Search

Back to top
Number of results to display per page
View results as:

Search Results

Collection

Binney family papers, 1809-1894

57 items

The Binney family papers, compiled by Boston real estate agent Amos Binney in the late 1800s, contain correspondence, documents, newspapers, and photographs related to his ancestors John Binney, Amos Binney, and Horace Binney, Jr. John and Amos Binney served in the War of 1812, and Horace was a lawyer in Philadelphia. The collection also includes a published copy of Genealogy of the Binney Family in the United States, with manuscript annotations and enclosures.

Amos Binney, a Boston real estate agent, compiled the Binney papers (57 items) in the late 1800s. They include correspondence, documents, newspapers, and photographs related to his ancestors John Binney, Amos Binney, and Horace Binney, Jr.

The Correspondence and Documents series, originally housed in a red leather file folder, consists of several thematically distinct groups of material. The first is a series of six letters that Captain John Binney wrote to his brother Amos between 1809 and 1811, about his military service near Wiscasset, Maine. He defended his honor against recent defamations, discussed supplies for the forts under his command, and commented on the international tension immediately preceding the War of 1812. This group also includes an indenture for land Binney purchased in Plymouth County, Massachusetts (October 18, 1813).

The next group of items is a pair of legal documents concerning Horace Binney, Jr., and a transaction involving land in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The documents list payments made between 1844 and 1852. The third group is a set of three letters between the younger Amos Binney and the United States auditor of the treasury concerning the Binney family genealogy. Binney requested information about Amos and John, his ancestors (particularly their military service), and received responses from Samuel Blackwell (August 18, 1894) and F. M. Ramsay (September 5, 1894). The series also holds an undated letter written by John A. Binney and a map showing property bordered by North, East, Bridge, and Short Streets in an unknown town.

The Newspapers series consists of the following items, each related to the elder Amos Binney:
  • Nonconsecutive issues of the Boston Castigator, bound together (August 7, 1822-October 2, 1822)
  • The Independent Bostonian (October 5, 1822)
  • American Statesman and Evening Advertiser, with several additional clippings pertaining to Amos Binney's service as navy agent in Boston (November 18, 1822)
  • Bostonian & Mechanics' Journal (November 23, 1822)
  • Boston Patriot & Daily Mercantile Advertiser (November 25, 1824)

The third series is a printed, annotated copy of Genealogy of the Binney Family in the United States , which includes enclosures compiled by the younger Amos Binney in the 1890s. Several entries, such as those on Amos and John Binney, have margin notes. The annotations and loose items provide additional information on the family's history, and include family trees, letters between the younger Amos Binney and his uncle, and photographs of Binney family residences and graves.

Collection

Clarke family papers, 1823-1929 (majority within 1851-1912)

3 linear feet

This collection is made up of correspondence, diaries, writings, documents, and other items related to the Clarke family of Gilmanton and Manchester, New Hampshire. The materials concern the Civil War, life in 19th-century New Hampshire, education, and other subjects.

This collection contains correspondence, diaries, writings, documents, and other items related to the Clarke family of Gilmanton and Manchester, New Hampshire.

The Correspondence series (approximately 920 items) comprises the bulk of the collection. Most of the correspondence written between the 1850s and the early 1870s is made up of letters between and addressed to William Cogswell Clarke, Anna Maria Greely Clarke, and their three eldest children: Stephen Greely Clarke and his wife, Lydia Mason Wight Clarke; Anna Norton Clarke and her husband, Robert M. Appleton; and Julia Cogswell Clarke. A few letters by Mary Ann Wight are also present. Letter enclosures include a lock of hair, plants, cartes-de-visite, and newspaper clippings.

The Clarke family's personal correspondence focuses primarily on life in and news of Gilmanton and Manchester, New Hampshire throughout the 19th century. Writers discussed religious beliefs and activities; romantic relationships, courtship, and marriage; births and deaths; social activities; teaching and education; politics; and other subjects. During the Civil War, some writers shared news of battles, regiments, casualties, and the general progress of the war.

After 1871, many items are incoming and outgoing letters between and addressed to Julia C. Clarke, her sister Anna, and their mother. Some of Julia's letters pertain to her life in Framingham, Massachusetts, while Anna Clarke Appleton and Anna Greely Clarke provided news from Lake Village, New Hampshire, and Manchester, New Hampshire. During the 1880s, Julia wrote a series of letters to William H. Ladd, discussing newspaper advertising (particularly with regard to schools); her experiences in Lake Village, Kents Hill (Maine), and Boston, where she worked for the Chauncy Hall School; and advice for Ladd's upcoming visit to Europe. Groups of enclosed newspaper clippings contain advertisements for educational institutions. Other late personal letters to members of the Clarke family concern travel in Asia, estate administration, and finances.

Additional correspondence from the 1870s to the 1910s includes a large number of business letters, including many related to Stephen G. Clarke's legal career. Other groups of correspondence include letters to Edward Reilly of San Francisco, California, about mining concerns in Arizona and New Mexico; to Lafayette H. De Friese of New York City about the timber industry and shipments of logs; and to a man named "Bagley" of New York City. Other personal correspondence includes love letters from "Dolph" to "Sadie" and letters related to O. F. Bryant, who taught at or attended Chauncy Hall School. New York City lawyer Ernest G. Stevens received several business letters in the early 1910s.

The Diaries and Journals series consists of 5 items. Anna Maria Greely (later Clarke) kept 2 diaries from October 12, 1828-June 19, 1829, and June 26, [1872]-September 21, 1872. Her entries, which were written mostly on loose scraps of paper, concern daily life, social calls, and activities with family members and acquaintances. The later diary contains frequent mentions of Clarke's children. The remaining items concern an unidentified author's Bible readings and Christian beliefs (September 12, 1858-April 24, 1859); "Mrs. Robinson's" desire to write a journal for the benefit of her 7-year-old daughter Kitty, who required instruction in housekeeping (July 1, 1868); and Emma F. Moore's "Two Days on the Concord River," describing her travels with a companion (undated).

The Writings series is comprised of essays (15 items), published articles (2 items), letters to the editor (6 items), drafts (2 items), rejected submissions (9 items), "A Reading of the Will: A Farce" (1 item), "Seminal Weakness" (1 item), poems (30 items), and a speech. The essays, by Stephen G. Clarke, Lydia M. Wight, and Anna Greely Clarke, concern topics such as politics and history, morality and religion, English and Latin grammar, teaching and education, and horse breeding. The rejected submissions are primarily poetry, including one about African Americans. "The Reading of the Will" is a farce and "Seminal Weakness" is a lengthy essay on the male reproductive system. Many of the poems concern religion and nature. The 54-page speech is a presidential address delivered by Dr. Nahum Wight before the New Hampshire Medical Society. He discussed the society's history and goals, medical history and education, and his own medical career.

The School Papers series contains Latin Exercises (5 items), Academic Notes (19 items), Debates (2 items), and items related to the Chauncey Hall School (21 items). The academic notes and debates largely pertain to Stephen G. Clarke's studies, including items regarding animal classification and birds. One lengthy debate considered whether men were influenced more by women or money. The Chauncy Hall School subseries consists of newspaper advertisements, several copies of a printed advertisement, and correspondence from recipients of a circular and from managers at the Pittsburgh Chronicle Telegraph and the Chicago Tribune. One item is an invitation to the school's "Promotion Day," held on June 12, 1894.

The Documents series is divided into two subseries. Financial Documents (10 items), most of which concern Stephen G. Clarke, include accounts, receipts, a promissory note, and bank checks. One document between Willard B. Farwell and the American Machine Gun Company concerns the ownership of Farwell's inventions and patents. Printed Documents (11 items) include certificates regarding Stephen G. Clarke's attendance at Harvard University (July 16, 1855) and Josephine Evarts's license to practice medicine in Connecticut (April 1, 1929), documents regarding the activities of the American Folklore Society and the Wednesday Club (1892 and undated), and descriptions of an invention, the Hussey Motor Battery, by Willard B. Farwell (undated). A price list for advertisements in the Chicago Tribune and a sign regarding the treatment of animals in a scientific laboratory are also present.

Newspaper Clippings (12 items) include obituaries for William C. Clarke, articles about the Clarke family, advice for young writers, advertisements, and poetry.

The Photographs series (2 items) contains a portrait of an unidentified man, likely taken around the 1860s or 1870s, and a picture of a home and its large front garden. Both prints are mounted on large cards.

The Genealogy series consists of family trees written into a bound volume of blank genealogical tables that belonged to Julia C. Clarke. The tables concern ancestors of Julia C. Clarke and their families; some lineages are traced back as far as the 1600s. Many of the pages have cut-out sections to coordinate records across different trees and pages.

Collection

Cushing family collection, 1790-1934 (majority within 1828-1928)

1 linear foot

The Cushing family collection is made up of correspondence, financial records, and other items pertaining to the family and descendants of Boston merchant Hayward P. Cushing.

The Cushing Family collection is made up of correspondence, financial records, and other items pertaining to the family and descendants of Boston merchant Hayward P. Cushing, including his son, Hayward W. Cushing.

The Correspondence series (124 items) is primarily made up of incoming letters to Hayward P. Cushing, Maria Peirce Cushing, and Hayward W. Cushing. The first item is a letter to Betsy Barber in Epping, New Hampshire (May 9, 1790).

Hayward P. Cushing received personal and professional letters from family members and business acquaintances from 1828-1870. His brother Nathaniel wrote of his life in Brooklyn and Grand Island, New York, in the 1830s and 1840s; one letter concerns his journey to Grand Island on the Erie Canal (August 9, 1835). Jane Cushing, Hayward and Nathaniel's sister, discussed her life in Scituate, Massachusetts, in the mid-19th century. Sophia Cushing, Hayward's cousin and his most frequent correspondent, reported on her financial difficulties, thanked him for his assistance, and shared news from Uxbridge, Massachusetts. Hayward P. Cushing received letters from his wife Maria while she vacationed in Maine, and from his daughter Florence. His business correspondence includes a letter about the sale of the brig Ann Tyler (January 23, 1858).

Maria Peirce Cushing's earliest incoming letters are courtship letters from Hayward P. Cushing, her future husband. After the mid-1850s, he wrote to her from Boston, Massachusetts, while she vacationed in Scituate, Massachusetts, and Frankfort, Maine. He provided news about his life and their children. Maria's sister Caroline discussed her life in Bridgeport, Maine, and a cousin named Abby described her life in Boston. In the mid-1870s, the Cushings' daughters Florence and Jenny wrote to their mother about their courses, textbooks, and experiences at Vassar College.

The final group of dated correspondence consists of incoming letters to Hayward Warren Cushing, including news from Massachusetts medical organizations operating in the 1880s and a series of 10 letters by his wife Martha, who described her trip to Europe in 1928. She discussed her transatlantic voyage and Mediterranean cruise on the Canadian Pacific ship SS Empress of Scotland, as well as her experiences in countries including Portugal, Spain, Cyprus, Turkey, Italy, Israel, Egypt, Monaco, France, and England. She enclosed a postcard from Naples, Italy, in one of her letters.

Undated correspondence includes additional letters to members of the Cushing family, as well as picture postcards showing French surgeons, statues, and buildings.

The Journals and Notebooks series consists of 2 items. Florence M. Cushing kept a diary while visiting London from January 2, 1880-January 18, 1880. Her sightseeing excursions included trips to the British Museum, National Gallery, Windsor Castle, and Westminster Abbey. The notebook contains recipes, instructions, and scientific notes compiled by Hayward W. Cushing. Entries about building animal traps and tying knots are accompanied by explanatory illustrations. Other topics include medicinal formulas and chemistry, instructions for making types of ink (including invisible inks), and lists of items used on camping trips.

The Financial papers series is comprised of account books, receipts, and other records related to members of the Cushing and Peirce families.

The Account Books consist of 5 items:
  • An appraisal of Hayward Peirce's estate in Scituate, Massachusetts, recorded in March 1827, with two sections listing the value of his personal property and transactions involving his land.
  • H. M. Peirce's record of purchases, primarily of school supplies, from May 1834-April 1835. A printed notice about the estate of Silas Peirce is laid into the volume (May 21, 1920).
  • Nathaniel Cushing's account book, pertaining to transactions with Nathan Cushing, from whom he primarily purchased groceries between October 1853 and August 1861.
  • Hayward P. Cushing's account book concerns shares that he and Jane Cushing owned in railroad companies and banks (July 1849-July 1855). Additional financial notes relate to the settlement of related financial accounts.
  • Account book recording Maria P. Cushing's investments and dividends (October 1870-January 1894); she received income from the estate of Silas Peirce, Sr., among other sources.

The Receipts, Checks, and Accounts (over 300 items) are arranged by person and company; each group of items is arranged chronologically. Nathaniel Cushing materials pertain to board, taxation, food, and other miscellaneous expenses. The Cushing, Hall, and Peirce documents concern financial affairs, including stock and bond investments. The group of items related to Hayward W. Cushing includes a large number of personal checks from many different banks, as well as additional accounts and documents. Among the financial papers related to Hayward P. Cushing is a receipt for Jane Cushing's board at the McLean Asylum for the Insane (December 31, 1869). The series contains additional accounts and financial records.

The Documents series (20 items) is made up of legal and financial contracts related to business partnerships, estates, and land ownership. The final item is an "Apple Pest Survey in Worcester County" for 1929-1931 (April 15, 1932).

The Drawings (3 items) are architectural drawings of methods for dropping masts (February 25, 1888), several floor plans (1919-1931), and an overhead view of an orchard (undated).

The Printed Items and Ephemera series includes 3 newspapers (1800-1864), 2 annual reports of the Boston Lyceum (1838 and 1840); a lecture by Benjamin Scott about the Pilgrims (1866); a reprinted love letter from John Kelly to an unidentified recipient (original 1817; printed in 1892); a group of check tickets from the Pullman Company; a printed calendar for 1870; a facsimile of The New-England Courant from February 1723; calling cards and invitations; and an embroidered piece of cloth.

The Genealogy series (14 items) consists of pamphlets, bulletins, newspaper clippings, and other items related to various members of the Cushing family from the 19th century into the early 20th century.

Collection

Folts family papers, 1806-1881 (majority within 1831-1866)

0.25 linear feet

This collection is made up of correspondence and documents related to the McFarlan and Folts families of upstate New York. Materials pertain to the legal affairs of Scottish immigrant Thomas McFarlan and to the Folts family's business interests.

This collection (73 items) is made up of correspondence (66 items) and documents (7 items) related to the McFarlan and Folts families of upstate New York. Materials pertain to the legal affairs of Scottish immigrant Thomas McFarlan and to the Folts family's business interests. The 6 items concerning Thomas McFarlan include letters about family members in Scotland and documents about McFarlan's legal affairs. The remaining materials largely consist of incoming letters to Jacob J. Folts of Albany, New York, often regarding business affairs and finances. His brother George sometimes mentioned political issues, and his brother Daniel discussed his education, medical advice, and family news. Additional correspondence includes letters between other members of the Folts and McFarlan families, and bills of sale, receipts, and other financial records related to Jacob C. and Warner Folts.

Collection

Frederick Knapp family letters, 1824-1850 (majority within 1838-1848)

0.25 linear feet

This collection contains correspondence addressed to members of the Knapp family of Walpole, New Hampshire, between 1824 and 1850. Frederick Newman Knapp received the majority of the letters from acquaintances in Walpole, Boston, and other places in New England, while attending Harvard College and Harvard Divinity School between 1838 and 1847. His parents, Jacob and Louisa Knapp, also received personal letters from family and friends.

This collection contains 78 letters addressed to members of the Knapp family of Walpole, New Hampshire, between 1824 and 1850. Frederick Newman Knapp received approximately 50 of the letters from acquaintances in Walpole, Boston, and other places in New England while attending Harvard College and Harvard Divinity School between 1838 and 1847. His parents, Jacob and Louisa Knapp, received personal correspondence from family and friends.

The bulk of the collection is made up of Frederick Knapp's incoming correspondence between 1838 and 1847. He received letters from friends at Walpole, New Hampshire; Harvard College; Newburyport, Massachusetts; and other New England towns. Fellow Harvard students provided Knapp with updates from Boston and Cambridge during his visits to New Hampshire. His Walpole friends occasionally reported news about their social lives and mutual friends. Some students commented on their educational experiences at Harvard, and one described a visit by Charles Dickens (February 13, 1842). Some letters are addressed to both Frederick and his brother Francis, who also corresponded individually with Frederick.

Frederick's parents Louisa and Jacob Knapp received around 25 letters from relatives and acquaintances between 1824 and 1850. The letters primarily concern the writers' personal lives in New York and around New England, and provide news from Walpole during the Knapps' time away from home. Frederick Knapp wrote 2 letters to his parents in 1848 and 1850. Louisa and Jacob's nephew Henry wrote one letter about the cotton industry around Mobile, Alabama (February 14, 1838). Later letters addressed to Jacob Knapp include one from Thomas Hill, who discussed the invention of the telegraph and the inventions of Samuel Colt (November 9, 1846).

Collection

Friendship and Autograph Album collection, 1826-1944 (majority within 1826-1908)

48 volumes

The Clements Library's collection of individual friendship and autograph albums (the ones that are not part of larger bodies of family papers) dates primarily from the second half of the 19th century. The creators of these albums sought out friends, family, schoolmates, public persons, and others to write signatures, sentiments, poetry, extracts from books and serials, personal sentiments, and more. Contributions often emphasize ties of friendship, exhortations to seek love, happiness, or Christian religious salvation. Most of the volumes in this collection were compiled in the Northeast United States and areas in the Midwest, with urban and rural areas represented. The greater number of the albums were kept by young women and the bulk of the signers were also female. Contributors occasionally illustrated pages with calligraphic designs, trompe l'oeil visiting cards, animals, flowers, and themes that had particular significance to their relationship with the keeper of the album. The volumes in this collection are largely decorative blank books adorned with tooled covers, sometimes containing interspersed engravings of religious, literary, historical, and landscape themes. Some include pasted-in photographs, die-cuts, or stickers.

The Clements Library's collection of individual friendship and autograph albums (the ones that are not part of larger bodies of family papers) dates primarily from the second half of the 19th century. The creators of these albums sought out friends, family, schoolmates, public persons, and others to write signatures, sentiments, poetry, extracts from books and serials, personal sentiments, and more. Contributions often emphasize ties of friendship, exhortations to seek love, happiness, or Christian religious salvation. Most of the volumes in this collection were compiled in the Northeast United States and areas in the Midwest, with urban and rural areas represented. The greater number of the albums were kept by young women and the bulk of the signers were also female. At least one volume was kept by an African American man, Lewis G. Mosebay. Contributors occasionally illustrated pages with calligraphic designs, trompe l'oeil visiting cards, animals, flowers, and themes that had particular significance to their relationship with the keeper of the album. The volumes in this collection are largely decorative blank books adorned with tooled covers, sometimes containing interspersed engravings of religious, literary, historical, and landscape themes. Some include pasted-in photographs, die-cuts, or stickers.

Collection

George Wray papers, 1770-1848

16 volumes (4 linear feet)

The George Wray papers contain orders, receipts, correspondence, documents, muster rolls, returns, and several bound volumes relating to Wray's work as commissary of the Royal Regiment of Artillery, primarily during the Revolutionary War.

The George Wray papers contain 11 volumes of correspondence and documents, 3 journals of stores, a volume of muster rolls, an orderly book, a volume of land titles, a trigonometry notebook, two maps, and a blank book. The materials span 1765 to 1848, with the bulk concentrated around 1770-1782.

The Correspondence and Documents series contains 11 volumes of military documents and business correspondence related to Wray's positions with the British Army, first as the Royal Regiment of Artillery's clerk of stores, and later its commissary of stores. The series spans 1765 to 1794 (bulk 1770 to 1783) and contains approximately three linear feet of material. The letters and documents provide ample information about the Royal Artillery during the Revolutionary War, as well as the stores disbursed by the commissary. The materials consist of about 500 orders to issue ordnance signed by Major Peter Traille, who was commander of the Royal Regiment of Artillery in North America; an approximately equal number of receipts for the supplies issued and goods delivered into the regimental storehouse; dozens of letters concerning supplies written between Wray, merchants, and Army officers; approximately 50 muster rolls of companies within the Royal Artillery; and returns of artificers, laborers, and African Americans employed by the regiment, as well as many returns documenting the issuance of weapons, tools, and other items.

The first two volumes in the collection concern Wray's activities as clerk of stores for the Royal Artillery, a position which he held until December 1775; more generally, they pertain to the business of the regiment. Included are muster rolls for various companies of the Royal Regiment of Artillery commanded by David Standish, John Williamson, Anthony Farrington, William Martin, William Johnston, Thomas Davies, and George Anderson. These provide the names of each company's members, as well as their designations as commissioned and non-commissioned officers, bombardiers, gunners, and matrosses. Also present are numerous receipts for items purchased from merchants by the regiment, including cloth (which was often purchased from women--see March 3, 1775 for an example), wood, stones, wheels, shingles, and other items. Many documents also record the ordnance bought for the regiment, such as gunpowder, great guns, small arms, musket balls, and chests for storage (filed under March 31, 1775).

After Wray's promotion to commissary of stores in December of 1775, the documents become more diverse and include a wide variety of returns and other document types. They take account of such matters as the ordnance and stores destroyed and left at Boston (March 12, 1776); the movement of supplies from Boston to Newport, Rhode Island, in 1777; and deliveries made by ordnance transport ships. Major John Grant of the Royal Artillery wrote much of the early correspondence of the period. In one letter, he criticized Wray for drawing on the wrong accounts to cover subsistence pay to a detachment of the regiment (September 13, 1777). In another, he commented on the scarcity of cash in New York and instructed Wray on what to pay for rebel arms brought in by American deserters (February 14, 1779). Wray's incoming correspondence sheds light on the problems and challenges faced by the regiment's commissary, as well as the specifics of the commissary's functioning. Volumes 4 through 9 of the series primarily cover Wray's administration of the commissary while stationed in Charleston, South Carolina, from December 1779 to December 1782. Included are near-daily orders for the issuance of ordnance and stores by Peter Traille, which provide a huge volume of detail on the supplies required by the artillery, as well as records of the items brought into the commissary, including brass ordnance and carriages captured at the Battle of Eutaw Springs (September 18, 1781) and at the Battle of Combahee Ferry (September 10, 1782). Also of interest are numerous inventories of "spare" supplies held by the commissary, a few additional muster rolls for Royal Artillery companies, and other documents relating to the administration of the department.

The Military Journals, Notebooks, and Other Bound Items series contains nine items within five volumes, spanning 1778-1848. Of particular note is a 52-page volume of muster rolls of the civil branch of the artillery in Charleston, which covers 1781 to 1783 (located in Volume 14). In addition to providing names, pay, and remarks on the various white laborers and tradesmen brought in to support the artillery, it also gives basic information on both enslaved and free African Americans, whom it refers to as "Negro servants." The volume classifies them by trade (including carpenters, smiths, "wheelers," sawyers, and general laborers), provides their names and the identities of their masters when applicable, and gives places of residence. Also present is a list of African Americans who acted as servants to particular officers in the Royal Regiment of Artillery.

Another item of interest is an orderly book kept by Wray while in Charleston, South Carolina, 1780-1781 (Volume 13). The book contains orders by Major General Alexander Leslie, Major Peter Traille, and Wray himself, given at the general, regimental, and company level. Wray's orders primarily concern the distribution and transportation of ordnance and supplies, as well as associated logistical issues. Other orders document courts martial, discipline among the enlisted men, personnel matters, and the duties of men in the company. An order of June 9, 1780, offers a reward for information about soldiers who have committed "depredations" against "the unprotected property of the Subjects." An August 23, 1780, order discusses a "parade" of "all the Negroes for Muster." Many later orders in the book specify a training regimen for new recruits.

Other items in the series mainly record stores issued and received by Wray at Charleston. These include an expense book for stores issued at Charleston in 1781 and 1782, a journal of stores received at Charleston in 1780-1782, and two journals of stores issued by Wray in 1778-1779 and1782-1783, with associated receipts and accounts laid into the volume. The latest item in the collection is an 1848 volume of land titles for property in New York, kept by a descendant, John Wray. The volume features surveys of the Wray property, as well as a map entitled, "Survey And Partition of the South Half of Lot No. 93 In the Artillery Patent In the Town of Fort Ann In Washington County And State of New York." A 1784 notebook on trigonometry rounds out this series.

The Map series contains a single map, drawn by Mathew Carey in 1794, and entitled A General Atlas for the Present War: Containing Six Maps And One Chart ... Including Every Place In Europe And the West-Indies, In Which the War Has Been Carried On. This atlas is housed in the Map Division.

Collection

Henry A. S. Dearborn collection, 1801-1850 (majority within 1814-1850)

176 items

The Henry A. S. Dearborn collection (176 items) contains the correspondence of the Massachusetts politician and author Henry Alexander Scammell Dearborn, son of the Revolutionary War General, Henry Dearborn. The papers largely document his career as the collector of the Boston Customs House and include letters from prominent government officials in Boston, New York, and Washington, D.C. The papers also include 16 speeches, orations, and documents pertinent to Dearborn's horticultural interests, Grecian architecture, politics, and other subjects.

The Henry A. S. Dearborn collection contains correspondence (160 items) and speeches, reports, and documents (16 items) of the Massachusetts politician, and author, Henry Alexander Scammell Dearborn. The bulk of the Correspondence Series documents Dearborn's career as the collector at the Boston Customs House. Dearborn corresponded with government officials in Boston, New York, and Washington D.C. These letters largely concern his management of the customs department and political matters. Of particular interest are 22 letters from the French émigré, Louis Dampus, which constitute a case history of customs problems (May to November 1814). Most of these are in French. Also of interest are 11 letters between Dearborn and Thomas Aspinwall, United States consul to London. They discussed exchanging political favors, purchasing books in London, and, in the July 11, 1817 letter, President James Monroe's tour of New England and the North West Territory.

Other notable letters to Dearborn include those written by the following people:
  • James Leander Cathcart, United States diplomat, on the state of commerce on the Black Sea and his career as a diplomat with the Ottomans (June 8 and 12, 1818).
  • Fiction writer and scholar William S. Cardell, regarding his election as member of American Academy of Language and Belles Lettres (October 30, 1821).
  • Colonel Nathan Towson, paymaster general of the United States, on John C. Calhoun's political fortunes as a presidential candidate and the political ramifications of raising taxes (December 22, 1821).
  • Harvard University Overseer and Massachusetts Senator, Harrison Gray Otis, on "St. Domingo's" (Hispaniola) terrain, agriculture, export potential, its white and black populations, and its importance, as a trade partner, to the French. Otis supported bolstering the United States' trade relationship with the island (January 17, 1823).
  • Nathaniel Austin, regarding an enclosed sketch of "Mr. Sullivan's land," located near Charlestown, Massachusetts (April 13, 1825).
  • Federalist pamphlet writer, John Lowell, about his illness that him unable to contribute to [Massachusetts Agricultural Society] meetings (June 5, 1825).
  • Massachusetts Senator, James Lloyd, concerning funding the building of light houses in the harbor at Ipswich, Massachusetts (April 11, 1826).
  • H. A. S. Dearborn to state senator and later Massachusetts governor, Emory Washburn, regarding the American aristocracy. He accused the Jackson administration of putting "the Union in jeopardy,” and dishonoring the Republic with an “unprincipled, ignorant and imbecile administration" (May 22, 1831). Dearborn also summarized many of his ideas on the political and social state of the Union.
  • Abraham Eustis, commander of the school for Artillery Practice at Fort Monroe, commenting that the "dissolution of the Union is almost inevitable. Unless you in Congress adopt some very decided measures to counteract the federal doctrines of the Proclamation, Virginia will array herself by the side of South Carolina, & then the other southern States join at once" (December 27, 1832).
  • The botanist John Lewis Russell, about a charity request for support of the Norfolk Agricultural Society (February 6, 1850).

The collection contains several personal letters from family members, including three from Dearborn's mother, Sarah Bowdoin Dearborn, while she was in Lisbon, Portugal (January 29 and 30, 1823, and January 27, 1824); two letters from his father, General Henry Dearborn (May 25, 1814, and undated); and one from his nephew William F. Hobart (November 8, 1822).

The collection's Speeches, Reports, and Documents Series includes 15 of Henry A. S. Dearborn's orations, city or society reports, and a copy of the Revolutionary War roll of Col. John Glover's 21st Regiment. Most of them were not published in Dearborn's lifetime. The topics of these works include the art of printing (1803), Independence Day (4th of July, 1808 and 1831), discussion about the establishment of Mount Auburn Cemetery (1830), education, religion, horticulture, Whig politics, and the state of the country. See the box and folder listing below for more details about each item in this series.

Collection

Jacob and Edward Taylor papers, 1759-1828 (majority within 1759-1798)

32 items

This collection contains 32 documents regarding the nautical careers of merchant ship captains Jacob and Edward Taylor of Plymouth, Massachusetts. Sailing orders, bills of lading, wage agreements, and other financial and legal records relate to their voyages to Gibraltar, the Caribbean, and Virginia in the late 18th century.

This collection contains 32 documents regarding the nautical careers of merchant ship captains Jacob and Edward Taylor of Plymouth, Massachusetts. Sailing orders, bills of lading, wage agreements, and other financial and legal records relate to their voyages to Gibraltar, the Caribbean, and Virginia, in the late 18th century. Included are 12 items associated with Jacob Taylor (1759-1786), 17 items about Edward Taylor (1794-1798), and 3 additional documents (1828 and undated).

Personal receipts, accounts, and bills of lading (dated in the mid- to late 18th century) relate to Jacob Taylor's career as captain of several merchant schooners and sloops. Taylor frequently traveled to the Caribbean on ships laden with goods such as sugar, beef, and other foodstuffs. Two documents, a bill of lading and a record for the court of the Vice Admiralty at Halifax, concern the Little Betsey's intended voyage from Boston to Gibraltar in early 1759. The court record attests that the ship became leaky soon after leaving shore, and that an inquest formally acknowledged that the ship was not fit to sail. The document also lists the cargo onboard the ship. Other items include partially printed documents concerning pay for Taylor and other crewmembers on the Plymouth and Polly.

The second group of documents concerns Edward Taylor's career in the 1790s. These records primarily relate to his activities as captain of the Swallow, which traveled to Martinique, Guadalupe, and other Caribbean ports at the behest of Boston merchants William Jackson, Thomas Jackson, Jr., and Barnabas Hedge, Jr. Four sets of orders from the merchants direct Taylor to take command of the Swallow and Caroline, and list the goods he should procure while abroad, such as molasses. These instructions and a signed affidavit from Guadalupe also concern a French embargo against English goods and encourage Taylor to behave in a civil manner toward "belligerent" ships. Payment agreements are also included, as are a small, partially filled account book and an invoice for cod shipped on the Swallow.

The remaining items are a partially printed, signed insurance agreement for Philadelphia Merchant William Dowell (October 19, 1759); a partially printed document dated 1828, showing the value of cargo aboard the Mary and Hero; and an undated page of financial accounts.

Ships related to:
  • Joseph Taylor
    • Lemuel (Schooner)
    • Little Betsey (Sloop)
    • Mars (Ship)
    • Plymouth (Sloop)
    • Polly (Schooner)
    • Salley (Schooner)
    • Willingmind (Schooner)
  • Edward Taylor
    • Betsy (Schooner)
    • Caroline (Schooner)
    • Swallow (Schooner)
Collection

Joseph Story papers, 1794-1851

2 linear feet

The Joseph Story papers contain the incoming letters of Joseph Story, a Massachusetts state representative, United States Supreme Court justice, and Harvard Law School professor. The papers deal with a wide range of political and legal issues concerning Massachusetts and the United States in the first half of the 19th century.

The Joseph Story papers (685 items) consist of the incoming letters of Joseph Story, a Massachusetts state representative, United States Supreme Court justice, and Harvard Law School professor. The collection contains 672 letters, 7 financial bills, and five printed items. Included are nine letters written by Story, and four by wife Mary Story. The rest were all addressed to Joseph Story, with the exception of two that were addressed to his daughter Sarah Wetmore Story and 15 written to his son William Wetmore Story. Forty-three items are undated. The papers deal with a wide range of national and state political issues and legal matters.

The collection covers the years 1794-1806, 1819-1825, and 1839-1843, with only a few items representing the remaining years. Included are letters from United States representatives related to congressional news; letters from prominent lawyers, judges, and jurors concerning legal matters and cases; and letters concerning Harvard Law School.

In addition to the letters are three drafts of Story's Supreme Court decisions:
  • October 1833: Antoine F. Picquet v. Charles P. Curtis, administrator of James Swan
  • October 1843: Augustus H. Fiske v. Lyman Hunt
  • October 1843: Bankruptcy case against B____.

The 1794-1806 letters document Story's early days as a Massachusetts lawyer and the beginning of his career as a state representative. Of particular interest are 10 letters from Samuel Sewall, a Massachusetts representative and later Supreme Court chief justice, under whom Story studied law. These mainly deal with Sewall's law office in Salem, Massachusetts, but also contain advice to Story on his reading of the law. Also of note are 14 letters from Jacob Crowninshield, a congress member and later secretary of the navy, concerning legislation affecting Massachusetts, policies regarding the fishing industry, and the presidential election of 1804. Prominent Boston lawyer James Sullivan contributed five letters related to various legal matters of the day.

The 1819-1825 letters document Story's activities as overseer of Harvard University and Supreme Court justice, during which time he split his residency between Salem and Washington D.C. Of special interest are 18 letters from Massachusetts congress member John Davis, in which he discussed international maritime law. Other notable contributors include Simon Greenlead (12 items), who discussed court decisions in Maine; Isaac Parker (6 items), who wrote about legal cases in Boston; Bushrod Washington (4 items), who reported on his legal cases before the Philadelphia circuit court; and Henry Wheaton (10 items), who shared judicial matters about New York. Also of note are letters from 1825 that relate to the need for altering instructional methods at Harvard, and a controversial election of members to the Corporation of Harvard College.

The Story papers contain only 27 items that date from 1826 to 1838. Of these, six are from French jurist Jean-Jacques Gaspard Foelix containing requests for Story to contribute to his journal Revue du droit français et étranger.

The 1839-1842 letters document the end of Story's career as an active justice, scholar, and law professor. Story received letters from prominent lawyers and judges from Portland, Boston, Providence, New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore. Story also received requests for speeches and was given honors from scholarly institutions throughout New England.

Other prominent contributors include:
  • John C. Calhoun (1 item)
  • Henry A.S. Dearborn (9 items)
  • William Fettyplace (7 items)
  • Joseph Hopkinson (5 items)
  • Susan Ledyard (12 items)
  • Francis Lieber (10 items)
  • Jeremiah Mason (10 items)
  • Theron Metcalf (5 items)
  • Richard Peters (15 items)
  • John Pickering (8 items)
  • John Pitman (20 items)
  • William Prescott (5 items)
  • Jared Sparks (5 items)
  • Charles Sumner (8 items)
  • George Ticknor (10 items)
  • Bushrod Washington (4 items)
  • Daniel Webster (3 items)
  • Stephen White (16 items)
  • Nathaniel Williams (15 items)
Items of note include:
  • September 12, 1796: Leonard Woods to Story concerning religion and containing maxims on happiness
  • February 12, 1799: Samuel Sewall to Story concerning advice for reading law
  • January 15, 1800: Samuel Sewall to Story concerning the death of George Washington
  • April 3, 1800: Sewall to Story concerning advice for reading law
  • February 13, 1804: Jacob Crowninshield to Story concerning the Louisiana Purchase
  • February 26, 1804: Jacob Crowninshield to Story concerning the presidential and vice-presidential elections of 1804
  • March 23, 1804: Jacob Crowninshield to Story concerning the sinking of the Ship Philadelphia off the coast of Tripoli and the Barbary conflict
  • November 3, 1804: James Sullivan to Story concerning probate court decisions from 1776-1779
  • January 28, 1806: Jacob Crowninshield to Story concerning Napoleon's victories in Europe
  • April 13, 1819: Henry Wheaton to Story concerning an "Ann Act to protect Banks against embezzlement by their agents, Clerks, or servants, and for other purposes."
  • January 15, 1821: Elizabeth H. Walker to Story concerning arguments against slavery in congress
  • July 9, 1821: Henry Dearborn to Story concerning a military officer's trial before a Boston circuit court
  • August 25, 1821: Theodore Lyman to Story concerning the constitutionality of new laws concerning slaves and abolition in Massachusetts
  • December 10, 1821: Elijah Paine to Story concerning the selection of a president of Dartmouth College
  • June 1, 1822: Benjamin Livingston to Story concerning William Johnson's Sketches of the Life and Correspondence of Nathaniel Greene
  • June 11, 1822: Francis Scott Keys to Story, concerning Ralph Randolph Gurley and the American Colonization Society
  • August 15, 1822: Ralph Randolph Gurley to Story concerning American Colonization Society and the "African cause"
  • February 23, 1823: Sarah Dunlap to Story requesting help with her son will soon disgrace her family by marrying a divorced wife and profligate actress
  • August 22, 1823: William J. Spooner to Story concerning Phi Beta Kappa
  • December 7, 1823: John Mason to Story concerning the national debt and the Monroe Doctrine
  • June 5, 1825: Massachusetts Governor John Davis to Story concerning the Corporation of Harvard College
  • July 7 and October 24, 1825: Justice Smith Thompson to Story providing legal summaries of important cases appearing before Story
  • August 20, 1828: Joseph Hopkinson to Story regarding thoughts on the presidential election between Jackson and Adams and on becoming a federal judge
  • March 18, 1839: Charles Sumner to Story concerning Lord Brougham gifting Sumner his wig
  • August 26, 1839: Charles P. Curtis to Story, proposing the appointment of Edward G. Loring as a master in chancery of the United States Circuit Court.
  • January 7, 1842: H.G.V. Colby to William Wetmore Story concerning Colby's remarks in the case of Sampson vs. Stoddard
  • March 19 and May 13, 1842: Alexander Maxwell & Son of London to Story concerning a bill for books
  • June 7, 1842: Artist Augustin Edouard to Story concerning making a "silhouette likeness" of Story
  • December 31, 1845: Harriet Martineau to Sarah Wetmore Story, concerning Joseph Story's death