Manuscripts
Military notice
Image not available
You might also be interested in
Image not available
Memorandum books of John Brown
Manuscripts
The first notebook contains John Brown's autograph of the "Articles of Enlistment and by-laws of Kansas Regulars, made and established by the commander, A.D. 1856," list of the names and dates of enlistment, "List of Volunteers either engaged or guarding Horses during the fight of Black Jack or Palmyra, June 2, 1856, " and 'List of names of the wounded in the Battle of Black Jack (or Palmyra) and also of the Eight who held out to receive the surrender of Capt. Pate and Twenty-Two men on that occasion, June 2, 1856." The text fills 10 leaves of an 85 leave notebook. On f. 83, there is a pencil note dated "May 9, 1859" concerning "Cutter badly injured before the fight of Osawatomie." The second notebook contains sundry records of expenses, accounts, etc. for 1843-1846 when John Brown, in partnership with Simon Perkins, was engaged in sheep ranching and wool business in Akron, Ohio. Included are records of household expenses, expenditures associated with sheep and wool business, etc. Also included are scattered records of payments associated with the John Brown's litigation.
mssHM 845
Image not available
Military requisition for steel cooking range
Manuscripts
Two documents related to the activities of medical officers and War Department bureaucracy during the occupation of the Philippine Islands after the Spanish-American War. The first document is a letter from Matthew H. Ellis, Major and Surgeon, requesting a steel range for the preparation of food for the treatment of sick and convalescent patients of the Oregon Volunteers, 2nd Regiment, stationed in Manila. The verso of the letter contains multiple endorsements signed by various officers, Chief Quartermasters, and surgeons passing the request up the chain of command with the request ultimately being denied. Also enclosed is the Special Requisition printed form, filled in and dated November 9, 1898.
mssHM 84052
Image not available
Israel N. Prince letters to Elizabeth E. Hodsdon
Manuscripts
Series of letters written by Israel N. Prince to his sister Elizabeth E. Hodsdon in Falmouth, Maine. Prince's first letter traces his journey by boat from Boston to Charleston in 1850. The next several letters provide a detailed look at the hardships of frontier life in the Nebraska Territory, where Prince lives humbly ("our dogs have a more comfortable house," he writes), holds low a low opinion of many of his neighbors ("the character [of frontier people] is not what I could wish it might be," he laments), works briefly on the Burlington Railroad (which ended with "considerable loss"), and is disinterested in in the California and Kansas "excitement," although he later thought about moving to California or Oregon. Prince also urges Elizabeth and her family to come west, answers her questions about when he will return home by saying "when I came into the western country it was my determination not to go back till I had done something," writes of his many uncertainties ("I seem to myself to be peculiar in some respects," he noted, "At times I hardly know what to make of myself"), and shamefully admits his failures ("I hated to tell you that I was too poor to own a farm of any description"). Beginning in 1861 the letters describe "the great war feeling around" and Prince's enlistment in Company "C" of the 1st Nebraska Volunteers in June 1861. He was initially stationed at Pilot Knob, Missouri, and guarded bridges on the Iron Mountain Railroad, and writes of a difficult march to Springfield and an enemy raid at Georgetown, Missouri. Most of his time was spent near the Tennessee/Mississippi border between Savannah and Danville. Prince writes of his participation in the Battle of Shiloh and of the Army of Southeastern Missouri, which in early 1863 had just finished "one of the hardest campaigns of the war" (probably part of Grant's Central Mississippi Campaign). He alludes to "daily skirmishes," although also notes that his sister probably knows better than he what is happening since he has little access to newspapers or outside information. In addition to chronicling the movements of his regiment, Prince outlines the difficulties of army life, including long "forced marches," the shortness of supplies, his many illnesses, the possibility of his death, and the unpopularity of the men in command. In his last letter Prince writes that there is little hope for a promotion since "I don't believe I am a great favorite with some of the officers." Specific references are made to General John Davidson, Secretary of War Simon Cameron, General John C. Frémont, and General Justus McKinstry.
mssHM 75851-75872
Image not available
John A. Nye Papers
Manuscripts
Collection of correspondence, business records, military records, and essays assembled by John A. Nye of Unadilla, New York. The personal correspondence includes that sent from Nye's friends Stephen W. Richardson, who had moved to Franklin, New York, to work as a clerk but disliked the town because "they are all such damn Christians" (1853); John H. Adams, who wrote from Pittsburgh that "I am here in the Smoky City among smoke and pretty women but I think I like the latter the best" (1854); and a letter from an acquaintance in Hainesville, Illinois, who wrote "every thing here is new and full of life...villages spring up in a year that make the natives eyes stick out...Chicago is the most enterprising place that I ever was in and is bound to be a mighty City" (c.1854). Other personal correspondents include Nye's sisters Mary Nye Case and Fanny Nye. Business correspondence and records include letters to Nye regarding his company Nye & Foster in Unadilla (1852-1853), a contract of property and interests sold to Nye's business partner Talcott M. Foster (1852); correspondence regarding receipts and invoices from Reeves Wilcox and Co. to McClair & McClaughy (1854); and miscellaneous receipts, invoices, and inventories. The military records of the 151st New York Infantry under Captain Caleb Palmer, dating from 1841-1844, include a company roll and instructions for alerting voters of forthcoming elections for military posts. One of the recipients was Thomas Nye, who was probably a relative of John Nye. Also included are the texts of various essays or addresses apparently made by Nye to the Freemasons, on topics such as procrastination, charity, beauty, and hope, as well as an essay explaining "Reasons Why Governor Seymour Should Not Be Elected" (referring to Governor Horatio Seymour of New York). There are also two handwritten copies, made at Unadilla, of proclamations from the United States Congress and House of Representatives creating "The Republic of the West" (west of the Rocky Mountains), "forever released from allegiance to the country east of said division" but "similar to the United States of America in its manner of government" (1855).
mssHM 78065-78096
Image not available
Records and essays
Manuscripts
Collection of correspondence, business records, military records, and essays assembled by John A. Nye of Unadilla, New York. The personal correspondence includes that sent from Nye's friends Stephen W. Richardson, who had moved to Franklin, New York, to work as a clerk but disliked the town because "they are all such damn Christians" (1853); John H. Adams, who wrote from Pittsburgh that "I am here in the Smoky City among smoke and pretty women but I think I like the latter the best" (1854); and a letter from an acquaintance in Hainesville, Illinois, who wrote "every thing here is new and full of life...villages spring up in a year that make the natives eyes stick out...Chicago is the most enterprising place that I ever was in and is bound to be a mighty City" (c.1854). Other personal correspondents include Nye's sisters Mary Nye Case and Fanny Nye. Business correspondence and records include letters to Nye regarding his company Nye & Foster in Unadilla (1852-1853), a contract of property and interests sold to Nye's business partner Talcott M. Foster (1852); correspondence regarding receipts and invoices from Reeves Wilcox and Co. to McClair & McClaughy (1854); and miscellaneous receipts, invoices, and inventories. The military records of the 151st New York Infantry under Captain Caleb Palmer, dating from 1841-1844, include a company roll and instructions for alerting voters of forthcoming elections for military posts. One of the recipients was Thomas Nye, who was probably a relative of John Nye. Also included are the texts of various essays or addresses apparently made by Nye to the Freemasons, on topics such as procrastination, charity, beauty, and hope, as well as an essay explaining "Reasons Why Governor Seymour Should Not Be Elected" (referring to Governor Horatio Seymour of New York). There are also two handwritten copies, made at Unadilla, of proclamations from the United States Congress and House of Representatives creating "The Republic of the West" (west of the Rocky Mountains), "forever released from allegiance to the country east of said division" but "similar to the United States of America in its manner of government" (1855).
mssHM 78065-78096
Image not available
Receipts and invoices. 12 items. Unadilla and Albany, N.Y
Manuscripts
Collection of correspondence, business records, military records, and essays assembled by John A. Nye of Unadilla, New York. The personal correspondence includes that sent from Nye's friends Stephen W. Richardson, who had moved to Franklin, New York, to work as a clerk but disliked the town because "they are all such damn Christians" (1853); John H. Adams, who wrote from Pittsburgh that "I am here in the Smoky City among smoke and pretty women but I think I like the latter the best" (1854); and a letter from an acquaintance in Hainesville, Illinois, who wrote "every thing here is new and full of life...villages spring up in a year that make the natives eyes stick out...Chicago is the most enterprising place that I ever was in and is bound to be a mighty City" (c.1854). Other personal correspondents include Nye's sisters Mary Nye Case and Fanny Nye. Business correspondence and records include letters to Nye regarding his company Nye & Foster in Unadilla (1852-1853), a contract of property and interests sold to Nye's business partner Talcott M. Foster (1852); correspondence regarding receipts and invoices from Reeves Wilcox and Co. to McClair & McClaughy (1854); and miscellaneous receipts, invoices, and inventories. The military records of the 151st New York Infantry under Captain Caleb Palmer, dating from 1841-1844, include a company roll and instructions for alerting voters of forthcoming elections for military posts. One of the recipients was Thomas Nye, who was probably a relative of John Nye. Also included are the texts of various essays or addresses apparently made by Nye to the Freemasons, on topics such as procrastination, charity, beauty, and hope, as well as an essay explaining "Reasons Why Governor Seymour Should Not Be Elected" (referring to Governor Horatio Seymour of New York). There are also two handwritten copies, made at Unadilla, of proclamations from the United States Congress and House of Representatives creating "The Republic of the West" (west of the Rocky Mountains), "forever released from allegiance to the country east of said division" but "similar to the United States of America in its manner of government" (1855).
mssHM 78065-78096