Manuscripts
William Reed Bullard papers
You might also be interested in
Image not available
William Reed Bullard papers
Manuscripts
This collection consists primarily of correspondence between Dr. William Reed Bullard and his sister Helen K. (Bullard) Wyman, with a few additional letters from family members including William's wife Mary. In these letters to his sister, William discusses his life and medical practice in both Indianapolis, Indiana and Helena, Montana. Bullard was active in both communities and his letters often describe social activities, celebrations and the growing and shaping of both towns. His letters also reveal Bullard's commitment to his family, and his deep love of music.
mssHM 70209-70257
Image not available
William Freeman letter book
Manuscripts
A Leeward Islands letter book containing 87 letters relating to the management of the estates, financial, and legal affairs of William Freeman. The majority of the letters concern the management of his estates in St. Kitts, Nevis, and Montserrat, the transatlantic sugar and indigo trades, the movement of enslaved persons, and other political, legal, and financial matters; letters include mention of the death of Charles II, the Monmouth Rebellion, and the invasion of William of Orange. The main correspondents are Henry Freeman (William's younger brother), and Robert Helme; there are also letters to William's sister-in-law Sarah Helme, other local merchants, and Sir Nathaniel Johnson, Governor of the Leewards from 1686 to1689. In early 1685, Henry Freeman had travelled to the Leewards to act on his older brother's behalf, with very mixed results, until Henry's early death in 1690. The volume is written in a variety of italic and secretary hands, by clerks and presumably William Freeman; it is in four gatherings, evidently once bound but now loose and secured at the inner margin with old tape. The volume also contains a duplicate copy of one letter laid in.
mssHM 84411
Image not available
William Brydges Papers
Manuscripts
The collection consists of the personal, estate, legal, and business correspondence of a Herefordshire gentry family with strong ties to the London legal world and with some slight connection to their more important relative James Brydges, 1st Duke of Chandos. The first letter in the collection (26 Oct 1719) is written by William Brydges (1663-1736) to his brother Francis Brydges with regards to setting up a meeting between the two. The next forty letters are written by William Brydges (1681-1764) to his father Francis Brydges. In these letters, William displays traits of a member of the British upper-class. Whether it's by entertaining guests with a harp, mentioning an inclination to be "gentlemen-like", receiving invitations to dine and socialize with local lords, or being the second cousin of James Brydges 1st Duke of Chandos, William is not ashamed of his gentility. His title, Esquire of Tibberton (or Tyberton) in Herefordshire, reflects that as well. Although his work as a lawyer requires him to live in London during this time, he is still obligated to settle matters in Tibberton. The issue that is mentioned the most within this set of letters centers on the tithe dispute of Tibberton Parish. In the early 1700s, there were serious difficulties faced by the established church as the failure of the Anglican Church to meet the needs of its constituents all throughout Britain laid the groundwork for the rise of Methodism and other non-conformist sects- particularly associated with towns. In Tibberton, William and Francis Brydges have a difficult time getting the local citizens to pay for the repair of the collapsed chancel and tower of Tibberton Parish Church. In the case of the Tibberton church, neither the Dean and Chapter of the diocese nor the townspeople agreed to repair these damaged areas. According to William in one of his letters to Francis (17 Oct 1719), he states that the Dean and Chapter want parishioners to pay for the repair of the chancel but nobody is willing to pay. This disorganization leads to William and Francis demanding money from the person who collects the tithes of Tibberton parish, Mr. Tom Jones, in order to pay for the repairs themselves. Seeing as Francis and his father Marshall were both clerks of the church, their involvement in this case appears fitting. A further example of William's dedication to the church lies in his search for records indicating the administrative status of Tibberton and its adjoining church with the name "Madley". When the ownership of the church comes into question, William travels to the augmentation office at Westminster to prove that Tibberton is its own distinct parish. It is not known whether these issues get resolved, but what can be told from these letters is that William found documents proving Tibberton's distinct existence from Madley; the damaged chancel was removed by the end of 1719 (though not yet replaced with a new one); and due to both Tom Jones' refusal to pay his share and inaction from others involved with the church, William and Francis do not resolve the ecclesiastical conflict of law among all sides of this affair. Along with Tibberton, real estate matters are the most mentioned subject within William's letters to his father. These matters deal with William, his father-in-law Andrew Card (1653-1732) who served the Duke of Chandos as a lawyer, and Francis purchasing and selling estates within the towns of Bosbury, Hereford, Bristol, Moreton, Shirkway, and Upleadon. Some of William's cousins play a role in these affairs as well; including Will Vaughn who informs William of his intention to purchase the Brampton estate in Hereford, and Tom Brydges who is selling the Brampton estate in the first place. Another involvement of Tom brought up in these letters involves a complex and strenuous financial affair wherein Tom purchases the life annuity of Andrew Card's widowed sister "Aunt Holmes". The next sixteen letters are written from Joseph Hardwick (fourteen letters) and Stephen Reeves (two letters) to Francis Brydges from 1719 to 1720. Hardwick and Reeves are separate tradesmen hired by Francis to assist in the repairing of the church at Tibberton, but Hardwick also discusses land prices and other business affairs in his writings to Francis. The last three letters are written from notable architect John Wood (1705?-1754) from 1729 to 1731 to William Brydges concerning his estate purchase in Bristol. They consist of architectural suggestions for the estate- thus proving Wood's loyalty to the Brydges family after designing the Duke of Chandos' estate in Bath a few years earlier. From the day to day occurrences illustrated in these primary sources, the Brydges' way of life can be deciphered. The first thing to notice is that business for William, Francis, and Andrew Card is essentially localized. All of the estate affairs (except for Bristol being 40 miles from Hereford) occur in locations that are not only in Herefordshire but also extremely close within the county as well. The fact that there was no effective transport due to poorly maintained roads and a lack of modernized technology in this pre-Industrial Revolution era meant that business could be handled more easily when it was close by. Another thing to note is how often William talked about his family to his father. Seeing as how there was no other means of communication except for talking in person, William felt obligated to inform his father in every single letter that he wrote during this time how his immediate family fared. He constantly mentioned his daughter Elizabeth and nieces Mary and Elizabeth Unett because he shared a close relationship with all of them. Unfortunately, sickness was prevalent among this time due to the instances of Elizabeth "Betty" Unett contracting smallpox, Francis acquiring gout for a brief stint, and Andrew Card suffering from an illness that prevented him from traveling for a whole year and forced him to resign his post as treasurer of Gray's Inn in London in June 1719. William also wrote about politics- mentioning that his uncle William Brydges (1663-1736) lost a by-election at Wells, Somerset on December 14th, 1719; and also giving an account (letter of 26 Sept 1719) of working out a deal with Lord Chandos regarding the British East India Company and an outside agent, meanwhile providing hints towards a warm relationship he shared with his second cousin. The relationship between William, his father-in-law, and his biological father Francis is built on tremendous interaction and trust. Though other family members and various affiliates come to William for legal and financial advice, William constantly mentions throughout his letters to Francis that he relies on Card's counsel before he follows through with these affairs as well. William also trusts Francis enough to let him know everything that is occurring in his life during this time- so much so that the most repeated statement among these letters is: "I entirely submit my thoughts to you [Francis]". This statement demonstrates that people actually come to both William and Francis for legal and financial advice, and at the end of the day the father decides what is best. Thus we observe the family dynamic of the Brydges family in this collection.
mssHM 75705-75763
Image not available
Samuel Benedict Reed letters
Manuscripts
This typescript of letters written by Samuel B. Reed to his wife covers six years of Reed's work for the Union Pacific Railroad Company. In the letters, he details his group's work surveying parts of Utah, Nevada, Colorado, Idaho, and Wyoming while searching for a practical route for the railroad, as well as the construction of the railroad tracks. He discusses the people involved including Frank Case, James A. Evans, Grenville Dodge, Oliver Ames, Thomas Clark Durant, and Sidney Dillon. Reed spent much time in Salt Lake City and became friends with Brigham Young and in his letters, he talks a lot about his many conversations with Young. Reed also discusses his group's interactions and experiences with the Ute and Shoshoni Indians. The typescript also includes copies of reports written by Reed.
mssHM 66497
Image not available
William Williams papers
Manuscripts
Personal and business papers of William Williams, chiefly his correspondence with his father-in-law and his brothers-in-law Henry Huntington, Jr. (1813-1854), and Benjamin Nicoll Huntington (1816-1882). Also included are a few letters from Benjamin Nicoll Huntington to his mother, Catherine M. Haven Huntington.
mssHM 46555-46670
Image not available
Reed Peck memoir
Manuscripts
The original of the Reed Peck Manuscript, an 1839 memoir criticizing Mormon actions in Missouri during the conflicts of 1838. Peck opens with a prophecy about "redeeming" Zion (Missouri) through armed force, the "interpretation" of which led Joseph Smith to call for volunteers to march to Clay County "under arms" (they were waylaid by a cholera outbreak). Peck goes on to relate alleged financial and power conflicts in Kirtland, Ohio, between, among others, Joseph and Hyrum Smith, Sidney Rigdon, and Oliver Cowdery, as well as disagreements over where in Missouri to establish a Mormon settlement. He writes that once the Mormons had settled in Caldwell County, the Mormon presidency became a "despotic government" and that it proposed a policy, encouraged by Rigdon, that dissenters from the Church be killed so that "they would not be capable of injuring the church." He goes on to say that the Mormon leadership demanded that all followers consecrate their property to the Church or be turned over to the "terrible brother of Gideon" (Jared Carter) for punishment. Peck continues that he and some others were "ever after ... opposed to the rule of the presidency" because "their word was law in religious, civil and military matters." He writes of the formation of a "secret military organization" (the Danites) by Carter, George W. Robinson, and Sampson Avard "under the instruction of the presidency," and of pretending to join the group, although he avoided taking the official oath and "declared to my trusty friends that I would never act in the office." He also remembers that Carter was later found guilty of criticizing the presidency, and alleges that he heard Joseph Smith say he would have "cut his throat on the spot" if he had been alone. The remainder of the memoir recounts the events of the Mormon War, in which Peck claims that hostilities between Mormons and Gentiles were inflamed by Joseph Smith. He begins with disputes over an election in Daviess County, leading to a "skirmish" which he says was exaggerated into accounts of a "bloody massacre of ... Mormons," leading non-Mormon citizens to fear retaliation and call for the expulsion of the Mormons from Daviess County. He criticizes the Mormons for initiating confrontations, plundering goods, and for attacking the militia under Capt. Bogart at the Battle of Crooked River, but he condemns the attack on Mormons in the Haun's Hill Massacre. He concludes his narrative of events with the arrest and subsequent escape of the Smiths, Rigdon, Wight, Parley Pratt, and others. He closes the manuscript by condemning Smith and the Church ("how can he [Smith] expect to support his character as a man of God when facts are exhibited to the world in their true light," he wrote) and by listing the sources for his narrative, much of which was allegedly based on his own eyewitness accounts. Other individuals mentioned in the memoir include W.W. Phelps, Edward Partridge, John Corrill, and Dimmock Baker Huntington. There appear to be pages missing after page 152.
mssHM 54458