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The Fisher collection consists mostly of letters received by William Logan Fisher between 1798 and 1861, along with a few items concerning other family members. The strength of this small collection lies in its documentation of the crisis afflicting American Quakerism during the antebellum period, particularly the deep rifts that developed in the meetings at Lynn and New Bedford, Mass., and the efforts there to suppress dissent.

The Fisher collection consists of 69 letters received by William Logan Fisher between 1798 and 1861, with a few older items, mostly legal documents and commercial correspondence, received by his father Thomas Fisher (1741-1810; 17 items), and 8 items relating to his grandfather, William Logan (1718-1776). There are also four letters received by William Logan Fisher's son, Charles W., from a friend, M. Ritchie.

The strength of this small collection lies in its documentation of the crisis afflicting American Quakerism during the antebellum period. The letters from Charles W. Morgan from New Bedford are particularly noteworthy for documenting the deep rifts that developed in the meetings at Lynn and New Bedford, Mass., and the efforts there to suppress dissent. In 1822, the meeting at Lynn was repeatedly interrupted by the ministering of politically and theologically progressive Friends. On February 17th, one dissenter entered meeting brandishing a sword as an emblem of the "warlike disposition of those against whom he wished to bear testimony." Although this form of symbolic speech had been common among Quakers of the 17th century, it was ill received in Lynn. The sword was wrenched from the man, and he was forcibly expelled from meeting. The protest, however, was renewed by several others in the afternoon, after which the sheriff was called in to read the riot act. When the protesters refused to absent themselves, four were arrested and jailed at Salem. Morgan wrote that they were "confined the first night in a store without provisions or sleeping accommodations" (1822 February 26). Two of the protesters were ultimately found guilty and fined, and two, according to Morgan, were found innocent because insane.

Morgan's letters also document that the tensions in the Society were hardly unique to Lynn, nor were they confined to this one incident. Morgan noted with great personal interest the divisions within the New Bedford meeting, his parents and other relatives pitted against the more numerous conservatives. Morgan felt throughout the crisis that he might become a target for disownment due to his views, and was distressed by the accusations of adultery made against a fellow "Hicksite," The stress that this otherwise devout Quaker experienced is suggested by his comment to Fisher of October 6th, 1822: "This is all the Religion that I can communicate to thee at present -- I have nothing of my own & I can see nothing in others, meeting discipline, preachers and Societies all are dead and dark to me and I go among them hardly without knowing why yet not perhaps quite easy to abandon all that is called holy -- though all is death and idolatry to me." Interestingly, at the height of the fracas in Lynn, on March 27th, 1822, Morgan's "black man" rose at the New Bedford meeting without forewarning Morgan, and asked to be admitted as a member. Morgan wrote that he "sp[oke] very well & properly, the request Received due notice, and is under care of overseers."

Other aspects of the tensions within the Society are recorded in a long letter from James B. Congdon on his book, the Quaker Quiddities, discussing the reservations that young Friends had toward Quaker "peculiarities." In a similar vein, Christopher Slocum complained of the practice among Friends of expelling members who had married outside the faith: "What a pity it is Wm that Society should loose so many of its Members by Marriage -- how can it be remedied? does it not sustain a greater injury in this way, than if it admitted Persons into Membership for that express Purpose..." (22 November 1800). Two letters from Matilda F. Fry, an English Quaker, represent the conservative view on the doctrinal disputes.

Other letters of interest in the collection are two letters from Christopher Slocum, a Quaker merchant from New York City, and the letters of John Wadey Russell, also a New York merchant. In Slocum's first, dated October 12th, 1800, he describes three suicides, one of which turned out to be a ruse by a man attempting to escape from his debts. In his second, he records a medical experiment performed on a Black woman: after being inoculated with cow pox serum as a preventative against small pox, the woman was injected with small pox and thereafter developed all of the sequelae of the disease. In the same letter, Slocum describes the use of Priestly's "dephlogisticated nitrous air" (i.e., nitrous oxide), then in vogue as a treatment for a variety of ailments in New York. Russell lured away Slocum's partner J. Mintern, thus dissolving the firm of Slocum & Mintern. Though hard feelings seem to have been avoided in the long run, Slocum warned Fisher, who was then engaged to be married, "Beware my dear Fellow of Partnerships -- they are so uncertain -- that no calculation can be made upon them -- unless thou should'st be so fortunate as to form a Connection of a Matrimonial kind..." (1801 February 4). Though the letters relating to the Slocum-Mintern-Russell triangle are few and brief, they provide an interesting insight into business relations in the small and interrelated community of Quaker merchants. Finally, there are two fine letters from Theodore Parker one of which (1845 January 30) includes an optimistic statement of his plans for the future of Universalism.

This collection contains the letters and official papers of Lord Shelburne, British politician, Member of Parliament, secretary of state for the Southern Department, and Prime Minister. The papers document British foreign, colonial, and domestic affairs throughout the 18th century with special focus on the periods 1766-1768 and 1782-1783. In addition to this finding aid, the Clements Library has created a detailed Volume Index and a Name Index and Geographical Index.

The William Petty, 1st Marquis of Lansdowne, 2nd Earl of Shelburne papers consist of the letters and official papers of Lord Shelburne, British politician, member of parliament, secretary of state for the Southern Department, and Prime Minister from 1782-1783. These document British foreign, colonial, and domestic affairs, covering the 18th century with special focus on the periods 1766-1768 and 1782-1783. The papers are made up of dispatches, memoranda, trade statistics, reports, essays, questionnaires, and copies of treaties. They cover the conduct of the French and Indian War; the colonies in North America and the West Indies; the 1783 American peace negotiations in Paris; relations with Europe, Africa, and India; the management of the royal household's lands and revenues (1745-1789); and records of the Home Office, Parliament, Customs Revenue, Board of Trade, Army, Navy, War, and Pay offices and Treasury (1760-1797).

Shelburne was an avid collector of books, pamphlets, manuscripts, reports, maps, and prints, and was known as one of the most well-informed politicians of his day. During his political career, Shelburne had access to, and was able to commission, high level reports on domestic and foreign affairs; his papers reveal the British perspective on foreign relations, civil and military, with Europe, America, India, and Africa. Shelburne and his personal librarian Samuel Paterson collected and organized much of the present collection when Shelburne retired from political office.

In addition to the official letters, the collection contains family papers, including letters from Shelburne to his wife Sophia, to his son John, and from his young son William Granville. The Lacatia-Shelburne series, acquired separately from the rest of the collection, is comprised of 207 official letters originally belonging to Shelburne.

The European and Mediterranean Politics series (42 volumes) documents British diplomatic relations and financial interests in Europe and northern Africa. The series contains political and diplomatic letters and copies of letters with officials from the major powers of Europe, including: Austria, France, Portugal, Prussia, Russia, Spain, and Switzerland, as well as Mediterranean powers such as the Ottoman Empire, the Barbary States (Algiers, Morocco, Tunis, and Tripoli), and the Italian states. Also present are copies of treaties and reports on the military and trade capabilities of many of these nations. Though they cover British foreign relations from the beginning of the 18th century, these papers primarily document the 1760s, including the 1763 Peace of Paris, and Shelburne's activities as secretary of state for Southern Department (1766-1768).

The Colonial Affairs and the 1783 Treaty of Paris series (48 volumes) contains Shelburne's letters and reports concerning the British colonies in North America and the West Indies. Of particular interest is the material related to the negotiations leading up to the Treaty of Paris, which Shelburne supervised as Prime Minister (1782-1783). Included are letters and memoranda from the peace commissioners and secretaries at Paris, such as Richard Oswald, Henry Strachey, Thomas Townshend, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and John Jay, among others. Also present are drafts and copies of preliminary treaties and opinions on the ongoing negotiations. The Assiento papers contain official and private letters and documents of the South Sea Company, a British mercantile venture that, for 30 years after the Treaty of Utrecht, had exclusive rights to sell slaves to Spanish territories in America. The papers comprise confidential agent reports, bills for traded goods and slaves, ship inventories, factory reports, and diplomatic letters between Spain and England on slave trade policies.

• Diplomatic correspondence concerning the end of the Seven Years War (French and Indian War) in 1763
• Copies of letters, intelligence reports, and documents received by Lord Fox and Shelburne from various European courts during the peace negotiations (1782-1783)
• Orders, letters, memorials, and documents to and from the colonial governors of the American colonies, Canada, and the West Indies islands
• Records of West Indian trade, and reports on Jamaica, Barbados, and Tobago (1766-1767)
• Officially commissioned descriptions of the Islands of St. John, Cape Briton, Magdalen, Grenada, St. Vincent, and Dominica (1765-1767)
• Reports on commerce with America including trade statistics
• Letters and papers concerning relations and trade with the Choctaw, Creeks, Mohican, and Six Nation Indians (1703-1767)
• Questionnaires, with answers, sent to colonial governors concerning the "Civil Establishment" and "Accounts of the Fees of Office" (1766-1767)
• Accounts of American civil and military expenses (1765-1767)
• Reports on the Mutiny Act, Indemnity Act, Stamp Act, and other parliamentary laws concerning the American colonies
• Reports on Spanish and Portuguese settlements in South America and the rights of the Spanish in the South Seas
• Minutes on African Affairs (1765-1767)
• Reports and instructions related to Minorca, Gibraltar, and the coast of Africa
• A letter from George Croghan to Shelburne on the discovery of mastodon bones in Big Lick, Ohio Territory (Volume 48, pages 131-134)

The East Indian Affairs series (11 volumes) contains Shelburne's papers related to British financial and political interests in India. Included are official letters and documents (both originals and copies) transmitted to Shelburne to keep him up to date with activities and conflicts. Shelburne was heavily invested in the East India Company and was one of the company's most vocal advocates in Parliament.

• A chronological account of significant events in the establishment and activities of the East India Company (1601-1761)
• Finances and budgets of the East India Company along with copies of original government and business documents (1766-1767)
• Policy proposals for India and the East India Company including notes for speeches in parliament (1760-1790)
• A narrative history of the second war with Hyder Ali Khan (Second Anglo-Mysore War), with maps (1779-1782)
• A narrative history of Indian kingdoms
• Letters with the Secret Committee of the East India Company and other company officials

The British Government series is comprised of 5 subseries.

The Parliament, Customs Revenue, Trade, Imports, and Exports subseries (39 volumes) contains Shelburne's collection of official records, reports, accounts, and letters related to British customs, taxes, expenses, and trade revenue. These document British financial operations throughout most of the 18th century, and show Shelburne's efforts to reform domestic financial policies.

• Reference tables describing the division of power in British government, including the King, House of Lords, and House of Commons
• Abstract reports on the Stamp Tax (1734-1764)
• Customs reports for revenue and departmental expenditures
• Lists of customs officers and employees
• Import and export records for trade with Europe, Africa, and America
• Letters and documents concerning excise taxes, the post office, and the stamp duties
• Financial reports on the royal household, lands, and revenues (1745-1789) and instructions on the management of the royal estate
• City of London papers, including proceedings of councils and letters concerning raising troops, establishing meeting halls, quelling riots, crime, and other topics (1588-1783)
• Reports on England's forests, corn and food, and currency (paper money and coins)

Note: Volume 100, entitled "A Table Reference Concerning the King, Lords, and Commoners," is not the same Volume 100 as noted in the Historic Manuscript Commission Report, which was entitled "East India Correspondence," and is not at the Clements.

The British Army, Navy, and Military Administration subseries (20 volumes) contains material related to the British military and information on foreign forces covering 1694 to 1783.

• Papers on War Office expenses for troops in Britain, Africa, Gibraltar, Scotland, and America (1765-1783)
• Papers concerning the navies and armies of foreign powers, including Spain, France, and Holland
• Naval department commissions, expenses, warrants, bills, and patents (1701-1779)
• Copies Admiralty and Navy Board letters (1695-1779)
• Shipping lists for equipping stations and ports (1770-1780 and 1783)
• Copies of intelligence on French and Spanish navies(1777-1780)
• Contracts for individuals employed by the navy
• Chronological records of the major policy decisions, events, and projects of the British navy

The volumes in the Ireland subseries (4 volumes) were owned by the Lansdowne family as recently as 1982.

The Cabinet and Treasury Minutes subseries (5 volumes) document Shelburne's governmental activities from 1762-1783. The cabinet minutes cover Shelburne's tenure as secretary of state of the Southern Department from 1766 to 1768. Included are instructions, announcements, and letters concerning issues with military officials and ambassadors in Ireland, Sweden, Spain, and Portugal. The treasury minutes cover Shelburne's activities as Prime Minister from July 1782 to March 1783.

• Purchasing land
• Reviewing petitions and paying reparations to British Loyalists who lost property in the war with America
• Issuing warrants to the military
• Paying compensation for ships lost doing official business in the West Indies.

Also present are minutes of motions on various parliamentary subjects, such as the 1780 riots in London, speeches for and against settling peace with America, and speeches concerning French and Spanish treaties (1782-1782).

The Appeals and Minutes of the House of Lords subseries (16 volumes), include 8 volumes that document the "appellant's cases" brought before the House of Lords between 1769 and 1788. These printed volumes contain the case declarations, pleas, breaches, verdicts, final judgments, and reasons. Many entries are manuscript comments about the case. 8 volumes of manuscript minutes of the House of Lords span 1767 to 1788 and include cursory information about bills, petitions, cases, and other business. Several printed copies of the King's speeches to Parliament and the Lords' addresses in reply are included in volumes HL-14, HL-15, and HL-16.

The Personal Correspondence series (167 items) is comprised of two subseries: The Shelburne family letters, the Lansdowne-Bowles letters.

The Shelburne family letters subseries contains seven volumes of material related to Shelburne and his family, including Lady Sophia Carteret, William Granville Petty, John Petty Earl of Wycombe, Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice, and Lady Louisa Fitzpatrick. Also present are letters from Shelburne to his friend and colleague Thomas Coutts.

• Volume 1 contains 47 letters from Shelburne to his first wife Lady Sophia Carteret from 1766 to 1770. In these, Shelburne noted his daily activities, detailing greetings he shared with passers-by, visitors, dining companions, and meetings with government officials and dignitaries. He updated her on news of their friends and acquaintances in London, and frequently expressed his love for her.
• Volumes 2 and 3 consist of 48 letters to Shelburne from his young son William Granville Petty (1774-1778). Also present are letters from a servant named Thomas Servis who reported on William's health. Volume 3 contains more letters from William, several with mentions of the American Revolution, as well as a short memoir written by William's tutor after the boy's death in 1778, an elegy by his brother Viscount Fitzmaurice, and copies of 4 of William's scholastic essays.
• Volume 4 contains 37 letters from Shelburne to his son John Petty, Earl Wycombe, from 1768 and 1780-1789. Shelburne primarily wrote of personal and family news, providing many details on John's brother Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice and the health of his step mother Lady Louisa. He also discussed John's social obligations, and occasionally, political events. Also present is a letter in which Shelburne asked the unknown recipient to be the godfather of his newborn son (1768).
• Volume 5 consists of 23 letters from Shelburne to his friend and colleague Thomas Coutts (1735-1822), a wealthy and prominent London banker who owned the House of Coutts & Company. These letters span 1793 to 1802 and include discussions of personal business, news of acquaintances, and domestic and international politics of the day, such as the French Revolution, William Pitt and other political leaders, and the political state of Ireland.
• Volume 6 is comprised of three letters and three engraved portraits of Shelburne. The portraits are dated 1780, 1798, and undated, and the letters include a brief note from Shelburne to a Mr. Lawrence (May 10, 1782), a letter from Shelburne to the Earl of Egremont concerning the war in North America and its implications in Europe (July 9, 1762), and a letter from Shelburne to James Currie (September 5, 1800).

The Lansdowne-Bowles letters subseries (69 items) contain letters from Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice, 3rd Marquis of Lansdowne, and his wife Louisa to Magdalene and William Bowles. The letters span 1806-1835 and 53 items are undated; most are addressed from London. Henry Lansdowne's letters (24 items) are all to Reverend William Bowles, his friend and a frequent recipient of his patronage. Louisa contributed 45 letters, all to Magdalene Bowles; she discussed administrative aspects of a school that they jointly managed. She often remarked on the hiring of new teachers, and assessed their qualifications and personal merits. Louisa also discussed visits to the Lansdowne estate, Bowood, and made queries about the characters of potential visitors.

The Lacaita-Shelburne letters series (706 items) is a collection of letters compiled by Sir James Lacaita and his son Charles Carmichael Lacaita spanning 1692 to 1885. James Lacaita was Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice, 3rd Marquis of Lansdowne's private secretary from 1857 to 1863, during which time he organized Shelburne's unbound letters. Many items in this series (270 items) are addressed to Shelburne or were originally among his papers. These represent documents from his career, including political matters and discussions of peace negotiations with America (1760-1801). The 19th century material is addressed chiefly to James Lacaita, Lady Holland, Nassau William, Sr., and Anthony Panizzi, mostly from British and Italian politicians and Dante scholars. In all, the series contains letters from 274 contributors, primarily British and Italian lords, politicians, and military figures. See the Name Index for a list of contributors.

In addition to this finding aid, the Clements Library has created a detailed Volume Index and a Name Index and Geographical Index. For additional information see the Clements Library card catalog.

This collection contains correspondence, documents, and genealogical information related to Captain William Pote, Jr., of Marblehead, Massachusetts; his sons Greenfield and Samuel; his grandson William; and other descendants. Many items reflect the Pote family's involvement in shipping. One series concerns the family's claim for compensation after French privateers seized a ship's cargo. Later material pertains to efforts of the Dennison and King families to trace their ancestors, who included members of the Pote family.

This collection contains correspondence, documents, and genealogical information related to Captain William Pote, Jr., of Marblehead, Massachusetts; his sons Greenfield and Samuel; his grandson William; and other descendants. Many items reflect the Pote's involvement in shipping, and one series of items concerns the family's claim for compensation after French privateers seized a ship and its cargo. Later material pertains to efforts of the Dennison and King families to trace their ancestors, who included the Pote family.

The Pote Family Correspondence and Documents series (59 items) contains material related to the descendants of William Pote, dated between 1769 and 1853. Two early letters, including one between Samuel Pote and John Poat, the latter an English sea captain (November 11, 1769), and another copied from Jos. Poat about a family marriage in the year 1334 (March 1776), reveal the family's early interest in their genealogy. The series also holds business correspondence, such as 6 letters between Samuel Pote and Jedediah Pebble related to a payment dispute over the sale of the Nero (October 1781-March 1783). The financial documents are records concerning Greenfield Pote, his son William, and Samuel Pote, including agreements, a deed, receipts, and estate papers.

The Dennison Family Correspondence and Documents series (25 items) is comprised of correspondence and documents related to several generations of the Dennison and King families (1747-1997). Among the items are letters exchanged by Samuel and Horatio Dennison, wills for George and Samuel Dennison, and a document granting Samuel Dennison United States citizenship (January 27, 1839).

The French Spoliation Documents series (57 items) consists of 43 letters, 1 postcard, 2 petitions, 4 pages of hand copied records, 2 pages from an account book, 3 newspaper clippings, and 2 government publications, all related to a financial claims resulting from French capture of American merchant ships in the late 18th century. William Pote (1766-1847) owned the Freeport, a ship seized by a French privateer in 1796. The series traces the Pote family's attempts to gain financial compensation from the United States government. Many letters were exchanged between family members and lawyers.

• French Spoliations. Report of the Secretary of State... Washington, D. C.: Government Printing Office, 1886 (324 pages)
• Statement Showing the Payments of Awards of the Commissioners Appointed Under the Conventions Between the United States and France, Concluded April 30, 1803, and July 4, 1831, and Between the United States and Spain, Concluded February 22, 1819... Washington: Government Printing Office, 1886.

The Account Books and Daybook series contains 4 items.

William Pote's daybook and account book consists of 196 pages of ledger entries kept between 1788 and 1844, as well as the following loose items: 19 letters (1793-1835), 4 pages from an account book (1776), and 5 additional documents. The financial records concern agricultural products, manufactured goods, labor, personal notes, and seamen's wages, as well as different goods produced and sold by the Pote family, such as fish, eels, clams, corn, potatoes, butter, meat, rum, sugar, molasses, tea, and salt. Roughly 225 people, 19 ships' captains, 10-15 seamen, and 17 unique vessels are covered. In addition to family finances, the daybook documents several trips William Pote made to the West Indies between 1789 and 1790, and to Europe in 1792 and in unidentified years. A group of records dated between March and July 1802 pertain to the Portland Mineral Company's expenses.

William Pote, Jr., kept an account book (145 pages) between 1825 and 1830. The volume also contains laundry records (1849) and Bessie F. H. Jackson's school notes (1889). Pote's records pertain to the sale of food and supplies to 9 schooners (Adeline, Desiah, Galens, Julia Ann, Leopard, Lincoln, Pelican, William H. Crawford, and William), repairs made to the Leopard (p. 48), and cargo carried onboard the Lincoln during an 1830 trip to Honduras and on the Adeline during an journey to Belize and Honduras (p. 140). Pote also noted the names and earnings of 13 men who participated in mackerel fishing expeditions.

A smaller blue volume (38 pages) contains three main sections: William Gardiner's expenses of the Leopard's mackerel fishing voyages (1833-1834); William Pote's farm accounts between 1835 and 1836; and Pote's 2 accounts concerning payments made to his married daughters Eliza and Sophia (undated). Receipts are also laid into the volume.

An anonymous author also maintained an account book and log book for the Allegator (212 pages), which contains records of the ship's mackerel fishing expeditions between May 1828 and November 1831. Log entries record the weather, daily catch size, the ship's location, and other information. The volume also holds additional accounts William Pote (1766-1847) kept between 1831 and 1847, documenting the fishing voyages of the Allegator and Leopard.

The Ephemera series (13 items) is comprised of the following items: 2 negatives of silhouettes of William (1766-1847) and Dorcus Pote (1772-1842); 2 prints made from those negatives; 8 poems composed by Eliza Pote Dennison; and a pamphlet entitled "The Home Formulary: The Latest and Most Valuable Toilet and Miscellaneous Formulas for Home Use," by William Hobury.

Eliza Dennison King, William Pote's granddaughter, compiled the material within the Genealogy series (96 items) while researching the history of the Pote, Dennison, and allied families. The series includes King's correspondence with distant cousins and drafts of family trees.

Finally, the collection includes a ledger-sized Pote Family Notebook of copied letters and documents, plus additional genealogical materials. The volume includes early 1880s copies of three American Revolutionary War era letters by Joseph and Samuel Pote (March 1776-March 6, 1785; 7 pages); copies of French spoliation claim-related documents and records (1793-1832, copied 1882-1885; 9 pages); and genealogical and biographical notes on members of the family (17 pages).

This student notebook contains Latin-language treatises on logic, metaphysics, and related subjects, composed around 1720. The book also includes a few pages of sermon notes, an example of a Porphyrian Tree, and additional notes by later owners.

The bulk of this volume is comprised of Latin-language treatises about logic, metaphysics, and related concepts, written or copied around 1720. Each section is broken into multiple chapters, some with appendices. The volume also includes small groups of shorter writings in Latin and an example of the Porphyrian Tree. The Latin writings are infrequently interrupted by additional entries, such as a few pages of English-language notes from an August 1761 sermon based on a verse from 2nd Corinthians. Notations throughout the volume refer to William Potts, Georgius M. Conchie, George Potts, and William McCauly (with several variations on the spelling of the surname).

This collection contains correspondence, financial records, appointments, and other items related to William Thomas, a lawyer from Plymouth, Massachusetts, and to his family. The collection includes letters that Thomas wrote to his father, Joshua Thomas, about his experiences at Harvard University in the early 1800s, and documents appointing Thomas to prominent public positions in Plymouth.

This collection contains correspondence, financial records, appointments, and other items related to William Thomas, a lawyer from Plymouth, Massachusetts, and to his family. The collection includes letters that Thomas wrote to his father, Joshua Thomas, about his experiences at Harvard University in the early 1800s, and documents appointing Thomas to prominent public positions in Plymouth.

Early items include letters and financial documents related to members of the Thomas and Stevenson families, including a letter to Dr. John Thomas of Poughkeepsie, New York, about the death of his father (September 28, 1802). Between 1803 and 1807, William Thomas wrote around 8 letters to his father, and 1 to his brother John, from Cambridge, Massachusetts, about his experiences at Harvard University. Among other subjects, he discussed student life, the Federalist Party, elections, and conflicts between local residents and Harvard students. Also included are William Thomas's appointment as quartermaster of the Massachusetts Militia's 1st Regiment, 1st Brigade, 5th Division (April 12, 1810) and his discharge (April 20, 1815). Between 1826 and 1867, Thomas received 12 partially printed documents appointing him justice of the peace, master of chancery, and sheriff for Plymouth County, often for successive terms.

Later items are predominantly personal letters from acquaintances and cousins to William Thomas and his wife Sarah, as well as a copy of a letter that Thomas co-signed about the class of 1807's financial gift to Harvard (May 26, 1864). Other financial documents, such as those regarding the sale of land in Plymouth County and Isabella Thomas's will, are interspersed throughout the collection. The undated material includes a clipping with a biography of England native John Lloyd Thomas, additional correspondence, and copies of William Thomas's autograph.

The William Young papers center on the lives of William Young and his son-in-law John McAllister, Jr. The strengths of the collection are its documentation of William Young's careers as printer, publisher, bookseller and paper maker; the Associate Presbyterian Church; John McAllister's antiquarian interests; and the personal lives of the Young and McAllister families.

The William Young papers center on the lives of William Young and his son-in-law John McAllister, Jr., and through these lives document a wide scope of business, cultural, family and religious history both in America and Scotland. The strengths of the collection are its documentation of William Young's careers as printer, publisher, bookseller and paper maker; the Associate Presbyterian Church; John McAllister's antiquarian interests; and the personal lives of the Young and McAllister families.

The earliest papers in the collection date from William Young's days as a Scottish seminarian, and include valuable information on the Associate Presbytery of Scotland. A group of letters written after the Youngs' removal to America, 1784, documents European interest in the new nation: the immigrants received many letters from Scottish friends (and potential emigrants) inquiring into the details of America life. Young kept certain business concerns in Scotland; his brother Stephen and Agnes Young's brothers, William and John McLaws, were all active in the book trade, and their correspondence provides some insight into the burgeoning international book business.

The backbone of the collection is the correspondence relating to William Young's diverse business enterprises from the 1780s through 1820s. Among the later material, the correspondence between William Young McAllister and his thirty-year-old son, William Mitchell McAllister (7:54 and 56), stands out as illustration of a father's displeasure over his son's mismanagement of affairs during the disastrous panic of 1873. Also interesting is a plaintive letter written by the 52 year-old Thomas H. Young (7:59) in 1876, asking his aging father to bail out his business with a handout of $5,000.00. Box 8 contains a large quantity of receipts, accounts, and other business papers of Young's, along with information on the tangled settlement of Young's estate (8:30) and information on the settlement of other estates. Additional information on Young's estate is located with the oversized material (see Separation Record).

The Young Papers also contains rich resources for study of the history of the Associate Presbyterian Church in America. One of the smallest Presbyterian denominations, the Associate Presbyterians preserved few primary resources and little survives from their presence on the American scene; the Young Papers contain some of the earliest records known for that church (folder 8-37). Among other Associate Presbyterian ministers represented in the collection is Rev. Thomas Hamilton (1776-1818), William Young's son-in-law. Much of the work compiled by John McAllister Jr. in compiling the Associate Presbyterian volume of Sprague's Annals of the American Pulpit, is preserved in folder 8:10.

Yellow fever in Philadelphia (1793) and the nation's first major cholera epidemic (1832) are both well documented through letters containing medical information, largely confined to home remedies and professional advice on medicines. There is some discussion of Frances Stevenson's illness which cost her the use of a leg, resulting in her use of a prosthesis (6:88). In addition, there is a detailed report on the body of Dr. William R. Grant in 1852 (folder 7:6).

The photographs associated with the collection include valuable insights into family relations within both the Young and McAllister families (1:1 to 1:8), particularly when seen in conjunction with the large number of personal letters between family members. William Young's instructions to his housekeeper (3:54), John McAllister's consultations with his wife on business matters, race relations in Philadelphia (5:9, 6:11), relations with a mother-in-law (4:58), and the execution of Robert Morris's seldom-mentioned and ne'er-do-well son Charles (4:21) are among the topics discussed. Perhaps the wittiest correspondent is Mary Ann Hunter, a friend of Eliza Young McAllister, whose observations on Philadelphia society in the first decades of the 19th century are trenchant and insightful and read almost like a novel.

The Wilson papers contain letters and documents relating to the lives and careers of three generations of the family of William Wilson, residents of Clermont, N.Y. in the mid-Hudson River Valley.

The Wilson family papers contains over 4,000 letters relating to the lives and fortunes of three generations of the family of William Wilson, residents of Clermont, N.Y, in the mid-Hudson River Valley. Virtually all of the letters in the collection were received by members of the Wilson family, with only a very few out-going drafts. Together, these present an impressively detailed perspective on many aspects of family life, political culture, agriculture, commerce, and the economy of Columbia and Dutchess County, N.Y., in the fifty years following the end of the American Revolution. As well being educated, energetic members of the social elite, the Wilsons engaged in a variety of pursuits, from the legal and medical professions, to land proprietorship, farming, and politics, and they commented extensively at every turn. A genealogical chart of the Wilson family, detailing the relationships of all those mentioned in the collection can be found in box 42:11.

The core of the Wilson papers consists of the letters received by William Wilson, who shouldered a wide variety of responsibilities in Columbia and Dutchess counties and knew their residents intimately. The breadth of his interests brought him into contact with many of the state's leading citizens, but also with the tenant farmers, medical patients, merchants and clerks. William's major pursuit in life was medicine, and his surviving papers contain seven medical daybooks (40:3; 47:9-14), providing a chronological record of his visits, diagnoses and prescriptions, as well as his fees. He also kept two notebooks dealing with the causes and symptoms of various diseases (47:15, 16), and scattered throughout his papers are letters from patients discussing their illnesses. Of particular importance are the letters relative to the deaths of Chancellor Robert R. Livingston and his wife, for whom Wilson was the attending physician (18:6-10; 19:15, 21, 23). Wilson was also a founding member of the Medical Society of Dutchess and Columbia Counties in 1796, and was associated with the founding of the New York Medical Society, as well as with the effort to establish a medical college (15:69; 16:17, 24, 44, 46, 52, 66, 70, 76, 80; 17:3, 13, 17, 23, 29; 45:19).

William Wilson was also employed as an administrator of landed property, usually for members of the Livingston family, and particularly Henry Livingston (1752/53-1823). The wide-spread unrest among "General Livingston's" tenants is discussed in many of the letters, along with more general discussions of land tenure, proprietary power, and tenant satisfaction. Wilson also served as administrator for the property of Chancellor Robert R. Livingston, especially during the latter's appointment to France, for two absentee landlords from New York City, Walter Rutherford and J. Stark Robinson (41:1, 2); and he was an executor or administrator for the estates of Robert Cambridge Livingston (1742-1794) (42:1), Peter Robert Livingston (1737-1794) (42:7), and the Chancellor (42:3-6). The materials relating to Livingston rental properties consists largely of receipts for rents received, but also include lease agreements, about twenty account books relative to the Chancellor's lands, and negotiations for the sale of land, especially the Chancellor's property in New Jersey after his death. A section of the estate documents for Robert R. Livingston relate to payment of medical, boarding, and clothing bills for Isabella and her son, Stephen, who were enslaved by Livingston (42:4). Some of the documents refer to her as Isabella Bond.

In 1791, Wilson added the office of Deputy Postmaster to his collection of responsibilities, becoming the first such agent for the town of Clermont. He was reappointed in 1803, and continued at his lucrative post until surrendering it to his son in 1825. As with everything else, Wilson saved all of his papers (42:12-15), and this the collection includes Wilson's original appointment commissions, signed by Post Master General Timothy Pickering (1:46 and 12:72), as well as the postal accounts and other records, which are generally of an administrative and bureaucratic nature. There are a few scattered items from correspondents critical of the speed and unreliability of the mails.

William Wilson also filled various political appointments in the county, and was active in state politics. As a Jeffersonian-Republican, befitting a friend of Chancellor Livingston, he played an important local role as judge of the county court, yet while many of his letters are addressed to "Judge" Wilson, virtually nothing pertaining to his official judicial activities survives in the collection apart from a series of receipts from various sheriffs and a few examinations of a woman for illegitimacy (43:44; 41:19). However Wilson corresponded with other judges and lawyers in the region, a fair amount of which has been preserved, especially from Peter Van Schaack and members of the prominent Van Ness family. Wilson's role as one of the first school supervisors in the area is represented by some scant records (41:22), as is his position as a commissioner for the granting of tavern licenses (41:23).

Wilson was involved in two other county-wide projects that had an important impact on Columbia County, and for which there is excellent material. One of these was the construction of the Highland Turnpike, which ran from Westchester County to near Albany, with gates in Columbia County. Wilson sat on its Board of Directors, and was a frequent and regular correspondent with its president, Joseph Howland (43:1, 2). Howland's are among the few letters that bear on broader national issues, and are in many ways the most interesting series of letters in the collection (see especially 17:87). Secondly, Wilson was instrumental in the establishment of the Agricultural Society of Dutchess and Columbia Counties, or the "Farm Club," as it was usually called. As (variously) president, vice president, secretary, or treasurer, Wilson was intimately involved in the operation of the organization. Of particular interest is the material relative to the annual county fairs held by the club, and the notifications from potential participants, the standards for awards, and the lists of winners (41:3-11). These records, together with the information to be gathered from the receipts from merchants, presents a detailed picture of agricultural life in the rural Hudson Valley.

In sum, those portions of the Wilson Papers that deal directly with William Wilson and his many activities provides a comprehensive picture of rural life in Columbia County and the state of New York in the forty years after the American Revolution.

The letters from Wilson's children offer insights into other aspects of life in early nineteenth-century New York. Alexander Wilson wrote many letters to his father while a student, and it is from his papers that one gets a good idea of the nature of legal education at the beginning of the nineteenth century. Alexander's early death means there is little material relating to his career as a practicing attorney, but what is lacking from Alexander is more than made up for by the papers of his younger brother, Robert. Robert kept extensive records of his practice, including a register of cases covering the entire period of his independent practice in New York, 1823-1830 (46:17), and his day books and account books, which list his professional duties preformed on behalf of clients, and his expenses, fees, and collections (40:1; 46:15,16). The Wilson Papers also includes file papers for many of the cases in which Robert participated (43:5-30), providing a broad, and occasionally deep insight into one man's legal practice in the early 19th century.

The letters of Wilson's other sons are less numerous than those of Alexander and Robert. William H. spent most of his life in Clermont, and so wrote less often, and Stephen B. was a secretive man, who simply did not write many letters. William H. wrote several letters during his tour of duty on the Lake Champlain frontier during the War of 1812 (18:43, 52; 19:18, 26, 36, 47, 56, 60, 68; 20:16, 18), but these are preoccupied with descriptions of camp life and military "politics" rather than strategy or the social impact of the war. William succeeded his father as Deputy Postmaster in 1825, and kept the same copious records as his father (42:12-15). He was not, however, as active in politics as his father, and except for a few letters relating to his run for a seat in the state senate in 1839, and some candidate lists and election return broadsides (41:25-27), there is little of political interest in William's papers. Stephen's letters are the more interesting for their rarity. When he does write, it is well worth the reading.

In addition to the letters written and collected by William, William H., and Robert L. Wilson, the Wilson Papers contain a vast quantity of documents. The largest category of this material contains an enormous number of accounts and receipts from merchants with whom the Wilsons did business. In terms of the number of items, fully half of the Wilson Papers is comprised of these accounts. Approximately 800 individual laborers, craftsmen, merchants, and business firms are represented as having done business with one or another member of the Wilson family, and the collection includes accounts for nearly every kind of household goods, from furniture to food to building materials, agricultural supplies, from seeds to fruit trees to sheep, and personal goods, from cheap "segars" to an "invalid chair" for Robert L., to wine.

The accounts (box 44 and 45:1-16) are arranged alphabetically by creditor. A complete list of merchants and firms represented in the collection is included under "Merchants" in the subject index. The accounts are a particularly valuable resource for social historians. For example the accounts of Samuel Haner (44:12) document aspects of blacksmithing; those of the Clermont grocers Bonesteel and Broadhead (44:4) reveal aspects of diet and nutrition; those of Thomas Beekman (44:2) document medicine and medical supplies; and those of Peter Outwater (45:6) provide information on transportation and commerce on the Hudson River. Receipts for payment that do not include goods or services are filed by surname (45:20-23). The collection also includes a number of the Wilsons' account books, especially William's and Robert's, which offer a view of the other side of the ledger (40:5; 46:18; 47:1, 2).

A second subdivision of the collection, and one closely related to the merchant accounts, deals with land administration. In addition to the correspondence of Henry Livingston with William Wilson mentioned above, the collection contains several subject files related to this important issue in Hudson River Valley history. Most important are the folders containing information on absentee landlords (41:1, 2); deeds (41:4); land grants (43:4); leases (43:31, 32); mortgages (45:17); various rental accounts (46:1-7); surveys and surveying (46:8); as well as William Wilson's rental account books (46:17-20).

Finally the collection contains a small body of material of an essentially genealogical or local history value, and a wide, if not very deep, collection of letters of the Livingston family. William Wilson was an executor for some of the Livingston family estates, most notably for Robert Cambridge Livingston (42:1, 2) and Robert R. Livingston (42:3-6), as well as for other estates (41:29; 42:7-10). The information included in the "genealogy" folder (42:11) is particularly helpful in interpreting the material relating to estate settlement and administration.

The local history of the town of Clermont and Columbia County appears throughout the collection, ranging from arrest warrants to local taxes, and including a very important group of papers relating to the establishment of Clermont Academy (41:16-23). As for the Livingstons, while the famous Chancellor does not overpower the collection, the Livingston family does play an important part. Over sixty members of the family are mentioned in some significant way in the Wilson Papers. Some -- like "General" Henry with his tenant problems, the administration of the estates of Walter T. Livingston (1772-1827) and the Chancellor (42:3-7), or the letters of Edward Philip Livingston (1779-1843) concerning his trip to France -- are meaningful parts of the collection (9:78, 86, 98; 10:8, 64). Other Livingstons are merely the signers of documents or letters, such as Janet Livingston Montgomery's (1743-1828) announcement that she plans to enter the Farm Club fair, a request from Mary Thong Livingston Wilson for financial assistance after the birth of Wilson's grandson, or the Chancellor's grandson, Clermont Livingston, who signed a quit claim deed for the benefit of Clermont Academy.

In sum, the Wilson papers are primarily a collection of family papers. While some members of the family participated in significant activities, and while the letters relating to those activities are important, there is a strongly personal aspect about them, and whatever broader historical significance that can be gotten from them must be gotten in the mass.

The Women, Gender, and Family collection contains miscellaneous individual items relating to women, gender, and family primarily in America, between 1678 and 1996.

The Women, Gender, and Family collection contains miscellaneous items relating to women, gender, and family between 1678 and 1996. The bulk of the collection ranges in from 1800 to the early 20th century and is geographically focused on the United States of America. Topics include marriage and divorce, childrearing and motherhood, household management, and consensual and coerced sex. Other areas of interest cover women’s various forms of labor, legal restitution for paternity suits and financial support, and education for women and children. While not as heavily represented, multiple items detail women's engagement in politics, slavery and abolition, and women's rights.

The Woods family papers chronicle the establishment of an important family in western Virginia during the 18th and early 19th centuries. While the bulk of the collection pertains to Archibald Woods' (1764-1846) activities as a surveyor and land speculator in Ohio County, the collection also contains several letters from later generations of the family, and documents relating to military and public affairs, including the War of 1812.

The Woods family papers chronicle the establishment of an important family in western Virginia during the 18th and early 19th centuries. While the bulk of the collection pertains to Archibald Woods' (1764-1846) activities as a surveyor and land speculator in Ohio County, the collection also contains several letters from later generations of the family, and documents relating to military and public affairs. A series of land surveys of the Ohio Valley, prepared by Archibald Woods, has been arranged and placed at the end of the collection, and two land documents relating to Woods property are also present in Oversize Manuscripts, a 1774 deed signed by Dunmore granting lands in Botetourt County and an 1820 grant signed by James Monroe for lands in Ohio.

The collection includes a petition relating to the Alien and Sedition Act of 1798. Addressed to the Senate and House of Representatives of Virginia from the citizens of Ohio County, the petition includes thirty nine signatures protesting the Acts. The signers expressed their concern regarding what they saw as a violation of the Constitution, and asserted that the acts were a "serious cause of alarm" for the citizens of Ohio County, whom, they noted, continued to adhere to the Democratic principles of the American Revolution.

During the time that Andrew Woods served as sheriff of Botetourt County, 1777-1780, he kept a small, deerskin-bound notebook of his activities including receipts and notes on the collection of taxes and fees. There are also sporadic family business records. Included are an agreement for disposition of property including land, livestock, and enslaved persons (named Herod [Bin?], Sip, Ceasar, and Nanas). A copy of a contract between siblings Andrew, Martha, and Archibald (likely Andrew Woods' children) for the care of Martha Poage Woods and arrangements for the purchase of an enslaved person for Elijah Woods is also present. The contract provided for clothing, food, and shelter and, if Martha chose "to go back over the mountains," to provide an enslaved person to care for her.

Over fifty surveys and treasury warrants document Archibald Woods' importance as a surveyor and land speculator in the Ohio River Valley. Many of these can be positively traced to land that today lies in the state of West Virginia, mostly in the panhandle, but, Woods owned property throughout Ohio County, which then included parts of Ohio and a corner of Pennsylvania. A contemporary range and township map assists in situating Woods' land holdings.

Seven printed orders, each unique, or nearly unique, include information about troop recruitment and deployment during the War of 1812, and about demobilization at the end of the war. Among other documents in the collection are Archibald Woods' commissions and resignations.

There is little true correspondence in the Woods family papers, although one item, a letter from Joe Woods, is of some interest. In this letter written to his mother, Woods summarizes his reasons for transferring to Princeton, assuring her of his sound character and his decision. William Woods' ledger and daybook from 1828 and Hamilton Woods' cypher book from ca. 1820s are also present in the collection. The collection contains a photograph album with cartes-de-visite, cabinet cards, and other photos from around the 1870s and 1880s, as well as approximately 0.5 linear feet of photographs of Woods family members, particularly Ruth Woods and Charles Moss from the early 20th century, and the Woods family homestead.

Finally, the collection contains useful information about the Woods family estate, Woodsdale. Three documents from 1815-1816 provide floor plans and a record of construction costs, and there are two copy photographs of the house as it stood before its demolition in 1949. In 1976-77, Ruth Moss described the physical layout of the home and grounds as she recalled them, as well as her memories of life at Woodsdale in the early part of the century. An additional 0.25 linear feet of Ruth Moss's genealogical research on the Woods family is also present.