Search

The Abraham Bell papers contain correspondence and financial documents related to Abraham Bell & Co., an early 19th-century New York City shipping firm owned by Abraham Bell.

The Abraham Bell papers contain correspondence and financial documents related to Abraham Bell & Co., an early 19th-century New York City shipping firm owned by Abraham Bell. The majority of material in the Correspondence series is addressed to either Abraham Bell or to his company, and relates to various business affairs, often concerning payment or delivery of goods. Many of the letters originated from European firms, including a letter from Collman, Lambert & Co. in Liverpool, written on stationery that includes a printed list of current prices for cotton and related goods (February 8, 1837).

The Receipts and financial papers series consists of non-correspondence items related to the operation of Abraham Bell & Co. throughout the early and mid-1800s. These include records of payment and lists of cargo carried aboard Bell's ships, as well as several documents relating to loads of street manure in 1839. Several early items within this series pertain to the ship Josephine.

Fifteen Account and receipt books provide information about Bell's financial endeavors throughout the period in explicit detail, covering the years 1840-1868. A letter book contains copies of letters written by Abraham Bell between October 16, 1833, and August 15, 1834.

Miscellaneous items in the collection include an indenture for land in New Jersey belonging to the Budd family (December 25, 1812), and a record of fiscal accounts between Abraham Bell & Co. and [Malionson] Bell & Co. (June 30, 1836).

This collection is made up of a letter book, stenographer's notes, and scrapbook pertaining to the trials of Clark W. Hatch of Boston, Massachusetts. Hatch was accused of murdering his uncle, Henry Hatch of Kit Carson County, Colorado, and, later, of defrauding his employer, the Travelers Insurance Company.

This collection is made up of a letter book, stenographer's notes, and scrapbook pertaining to the trials of Clark W. Hatch of Boston, Massachusetts. Hatch was accused of murdering his uncle, Henry Hatch of Kit Carson County, Colorado, and, later, of defrauding his employer, the Travelers Insurance Company.

The letter book (102 pages) contains correspondence regarding Hatch's arrest and trial for the murder of his uncle, Henry Hatch. Most items are copies of letters by William J. Lewis, an acquaintance of Clark W. Hatch. Lewis requested information from officials involved in the case, including a local sheriff, and on at least one occasion provided information on Hatch's movements around the time of the murder (September 5, 1889). Lewis also affirmed his loyalty to Hatch and urged the accused to maintain a calm demeanor, lest he raise suspicions about the funding of his legal assistance (March 3, 1890). The letter book also includes letters from Hatch and other parties interested in the case; some of these are pasted onto the letter book's pages.

H. C. Hollister, the official stenographer for Clark W. Hatch's initial trial under Judge Lewis C. Greene in Burlington, Colorado, in May 1889, composed typed copies of witnesses' testimonies (189 pages). Witnesses included Henry Hatch's acquaintances, the boys who discovered his body, and several people who had seen Henry Hatch or Clark Hatch around the time of the murder. Clark W. Hatch and his father-in-law, Orrin Poppleton, also testified. The testimonies provide details about Henry Hatch's life, Clark W. Hatch's life and occupation, and their mutual histories.

A 70-page scrapbook contains newspaper clippings about Clark W. Hatch's murder trials and his later legal difficulties. Most clippings are from the Burlington Blade, the Burlington Boomerang, and the Rocky Mountain News. The editors of the Burlington papers wrote about the case and its background, and shared their stances regarding Hatch's guilt. The scrapbook also contains recapitulations of Hatch's arrests and trials. Later clippings detail a late investigation into the forgery charges against Clark W. Hatch. The final clipping, dated May 1891, pertains to Hatch's disappearance.

This letter book contains business letters that an unidentified man wrote to professional acquaintances from New York between November 18, 1801, and December 17, 1801. The letters concern the pepper trade, the potential effects of peace between France and Great Britain on international commerce, and other mercantile subjects.

This hand-stitched letter book (6.5" x 8", 30 pages) contains 13 business letters that an unidentified man wrote to professional acquaintances from New York between November 18, 1801, and December 17, 1801. The author wrote to several of his business associates, including a group he addressed as "dear friends" (8 letters), John William Fossatt (2 letters), John T. Clark (1 letter), Captain John Foster (1 letter), and an anonymous recipient (1 letter). He reported local market prices for goods and frequently commented on the possibility of loading and shipping pepper onboard different ships at New York Harbor. The letters also concern the author's attempts to collect payments and his intentions to travel to other ports, such as Baltimore. In letters to his "dear friends," he occasionally mentioned his interactions with John Fossatt and Captain John Foster. The letter to Foster orders Foster to sail to Providence, Rhode Island, onboard the Maria and transport money to a bank in Boston. After November 20, 1801, when news of peace between France and Great Britain reached New York, the author mentioned its possible effects on international trade.

This collection contains business and personal papers of John Atkinson and his family, with the bulk of the items documenting their postwar business ventures in commercial trade, land speculation, and investments in the Bellows Falls Canal Company. The letters also describe contemporary reactions of British merchants before, during, and after the Revolution; events in New York City during the War of 1812; and domestic and social situations of a prosperous nineteenth-century family.

This collection contains business and personal papers of John Atkinson and his family, with the bulk of the items documenting their postwar business ventures in commercial trade, land speculation, and investments in the Bellows Falls Canal Company. Since Atkinson lived in New York City until 1819, the collection contains many detailed reports on the financing and operations of the canal company.

• Alexander Fleming (1790-1867), husband to Atkinson’s daughter, Emma Seton
• Francis Green, husband to Caroline Francis, cousin to Elizabeth Atkinson, and business partner with Alexander Fleming
• Isaac and Richard Smith, business associates of John Atkinson
• Charles Storer, Elizabeth's brother, who managed many of Atkinson's interests in Vermont and was the clerk of the canal corporation between 1804-1814
• Joshua Wentworth, Atkinson's shipping agent stationed in Portsmouth, New Hampshire

• Betsy, John’s wife
• John's brothers, Francis and Hodgson Atkinson
• Daughters Mary Ann, Eliza, Emma, Caroline Francis
• Sons John Jr., George, and William
• George Atkinson, nephew of John

Beyond letters documenting Atkinson's business activities, this collection also accounts contemporary reactions of British merchants before, during, and after the Revolution. Letters from Joshua Wentworth, Atkinson's agent in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, describe difficulties procuring ships and transporting goods, before the war. John Atkinson, Jr. wrote several letters from New York City in the spring of 1813, in which he mentions events in the War of 1812, including the city's reception for the crew of the frigate United States, the blockading of the Atlantic coast, and seizure of coasters by the British. Many letters also contain domestic and social information written by Atkinson family women.

The Letter Books series contains three volumes of carbon copy letters concerning the management of George Atkinson’s property in America, including the canal company. They describe the toll that railroad traffic took on Bellows Falls Canal use. The first and second books, (October 10, 1836-September 17, 1840 and November 3, 1840-February 27, 1847, respectively) have alphabetical indexes of names mentioned in the books, while the third volume (March 12, 1847-September 15, 1849) has no index and is only ¼ full. The diary pages are extremely fragile and the texts are typically impressions from carbon paper copying except for the page numbers, which are in ink or pencil. The second and third volumes were kept by a J.L. Stackpole.

The Documents and Deeds series consists of various contracts, bills, inheritance documents, and land transfers. Included in this series are thirteen oversized items, all of which document the sale of land. Atkinson purchased land along the Delaware River in New York State; in Middle Island Creek in Ohio County, Virginia; in Ulysses, Pennsylvania; along the Cacapon River in Hampshire County, Western Virginia; and in Columbia Territory, Maryland. He sold land in Ontario, New York, and Bellows Falls, Vermont, to his son-in-law Alexander Fleming. The 1830 item is a deed recording the sale of Bellows Falls land by Fleming to his business partner Henry Green. These items not only document the transaction, but often describe the land's dimensions, characteristics, and previous ownership.

The Printed Items series consists of four newspaper clippings.

The Miscellaneous series holds one item: a detached book front cover with J. Atkinson's name printed on the inside.

Charles E. Barthell's letterpress volume of correspondence primarily relates to his business in real estate, loans, and retail management, particularly in Superior, Wisconsin, March 18, 1893-August 24, 1895. Approximately 1,000 pages of letters pertain to mortgages, deeds, real estate transactions, property taxes, and the collection of rental payments. Other content includes his efforts to secure a position in customs in Superior, as well as occasional references to the local steel business and conditions in the region. He sporadically commented on economic markets, noting bank closures, financial hardships, and how Superior withstood the changes. Only a small minority of letters contain personal or family content.

The Bartlett family papers contain correspondence, documents, photographs, and a scrapbook related to Lieutenant Washington A. Bartlett of the United States Navy and to his descendants, including his granddaughter, author Lina Bartlett Ditson.

The Bartlett family papers contain correspondence, documents, photographs, and a scrapbook related to Lieutenant Washington A. Bartlett of the United States Navy and to his descendants, including author Lina Bartlett Ditson, his granddaughter.

The Correspondence series contains letters written to various members of the Bartlett family. The earliest items concern Washington A. Bartlett's naval career, including several letters between Bartlett and his wife Ruth. In a letter from May-June 1845, Washington Bartlett discussed political and military conflicts between the United States and Mexico. Much of his other correspondence is contained in a letter book, which covers the years 1835-1862.

Other items in the series are incoming personal and business letters to George L. Ditson, Bartlett's son-in-law. Some of these pertain to his appointment as United States Consul in Nuevitas, Cuba, a few of which are in Spanish. Later material includes a letter from Ronald Lodge to his mother, Oralie Ditson Lodge (Washington A. Bartlett's granddaughter) about his successful fitness examination for the United States Navy, enclosing a photograph of Lodge in uniform (April 17, 1917), and a letter on stationery from the White Star Line ocean liner Olympic (November 14, 1928).

The Documents and Financial Papers relate to several generations of the Bartlett family. Of note are a certificate about Washington A. Bartlett's qualification as a United States Navy midshipmen, signed by Martin Van Buren (November 20, 1839), and an authorized copy of Washington A. Bartlett and Ruth Budd Bloom's marriage certificate (June 17, 1861). The series also contains receipts and accounts.

The Writings series primarily contains typed copies of poems and stories composed by Lina Bartlett Ditson. Included are 8 poems, 1 group of poetry "Fragments," and 7 short stories. Two items, which may not be by Ditson, are in French, including an acrostic poem based on Ruth Budd Bartlett's name.

The collection's 8 Calling Cards and Invitations include manuscript and printed visiting cards for "Mr. and Mrs. Bartlett" and an invitation to the home of William H. and Frances Seward.

A single Illustration, dated August 1833, depicts the brig Mermaid at sea. A map of a portion of Albany, New York, shows the location of B. Lodge & Company.

The Photographs series has mounted and loose portraits, several cartes-de-visite and cabinet cards, a glass-plate positive of a young girl, and numerous snapshots. Early portraits depict Oralie Ditson Lodge and Lina Bartlett Ditson (occasionally in costume), and 130 20th-century snapshots were taken during a family vacation Eagle Lake in New York.

The Lena Bartlett Ditson Scrapbook contains newspaper articles, programs, and correspondence about Lina Bartlett Ditson, assembled by her sister Oralie after Lina's death. Most items pertain to Lina's artistic pursuits, such as vocal performances and published novels. Incoming correspondence to Lina and condolence letters to her family following her death are also present.

The Printed Items series is made up of postcards, newspaper clippings, pamphlets, and other items. Newspaper Clippings pertain to numerous topics, such as William S. Lodge's political career, interstate commerce legislation, labor news, and members of the Bartlett family.

• Defence of Washington A. Bartlett, Ex-Lieutenant, United States Navy: Read and admitted to Record, by Naval Court of Inquiry... New York: Harper & Brothers, 1857.
• International Association for the Total Suppression of Vivisection. "The Woman" and the Age: A Letter Addressed to the Right Hon. W. E. Gladstone, M.P., First Lord of the Treasury. London: E. W. Allen, 1881.
• Olcott, Henry S. The Spirit of the Zoroastrian Religion. Bombay: 1882.

Other printed material includes poems by Barrington Lodge; engravings of Washington A. Bartlett; a colored print showing a woman in a dress that Ruth Budd Bartlett wore during a royal reception; and a campaign poster for William S. Lodge's mayoral campaign in Albany, New York.

The Genealogy series contains information about Washington A. Bartlett's descendants and allied families, particularly the Lodge family.

This volume contains around 300 letterpress business letters from commission merchant W. G. Beal in Caibarién, Cuba, to recipients in Cuba, France, Spain, Boston, and London respecting administration of nearby sugar plantations Floridanos and Prudencia from December 10, 1877, to February 3, 1879. Working on behalf of Benjamin Burgess & Sons of Boston, Beal's letters provide detailed, day-to-day documentation of mechanical aspects of growing sugar cane, processing it, storing it, transporting it, securing buyers, shipping it, and financing the efforts. Beal also wrote about slavery, contract labor, other labor issues, impending emancipation, the final days and conclusion of the Ten Years' War, and the beginnings of the Little War.

The Walter Gibbs Beal Letter Book contains around 300 business letters from commission merchant W. G. Beal in Caibarién, Cuba, to recipients in Cuba, France, Spain, Boston, and London respecting administration of nearby sugar plantations Floridanos and Prudencia from December 10, 1877, to February 3, 1879. Working on behalf of Benjamin Burgess & Sons of Boston, Beal's letters provide detailed, day-to-day documentation of mechanical aspects of growing sugar cane, processing it, storing it, transporting it, securing buyers, shipping it, and financing of the efforts. Beal also wrote about slavery, contract labor, other labor issues, impending emancipation, the final days and conclusion of the Ten Years' War, and the beginnings of the Little War.

Sugar Plantation Oversight

Walter Beal's letters primarily take the form of reports to his employers, his uncle Nathan Bourne Gibbs (a retired merchant who had been a part of Burgess & Sons until 1876), and Santiago Innerarity of "Hendaya" [Hendaye, on the Franco-Spanish border]. The volume also includes correspondence with contractors, financial factors, nearby plantation owners, and the overseers of Floridanos and Prudencia. Beal visited both plantations regularly to assess the status of planting and harvesting, the volumes of "1st" sugar, "2nd" sugar, melado (sugar/molasses), and molasses produced, and the mood and disposition of the work force. With fine detail, he wrote about securing plantation machinery, planting and harvesting sugar cane, moving the cane on the plantation, grinding the cane, manufacturing molasses, transporting the products by cart and railroad, arranging for storage and insurance, securing contracts for the sale of the goods, chartering vessels for export, and handling any post-sale issues. The harvesting season of 1878-1879 was particularly poor because of unrelenting rain and thunderstorms that prevented the use of roads to cart cane or products on account of mud. The weather placed the plantation at a standstill.

Enslaved and Contract Labor

Beal's letters provide regular information about the plantations' enslaved laborers, who he frequently referred to as "the people." More detailed accounts include costs for the purchase and hire of enslaved persons, including an instance where he arranged for the purchase of a man, woman, and two free children, Nicolas and José (Beal to Dodge, February 6, 1878). As harvesting season ended, more and more laborers took ill with fever and were exhausted to the point of needing to rest. While peace negotiations were underway in 1878, the subject of slavery became more prevalent. Enslaved persons who had fought in the Ten Years' War for the Spanish were granted their freedom while Beal (and other planters) became very concerned about their own enslaved work forces. Fearing that they would refuse to work or plan to emancipate themselves, Beal made efforts to pacify them with additional gifts--while also securing additional guards. Rumors spread that the enslaved laborers believed slavery would be abolished on January 1, 1879, and the Governor installed 100 men on an adjoining estate for even more security. Matters became more complicated when a nearby planter named Carbo arranged for the freedom of his 68 slaves. Carbo agreed to furnish these persons with agricultural implements and oxen--and then purchase the cane from them in the crop season. For this, Beal and other planters censured him, believing that this action would set in motion a wave of enslaved persons refusing to work.

Following the Ten Years' War, labor shortages increased and Beal wrote about attempts to hire Spaniards from the Canary Islands, but found them to be good at all work excepting fieldwork (see Beal to Gibbs, April 8, 1878, for example). He also wrote about difficulties hiring Chinese laborers on contract because of the poor treatment they received by plantation overseers in the 1860s. By the fall of 1878, a company out of Havana began importing Chinese labor and Beal estimated that his force would include 24 Chinese laborers and 56 hired hands for Prudencia, and 31 Chinese laborers and 15 hired hands for Floridanos.

The Ten Years' War, etc.

Early in the volume, W. G. Beal kept an eye on developments in the "Eastern Section" as General Martínez y Campos made efforts to round up surrendering revolutionaries, but regularly reported that matters remained calm in the country. In February 1878, however, a group of unidentified persons injured (hamstrung) or killed 80 oxen on Floridanos, prompting Beal to make inquiries for assistance in identifying the perpetrators and replacing the dead oxen. In March, after Major-General Carlos Roloff capitulated, Beal had the opportunity to interview him at Caibarién and discovered who had led the attacks on the oxen. Beal kept track of which revolutionary leaders had surrendered, General Campos' progress, and developments related to the peace negotiation process and its aftermath. Once the Pact of Zanjón was signed, he wrote about militants in the woods, still refusing to surrender, and especially about José Antonio de la Caridad Maceo, who would not accept the terms of the pact and maintained a force of men. Other revolutionaries mentioned include the Brothers Arcos, Miguel Ramos, Máximo Gómez, Francisco Carillo, and Francisco Jimenez.

The Beaumarchais papers primarily consist of the incoming and outgoing correspondence of Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais; his wife, Marie-Thérèse-Emilie Willer-Mawlar; and his daughter, Eugénie Beaumarchais Delarue.

The Beaumarchais papers primarily consist of 106 incoming and outgoing letters of Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais; his wife, Marie-Thérèse-Emilie Willer-Mawlar; and his daughter, Eugénie Beaumarchais Delarue. The collection also includes a letter book of Pierre Beaumarchais and two documents.

The Correspondence series is comprised of 35 letters by Pierre Beaumarchais, 65 by Marie, and 6 by Eugénie. Pierre addressed the bulk of his letters to Monsieur Airain, an attorney from Tours, France, and informed him of business affairs and travel plans. The series also includes a letter from Pierre Beaumarchais to Monsieur DeFraney, in which he discusses developments in the American Revolution (March 18, 1779). This letter bears a watermark of King Louis XVI's Grand Royal Coat of Arms. Other correspondence also includes personal letters by his family, who discussed their health and social life. The letter book is made up of correspondence between Pierre Beaumarchais and his friend, "Citizen Perregaut," discussing his travels and the life of his family; a contemporary list of documents related to his arrest and subsequent imprisonment (p. 17); and items detailing his interactions with various members of the French government. One letter, for example, regards a financial advance received from the Committee of the Republic (p. 19).

The Documents series contains a power of attorney, granted by Pierre Beaumarchais to Jean Auguste Marie Chevaillé (July 29, 1787), as well as a monetary allowance granted by Beaumarchais pertaining to Monsieur Comte [D'artois] (January 2, 1788).

The Richard Blackburn journal contains an account of his journey from Virginia, through Pittsburgh, to Lexington, Kentucky, from March 26-May 3, 1789. The journal consists of brief entries describing the course of travel, the landscape and towns, and occasionally the people encountered.

The Richard Blackburn journal includes an account of his journey from Virginia, through Pittsburgh, to Lexington, Kentucky, from March 26-May 3, 1789. The journal consists of brief entries describing the course of travel, the landscape and towns, and occasionally the people he encountered. Included are interesting descriptions of Marietta, Ohio, and other small settlements along the Ohio River established by Revolutionary War veterans from the Virginia Line, as well as descriptions of Lexington, Kentucky. Blackburn stopped writing in the journal before departing Lexington for New Orleans.

The copybook portion of the journal includes over ninety copies of letters written by Blackburn to military officials. Many of the letters from Dumfries and Fort Washington are concerned with administrative matters, often provisioning, but a few from Georgia document special military discipline problems posed by life on the frontier and the proximity of the border with Spain. In his first two months at Fort Washington, Blackburn lost 10 men to Florida by desertion.

The Rooke-Blathwayt letter book contains letters that Admiral Sir George Rooke wrote in the early 18th century, as well as documents regarding the English Navy's actions in the English Channel and in the West Indies.

The Rooke-Blathwayt letter book contains 18 letters that Admiral Sir George Rooke wrote in the early 18th century, as well as documents regarding the English Navy's actions in the English Channel and in the West Indies.

Rooke composed much of the correspondence while onboard the Triumph at Spithead, off the Isle of Wight. He addressed several different English officials, and the material in this volume was compiled by William Blathwayt, acting secretary of state. In his letters, Rooke confirmed the receipt of various orders and discussed developments around Brest, France, and other news of the fleet. An item entitled "A List of his Matys. Ships design'd on Service with Sr. George Rooke" provides the locations of English ships (July 10, 1701). The book has two sets of official instructions from King William about naval actions in the West Indies during the War of the Spanish Succession (August 12, 1701, and [September] 10, 1701). Two letters are in French: a letter from Count Wachtmeister, who was awaiting a rendezvous with George Rooke and the English fleet (June 19, 1700), and a letter about King William's confidence in George Rooke's military abilities (August 12, 1701).