Search

This collection is made up of correspondence, documents, and other items related to New Jersey politician Jonathan Dayton; his son-in-law, Oliver Hatfield Spencer; and Spencer's son-in-law, William Nelson Wood. The materials concern politics, finances, property, genealogy, and other subjects.

This collection is made up of 3 linear feet of correspondence, documents, and other items related to New Jersey politician Jonathan Dayton; his son-in-law, Oliver Hatfield Spencer; and Spencer's son-in-law, William Nelson Wood. The materials date between 1764 and 1892, and they concern politics, finances, property, genealogy, and other subjects. The collection is arranged into groups of Jonathan Dayton papers, Oliver Hatfield Spencer papers, William Nelson Wood papers, and Spencer and Wood family papers.

The Jonathan Dayton Papers are divided into 3 subseries. The Jonathan Dayton Correspondence subseries is made up of Dayton's incoming (over 310 items) and outgoing (approximately 55 items) letters between 1780 and 1824. Dayton corresponded with family members, professional acquaintances, and political figures. Many of the early letters pertain to Dayton's congressional service, national and local politics, and personal matters. A group of 14 letters from 1807 concern the Burr Conspiracy and its effects on Dayton, who was imprisoned in connection with the incident. Some of Dayton's correspondents discussed Native American relations and the Northwest Territory. Others provided family news from Cincinnati and commented on legal and financial issues.

The Jonathan Dayton Financial Documents (15 items, 1774-1830) consist of receipts, accounts, and account books, pertaining to real property, taxes, and other financial matters. The 2 account books (1792-1793 and 1823) concern shipping costs, livestock, debts, and real property. A copy of Gaine's New-York Pocket Almanack for 1775 contains an unidentified writer's manuscript notes and financial records kept between 1775 and 1779.

The Jonathan Dayton Legal Documents (76 items, 1764-1821) include deeds for property in New Jersey, contracts, records pertaining to court cases, and other items.

The Oliver Hatfield Spencer series , divided into subseries of Correspondence (5 items) and Documents (13 items). Letters to Spencer, dated 1820-1821, concern his claims against the estate of "Mr. Evans." Other items, dated between 1802 and 1856, include certificates, deeds, Spencer's will, receipts, and a military commission. These documents relate to Spencer's medical career, his work for the New Orleans Board of Health and the Medical Board of the State of Louisiana, and his memberships in the Medical Society of Philadelphia and the Chemical Society of Philadelphia. Three later items pertain to his estate.

The William Nelson Wood series includes Correspondence (19 items) and Estate Documents (41 items). James Cook informed Wood of his brother's death in a letter dated February 21, 1831. The bulk of the remaining correspondence, written from 1853-1854, concern the estate of Clement Wood, a resident of England. Two letters by Luigi Palma di Cesnola (June 27, 1864, and July 7, 1864) report the death of Wood's son Oliver during the Civil War and discuss the Battle of Trevilian Station. A subseries of Estate Documents consists primarily of claims made against Wood's estate following his death in 1865.

The Spencer and Wood Family Papers (153 items) consist of letters, documents receipts, genealogical notes, autographs, an invitation, and an essay related to the descendants of Jonathan Dayton, Oliver Hatfield Spencer, and William Nelson Wood. Correspondence, Documents, and Receipts include incoming and outgoing letters related to members of the Dayton, Spencer, and Wood families, often concerning family news and legal affairs. The series includes Genealogical Materials for the Dayton, Williamson, Halstead, Spencer, and Ogden families. Eighty-seven Autographs cut from letters include signatures and handwriting of prominent individuals in the late 18th and early 19th century. The final items in the collection include an essay description of Jesus Christ (with an 1847 song "The Hieland Laddies' Farewell" written on the back) and a vellum invitation for Edward Meeker Wood to attend The General Society of the Cincinnati and the Sons of the Revolution commemorative event for the death of George Washington, held on December 14, 1899.

This collection is made up of accounts and receipts regarding Philadelphia tanner Jonathan Meredith. Most items pertain to Meredith's personal purchases of food and other goods during the year 1804, and one group of early items concerns property that Meredith owned in Philadelphia in the late 1700s.

This collection (77 items) is made up of accounts and receipts regarding Philadelphia tanner Jonathan Meredith. The first 4 items concern costs associated with carpentry work done on two properties owned by Meredith (November 26, 1784, and August 6, 1790) and the sale of one of these properties to Lauman & West (March 27, 1795, and April 15, 1795). The remaining items, the bulk of which are dated in 1804, are receipts and invoices for Meredith's purchases of goods from different Philadelphia merchants. Many concern foodstuffs such as bread loaves, sugar, fruits, coffee, and spices; Meredith also paid to have meat smoked. He bought glass, paper items, and candles, and he paid for labor, such as shoe repair. Two items concern taxes (August 29, 1804, and 1804); one concerns a newspaper advertisement (November 21, 1803); and one concerns legal services associated with a mortgage between Meredith and Sarah Wistar (December 4, 1804).

Joseph Tuttle enlisted in the 5th Michigan Cavalry in 1862 and fought in several battles before being taken prisoner at Trevilian Station, Virginia, in 1864. His correspondence during the Civil War describes army life and his company's participation in battles and skirmishes. The collection also includes land deeds and indentures, tax documents, photocopies of military documents pertaining to Joseph Tuttle, newspaper clippings, family photographs, and other materials.

The papers of Joseph J. Tuttle consist of 41 letters, 15 photocopies of military documents, 37 documents, 36 tax documents and receipts, 34 items of ephemera, 8 newspaper clippings, 7 photographs, 1 Civil War military pin, and 2 miscellaneous items. These items fall collectively between the dates of October 13, 1831 and April 3, 1963, however the bulk of them fall between November 16, 1854 and August 12, 1918.

The correspondence consists of 35 letters written during the Civil War (most of which are letters from Joseph Tuttle to his sister), and 6 miscellaneous letters. Tuttle writes about army life and his company's participation in battles and skirmishes. In a letter dated Aug. 30, 1863, he describes, in some detail, the execution of 5 deserters from the Union army, and in a letter of Feb. 27, 1864, he mentions the large number of deserters from Lee's army.

The photocopies of military documents all pertain exclusively to Joseph Tuttle, including his muster in/out forms, and documents pertaining to his illness. The 37 documents include 25 land deeds/indentures in Oakland County, Michigan, 5 documents pertaining to the purchase of land in St. Cloud, Florida, 2 Hartford Fire Insurance papers, 1 death record, and 4 other miscellaneous documents. The tax documents are all property tax forms and receipts, in addition to a few receipts for the sale of goods.

The ephemera consists of invitations, birthday and Christmas cards, and calling cards. Two of the newspaper clippings relate to the Michigan Cavalry. Included in the family photographs are at least 2 photos of Joseph Tuttle. The Civil War pin is marked "Grand Army of the Republic 1861 Veteran 1866," and a ribbon commemorates the Nineteenth reunion of the 5th Michigan Association.

The Joseph Shipley, Jr., collection is made up of business and personal correspondence related to the Shipley and Bringhurst families of Wilmington, Delaware. Most items are letters to Joseph Shipley, Jr., a native of Wilmington who was involved in shipping and banking in Liverpool, England, in the early to mid-19th century.

The Joseph Shipley, Jr., collection (1 linear foot) contains business and personal correspondence related to the Shipley and Bringhurst families of Wilmington, Delaware. The earliest items include letters to Joseph Bringhurst from correspondents in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, who commented on the cotton trade and finances from 1813-1817. The bulk of the collection is made up of business and personal letters to Joseph Shipley, Jr., from 1819 to the mid-1850s. Shipley, who lived and worked in Liverpool, England, regularly heard from merchants and family in Philadelphia and Wilmington and sometimes in New York and Manchester. The collection also includes some letters that Shipley wrote to his brothers. The Shipley correspondence often pertains to the shipment of cotton and other goods between the United States and Europe, to banking, and to family news from "Brandywine Mills."

Writers sometimes commented on current events or political affairs, such as elections, the advent of the "Native American" (Know Nothing) party and tensions between nativists and Irish Catholics in Philadelphia (May 14, 1844, and July 14, 1844), the "Oregon question," and the Mexican-American War. A letter from August 15, 1832, informs Shipley about the alarm over the cholera epidemic in Philadelphia. Several letters from the early 1840s mention the decline of the Bank of the United States, such as Richard Price's letter of October 30, 1840, which includes financial figures related to the bank. Shipley's later correspondence concerns personal and family matters, and he often received letters from his nieces and nephews in Delaware and Pennsylvania. The last items are letters written among members of the Bringhurst family. In one letter, Edward Bringhurst wrote to his wife Sarah about attending a religious service at the Sistine Chapel, presided over by the Pope (April 9, 1851). The collection also includes bills of lading, receipts, and indentures.

This collection contains a 24 page manuscript entitled "A Few Experiences of United States," written by Joseph W. Bishop, Jr., around 1908. This item documents his travels from Boston to Kansas to Colorado.

This collection contains a 24-page manuscript entitled "A Few Experiences of United States," written by Joseph W. Bishop around 1908. The item colorfully records his experiences traveling across the states, and is full of descriptions of urban life in Boston, life on the Kansas frontier, and Denver in its early years. Bishop comments at length on the places, people, and customs he observes, and discusses travel by boat and railroad, Kansas cowboys, Boston Irish dockworkers, construction of a sod house, and the impressive public institutions of Denver.

Accompanying the manuscript are various official documents, including his declaration of US citizenship and homestead papers, letters of recommendation for employment, tax receipts, and a broadside and survey map for a Denver subdivision.

This account book contains financial documentation of Joseph W. Brown's activities from 1822 to 1858 in Whitingham, Vermont. His records principally relate to his apple orchard, cider mill, and agricultural pursuits, but the broad exchange of goods and labor present in the volume provide a glimpse into the activities and relationships of a nineteenth-century rural community.

This account book contains financial documentation of Joseph W. Brown's activities from 1822 to 1858 in Whitingham, Vermont. His records principally relate to his apple orchard, cider mill, and agricultural pursuits, but the broad exchange of goods and labor present in the volume provide a glimpse into the activities and relationships of a nineteenth-century rural community.

Joseph W. Brown sold apples, cider and brandy, vinegar, potatoes, hay, several types of livestock and meat, as well as grains and oats. Accounts relating to producing and repairing shoes and boots suggest Brown may also have been working as a cobbler, while accounts relating to carpentry, masonry, and other construction activities indicate he had experience in several fields of skilled labor. In at least three accounts, Brown documented his production of coffins (pp. 42 and 112). Brown also rented out his mill for others who were producing cider, as well as his oxen, horses, and wagons for use in agriculture, construction jobs, and travel to nearby locales such as Wilmington, Dover, Brattleboro, Hatfield, and Halifax, among others. He also appears to have offered pasturage for others' livestock. Occasional entries relate to schools and taxes that supported them.

Throughout the volume Brown included notes about credit owed to individuals for various items, such as butter, sleigh bells, oil, lime, and produce, as well as labor done for him, including tasks like digging potatoes, chopping wood, haying, harvesting, thrashing rye, patching his barn, or plastering and finishing his cellar.

Brown revealed social details in a few entries, such as a note about attending a "freeman Meeting," possibly relating to freemasonry (p. 129), the hire of fiddlers for a thanksgiving ball (p. 132), or a short list of books relating to theology (p. 147). A brief list of household goods may be a record of items he purchased for his own use (pp. 123-124).

Several loose documents are laid into the front of the volume, including a list of goods sold at a "public vendue" in 1828; several receipts and slips of paper with mathematical sums; a list relating to the "number of scholars" in Whitingham; a small notebook that includes a "Tax Bill... to support the summer school of 1829;" and two documents relating to a policy with the Farmers' Mutual Fire Insurance Company from 1858 made out to J[oseph] G. Brown and Sophronia Brown.

This collection is made up of correspondence and receipts related to Juliette F. Gaylord's work with the Ladies' Soldiers' Aid Society in Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire, during the Civil War. Gaylord, the group's secretary, corresponded with members of the United States Sanitary Commission's New-England Women's Auxiliary Association and with Hannah A. Adams, a Fitzwilliam native who worked in the South during the war.

This collection is made up of correspondence and receipts related to Juliette F. Gaylord's work with the Ladies' Soldiers' Aid Society in Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire, during the Civil War. Gaylord, the group's secretary, corresponded with members of the United States Sanitary Commission's New-England Women's Auxiliary Association and with Hannah A. Adams, a Fitzwilliam native who worked in the South during the war.

The collection is comprised of 1 letter to "Mrs. Cahill;" 1 letter and 1 receipt addressed to the Ladies' Soldiers' Aid Society of Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire; 1 printed report; and 12 letters and receipts addressed to Juliette F. Gaylord. Gaylord received correspondence from the New-England Women's Auxiliary Association's executive committee about their efforts to procure flannel and other items for Union soldiers. In her letter of March 10, 1865, F. P. Fox thanked Gaylord for a recent report about the religious composition of the Fitzwilliam Society. Later correspondence pertains to a proposed lecture series and includes a printed questionnaire about potential locations. Other items concerning the Ladies' Soldiers' Aid Society include receipts for in-kind donations to the United States Sanitary Commission and a printed monthly report by the New-England Women's Auxiliary Association (November 20, 1864).

Hannah A. Adams wrote 2 personal letters to Juliette Gaylord in March 1864 about her work in St. Louis, Missouri, and Huntsville, Alabama, where she participated in relief efforts for soldiers. Adams discussed her desire to assist the soldiers, her intention to relocate to Nashville, and black residents' reactions to the arrival of Union troops in Huntsville.

This collection is made up of correspondence written by members of the Kendall and Brown families of New Lebanon, New York, during the late 19th century. John Kendall's daughters Mary, Ellen, and Sarah wrote to each other while attending schools in Connecticut and New York in the 1850s, and continued to provide family news in later letters. Charles H. Brown wrote a series of letters to his parents while living with his grandparents and attending school near Pittsfield, Massachusetts, in the mid-1870s. Other items include receipts for boarding school tuition.

This collection (39 items) contains correspondence written by members of the Kendall and Brown families of New Lebanon, New York, during the late 19th century. John Kendall's daughters Mary, Ellen, and Sarah wrote to each other while attending schools in Connecticut and New York in the 1850s, and continued to provide family news in later letters. Charles H. Brown wrote a series of letters to his parents while living with his grandparents and attending school near Pittsfield, Massachusetts, in the mid-1870s. Other items include receipts for boarding school tuition.

The Kendall sisters exchanged letters in the mid- to late 1850s, while Ellen C. Kendall attended the Ingham Collegiate Institute in Le Roy, New York, and Sarah W. Kendall attended the Wadawanuck Young Ladies' Institute in Stonington, Connecticut. They shared news of their social lives and described their educational experiences, such as Ellen's desire to take painting classes. Between 1874 and 1876, Charles H. Brown wrote to his parents, discussing his schoolwork, local and family news, and his religious beliefs. In one letter, he reported on a large fire, and in another he mentioned a school lecture on leaders of the antislavery movement. Many of his letters include weather charts. Brown wrote one additional letter to his parents while working as a machinist for a railroad company in Dunkirk, New York, in 1880. Later correspondence includes a letter that William Armistead Collier wrote to his cousin, Walter Brown, and a letter by E. F. Boyden about a statue of Seth Boyden erected in Newark, New Jersey. An undated letter from Ellen Kendall to Sarah Kendall Brown includes a drawing of a woman.

Sarah W. Kendall's husband, Henry L. Brown, received receipts for tuition for Charles H. Brown at the Greylock Institute in South Williamstown, Massachusetts, in 1876, and for Harvey Brown at the Mount Hermon School in Mount Hermon, Massachusetts, in 1888.

This collection contains the incoming and outgoing personal correspondence of the family of Gustavus and Anna Kershner of Clear Spring, Maryland.

This collection (102 items) contains the incoming and outgoing personal correspondence of the family of Gustavus and Anna Kershner of Clear Spring, Maryland. Brothers Jacob B. and Edward Kershner frequently wrote to their parents about their studies, the family's finances, and other topics. In his earliest letters, Jacob described his education at Pennsylvania College; he later wrote from Mercersburg, Pennsylvania, where he attended a seminary. He also discussed finances. Edward's early letters from New York City pertain to the political climate immediately preceding the Civil War. His incoming correspondence includes a letter from a friend who expressed concern after hearing of the sinking of the Cumberland, on which Edward had served as an assistant surgeon. After the war, Edward described his life in Boston, Massachusetts. The Kershner siblings (Jacob, Edward, and Mary) also corresponded with their parents and each other about their daily lives, including Mary's experiences at Bordentown Female College. The collection contains a receipt for tuition at the college (November 29, 1864).

The Ladies' Gleaning Circle of Newburyport, Mass., was a missionary aid society with close ties to the Massachusetts Missionary Society, one of the earliest and most influential of the nineteenth-century home missionary societies. The bulk of the Ladies' Gleaning Society Records consists of receipts for donations made by the Circle, mostly to the Massachusetts Missionary Society, and letters from grateful missionaries who have received parcels of clothing, books, or other supplies.

The bulk of the Ladies' Gleaning Society Records consists of receipts for donations made by the Circle, mostly to the Massachusetts Missionary Society, and letters from grateful missionaries who have received parcels of clothing, books, or other supplies. The latter letters are especially fascinating because many of the missionaries freely discuss the tribulations and successes of their daily lives and evangelical work. Interestingly, the missionaries seem most appreciative of the books sent them. The collection also includes several lists enumerating the articles sent to missionaries.

Of special interest is a letter of Frederick Ayer (January 1854), which details his work among Indians in the Minnesota Territory, and that of Gordon S. Johnson (14 January 1846), which gives an account of religious conditions and attitudes in Swanton, Ohio. A receipt (15 December 1852) from noted missionary George Henry Atkinson (1819-1889) for a donation to his female seminary in Oregon is also included among the Circle's papers.