Search

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

Search Results

Collection

Drury family collection, 1786-1990 (majority within 1786-1800)

24 items

This collection contains 21 letters and 1 document related to the family of Luke Drury of Grafton, Massachusetts. Most of the correspondence pertains to finances and business affairs. The collection also contains a legal document between John Drury, Henry Wight, and a Massachusetts Native American tribe, as well as 2 Drury family histories written in the late 20th century.

This collection contains 21 letters and 1 document related to the family of Luke Drury of Grafton, Massachusetts. Luke Drury received 11 letters from his son John, a merchant in Bristol, Rhode Island, between 1786 and 1790; 4 letters from his son Thomas, who lived in Providence, Rhode Island; and 2 letters from an acquaintance, Samuel Wardwell. John Drury also wrote 4 letters to his brothers Aldon and Thomas. Most letters pertain to finances and business affairs. The collection also contains a legal document between John Drury, Henry Wight, and a Massachusetts Native American tribe, as well as 2 Drury family histories written in the late 20th century.

John Drury's letters to his father mainly concern his financial and business interests in Bristol, Rhode Island, often related to Caribbean trade; his letter of December 22, 1786, discusses paper currency. John Drury wrote 2 letters to his brother Aldon, advising him to focus on his education, and 2 letters to his brother Thomas, extending an invitation to live with him and attend school in Bristol. In a document dated March 22, 1790, John Drury and Henry Wight appointed Luke Drury their attorney in a monetary dispute with the "Trustees of the Asnomisco Indian Tribe" [the Hassanamisco Nipmuc] over debts owed by James Thomas, a member of the tribe by intermarriage.

Luke Drury also received 2 letters from Samuel Wardwell and 4 letters from his son Thomas, who reported on his finances and discussed his life in Providence, Rhode Island, where he intended to study navigation and lunar observation. The collection also contains 2 bound family histories compiled by Cuma Drury Schofield: My Drury Family (1987) and My Mother's Brown Family (1990).

Collection

Green-Mitchell family papers, 1780-1883 (majority within 1785-1812, 1831-1862)

3.75 linear feet

The Green-Mitchell family papers are made up of correspondence, legal documents, receipts, and other financial records pertaining to the business and personal affairs of New York attorneys Timothy Green and John W. Mitchell (Timothy Green's son-in-law). Much of the collection pertains to mercantile affairs and land speculation in the South, Northeast and Western United States. A large portion of the collection pertains to South Carolina (Charleston), New York, and Massachusetts (Worcester). The Manuscripts Division has also created an inventory of the letter-writers in the collection: Green-Mitchell Family Papers Correspondent Inventory.

The Green-Mitchell family papers are made up of correspondence, legal documents, receipts, and other financial records pertaining to the business and personal affairs of New York attorneys Timothy Green and John W. Mitchell (Timothy Green's son-in-law). Much of the collection pertains to mercantile affairs and land speculation in the South, Northeast and Western United States. A large portion of the collection pertains to South Carolina (Charleston), New York, and Massachusetts (Worcester).

The Correspondence series contains 1,470 letters to and from members of the Green and Mitchell families between June 26, 1780 and October 1, 1880. Four hundred and sixteen incoming letters to Timothy Green date between 1780, and 1812. He received the bulk of them from family members, business partners, and clients in South Carolina, New York, and Worcester, Massachusetts. Timothy's brother, Samuel Green, a prominent merchant in Columbia, South Carolina, was among his most frequent correspondents. The collection includes 160 letters by Timothy Green, primarily sent from New York. Timothy Green's correspondence comprises the bulk of the collection's materials related to land speculation.

John W. Mitchell received 540 letters, approximately a third of the series, between 1806 and 1880. His primary correspondents wrote from Charleston, South Carolina; Fort Wayne, Indiana; and New York. The subject matter represented in these letters is diverse, pertaining to business and personal affairs, and the Episcopal Church. Other frequent writers include Timothy Ruggles Green, Clarence G. Mitchell, Samuel Green, and Judge Peter P. Bailey, founder of Trinity Episcopal Church in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

The Legal Documents series relates to estates administration and 48 legal suits in which the Green and Mitchell families were involved, either as attorneys or as parties to a suit. Materials for some of these cases are extensive and others include only a few pages. The cases comprising much of the series are Conklin v. Mitchell and Davis v. Duffie. Conklin v. Mitchell (New York, 1852-57) pertains to a land dispute between George Conklin and defendant John W. Mitchell. Davis v. Duffie (New York, 1825-1861) concerns charges brought against Smith Davis for fraud and a related mortgage taken out by Cornelius R. Duffie. John W. Mitchell and Clarence G. Mitchell defended Duffie.

Five certificates document commissions held by John W. Mitchell and Clarence G. Mitchell. Additional legal papers include insurance policies, powers of attorney, deeds, civil actions, summonses, depositions, agreements, and other items compiled by Timothy Green and John W. Mitchell in carrying out their work as attorneys.

The Financial Documents series contains 143 receipts, checks, bank notes, accounts, and other financial records dating from 1785-1874. Timothy Green compiled 11 summaries of accounts, representing a portion of his business transactions between 1787 and 1809.

Printed materials include a quarterly chronicle for the Mission to the Working Men of Paris (1877), two monthly bulletins for the Charity Organization Society in New York (1884), a notice of sale, and a cover page from the book One Day With Whistler.

Miscellaneous materials include two items: a partially-printed report card for Clarence G. Mitchell at the Episcopal Institute at Troy, New York, in 1837, and a genealogical document concerning the Boudinot family of Philadelphia.

The Manuscripts Division has also created an inventory of the letter-writers in the collection: Green-Mitchell Family Papers Correspondent Inventory.

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
Collection

Parsons-Gerrish collection, 1795-1890 (majority within 1841-1869)

1 linear foot

This collection is made up of correspondence, financial records, and other items related to the Parsons, Gerrish, and Lewis families of York County, Maine. Most of the material directly relates to Edwin Parsons; his first cousin, Abigail Lewis; and her husband, Benjamin H. Gerrish.

This collection is made up of correspondence, financial records, and other items related to the Parsons, Gerrish, and Lewis families of York County, Maine. Most of the material directly relates to Edwin Parsons; his first cousin, Abigail Lewis; and her husband, Benjamin H. Gerrish.

The Correspondence series (around 400 items) comprises the bulk of the collection; most items are incoming and outgoing letters of Edwin Parsons and Abigail Lewis Gerrish. Both Parsons and Gerrish received personal letters from their uncle, Usher Parsons of Providence, Rhode Island. Many of the earliest items are incoming business letters to Edwin Parsons and Edward's letters to his parents about life in Savannah, Georgia. Isaac Scott wrote to Parsons about cotton sales and specific business matters pertaining to the firm J. D. Carhart & Scott. He also mentioned his desire to purchase a male slave (January 15, 1846) and a house in Macon, Georgia. One of Edwin Parsons's letters refers to a woman's fear that her children would begin speaking in an African American dialect after living in Savannah (May 26, 1844). Around 1850, Abigail Lewis Gerrish began to receive personal letters from female friends and family members (often from Charlestown, Massachusetts). Her correspondents included her brother, William Lewis, who also occasionally wrote to her husband, Benjamin H. Gerrish. Though many correspondents wrote to Gerrish during the Civil War, few directly referred to fighting.

The Documents series (15 items) is comprised of indentures and other documents of Benjamin H. Gerrish and Oliver Parsons. Many of the items concern real and personal property; two pertain to the estates of Elizabeth Gerrish and Samuel Hill. One indenture binds Charles Tucker to Benjamin H. Gerrish to learn the art of farming.

Most of the Financial Papers and Receipts (around 130 items, 1785-1889) relate to the financial affairs of Benjamin H. Gerrish of South Berwick, Maine. Items include partially printed and manuscript account books, receipts, and other documents. Other individuals represented are Miriam Gerrish, Betsey Gerrish, Elizabeth F. Gerrish, Daniel Lewis, John Lewis, and members of the Parsons family. The materials relate to goods and services, surveying, railroads, and estate administration. The 7 account books belonged to Joseph U. Parsons, E[dwin] Parsons, and unidentified individuals. Accounts primarily relate to personal expenses, mostly in Savannah, Georgia. A book belonging to Benjamin H. Gerrish concerns land in South Berwick, Maine.

The Fragments and Miscellaneous series (26 items) is made up of manuscript, printed, and ephemeral items, including notes, calling and visiting cards, recipes, two lists of property on "Fairbanks Farm" in Holliston, Massachusetts, a blank form from the Maine Mutual Fire Insurance Company, and a copy of the Eastern Star newspaper (February 7, 1879). Thirteen items are fragments of letters, financial records, or other items.