The Printed Items series (21 items) is comprised of blank Sea Island Company stock certificates, and government records related to the regulation of United States wool and fabric production. These records include the following bills from the 57th Congress: H.R. 6565, H.R. 14643, H.R. 14488, and documents concerning "Shoddy vs. Wool" and the National Wool Growers Association (1901-1902). These items were of interest to William Guy Markham, a wool producer and sheep expert.

The Miscellaneous series (6 items) contains photographs, stamps, and other miscellaneous material. One photograph is of Mrs. Hinkley Williams, Mrs. L. Boltwood, and Mrs. E. Boltwood ("Three Generations") sent to Guy Markham in 1892. The second photograph is of 84-year-old Hinkley Williams of Gorham, Massachusetts (1892). Also of interest is a list of Guy Markham's presidential picks from 1824-1888.

This collection is comprised of correspondence, diaries, documents, financial papers, and other materials of the family of stonecutter and marble worker John M. Ramsey, his wife Cyanea, and their children. The family lived in Greenfield, New Hampshire; Milwaukee and Port Washington, Wisconsin; and Grand Rapids, Michigan. Around 60 Civil War letters and one diary of the Ramseys' son Henry, who served in the 16th Regiment, Wisconsin Infantry, and around 10 letters of a cousin Ridgeway P. Cragin, of the 32nd Regiment, Wisconsin Infantry, are included. Particularly notable are 96 daily diaries of the Ramsey daughters Emily S. and Cyanea H., kept largely while they lived in Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1870s-1920s.

This collection is comprised of 1,182 letters; 98 diaries; 210 documents; 468 receipts, checks, and account books; seven school papers and writings; three photographs; 34 printed and ephemeral items; and other materials of the family of stonecutter and marbleworker John M. Ramsey, his wife Cyanea, and their children. The family lived in Greenfield, New Hampshire; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; and Grand Rapids, Michigan. Around 60 Civil War letters and one diary of the Ramseys' son Henry, who served in the 16th Regiment, Wisconsin Infantry, and around 10 letters of a cousin Ridgeway P. Cragin, of the 32nd Regiment, Wisconsin Infantry, are included. Particularly notable are 96 daily diaries of the Ramsey daughters Emily S. and Cyanea H., kept largely while they lived in Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1870s-1920s.

The Correspondence series includes 1,182 items and opens with the 1827-1830s letters of Caroline and Hannah Ramsey of Greenfield, New Hampshire, and a sister, Sarah Marshall, of Augusta, Maine. A group of letters pertain to the courtship and marriage of John M. Ramsey and Cyanea Stevens--including a letter from Cyanea's parents Lemuel and Reliance about Cyanea's request for their approval of the wedding (August 5, 1836). Letters of the 1850s include correspondence of Collins Hinckley Stevens, regarding the death of Cyanea's mother Reliance in 1858, and incoming letters to Emily Ramsey from her schoolmates. A selection of letters to Emily from E. H. Langdon, a schoolteacher in Milwaukee, are present.

In the 1860s, sisters Emily, Frances "Fannie", and Cyanea carried on correspondence with each other and with friends and family, including:

• "Hannah" from the Baraboo Female Seminary (Sauk County, Wisconsin) in 1863
• Fannie to Emily while visiting Stoughton in 1863; Fannie's correspondence while attending the Ripley Female College, 1865-1866; her letters while staying with family in Greenfield, New Hampshire; and correspondence while in Chicago for medical reasons
• Ora Stevens in Nashville and Louis H. Stevens of Manchester, Vermont
• Friend "Louise" in Hartford, Connecticut (who moved to Bay City, Michigan, and married Edwin Wood)
• John M. Ramsey's nephew David Butler Ramsey (1829-1899), from Chicago and Milwaukee, many written while working in the law offices of Palmer, Hooker & Pitkin, later Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company
• Female friends and family to Emily and Fannie, written from Evanston, Illinois; Milwaukee and Ozaukee, Wisconsin; and Poultney, Vermont

The Ramsey family correspondence includes around 60 Civil War letters of Corporal Henry C. Ramsey of the 16th Regiment Wisconsin Infantry. He wrote from Camp Randall, the steamship Planet, Camp Sabin, Camp near Grand Junction, Camp near Memphis, Camp near Lake Providence, Louisiana, Camp Randall, and Vicksburg. In the mid-1870s, Henry was admitted to the Michigan Asylum for the Insane at Kalamazoo, Michigan, and the family received letters from Dr. E. H. VanDensen about his progress, especially around 1876. Around 10 letters of a cousin Paul Ridgeway Cragin, of the 32nd Regiment, Wisconsin Infantry, are included.

Cyanea's and Emily's other correspondents from the 1870s to the 1930s include but are not limited to:

• Friends, cousins, and other relatives, including the Stevenses in Vermont; Persis Moore of Niles, Michigan; "Augusta" of Allegan and Otsego, Michigan; Almira Marshall in Owasso, Michigan; Frederick Marshall of Saginaw, Michigan; "Lizzie" in Woburn, Boston, and Framingham; Elvira Elizabeth Ramsey in Greenfield, New Hampshire; "David" in Greenfield; Murray J. Hoppock of Fremont, Michigan; and many others
• William H. Ramsey, Jr., a cousin, employed at the Ozaukee County Malting Company at Port Washington, Wisconsin, in the late 1880s; and as Secretary and Treasurer of the Wisconsin Chair Company in the 1890s
• Grand Rapids attorneys More & Wilson and bankers Edward M. Deane and Company, following the death of their father in 1897
• Gertrude P. Newton (Mrs. E. B. Newton) from Newton's Ranch, Colusa, Kansas, early 1900s
• Cousins James and Sarah (Saidee) Baker, from Ancón, Canal Zone, Panama, 1921-1935

The Diaries series includes 98 daily diaries, 96 of which were kept by sisters Cyanea H. and Emily S. Ramsey between 1873 and 1935, while the two lived in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The remaining two diaries include Henry C. Ramsey's Civil War diary for the year 1864 and a partial 1921 diary kept by [Howard Stevens?] in a pre-printed 1894 pocket journal. Henry Ramsey's 1864 pocket diary includes entries covering the 16th Regiment Wisconsin Infantry's movements from Vicksburg to Tennessee, to Georgia, with accounts of Kennesaw Mountain and the battle of Atlanta. The diary also covers his experiences as part of Sherman's march to the sea.

The Documents series is made up of 210 legal and financial documents pertinent largely to land and property in New Hampshire, Wisconsin, and Michigan, between 1786 and 1919 (bulk 1825-1911). Additional items include tax documents, stock-related items, and other materials.

The Financial and Business Papers includes 300 receipts, around 160 bank checks, and eight account books. The receipts date between 1831 and 1928, pertaining largely to John M. Ramsey's marble and stonecutting business. Additional receipts relate to personal property and tax payments. The 160 checks are drawn largely from Grand Rapids, Michigan, banks between December 1869 and October 1880. The account books include:

• [John M. Ramsey?] Account Book, 1830-1836. Comprised largely of accounts related to farm labor (haying, plowing, tending stock, etc.) in Greenfield, New Hampshire.
• John M. Ramsey Ledgers and Account Books, 1854-1886 (7 vols.). Consisting of the accounts of John M. Ramsey's marble and stonecutting businesses. One undated, illustrated manuscript book of monuments designed by N. Merritt for J. M. Ramsey, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is included with the account books.

The collection's School Papers and Writings (7 items) include John M. Ramsey's teacher's book, November 1830-February 1831; a fragment of mathematical rules by J. M. Ramsey; a chronological table by Emily Ramsey, 1851; a reward of merit for Mary Ramsey; two penmanship exercises; and a manuscript issue of The Literary Chip Basket (vol. 111, no. 11), Port Washington, 1861, with list of contributors including Fanny Oatman and Emily Ramsey.

The Photographs series includes one carte-de-visite of Henry C. Ramsey of the 16th Wisconsin Infantry; and one carte-de-visite and one cabinet card of unidentified individuals.

The Ephemera and Printed Items series is made up of invitations, Nashua Manufacturing Company employee regulations (August 31, 1837), advertisements for marble and other products, and torn pages from the History of Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, ed. Hurd, 1885.

The collection also contains items pertinent to Genealogy (6 items) and an Address Book, Fragments, and Envelopes.

This collection consists of 883 letters, documents, an orderly book, printed items, and other materials concerning revolutionary conflicts in Cuba and the Philippines, American involvement particularly, dating largely from the 1890s-1900s. This collection's contents include detailed information from Cuban and Philippine revolutionaries at home and in exile; U.S. Army activities related especially to the Spanish-American War, Philippine-American War, and postwar occupations; American, Cuban, Filipino, and Spanish consular and governmental officials; and civilians (including families of U.S. Army soldiers' and sailors' family members) involved in the events.

This collection consists of 883 letters, documents, an orderly book, printed items, and other materials concerning revolutionary conflicts in Cuba and the Philippines, American involvement particularly, dating largely from the 1890s-1900s. This collection's contents include detailed information from Cuban and Philippine revolutionaries at home and in exile; U.S. Army activities related especially to the Spanish-American War, Philippine-American War, and postwar occupations; American, Cuban, Filipino, and Spanish consular and governmental officials; and civilians (including families of U.S. Army soldiers' and sailors' family members) involved in the events.

Please see the box and folder listing in this finding aid for extensive, detailed descriptions of items and groups of items in the Revolutionary Cuba and Philippines Collection.

This collection contains correspondence and documents related to Reverend Richard Peters (1704-1776) and his nephew, also named Richard Peters (1744-1828), both of Philadelphia. The bulk of the material pertains to their professional and financial affairs.

This collection (11 items) contains correspondence and documents related to Reverend Richard Peters and his nephew, also named Richard Peters, who both lived in Philadelphia in the mid- to late 18th century. The material pertains to Pennsylvania property and Cumberland County boundaries, Arlington sheep, finances, and politics. The collection includes a certified copy of a map of property belonging to Peters in Bucks County, Pennsylvania (copy dated March 17, 1810), an account book kept by the younger Richard Peters from 1785-1789, and a letter that the younger Richard Peters wrote to William Rawle about his uncle's biography (September 22, 1825).

The Rich Patch Iron & Ore Company collection is made up of correspondence, reports, financial records, maps, and other items related to mining operations in Virginia, West Virginia, Ontario, and Minnesota. Many items pertain to the geologic composition of lands in Alleghany County, Virginia, and Raleigh County, West Virginia, particularly with regard to iron and coal.

The Rich Patch Iron & Ore Company collection is made up of correspondence, reports, financial records, maps, and notes related to mining operations in Virginia, West Virginia, Ontario, and Minnesota. The majority of the items are reports addressed to individuals and companies about coal seams and iron mining in Alleghany County, Virginia, and Raleigh County, West Virginia, including geologic and chemical analyses; many concern the Glade Creek coal field in West Virginia. The collection also includes surveyor's map of land in Alleghany County, Virginia (November 14, 1874). A small group of "Daily Reports from Patch Mines" provides information on daily expenses, including the total cost of workers' wages. Other business letters and reports pertain to companies such as the Union Steel Company, and some of the notes contain illustrations of rock strata in coal lands. A smaller group of reports and maps concerns lands near Lake Nipigon in Ontario, Canada, and iron ore mining and shipments around Lake Superior. Another group of documents includes maps, notes, and reports about "Little Mesabi" (or "Mesaba") in Minnesota.

The Riley family papers (2,913 items) document the personal and business activities of Ashbel Wells Riley and his son George Stillson Riley of Rochester, New York. The papers concern family relationships and society in western New York, as well as the Riley family's participation in the temperance movement, and George Riley's involvement in the Grand Council of the Iroquois.

The Riley family papers (2,913 items) document the personal and business activities of Ashbel Wells Riley and his son George Stillson Riley of Rochester, New York. The papers concern family relationships and society in western New York, as well as the Riley's participation in the temperance movement, and George Riley's involvement in the Grand Council of the Iroquois.

The Personal Correspondence series (367 items) consists primarily of letters to Ashbel W. and George S. Riley, from friends and family members. Included are several letters from Charlotte to her husband Ashbel, when he was traveling in Europe in the 1840s; letters from Ashbel Riley, Jr., to George during his travels in Cuba and around New York; and letters from Anna H. Riley to her family from the Utica Female Seminary and while living with her husband in Chicago. In the mid-1840s, multiple family members considered moving to Michigan and financial/banking/mortgage subjects were frequently discussed. Of particular interest are letters, written in the 1840s by George's cousin Caleb Hutton Hammond, in which he relayed family news and commented on social happenings in Rochester. These include his criticisms of several wealthy acquaintances who follow the Graham System (September 13, 1840); a description of a lecture and demonstration by Dr. Reid of Philadelphia, who studied phrenology; and a discussion of a lecture on American Antiquities that claimed that Egyptians must have settled Central America and built pyramids there (February 26, 1841). The majority of the letters spanning 1892-1917 are from Belle Hart ("Aunt Belle") to George Riley. She wrote from hotels in New York City and Rochester; the content is personal in nature.

Visual material includes letters on hotel letterhead that feature engraved depictions of the hotel, and a December 25, 1849, letter from Ashbel Riley, Jr., to George Riley that contains a diagram of his invention for a device that holds writing paper.

The Business Correspondence series (494 items) documents the Rileys' business communications, largely concerning property transactions and debts. Both Ashbel and George invested heavily in land but struggled to pay back debts throughout their lives. The bulk of these papers ranges from 1840 to 1895. In addition to letters requesting repayments for loans, the series contains copies and drafts of outgoing letters from George S. Riley to business partners and debtors, with many sent o S. P. Ely concerning property in Diamond, Utah, and in Michigan.

The Personal Writings Papers series (189 items) is comprised of non-correspondence writings, including notes, speech drafts, and fragments (1841-1908). Included are two bundles of items, which are kept in their original order, entitled "Scribblings & odds & ends -- t. c. in reference written mostly 1841, 2, & 3" and "Temperance Convention" from October 1845. These primarily relate to temperance activities with some material concerning the Seneca Indians.

The Financial Records series (1481 items) consists of receipts and accounts, account books, tax records, insurance records, stocks, and other miscellaneous items related to the Rileys' finances. The bulk of these records dates from between 1850 and 1880. In addition to the family's detailed business accounts, the series conatins a 1844 house expense book.

The Documents series (226 items) consists of legal papers (62 items), real estate papers (131 items), Grand Council of the Iroquois papers (14 items), and temperance-related papers (13 items). The legal papers concern Ashbel and George's financial problems related to land owning and paying taxes. It also contains George's patent certificate for "Improvements in smoke consuming furnaces." The real estate papers document the Riley's land holdings, mostly in upstate New York, consisting of land agreements and details on values. The Grand Council of the Iroquois papers are comprised of documents and letters relating to meetings of the Grand Council between 1842 and 1846. These include a description of a Seneca fort and a burial ground that Timothy Sullivan destroyed during his raids in 1779, a petition to Congress concerning Seneca landholdings, and a heavily edited description of a meeting. The Temperance papers contain documents related to various temperance meetings held in Rochester in 1845.

The Photographs series (1 item) contains a photograph of a bearded man, likely George S. Riley, taken by Notman & Fraser of Toronto, Ontario.

• Newspaper clippings (71 items), mostly from Rochester papers containing topics such as death notices, scientific and philosophical articles, poetry, and news of the day
• Pamphlet (1 item) entitled, "Inquiries, Respecting the History, Present Condition and Future Prospects of the Indian Tribes of the United States" [1847]
• Invitations (9 items) for formal and religious events such as lectures, plays, memorials, weddings, and a piano recital
• Miscellaneous material (10 items), including a voter registration reminder, and a constitution for the Christian Reform Association of Monroe County, New York.