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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

European Tour, Yosemite, and Minnesota photograph album, 1870s-1900s

1 volume

The European Tour, Yosemite, and Minnesota photograph album contains pictures of scenes in various European countries, reproductions of famous paintings, portraits of prominent Europeans, and comic strips. Many of the visual items are engravings and colored illustrations.

The European Tour, Yosemite, and Minnesota photograph album (27cm x 34cm) contains around 780 photographs, engravings, and illustrations of scenes, people, architecture and artwork from various European countries, Great Britain, and the United States. Newspaper clippings and comic strips appear at the end. Most of the photographs appear to be commercially produced prints of the type made for tourists, and many of the illustrations are in series related to a particular place. The images range in size from full page to smaller items pasted in as many as 11 or 12 to a page. Original covers are missing.

Countries represented in the photographs include present-day Turkey, Greece, Italy, Germany, France, and Great Britain around the 1870s. Bird's-eye views, street scenes, landmarks such as religious buildings and ancient structures (particularly in Athens and Rome), famous paintings and sculptures, bas reliefs, and other works of art predominate. Of interest are a group of pictures showing traditional Neapolitan funeral costume, and a photograph of Mount Vesuvius erupting in 1872. Portraits of local ethnic "types" in traditional dress, political and religious leaders, and royalty are also present. The engravings and other illustrations, sometimes colored, often depict similar scenes and landmarks.

The final pages contain photographs taken in present-day Yosemite National Park and Minnesota, a newspaper clipping showing a "dynamiter in [a] Los Angeles police station," electrical equipment related to the New York City Subway, and a group portrait of firefighters in Watertown, New York. A group of newspaper clippings of the comic strip "Sambo and his Funny Noises" are pasted on top of European views. The comic strip, by William F. Marriner, ran from 1905-1914 and chronicled the misadventures of "Sambo," later "Samuel Johnson," a racist stereotype caricature of an African American boy.

Collection

Patterson Family papers, 1825-1931

3 linear feet (in 4 boxes)

New York State and Ann Arbor, Michigan family; family correspondence, business papers, student notebooks, photograph albums.

The Patterson family papers have been arranged as much as possible by family member name. To avoid confusion and because the name George Washington Patterson was passed down from father to son, the series names have been given a Roman numeral to distinguish one family member from another.

Collection

Shaw Family (Shiawassee County, Mich.) papers, 1877-1977

3 linear feet — 1 oversize volume

Papers, 1877-1926, of William Shaw, physician in Morrice, Michigan, including diaries, notebooks, and records of patient appointments and accounts; patient books, 1884-1891, of brother, Alexander Shaw, physician in Watertown, Dakota (later South Dakota); papers, 1907-1977, of Milton Shaw, son of William and Anna Shaw, Lansing physician including correspondence, diaries, professional files, and materials relating to medical career in the military, especially letters written during World War I; and photographs.

The Shaw family papers date from 1877 to 1977 and contain materials principally relating to the medical careers of three family members. Included are 25 volumes (1892-1926) containing patient appointments and accounts of Dr. William Shaw. Among his other papers are diaries and notebooks pertaining to his early career in the schools at Motherwell, Ontario, Canada where he taught for eleven years from about 1877 to 1888. Also included in the collection are the patient books of Dr. Alexander Shaw (1854-1892). There is one folder of correspondence written by Harold Shaw, to his parents, William and Anna, during World War I while serving with the 85th Division.

The papers of Dr. Milton Shaw (1889-1977) constitute the principal part of the collection and reflect his active professional career. His papers include correspondence to his parents, William and Anna, from France during World War I as well as materials concerning the other phases of his military career including his involvement with several veterans organizations. Dr. Milton Shaw's connections with professional and service organizations were numerous and involved positions on the governing boards of the Michigan Welfare League and the Michigan Heart Association as well as the Directorships of the University of Michigan Alumni Association (1946-1949) and the Ingham County Chapter of the American Red Cross (1933).

The Shaw family papers also includes visual material such as family portraits; military related photographs; and depictions of University of Michigan student life including classroom medical activities, class portraits, reunions, a scrapbook, and photographs of unidentified women medical students.

Collection

William A. Lewis photograph collection, ca. 1850s-1980s

approximately 1,530 items in 12 boxes

The William A. Lewis photograph collection consists of approximately 1,530 items pertaining to a wide range of visual subjects that are represented across a variety of photographic formats including daguerreotypes, cartes de visite, stereographs (which form the bulk of the collection), and glass plate negatives as well as modern slides, film strips, snapshots, and postcards.

The William A. Lewis photograph collection consists of approximately 1,530 items pertaining to a wide range of visual subjects that are represented across a variety of photographic formats including daguerreotypes, cartes de visite, stereographs (which form the bulk of the collection), and glass plate negatives as well as modern slides, film strips, snapshots, and postcards.

The subject matter of this collection is thematically and chronologically diverse and reflects the broad interests of the collector, with the U.S. Civil War and 19th-century views of American and European cities being particularly well-represented topics. The collection is organized into four main series according to subject matter and is further divided into specific subject groupings within each series. In most cases, multi-item sets have been kept together and placed within the most generally appropriate subject grouping. An extensive number of photographers and publishers are represented throughout the collection including the likes of H. H. Bennett, C. B. Brubaker, John Carbutt, Centennial Photographic Company, B. F. Childs, E. & H. T. Anthony & Company, Alexander Gardner, T. W. Ingersoll, International Stereoscopic View Company, Keystone View Company, William Notman, Timothy O'Sullivan, William Rau, Strohmeyer & Wyman, Underwood & Underwood, and F. G. Weller.

The following list provides a breakdown of every topical subsection of the collection and includes item counts for each grouping:

Series I: General Subjects
  • Airships (11)
  • Bridges (69)
  • Civil War I--stereographs (91)
  • Civil War II--cartes de visite, Kodachrome slides, negative film strip copies of stereographs held at the Library of Congress, postcards (48)
  • Disasters (49)
  • Expositions (24)
  • Industry & Labor (89)
  • Miscellaneous (23)
  • Portraits (109)
  • Railroads (62)
  • Ships (80)
  • War (30)
Series II: Views, U.S.
  • Alaska (47)
  • Arizona (3)
  • California (20)
  • Colorado (2)
  • Dakota (4)
  • District of Columbia (50)
  • Florida (2)
  • Hawaii (1)
  • Illinois (17)
  • Iowa (2)
  • Maine (8)
  • Maryland (27)
  • Massachusetts (20)
  • Michigan (31)
  • Missouri (3)
  • New Hampshire (10)
  • New York (116)
  • Ohio (2)
  • Oregon (2)
  • Pennsylvania (16)
  • Tennessee (1)
  • Texas (1)
  • Vermont (3)
  • Utah (3)
  • Virginia (6)
  • Washington (1)
  • West Virginia (1)
  • Wisconsin (2)
  • Wyoming (2)
  • Unidentified locations (35)
Series III: Views, Foreign
  • Austria (5)
  • Belgium (6)
  • Brazil (1)
  • Canada (3)
  • Cuba (5)
  • Czechoslovakia (1)
  • Egypt (5)
  • England (21)
  • France (43)
  • Germany (14)
  • Greece (1)
  • India (2)
  • Ireland (4)
  • Italy (22)
  • Japan (3)
  • Mexico (1)
  • Miscellaneous (31)
  • Monaco (4)
  • Netherlands (1)
  • Norway (3)
  • Palestine (5)
  • Panama (41)
  • Puerto Rico (3)
  • Scotland (10)
  • Spain (2)
  • Sweden (2)
  • Switzerland (9)
  • Turkey (1)
Series IV: Objects
  • Keystone Alaska and Panama views, set box (1)
  • Stereoscope (1)
Items of particular interest include:
  • Post-WWI Keystone views of German and American zeppelins and one real photo postcard showing pre-WWI aircraft (Series I, Box 1, Airships)
  • Numerous views of the Brooklyn Bridge under construction and after completion, and the Niagara Falls suspension bridge (Series I, Box 1, Bridges)
  • Views of Civil War battle sites, encampments, and leaders on contemporary mounts as well as numerous reproductions of stereographs showing important battlefield sites and troops (Series I, Boxes 1-2, Civil War)
  • Stereographs, real photo postcards, and other images documenting the aftermath of the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake, 1871 Chicago Fire, 1889 Johnstown Flood, 1900 Galveston Hurricane, and other calamities (Series I, Box 3, Disasters)
  • Images showing scenes from various American and European events, with an emphasis on the 1876 Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia (Series I, Box 3, Expositions)
  • Images showing mills, factories and people engaged in various occupations, including a boxed set of 50 images related Sears, Roebuck operations produced around 1906 (Series I, Box 3, Industry & Labor)
  • Hand-colored early groupings of French theatrical tableaux (Series I, Box 3, Miscellaneous)
  • Approximately 109 portrait photographs in different formats of various individuals, including William Jennings Bryan; a boxed set of 50 cartes de visite depicting Danish actors and actresses; cartes de visite of Emperor Napoleon III and the Mikado of Japan; and numerous unidentified subjects represented in real photo postcards (1), tintypes (17), framed/cased ambrotypes, and daguerreotypes (13) (Series I, Box 4, Portraits)
  • Approximately 62 images of railroads, mostly in the U.S., including photographs from an 1866 expedition to the 100th meridian on the Union Pacific Railroad while under construction (Series I, Box 5, Railroads)
  • Approximately 80 images of ships including warships, freighters, riverboats, passenger ships, shipwrecks (including of the USS Maine), and shipyards mostly in the U.S. with the notable exception of a photo of the 1858 launch of the SS Great Eastern, with Isambard Kingdom Brunel possibly in the crowd. Also of interest are 8 photos and postcards showing ships in World War I-era "dazzle" camouflage (Series I, Box 5, Ships)
  • A Keystone View Co. series of images related to World War I (Series I, Box 5, Wars)
  • A number of images produced by Keystone View Co. and other stereograph purveyors that focus on major cities such as Boston, New York, Paris, Constantinople, and Jerusalem (throughout Series II & Series III)
  • Views from geological expeditions to the American frontier in the 1860s and 1870s (Series II, Unidentified Locations)