Manuscripts
Francis Clark letter to Abigail Wells
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Francis Clark papers
Manuscripts
The collection consists of letters and a few documents related to the business activities of Francis Clark (fl. 1850s). They deal chiefly with his interests in gold mining, property, and finance in Placer and El Dorado Counties, CA. A number of letters are from his partner in the firm of Brooks, Clark, and Company.
mssHM 17382-17425
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James Clarke letters to his family
Manuscripts
This series of letters were written by James Clarke to his family in Maine, mostly his brother and his wife, from California between 1854 and 1856. The letters will be described chronologically. HM 21248, written 1854, May 16, and addressed to "Dear Brother," writes of acquiring room and board in San Francisco. HM 21310, dated 1854, September 3, sees Clarke moving to Los Angeles in search of more money. He wishes to eventually purchase a lot of land outside the city and build on it. HM 21353 (dated 1854, May 31; the letter is incomplete, being the middle four pages only) describes his journey to San Francisco. HM 21244 (1854, October 7) is partly written from Santa Barbara, and is also addressed "Dear Brother." Clarke writes of his profits from farming, but he thinks he may have to relocate. The second part of the letter finds Clarke in a boarding house 130 miles outside of Santa Barbara, where he has found work as a carpenter. The next letter is dated 1854, October 7 and 12, and is written in Santa Barbara and Los Angeles (HM 21245). The first part, written in pencil, is addressed to "Mrs. James Clarke", and Clarke is leaving Santa Barbara for Los Angeles, where he hopes to find better fortune. In the second part, Clarke writes he has arrived in Los Angeles after a fifty-day overland journey, and that he hopes to remain there for the rest of the five years of his stay in the West. HM 21247, dated 1854, November 3 and addressed once again to "Mrs. James Clarke," Clarke writes he has sent "some half dozzen letters" home but has gotten nothing in response. The following letter (HM 21246) was written November 1854, and is addressed "Dear Family." Clarke is now also working in a vineyard, and describes the Los Angeles orange groves in detail, and speaks in glowing terms of California produce. HM 21351 is written to Clarke's brother, and dated 1854, December 6. In it, Clarke describes the produce of Los Angeles, as well as the "exceeding agreeableness" of the area's climate. HM 21352 is dated 1855, March 1, and is also addressed to Clarke's brother, and discusses his work in a vineyard. HM 21242 is addressed to "Mrs. James Clarke" and is dated 1855, July 22. He is concerned that the letters and money he is sending home is not making it there, as "every thing is unsettled in Cal. now." He would like to make more money, but says "there is no money to be had." He remains confident that his stay will be financially productive. HM 21243, written to his family on 1856, March 7, contains Clarke's report that after a year's hard work, he now has a house and lot in El Monte, which he calls "the Egypt of California." He is excited about the prospect of farming on his land.
mssHM 21242-21248, 21310, & 21351-21353
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Glenn W. Herrick letter to Anna C. Stryke
Manuscripts
In this letter, Glenn Herrick describes a trip to California and apologizes for not making it to Miss Stryke's home in Pasadena. He goes on to document a visit to Redondo Beach and Rose Hill in Southern California. He and his wife then traveled by train to San Jose. They traveled to Palo Alto to see Stanford University and had a chance meeting with David Starr Jordan with whom during a half hour chat "couldn't get away from his peace ideas." He entreats Miss Stryke to see the University and compares it with Cornell. They travel to San Francisco and find luxuriously apartments on Nob Hill only a block away from Leland Stanford's former residence. Mr. Herrick and his wife find San Francisco more interesting than Los Angeles, but much colder. He advises that when Miss Stryke visits San Francisco that she look for rooms West of Market Street. In closing, he apologizes for missing the visit in Pasadena.
mssHM 47535
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Ernest Clarke letter to "Dear Folks,"
Manuscripts
In this letter to friends, Ernest Clarke describes his stay at the hotel on Mount Wilson. He talks about the scenery, the animals he encounters along the hiking trails, the flora and fauna, the surrounding areas, and the observatory, its funding and the building of a road to get construction materials up the mountain. The letter is written on "Mt. Wilson" letterhead with an image of the hotel.
mssHM 69393
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Francis Phelps letter to Almon Phelps
Manuscripts
Letter from Francis Phelps in Waterford, Erie County, Pennsylvania, to his cousin Almon Phelps in East Granby, Hartford County, Connecticut. In the letter, Phelps writes that although "money is somewhat scarce," it is "a general time of health here." He responds to Almon's intimations that he might soon travel to the "Great West," noting that "people here have the same notion" but that he does not know whether "the country is good." Phelps predicts that Chicago is "to be the great theatre of the far West" and observes that "steam boats are daily conveying hundreds and thousands to the Promised Land." He notes that not many residents of Waterford have decided to emigrate, but that there has been a rush on purchasing local property by "emigrants" from Erie County, New York. Phelps writes of the effects emigration has had on the prices of local goods, and also notes that agriculture in the area is particularly promising.
mssHM 78057
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Ernest Clark Steele diaries
Manuscripts
Ernest Clark Steele begins his diaries as a student at Daybrook High School in Monogalia County, West Virginia. The entries from 1915 through 1918 are primarily short remarks about his location (whether he's at home or school) and the weather. His entries become lengthier with a bit more details about his daily activities after he enters West Virginia University. In addition to entries about his early years as a principal at Oceana and teacher at Pineville, he writes about his summertime gig in the Equipment Department of the Swarthmore Chautauqua Association from 1921 through 1927. In August 1927, he enters the University of California, Berkeley. During this period, he writes about his studies, extracurricular activities, and going to church. Steele's nearly 30 years career as a teacher in the Los Angeles City Schools begins at Dana Junior High School in September 1928. After 3 1/2 years, he transfers to Belvedere Junior High School in East Los Angeles, where he teaches English and social studies for almost 15 years. By 1943, his discouragement with the school is evident. On October 14th, 1943, he writes, "We are pretty well agreed that the general attitude expressed by pupils is on the decline and that it is likely to get worse before it gets better..." He continues with a radical idea to create another school called the Belvedere Annex, where it would be a "dumping ground...for low mentality and problem children, and for any others who could not profit form the established program which the regular school would have to offer." He ends the entry, "I can already hear squawks of disapproval." Other passages include remarks about faculty meetings, workshops, and lack of interest from his students. In addition to entries about work, Steele comments on economics, politics, church, and social activities. Regarding politics, he appears to be a liberal. During one conversation on July 3, 1936, he proposes abandoning "both the Republicans and Democrats - and join some group working in the interests of the common people." He frequently reads The New Republic, The Atlantic, Reporter, Reader's Digest, and listens to the educational radio program Invitation to Learning. Steele also spends a great deal of time on landscaping and gardening at his picturesque home in Pasadena, California. In the early 1950s, he worked as a vocational counselor for the United States Veterans Administration. He does not provide details about the veterans, but merely touches upon their cases: "I had a veteran this morning who wants pilot training...The first I have had for a long time, and they are tough to be approved..." (August 15, 1952). After Steele's retirement from the Los Angeles City Schools, he remained active in the program of the Pasadena Area Liberal Arts Center and obtained a Reader's card at the Huntington Library where he read and kept notes on his diaries. The diaries from 1915 through 1937 are handwritten and the diaries from 1937 through 1967 are typewritten.
mssSteele