Collections

The Beauties of The Sea photograph album contains five small commercial photographs of scenes on Nantucket along with four alternating sheets of decoratively arranged pressed algae.

The Beauties of The Sea photograph album (12 x 14 cm ) contains five small commercial photographs of scenes on Nantucket (The Old Windmill; Brant Point Light; Harbor and Sailboats; the Town Crier; and Bank and Methodist Church) glued into small album along with four alternating sheets of decoratively arranged pressed algae. The photographs are possibly by Henry S. Wyer. The album's faded green paper covers are tied with gold tasseled string with a wash drawing and inscribed title "Beauties of The Sea" in ink. Album is housed in light green folder.

This volume contains a manuscript play prompt for the fairytale "Beauty and the Beast," drawn directly from Julia Corner's 1854 adaptation of the same tale.

This volume contains a manuscript play prompt for the fairytale "Beauty and the Beast," drawn directly from Julia Corner's 1854 adaptation of the same tale.

The text largely corresponds with Corner's adaptation, albeit with abbreviated or simplified stage directions. The text appears to have been written by one hand, with a pencil annotation at the end of the volume in a second hand, crediting the performance of this play to "some of the girls that go to Miss Lacy's School."

Although the location of Miss Lacy's School is unclear, the spelling within may indicate contemporary American rather than British expectations. The roles are for a merchant, the Beast, the merchant's daughters, Beauty, and a beneficent fairy with four attendants.

This volume contains a manuscript play prompt for the fairytale "Beauty and the Beast," drawn directly from Julia Corner's 1854 adaptation of the same tale.

This volume contains a manuscript play prompt for the fairytale "Beauty and the Beast," drawn directly from Julia Corner's 1854 adaptation of the same tale.

The text largely corresponds with Corner's adaptation, albeit with abbreviated or simplified stage directions. The text appears to have been written by one hand, with a pencil annotation at the end of the volume in a second hand, crediting the performance of this play to "some of the girls that go to Miss Lacy's School."

Although the location of Miss Lacy's School is unclear, the spelling within may indicate contemporary American rather than British expectations. The roles are for a merchant, the Beast, the merchant's daughters, Beauty, and a beneficent fairy with four attendants.

This collection is made up of three items (8 pages) relating to the investigation into the death of 17-year-old Etna Bittenbender, who was raped and murdered in Sciota, Hamilton Township, Pennsylvania on October 31, 1880. The contents include statements by Samuel Harvey, Samuel A. Singer, and four members of the Marsh family who employed Etna as a housekeeper. They attested to their personal backgrounds and lives, their locations at the time of the murder, and what they witnessed.

The Blairstown (N.J.) photograph album (18.5 x 25.5 cm) contains 1 clipping and 91 snapshots of young adults. The clipping is from the marriage of Janith Tate Edgerton. The majority of the images within the album capture candid moments in and around the Delaware Water Gap in New Jersey.

The Blairstown (N.J.) photograph album (18.5 x 25.5 cm) contains 1 clipping and approximately 91 snapshots of young adults. The clipping is from the marriage of Janith Tate Edgerton. The majority of the images within the album capture candid moments in and around the Delaware Water Gap in New Jersey, including a mix of people, buildings, farm animals, and scenic shots. Descriptive captions are written on some of the photographs.

The second page of the album features members of the Blairstown High School Class of 1915 while the third page features views of what is likely Rutgers University. Page 11 includes an aerial view of a parade for the 150th anniversary of Rutgers. Pages in the back of the album include a photograph of women cross-dressing while "looking for a dear," images of a new car, medieval reenactors, and a group of people dressed as "Bandits." Nine loose photographs of Washington, D.C., soldiers boarding a train during World War I, and snapshots of people are contained in an envelope within the ablum.

The Blanding-Carpenter papers contain the incoming and outgoing correspondence of the families of Noah Blanding of Attleboro, Massachusetts, and James Blanding of Rehoboth, Massachusetts. Correspondents include friends and family members from Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and New York.

The Blanding-Carpenter papers contain 70 incoming and outgoing letters of the families of Noah Blanding of Attleboro, Massachusetts, and James Blanding of Rehoboth, Massachusetts. Correspondents include friends and family members from Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and New York.

Family and local news were frequent topics of conversation, as were illnesses and their treatments. Several friends reported news of acquaintances' teaching careers around New England. Others mentioned their travels, particularly within Massachusetts and Rhode Island, and some mentioned people who were considering a move to California during the Gold Rush. Though based in Bristol County, Massachusetts, each family received letters from a variety of locations, and several recipients spent time in Seekonk, Massachusetts; Providence, Rhode Island; and Brooklyn, New York. On one occasion, Nancy A. Blanding wrote her sister Elizabeth about a party she attended in Brooklyn (January 28, 1847). Childcare was also discussed; for example, Susannah Carpenter Blanding, then married to Nathaniel Arey (or Avrey), wrote about the growth of her children, and included a pattern for a child's stocking (September 12, 1852).

The Boston Mob Pennsylvania Tour and Cross-Country Tour photograph albums contain pictures taken during travels in the Mid-Atlantic States, the northern Midwest, Colorado, and California in the early 1890s. The photographs show city scenes and buildings, natural scenery, and travelers.

The Boston Mob Pennsylvania Tour and Cross-Country Tour photograph albums contain 213 pictures taken during travels in the Mid-Atlantic States, the northern Midwest, Colorado, and California in the early 1890s. Each album is 29cm x 35cm with titles stamped in gold on the front covers. Most photographs are captioned.

The first volume, "Pennsylvania Tour 1891," contains 77 items, comprised of 15.5cm x 20cm prints pasted one to a page and 9cm x 12cm prints pasted three or four to a page. The first 7 pictures and the final picture were taken at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, including views of battlefield monuments and a military cemetery. The photographer also traveled to Luray, Virginia; Baltimore, Maryland; Washington, D.C.; and Richmond, Virginia. A few shots are group portraits of male and female tourists, who posed once in a railroad car by a banner reading "Boston Mob," and many others are images of city streets and natural scenery, including a series taken in and around a natural bridge and Cedar Creek in Virginia. While visiting Washington, D.C., the compiler photographed landmarks such as the Washington Monument, United States Treasury, White House, and State, War, and Navy Building. Ferries, horse-drawn trolleys (running on tracks), trains, bridges, and railroad depots are visible in many photographs. Of note is an aerial photograph of the White House and surrounding buildings taken from the top of the Washington Monument and a group of 5 items showing African American children playing on a street in Luray, Virginia.

The second volume, "Across the Continent 1892," contains 136 photographs (9cm x 12cm each), usually pasted four to a page. Most items are views of buildings and natural scenery in locations such as Niagara Falls; Sioux City, Iowa; Denver, Colorado; San Francisco, California; Los Angeles, California; Seattle, Washington; and Duluth, Minnesota, as well as other towns in Colorado and California. The pictures show donkeys, town and city buildings, a cattle ranch, and rock formations, particularly in the Garden of the Gods; the photographer visited Seattle during a snowy winter. A number of photographs show a smelter in Denver, Colorado. One group of California photographs features orange trees. Other items of note are a "Spirit Picture" of two overlapped city scenes and a shot of Grover Cleveland's inauguration on March 4, 1893.

The Boston, Revere Beach & Lynn Railroad photograph album consists of 43 photographs taken in various locations in Massachusetts most likely along the Boston, Revere Beach & Lynn Railroad line.

The Boston, Revere Beach & Lynn Railroad photograph album consists of 43 photographs taken in various locations in Massachusetts most likely along the Boston, Revere Beach & Lynn Railroad line. The album (39 x 29 cm) is hardbound with a green cover. Images include views of urban street scenes in several Massachusetts towns, including Lynn; railroad passenger stations; a trolley car; street car tracks; the Bay State House in Worcester, Massachusetts; various storefronts; a locomotive with a plow attachment; numerous horse-drawn carriages; a sign stating "Railroad crossing. Look out for the engine while the bell rings."; a woman identified by a handwritten caption as "Louise" posing outside of a carriage stable; and what appears to be either two horse cars or two electric automobiles parked on a street.

The Boston to St. Louis travel diary recounts an arduous month-long journey between the two cities made by rail, steamboat, and stagecoach in the fall of 1837.

The Boston to St. Louis travel diary recounts an arduous month-long journey between the two cities made by rail, steamboat, and stagecoach in the fall of 1837. The anonymous author, a staunchly religious man, refused to travel on Sundays and attended Sunday religious services at Presbyterian churches throughout his travels, which took him through northern New York, down the Erie Canal, across lower Michigan and northern Illinois, and finally down the Mississippi River to St. Louis. The diarist wrote daily entries about frequent delays, bad weather, his route, the scenery, and various traveling companions, many of whom he knew. Though the initial leg from Boston to Rochester, New York, proceeded without difficulty, he became stranded in Cleveland and was frequently held back by poor, muddy roads as he proceeded by stagecoach from Detroit to Chicago. He finally reached St. Louis on November 28 and concluded the journal on November 30, a lonely and homesick Thanksgiving. Though the author's daily entries fully chronicle the hardships of travel in the early 19th century, they also provide interesting anecdotes and commentary, including encounters with wild animals along the road, and news of the murder of abolitionist minister Elijah Parish Lovejoy, which the diarist first heard about in Chicago, but also later in Alton, Illinois, where the murder made "abolitionism…more than ever the topic of conversation" (November 25). The final two pages of the volume consist of a table of distances, fares, and expenses incurred throughout the trip.

This volume contains meeting minutes pertaining to the administration of a school in Bradford, New Hampshire, in the early 19th century. Residents of District No. 4 discussed funding for building repairs, firewood, beginning dates of school sessions, and other administrative matters.

This volume (58 pages) contains meeting minutes pertaining to the administration of a school in Bradford, New Hampshire, from December 22, 1806-April 6, 1829. Residents of District No. 4 met semi-annually and annually to discuss issues such as building maintenance, the construction of a chimney, the supply of firewood, and the opening dates of school terms; some entries include associated costs. The attendees began each meeting by electing officers, who often remained consistent from year to year. At their meeting of April 3, 1809, attendees decreed that parents would be held responsible for any damage that their children did to the school. Later minutes refer to schoolmistresses' board. The volume also contains the copied text of a formal meeting notice dated February 18, 1828.