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Collection

Frederick Crill papers, 1879-1880

11 items

This collection contains seven copied documents, two letters, and two telegrams related to the trial of Frederick Crill of Vernon, New Jersey, for the murder of his daughter, Eliza Babcock. Items include copies of the formal complaint against Crill, initial witness statements, and correspondence related to Lewis Cochran, the prosecuting lawyer in the case.

This collection contains seven copied documents, two letters, and two telegrams related to the trial of Frederick Crill of Vernon, New Jersey, for the murder of his daughter, Eliza Babcock. The first item is a copy of several documents dated June 5, 1879, the day of the murder: a report of Judge J. B. Hendershott's inquisition against Crill; a statement by Elizabeth Crill, wife of the accused; and the formal charge against him by his son-in-law, William Babcock. It also includes the judge's report of Crill's statement and a document formally calling for Crill's apprehension. Other court documents are grand jury minutes (September 2-3, 1879), the closing arguments of prosecuting lawyer Lewis Cochran, a list of potential and final jurors, and additional court reports about the trial and about Crill's subsequent death sentence. Two items relating to Cochran are a list of witnesses providing statements to J. B. Hendershott (August 27, 1879), and Cochran's letter to New Jersey Governor George Brinton McClellan asking him to oppose the commutation of Crill's sentence. In the first of two telegrams written in March 1880, John A. Hall of the Court of Pardons requested evidence related to Crill's case; in the second, he reported their eventual refusal to commute the death sentence.

Collection

Frederick F. Kislingbury collection, 1881-1919 (majority within 1881-1891)

1 linear foot

This collection contains correspondence, legal documents, financial records, and other material related to the family of Frederick Kislingbury, who died during Adolphus Greely's expedition to the Arctic in the early 1880s. The majority of the material pertains to disputes over Kislingbury's estate, the custody of his children, and his sons' later lives.

This collection contains correspondence, legal documents, financial records, and other material related to the family of Frederick Kislingbury, who died during Adolphus Greely's expedition to the Arctic in the early 1880s. The majority of the material pertains to disputes over his estate, the custody of his children, and his sons' later lives.

The Correspondence and Documents series (around 500 items) comprises the bulk of the collection. Before embarking on Adolphus Greely's Lady Franklin Bay Expedition in August 1881, Frederick Kislingbury signed several personal checks, received postcards from the Army Mutual Aid Association, and corresponded with acquaintances about his finances. On August 17, 1881, he wrote a letter to his sons about his upcoming voyage, and he marked the expedition's proposed landing point on a printed map of the Arctic regions. Soon after his father's departure, Harry H. G. Kislingbury received letters and legal documents regarding a package that his father had sent to him before leaving for the Arctic. Several other letters pertain directly to the expedition. In a letter to Kislingbury dated January 20, 1882, Adolphus Greeley criticized Greely's sleeping habits during his "enforced stay with this command" and discussed the circumstances that led to Kislingbury's initial dismissal for insubordination in 1881. A copied letter from Captain W. M. Beebe about the Neptune's attempted rescue mission (July 17, 1882) and a printed letter confirming the failure of the 1883 relief expedition (September 14, 1883) are also present.

The bulk of the series is made up of incoming letters, legal documents, and financial records to Charles Lamartine Clark, a Detroit resident who served as Kislingbury's estate executor. The material primarily concerns the estate's finances and the custody of Kislingbury's sons. Clark often corresponded with the Army Mutual Aid Association, and the collection has a copy of its 4th annual report (1883). John P. Kislingbury and William H. Kislingbury, Frederick Kislingbury's brothers, wrote to Clark from Rochester, New York. They argued over custody of the Kislingbury children, their brother's funeral and burial, and his financial affairs, though their later correspondence was more cordial toward Clark. Clark also owned an account book covering Kislingbury's relationship with Riggs & Co. from 1881-1884. Some items from 1885 concern a pension that the United States Congress awarded to his sons and related efforts to certify their ages.

After 1885, Harry H. G. Kislingbury wrote letters to Clark about his experiences at the Michigan Military Academy in Orchard Lake, Michigan. Clark also received letters about Harry's conduct from the school's superintendent. Harry later wrote about his life in San Francisco, California, and Flagstaff, Arizona, in the late 1880s.

Wheeler Kislingbury wrote several lengthy personal letters to Charles L. Clark in 1913 and 1914, mentioning his life in San Francisco, California, expressing regret over his uncles' actions following his father's death, and discussing the possibility of publishing his father's diary. Additionally, one letter describes an encounter with Adolphus Greely in which the officer refused to talk to Wheeler after discovering that he was Frederick Kislingbury's son (May 7, 1913). Douglas E. L. Kislingbury wrote a brief personal letter to Clark from Indianapolis, Indiana, in 1917, and Wheeler wrote 2 letters to Clark's wife from Winslow, Arizona, in 1919.

Henry H. G. Kislingbury kept a Diary (100 pages) while traveling from New York to San Francisco onboard the St. Mark between December 6, 1886, and April 22, 1887. Kislingbury wrote about the ship's crew, the weather, the scenery, and the captain's family, who were passengers on the voyage.

The Cass School (Detroit, Mich.) and Michigan Military Academy Papers pertain to the education of two of Frederick Kislingbury's sons. Two report cards from the Cass School in Detroit, Michigan, provide information on Walter Kislingbury's academic progress in 1883. The remaining 25 loose items are report cards and receipts concerning Harry H. G. Kislingbury's academic progress, conduct, and finances during his time at the Michigan Military Academy, 1884-1886. He also kept an account book while attending the school.

The Photographs series (5 items) contains portraits of Charles L. Clark, his wife Georgina Frazer Clark, and a group portrait of Clark with Walter Frederick Kislingbury and Wheeler Kislingbury. Frederick Kislingbury carried the carte-de-visite of Charles L. Clark during the Greely expedition.

A manuscript Menu lists the meals consumed by the Greely expedition on each day of the week.

The Printed Items series is comprised of 2 items: a copy of the Sunday Morning Herald with an article about Frederick Kislingbury's death (July 20, 1884) and Harry H. G. Kislingbury's copy of Emory Upton's Infantry Tactics Double and Single Rank. Adapted to American Topography and Improved Fire-Arms (Revised edition, 1884).

Collection

George and Samuel B. Fales collection, 1815-1866 (majority within 1834-1850)

41 items

This collection contains personal and business correspondence related to Philadelphia merchant George Fales, as well as documents, newspaper clippings, and correspondence pertaining to the Union Volunteer Refreshment Saloon and Hospital, which Fales's nephew, Samuel Bradford Fales, helped to operate during the Civil War.

This collection contains personal and business correspondence related to Philadelphia merchant George Fales (35 items), as well as documents, newspaper clippings, and correspondence pertaining to the Union Volunteer Refreshment Saloon and Hospital, which Fales's nephew, Samuel Bradford Fales, helped to operate during the Civil War (6 items).

George Fales received 4 letters from his brother Samuel between 1815 and 1835, which mainly concern financial and business matters. The first letter, written on December 4, 1815, provided a list of expenses, including money intended for the construction of a school for African Americans in Boston. Other letters from business associates discuss finances; business with Fales or with his firm, Fales, Lothrop & Company; and potential business ventures such as a wood-chopping enterprise. Fales also received 3 personal letters from his nieces Eliza F. Bridgman and Mary T. Monroe and 1 from his nephew Samuel Bradford Fales, who described his travels near Pittsburgh (April 22, 1836). Samuel B. Fales granted his uncle power of attorney in a document dated February 4, 1834.

The collection also contains 6 items related to Philadelphia's Union Volunteer Refreshment Saloon and Hospital, including 2 letters addressed to historian Benson J. Lossing. Robert R. Carson encouraged Lossing to utilize the Union Volunteer Refreshment Committee's business card in his pictorial history of the war, and attached a newspaper clipping reporting a grand jury's approval of the project (April 7, 1862). Arad Bellows provided a list of corrections and additional information in response to Lossing's recent work (August 6, 1866). Samuel Fales wrote 2 letters to "Reverend Sibley" about the Union Volunteer Refreshment Saloon and Hospital, written on stationery bearing a letterhead engraving of the establishment and including the projected number of soldiers assisted (November 20, 1865). One of these letters is attached to a printed newsletter about the enterprise, entitled "The Fair Record of the Union Volunteer Refreshment Saloon."

Three newspaper clippings, including 2 from The Philadelphia Inquirer and 1 from the Evening Bulletin, concern the history of the saloon and hospital, and contain testimonials. The collection also contains a carte-de-visite photograph of Samuel B. Fales and a broadside poem entitled "Lines in Memory of the Philadelphia Volunteer Refreshment Saloon," signed and inscribed by Samuel B. Fales for Benson Lossing.

Collection

George S. Brown papers, 1816-1843 (majority within 1816-1833)

0.25 linear feet

The George S. Brown papers consist of incoming correspondence and documents related to the merchant's business interests in Rhode Island, Georgia, and New York, though much of the correspondence originates from St. Marys, Georgia. Brown and his partners dealt in timber, foodstuffs, and cotton.

The George S. Brown papers (45 items) consist of incoming correspondence and documents related to the merchant's business interests in Rhode Island, Georgia, and New York.

Much of Brown's early incoming Correspondence is from Samuel Clarke, his business partner until 1824, concerning their financial and business affairs near St. Marys, Georgia, and in New York City. Later, Brown's associates Alfred Doolittle and David Seabury wrote of the timber and cotton industries in Georgia and northern Florida. They occasionally mentioned the purchase of slaves (September 16, 1826, et al.). Seabury, Brown's business partner after 1824, frequently discussed the state of various markets in New York and often alluded to the local fear of a cholera epidemic, and Doolittle noted the effects of the nullification crisis on the citizens of St. Marys (September 15, 1832). Brown managed a cotton plantation near Pigeon Creek, in Georgia, and a textile factory in Potowomut, Rhode Island. The final letter, addressed to Mary S. Brown, concerns taxes for land near Pigeon Creek, Georgia. Two Documents are Samuel Clarke and George S. Brown's agreement to purchase the brig Lark (December 18, 1823), and a document dissolving the pair's business partnership (November 10, 1824).

Collection

George Thompson papers, 1784-1831

0.25 linear feet

The George Thompson papers contain letters and documents primarily concerning Kentucky politics and conflicts between Native Americans and white settlers at the close of the 18th-century and during the war of 1812.

The George Thompson papers contain 32 items (29 letters and 3 documents) spanning 1784-1831. The materials relate to George Claiborne Thompson, who served as a Virginia colonel in the Revolutionary War and a surveyor and politician thereafter, and his son, George Claiborne Thompson, Jr. Isaac Shelby, the governor of Kentucky, wrote the first 4 letters in the collection between 1784 and 1788 to the senior Thompson. The first three contain details related to the surveying of land in present-day Kentucky, including information on geographical features, the expense of making surveys, and land claims. In the fourth letter, dated November 14, 1788, Shelby described a case of an African American man who was brought from Maryland to the "District of Kentucky" and had applied for his freedom under the Acts of Assembly of 1778 and 1785. Shelby noted that the case might "open the way to every negroe in the District to take the same steps."

A substantial number of letters in the collection concern Native Americans, particularly their ongoing clashes with white settlers. On June 1, 1790, George Thompson wrote to James Madison, describing a three-hour battle on the Ohio River between his party and 61 "Indians," who took two boats and other property. He also reported several other incidents, including the killing of John May by natives and the scalping of three white children in the area. Other correspondents reported on engagements with Native Americans in the War of 1812. On February 20, 1813, Isaac Shelby related an account by Frenchman Adelard Labbedie of the Battle of River Raisin, including the surrender of General Winchester and the killing of wounded American prisoners by "about 10 Indians."

The George Thompson papers also shed light on American and Kentucky politics in the late-18th and early-19th centuries. They include U.S. Senator John Breckinridge's discussion of the Louisiana Purchase and the surrender of New Orleans (November 4, 1803), Isaac Shelby's rationale for not running for Congress (April 23, 1803), and several reports on the Kentucky legislature by George Thompson, Jr. On October 16, 1821, he wrote to his father informing him that he, Thompson, Jr., had been named speaker of the Kentucky House of Representatives for the new term. The collection closes with several undated legal documents stemming from lawsuits over Kentucky land between George Thompson, Sr., and several other men.

Collection

Green-Mitchell family papers, 1780-1883 (majority within 1785-1812, 1831-1862)

3.75 linear feet

The Green-Mitchell family papers are made up of correspondence, legal documents, receipts, and other financial records pertaining to the business and personal affairs of New York attorneys Timothy Green and John W. Mitchell (Timothy Green's son-in-law). Much of the collection pertains to mercantile affairs and land speculation in the South, Northeast and Western United States. A large portion of the collection pertains to South Carolina (Charleston), New York, and Massachusetts (Worcester). The Manuscripts Division has also created an inventory of the letter-writers in the collection: Green-Mitchell Family Papers Correspondent Inventory.

The Green-Mitchell family papers are made up of correspondence, legal documents, receipts, and other financial records pertaining to the business and personal affairs of New York attorneys Timothy Green and John W. Mitchell (Timothy Green's son-in-law). Much of the collection pertains to mercantile affairs and land speculation in the South, Northeast and Western United States. A large portion of the collection pertains to South Carolina (Charleston), New York, and Massachusetts (Worcester).

The Correspondence series contains 1,470 letters to and from members of the Green and Mitchell families between June 26, 1780 and October 1, 1880. Four hundred and sixteen incoming letters to Timothy Green date between 1780, and 1812. He received the bulk of them from family members, business partners, and clients in South Carolina, New York, and Worcester, Massachusetts. Timothy's brother, Samuel Green, a prominent merchant in Columbia, South Carolina, was among his most frequent correspondents. The collection includes 160 letters by Timothy Green, primarily sent from New York. Timothy Green's correspondence comprises the bulk of the collection's materials related to land speculation.

John W. Mitchell received 540 letters, approximately a third of the series, between 1806 and 1880. His primary correspondents wrote from Charleston, South Carolina; Fort Wayne, Indiana; and New York. The subject matter represented in these letters is diverse, pertaining to business and personal affairs, and the Episcopal Church. Other frequent writers include Timothy Ruggles Green, Clarence G. Mitchell, Samuel Green, and Judge Peter P. Bailey, founder of Trinity Episcopal Church in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

The Legal Documents series relates to estates administration and 48 legal suits in which the Green and Mitchell families were involved, either as attorneys or as parties to a suit. Materials for some of these cases are extensive and others include only a few pages. The cases comprising much of the series are Conklin v. Mitchell and Davis v. Duffie. Conklin v. Mitchell (New York, 1852-57) pertains to a land dispute between George Conklin and defendant John W. Mitchell. Davis v. Duffie (New York, 1825-1861) concerns charges brought against Smith Davis for fraud and a related mortgage taken out by Cornelius R. Duffie. John W. Mitchell and Clarence G. Mitchell defended Duffie.

Five certificates document commissions held by John W. Mitchell and Clarence G. Mitchell. Additional legal papers include insurance policies, powers of attorney, deeds, civil actions, summonses, depositions, agreements, and other items compiled by Timothy Green and John W. Mitchell in carrying out their work as attorneys.

The Financial Documents series contains 143 receipts, checks, bank notes, accounts, and other financial records dating from 1785-1874. Timothy Green compiled 11 summaries of accounts, representing a portion of his business transactions between 1787 and 1809.

Printed materials include a quarterly chronicle for the Mission to the Working Men of Paris (1877), two monthly bulletins for the Charity Organization Society in New York (1884), a notice of sale, and a cover page from the book One Day With Whistler.

Miscellaneous materials include two items: a partially-printed report card for Clarence G. Mitchell at the Episcopal Institute at Troy, New York, in 1837, and a genealogical document concerning the Boudinot family of Philadelphia.

The Manuscripts Division has also created an inventory of the letter-writers in the collection: Green-Mitchell Family Papers Correspondent Inventory.

Collection

Hasbrouck family papers, 1784-1940 (majority within 1805-1882)

4.5 linear feet

This collection is made up of correspondence, diaries, legal documents, financial records, and other items related to multiple generations of the Hasbrouck family of Ogdensburg, New York. The materials concern land ownership, politics and historical events, family news, genealogy, and other subjects.

This collection is made up of approximately 3.5 linear feet of correspondence and documents, 21 diaries and commonplace books, 4 school-related items, around 40 printed and ephemeral items, and genealogical materials related to multiple generations of the Hasbrouck family of Ogdensburg, New York, between 1784 and 1940.

The correspondence and documents reflect the activities of many Hasbrouck family members, with an emphasis on Louis Hasbrouck, Sr., Louis Hasbrouck, Jr., and Levi Hasbrouck. The earliest items, written from 1802 to the mid-1830s, center around Louis Hasbrouck, Sr., and his wife Catharine, who wrote to one another and who received letters from their siblings and other family members. Louis's correspondents often provided news of Guilford, New York, and sometimes commented on political issues, particularly during the War of 1812. The Hasbroucks' correspondents included members of the Graham and Lasher families. Many of Catharine's letters to her husband concern her visits to and life in "New Hurley."

Approximately 1.5 linear feet of the elder Louis Hasbrouck's incoming and outgoing personal and business letters, financial and legal documents, surveying records, maps, and other items, pertain largely to land ownership in New York. Many of Hasbrouck's correspondents wrote from Albany, Schenectady, and New York City. A significant number of items concern the finances and land holdings of Stephen Van Rensselaer. Some correspondents discussed the younger Louis Hasbrouck's involvement in the New York Militia in the early 1840s.

Much of the correspondence dated from the mid-1830s to the 1850s is made up of personal letters between Louis and Catharine's children, largely consisting of letters to Louis Hasbrouck, Jr. The Hasbrouck siblings shared news of Ogdensburg while their brother studied at Union College in Schenectady, New York, in the mid-1830s.

The later correspondence, written from the 1850s to 1870s, is comprised primarily of letters addressed to Levi Hasbrouck of New Paltz, New York; Levi Hasbrouck, his grandson; and Louis Hasbrouck, Jr. The elder Levi wrote to his Ogdensburg relations about life in New Paltz, often providing news of family members and offering advice to his grandson. The younger Levi Hasbrouck corresponded with his siblings, particularly his half-brother Philip, who lived in Chicago, Illinois. Approximately 150 letters, invoices, and receipts of Levi Hasbrouck relate primarily to his purchases and other financial transactions between 1870 and 1882.

Three items from the 20th century include 2 letters that Thomas C. [Nakatsu] wrote to "Mr. Miller," a former traveling companion, about life in Japan. His letter of August 14, 1902, regards his life in a Buddhist temple and the relative absence of Christians in the country. His letter of January 1, 1926, contains reminiscences about the men's friendship. The final item is a letter that "Helen" received from a friend visiting England and France; the letter encloses several newspaper clippings about Bournemouth, England (March 15, 1928).

Six account books include an unsigned day book (October 9, 1812-May 25, 1813) and a day book belonging to L. Hasbrouck and L. Hasbrouck, Jr. (1867-1877); personal account books belonging to Louis Hasbrouck, Jr. (1833-1834, 1834, and 1868-1871); and a rent book belonging to E. B. Hasbrouck (1843-1853). Louis Hasbrouck, Jr., kept a memorandum book around 1840; the original pages have been torn out of the volume and the remaining notes are dated 1929-1939. Two items concern land: a field book concerning surveys of Canton Township, New York (undated), and a "Land Book" that belonged to Louis Hasbrouck, Jr. Other materials are record books for the La Madre Company, which was involved in the ownership and operation of mines in the late 19th century, and the St. Agnes Society, which was affiliated with an Ogdensburg church (1885-1912).

Additional groups of items include military records for Louis Hasbrouck's service in the New York Militia from the 1830s to 1850s; later copies of 18th and 19th century land surveys done in De Peyster, New York, and elsewhere; legal documents of an action between members of the Hasbrouck family and Asa Day in the mid-19th century; wills dated in the mid-1920s; postcards addressed to Louis Hasbrouck from the mid-1870s to the late 1890s; and indentures and other documents regarding the inheritance and later ownership of property belonging to Louis Hasbrouck, Sr.

The diaries and commonplace books (21 items) include:
  • Three diaries by E. B. Hasbrouck, January 1875-January 1889 (with some gaps), and a record of sermons preached by "Mr. Carter" from April 5, 1822-April 7, 1826.
  • Two unsigned diaries, concentrating on the authors' religious views and activities (August 2, 1835-February 4, 1855, and January 10, 1836-July 17, 1836).
  • An unsigned diary ending with a note about the death of Louis Hasbrouck, Jr., made by one of his sons (May 13, 1855-April 1880)
  • Jane Hasbrouck diary, October 1852-June 1897, with occasional remarks on the Civil War and genealogical notes.
  • Eleven diaries of Levi Hasbrouck, containing daily entries between July 1, 1873, and May 27, 1882. Hasbrouck wrote primarily about his social activities, everyday occurrences, his father and his siblings, his travels, and his involvement in business activities. He very briefly discussed the presidential elections of 1876 and 1880, and recounted the final illness and death of his father in April 1880.
  • Two commonplace books of Ellen Mary Hasbrouck (1827-1863) and Laura M. Hasbrouck (1875).

School-related items include:
  • One volume concerning basic arithmetic belonged to Elizabeth Bevier Hasbrouck around the early 19th century.
  • One volume containing penmanship exercises and similar writings from young students (1805).
  • One schoolbook containing notes and essays about classical history and literature composed or copied by Louis Hasbrouck, Jr., while he studied at Union College in 1834.
  • One list of school assignments recorded by Louis Hasbrouck, Jr., 1831-1834.

Printed and ephemeral items (approximately 40 items, not counting duplicates) include published materials such as newspaper articles, speeches, newsletters, an almanac, a visitors' guide to Boston, Massachusetts, and many advertisements and notices. Additional items include a blank subscription form for The Little Corporal and a related mock commission for Bevier Hasbrouck, printed illustrations of several types of canoes, a printed map of St. Lawrence County, New York, and several sheets of unused stationery featuring an illustration of a storefront. Thirty-five newspapers include copies of and fragments from American Traveller, Boy's Journal, Morning Glory, the Philadelphia Saturday News, and other papers printed in the 1820s, 1830s, and 1850s.

The Hasbrouck family genealogical materials (approximately 15 items, not counting duplicates) include obituary notices, newspaper clippings, and manuscript notes. A bound volume contains extensive notes copied from a family record originally written by Abraham Hasbrouck, father of Joseph Hasbrouck and grandfather of Louis Hasbrouck, Sr.

Collection

Helen C. Hough and Charles Stevens family collection, 1786-1871 (majority within 1829-1861)

0.5 linear feet

The Helen C. Hough and Charles Stevens family collection contains correspondence related to several families in northern New York, particularly to the relatives of William J. Hough. The collection includes letters to Clarinda Hough, William's wife, as well as letters exchanged by their daughter, Helen Clarinda Hough, and her future husband, Charles E. Stevens of Flint, Michigan.

The Helen C. Hough and Charles Stevens family collection (0.5 linear feet) contains correspondence related to several families in northern New York, particularly to the relatives of William J. Hough. The collection includes letters to Clarinda Hough, William's wife, as well as letters exchanged by their daughter, Helen Clarinda Hough, and her future husband, Charles E. Stevens of Flint, Michigan.

The Correspondence series (172 items) includes several groups of letters between members of the Breese and Hough families of northern New York, and the Stevens family of Flint, Michigan. Clarinda Carpenter Hough received around 20 letters from Catharine F. Barrows in Utica and Cooperstown, New York, who wrote of her husband's religious work, local religious life, and family news. Helen Hough, Clarinda's daughter, wrote letters to her family, mainly her mother, while attending Mount Holly Female Seminary (also known as Chisman Hall and the Mount Holly Institute for Young Ladies) in the early 1850s. After 1856, she corresponded with Charles E. Stevens ("Charlie") of Flint, Michigan, whom she married in 1858. Stevens wrote the bulk of the letters that the couple exchanged, commenting on aspects of his life in Flint, including his admittance to the bar (October 5, 1857), and on his travels between New York and Michigan. The series also has letters between members of the McClelland family of northern New York.

The Helen C. Hough Reports series consists of 3 printed reports on Hough's academic progress at the Mount Holy Female Seminary. The reports are signed by two teachers and by the school's principals, Timothy Chisman and Catherine C. Chisman.

The Documents series includes 4 items pertaining to John McClellan of Utica, New York: a copy of his will, a surrogate's court document, a check signed by S. McClellan, and a receipt.

Collection

Henry Mathewson defendant's account, 1820-1832

1 volume

This volume documents Henry Mathewson's accounts while he served as the master and supercargo of the ships Mercury and Superior from 1820 to 1827, likely provided as defense in legal disputes with Willard W. Wetmore who was a partner with one of the firms involved in the trading venture. It notes the expenses and income generated by voyages under Mathewson's command while at various ports in Germany, Peru, Chile, Brazil, Gibraltar, China, and others. Mathewson's accounts provide insight into general seafaring conditions, Pacific mercantile pursuits in South America and China, and speculation efforts. It records wages for members of the crew, financial transactions relating to cargo purchases along the western coast of South America, dealing with government regulations, and commissions with other merchants and travelers. The accounts also reveal particular details, such as the costs associated with purchasing military arms in Bremen, Germany, and the subsequent financial transactions with the Peruvian government for their sale. Occasional references are made in the volume linking this to Mathewson's ongoing legal disputes. The account book is an oversize volume with heavy paper covers and stab-sewn pages.

This volume documents Henry Mathewson's accounts while he served as the master and supercargo of the ships Mercury and Superior from 1820 to 1827, provided as defense in legal disputes with Willard W. Wetmore who was a partner with one of the firms involved in the trading venture. It notes the expenses and income generated by voyages under Mathewson's command while at various ports in Germany, Peru, Chile, Brazil, Gibraltar, China, and others.

Mathewson's accounts provide insight into general seafaring conditions and Pacific mercantile pursuits. For example, they record wages for members of the crew, financial transactions relating to cargo purchases along the western coast of South America, dealing with government regulations, and commissions with other merchants and travelers. The costs of ship repairs, provisioning, and withstanding quarantine are well documented (pages 6, 12-13). Insights are also provided into the types of cargoes being shipped between South America and China, including timber, cotton, silver, gold, and specie (pages 30-31, 34, 39).

The accounts also reveal more particular details, like the costs associated with purchasing military arms in Bremen, Germany, and the subsequent financial transactions with the Peruvian government for their sale (pages 2, 6, 15, 26). Several entries also relate to hassles dealing with counterfeit or "bad" money (pages 6, 30, 35, 39, 46, 55). The accounts also demonstrate some of the unanticipated challenges of trade, like a failed deal to secure 1000 reams of Spanish Paper from a merchant at Rio de Janeiro (page 18) or being robbed by a steward (page 22). Small details about shipboard life also occasionally come to the surface, like the purchase of equipment for oceanic voyages, including a chronometer and sea charts of the Pacific Ocean (page 2), charts of the coast of Peru (page 26), or recovering money from a crewmember for smuggling gin from Germany to Peru (page 7).

Occasional references are made in the volume linking this to Mathewson's ongoing legal disputes, including accounts linked to unauthorized speculation in goods in 1822 and transactions with his business partners in Rhode Island (page 6). The volume includes a second section of accounts starting on page 41, preceded by the notice: "This statement of account, is exhibited by the Defft. Matthewson, not as the account by which he claims, unless the decision should be adverse to him on the question whether the owners of the Mercury as such had the same interest in the Superior her charter & voyage as they had in the Mercury. If the decision on this question is as Mathewson contends it should be, that the owners of the Mercury had not a joint interest with him in the Superior, these accounts will not be necessary, and are therefore exhibited hypothetically. But otherwise, they are his account of the Superior's voyage & employment."

The account book is an oversize volume with heavy paper covers and stab-sewn pages.

Collection

Henry Peter Brougham, Baron Brougham and Vaux papers, 1807-1864 (majority within 1824-1864)

2 linear feet

This collection is made up of letters written by Scottish politician Henry Peter Brougham, printed copies of two of Brougham's parliamentary speeches, and notes and documents related to British law. Much of Brougham's correspondence concerns mid-19th-century British politics.

This collection (2 linear feet) is made up of outgoing letters written by Scottish politician Henry Peter Brougham, printed copies of two of Brougham's parliamentary speeches, and notes and documents related to British law.

The collection is comprised primarily of Brougham's outgoing correspondence to recipients such as John W. Croker, Lord [John] Murray, and Lord [John] Russell, dated 1807-1865 (bulk 1824-1864). Brougham discussed political issues and politicians, often related to the actions of Parliament. Some of his letters pertain to the country's relationships with Scotland, Ireland, Canada, and France, and to specific legislation, including the repeal of the Corn Laws. Many of the letters concern the actions of Robert Peel and to Parliamentary party politics, and a few concern the relationship between historical legislation and contemporary political issues. Some of the correspondence is more personal in nature, occasionally concerning magazines such as the Edinburgh Review; a small number of items are in French. The first seven volumes of the collection contain occasional newspaper clippings and articles in English and French.

The collection contains a bound copy of Brougham's speech on the "Present State of the Law," presented before the House of Commons on February 7, 1828; the copy, one of 30, is inscribed to M. A. Taylor. The speech concerns the state of the English and Welsh court system, the administration of justice in Great Britain, specific laws, and trial procedures, among other subjects. A second, shorter speech delivered before the House of Lords pertains to education reform (May 23, 1835).

Other materials include approximately 100 pages of annotated articles and related notes regarding many different legal topics, a document prepared for the defendants in a trespassing case brought before the Yorkshire Summer Assizes (July 31, 1824), and proposed routes for travelling through France (ca. 1832?).