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The Billings family collection contains correspondence, invitations, ephemera, and other items related to Marcia Billings of Denver, Colorado; Owego, New York; and Brookville, Pennsylvania. Much of the material pertains to her social life in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The Billings family collection (2.5 linear feet) contains correspondence, invitations, ephemera, and other items related to Marcia Billings of Denver, Colorado; Owego, New York; and Brookville, Pennsylvania. Much of the material pertains to her social life in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The Correspondence series (551 items), which comprises the bulk of the collection, includes several Civil War-era letters to Mary Pearsall from her friend Emily Jewett, as well as other earlier items addressed to Marcia Billings. Most items concern the social lives of Billings's friends and family members in Denver, Colorado; Owego, New York; and Brookville, Pennsylvania, in the 1880s and 1890s. A series of 5 letters from September 1890 pertains to Colorado travel, including newspaper clippings with information for tourists. Two letters enclose photographs (January 19, 1909 and April 2, 1913) and one picture postcard shows a view of a town (August 14, 1911). Later items include letters by Marcia's husband, Benjamin Thomas, and letters to her mother, Gertrude Billings.

The Diaries series (4 items) is made up of a diary that Marcia Billings kept in 1870, the diary of an unidentified writer covering the year 1909, and 2 books containing records of correspondence and personal finances.

The School Papers series (17 items) consists of a Denver High School report card for Marcia Billings, 4 lists of examination questions from geography and grammar exams, 8 manuscript essays, and a card with the program from a "Friday Evening Club [Soiree]" held at Warren's Dancing Academy on November 30, 1882. The series also contains 3 sets of graded notes by Helen C. Jones, October 5-7, 1896, on arithmetic, history, and physiology.

The accounts and receipts in the Financial Records series (6 items) pertain to the personal finances of Marcia Billings and Benjamin Thomas.

The Photographs (6 items), taken in the early 20th century, show unidentified women. The series includes a group of photographs whose images are no longer discernible (counted as 1 item).

The Illustrations series (3 items) contains a colored drawing of a young girl sewing, a colored drawing of a woman holding flowers, and a sheet with sketches of farm animals and people.

Invitations, Responses to Invitations, Cards, and Ephemera (94 items), mainly addressed to Marcia Billings, concern events such as marriages, birthday celebrations, and casual outings. Ephemeral items include lists of dances from social events.

Printed Items (39 items) include over 30 newspaper clippings, most of which concern social events, elopements, and deaths; others contain poetry, cartoons, and news stories. Other printed items are advertisements, a poem entitled "The Mark of a Man-Child," and a poem entitled "The Type-Writer," which contains a printed illustration of a woman typing.

The Realia items are a ribbon, a sock, and an accompanying poem about a "Sock Social" held by the Ladies Aid Society.

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

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

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

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

The California, Colorado, and Long Island vacation photograph album consists of 65 snapshot photographs from 1904 to 1906.

The California, Colorado, and Long Island vacation photograph album consists of 65 snapshot photographs from 1904 to 1906. The album begins with scenes of Colorado. These images show views from a railway through the Rocky Mountains and a trip to Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs.

A majority of the photographs were taken in San Francisco, California. These photos date from May, 1906, just after the San Francisco earthquake and fire. Many of the images show refugee camps and temporary housing, displaced businesses, and damage on Van Ness Ave, which was used as a firebreak by the United States Army. The McKinley Parade, also known as Fiesta de Los Angeles is photographed as well. Other California scenes include Cliff House in San Francisco, an ostrich farm in Pasadena, vineyards, and orchards of olive trees, palm trees, and lemon trees.

The last portion of the album is of Long Island, New York State. These scenes include people on a boat in the water near Westhampton, people swimming in Jamaica Bay, and Apacuck Point.

The album is 18.5 x 14 cm with red cloth covers.

The Chicago to Colorado photograph album contains approximately 210 photographs taken by an unidentified photographer related to a tour from Chicago, Illinois, to Colorado and back again through Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

The Chicago to Colorado photograph album contains approximately 210 photographs taken by an unidentified photographer related to a tour from Chicago, Illinois, to Colorado and back again through Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The album (26 x 32 cm) has black paper covers and a manuscript note inside the front cover that reads: "Tour of 1903." Chicago-related photographs include a commercial street view, the Chicago River, and Lincoln Park. The following 191 photographs were taken in various locations around Colorado, including 20 images of commercial streets, residential streets, and parks in Denver and Colorado Springs; an early motorized sightseeing bus on a Colorado Springs street; and scenic views documenting visits to the Garden of the Gods, Pikes Peak, and the Gunnison River.

Several photographs show the main building and a small cabin at Sprague's Ranch in Moraine Park, Colorado. The travelers, a party of two men and a woman, are shown fishing, posing beside their platform tents, and sightseeing with larger groups. Also shown is the dramatic scenery of Ouray, Colorado, with views of the mountains, the box canyon, Silver Plume mines, and street scenes which include a stagecoach and loaded burros. Following several photographs of hotels in Glenwood Springs, Colorado, and a view of the Grand Canyon of the Arkansas, there are three images that show streets in Milwaukee, including the Schlitz Brewery, as well as two additional images of Chicago street scenes.

This collection contains letters that Joshua Cowell wrote to his wife Mary in Meridian, New York, while working in Colorado and Wyoming, as well as additional correspondence to Joshua and Mary Cowell.

This collection contains 6 letters related to Joshua and Mary Cowell of Meridian, New York. William Cowell, Joshua's brother, wrote a letter to the Cowell family with family news from his home in Denver, Colorado, on February 26, 1867. The next 4 letters, from Joshua to Mary Cowell, pertain to Joshua's work in Cheyenne, Wyoming, and Denver, Colorado, from September 6, [1867]-March 28, 1869. He discussed the rough nature of Cheyenne's residents, casualties after a recent gunfight, and differences between Cheyenne and Denver, particularly regarding the availability of lodgings and board. He also reported on a failed meeting between whites and Native Americans and described his life and finances in Denver. The final item is an undated letter to the Cowell family from Martha Wilson in Denver, Colorado, with news of local acquaintances and of the town's recent growth, exemplified by the founding of a newspaper and plans to construct a hotel.

The D. S. Dunlap photograph album contains prints of pictures taken in Colorado in 1896 and 1897. The photographs show scenes from a hunting and camping trip, performers during festivals and parades in Denver and Colorado Springs, and groups of young men and women.

The D. S. Dunlap photograph album (23cm x 34 cm) contains 278 photographs taken in Colorado in the late 1890s. Of the items, 271 are mounted directly on the album's pages, 7 are laid into the volume. One of the loose items is mounted on cardstock. Two of the photographs are cyanotypes and one is a photomechanical print. The unidentified photographer(s) took most of these pictures between August and October 1897, with additional items dated 1896 and as late as December 1897. The album, a Kodak product, has the title "Photographs" stamped in gold on its cover.

The first page of the volume has an undated newspaper clipping about a camping party's embarkation for the area around Hahn's Peak in northern Colorado. Three main groups of photographs are integrated throughout the volume. The largest number, dated August 1897-September 1897, show scenes from this trip, including pictures of party members making camp, posing with guns, fishing, and resting by horse-drawn vehicles. One member of the party is shown dressed as a Native American. Captions identify many locations, often along the Continental Divide, and some pictures show mountains, rock formations, and aerial views of towns. Buildings, trains, and horses appear in a few of these photographs, and at least one shows a mine entrance. A second group of pictures shows scenes from parades and festivals in Colorado Springs and Denver in August and October 1897, respectively. These photographs show floats, bands, and performers in costume. The remaining photographs are pictures of houses and pictures of unidentified young men and women, sometimes shown in groups. Two photographs show a woman with a bicycle and a woman in a short dress holding a ball.

This collection contains incoming correspondence addressed to Edward Miller between 1886 and 1899. Sadie Boyles, Edward's fiancée, wrote the bulk of the letters about her life in Colorado and about her feelings toward Edward.

This collection contains incoming correspondence (around 350 items) addressed to Edward Miller between 1886 and 1899. Sadie Boyles, Edward's fiancée, wrote the bulk of the letters about her life in Colorado and about her feelings toward Edward.

The Correspondence series comprises the bulk of the collection. In the mid-1890s, Edward Miller began corresponding with his fiancée, Sadie J. Boyles of Denver, Colorado. Sadie wrote frequently about her deep love and admiration for Edward, though the letters hint at Edward's affection for another woman and his attempts to pique her interest in his male acquaintances. Sadie's mother wrote one particularly scathing letter in which she scolded Edward for his advances toward both Sadie and Sadie's sister Hattie (December 7, 1896). Despite Edward's actions, Sadie affirmed the strength of her affections toward him and often discussed wedding plans. Her later letters reflect her arguments with Edward about family issues and about his continued postponement of a visit to Colorado.

Edward's other correspondents included family members, friends, and professional acquaintances, who discussed his sister Belle's ongoing illness, family and local news, and other topics. Reverend J. W. Harris attached a printed pamphlet advertising an upcoming lecture on "The Cuban Question" in his letter of May 2, 1898.

• Death certificate for Hugh Burton Miller (April 28, 1896)
• Receipt for funeral supplies for Hugh B. Miller (April 28, 1896)
• Pamphlet giving sermon topics for Boulevard United Presbyterian Church (May-July, [1896?])
• Pamphlet giving sermon topics for Boulevard United Presbyterian Church (August-November 1896)
• Invitation to commencement for Baltimore Medical College's class of 1898, with Elmer M. Miller name card (April 21, 1898)

The Price collection consists of 14 letters, written by Edwin Price to his brother James, many of them about life in Denver, Colorado.

The small collection consists of only 14 letters, written by Edwin Price to his brother James. One, written March 16, 1867 from Warehouse Point, Connecticut, indicates Edwin's restlessness and his desire to have his brother join him in business in Connecticut. There is a brief note to James at the end of this letter from their sister Emma, who was home on vacation from school. Edwin wrote the rest of the letters in 1870 from Denver, Colorado. He writes of his excitement about business and property prospects in Denver, the fast rate of population growth, prices, buildings, railroads, overland travel, land speculation, game, crops, and other topics. Enclosed in the letter dated Nov. 11, 1870 is a short newspaper extract describing the territory of Colorado, which Edwin asks James to post in his shop in Warehouse Point.

This collection contains letters that Erma L. (Dixon) Solovyev wrote to her mother, Edythe Dixon of Denver, Colorado, while living in the Soviet Union between 1935 and 1941. She focused on her everyday life, which included social activities and raising her two sons, "Binkie" and "Kevie."

This collection (0.75 linear feet) contains letters that Erma L. Solovyev (née Dixon) wrote to her mother, Edythe Dixon of Denver, Colorado, while living in Krasnouralsk, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Soviet Union, with her husband, Soviet national Basil Solovyev.

Her first letters, written in late 1934, describe the couple's journey by boat from Germany to the Soviet Union, including Dixon's detailed descriptions of her accommodations, meals, and activities on board, as well as some of her impressions of the surrounding area and people. Once settled in the Soviet Union, she wrote letters to her mother describing her everyday life and activities with her acquaintances, which included several other United States natives who married Soviet men. She also routinely provided updates on her sons, "Binkie" and "Kevie," and thanked her mother for frequent care packages. Though she focused on her personal life and experiences, the letters reveal some details about contemporary Soviet life, particularly from the point of view of an expatriate, and Dixon occasionally commented on the difficulties presented by the language barrier. She worried that her sons would not remember English after being raised in a Russian environment, and occasionally mentioned exchanging English language instruction for lessons in Russian. A few of the letters include drawings, such as a floor plan of their shipboard accommodations (October 22-23, 1934) and one of a dress (June 10, 1939).

In August 1939, she referred to a severe illness of her son Binkie, and in December alluded to the absence of her husband, who had been sent to a military training camp. Though Erma wrote most of her letters before 1941, the collection has additional correspondence related to her efforts to return to the United States during the war. On July 30, 1943, Hazel A. Firth of the Christian Science Board of Directors asked Edythe Dixon to share news about Erma's plight. On October 8, 1945, Erma discussed her continuing efforts to return home; a card postmarked in March 1946 implies that Erma returned to the country shortly thereafter. With the exception of Firth's letter and a letter by a man named John, who briefly described a trip to Tokyo, Japan, in December 1945 (December 7, 1945), Erma wrote all of the correspondence.

The collection also holds a brochure from the Amalgamated Trust & Savings Bank of Chicago, which advertised costs for a Soviet exit visa and for sending money or packages to the Soviet Union, and a blank order form from New York City's Hearn Department Stores, Inc.

The Johanna Gleeson collection is made up of 29 letters that Gleeson received from family members and friends after emigrating from County Cork, Ireland, to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, around 1877. Her most frequent correspondents were her friend Mary Anne Murphy, who reported social and political news from Kilnarovanagh, Ireland, and her cousin and future husband Michael Gleeson, who commented on his life and work in California and Colorado.

The Johanna Gleeson collection is made up of 29 letters that Gleeson received from family members and friends after emigrating from County Cork, Ireland, to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, around 1877. Her most frequent correspondents were her friend Mary Anne Murphy, who reported social and political news from Kilnarovanagh, Ireland, and her cousin and future husband Michael Gleeson, who commented on his life and work in California and Colorado.

Mary Anne Murphy wrote 12 letters about her life in Kilnarovanagh, where she often interacted with Johanna's aunt. She reported local news such as births, marriages, and deaths, and sometimes listed the names of others who were planning to emigrate to the United States. In her later letters, she occasionally discussed her desire to emigrate. Murphy also expressed concern for Johanna after hearing of a flood in Philadelphia, and complained of one particularly cold winter. Her letter of June 20, 1881, concerns political turmoil, the possibility of war, and conflicts between Irish landlords and tenants.

Michael Gleeson wrote 6 letters to Johanna Gleeson, commenting on his experiences in the western United States. While living in Davisville, California, he provided news of an acquaintance's efforts to find work in California and Arizona and mentioned his own travels. After moving to Denver in 1880, he described the effects of a railroad accident he suffered while working as a brakeman, which resulted in a below-ankle amputation of one of his legs. Gleeson received treatment and financial compensation for his injury and later discussed his work as a railroad clerk, which occasionally involved meeting with other immigrants.

The remaining 11 letters from family and friends concern the writers' lives in Ireland and the United States. Gleeson's sister Maggie and several female cousins wrote about their lives in North America, often sharing news of other immigrants' travels; her brother requested an address for "Denny" and information about travel fares. Gleeson's friend Kate Shea provided updates from her home in Ireland. Another acquaintance, Celia Day, provided Gleeson news of the Newbold family after Gleeson moved from Philadelphia to Denver.