Opening Hours
Daily: 10 A.M.–5 P.M.
Closed on Tuesdays
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108
Manuscripts
Preemption notice for land in the Benicia district of San Joaquin County, Calif
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Manuscripts
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Daily: 10 A.M.–5 P.M.
Closed on Tuesdays
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108
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Manuscripts
Survey of land in township 5 north, range 7 east of San Joaquin County, made for Roger Allen. Printed form, filled in and signed by county surveyor John Wallace.
mssHM 73984
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Manuscripts
The blotter includes land grants and deeds processed in San Francisco District from 1847 to 1849. The grants and deeds are signed by alcaldes George Hyde and Thaddeus Leavenworth. The list includes deeds involving Sam Brannan, John White Geary, Thomas Ap Catesby Jones, William A. Leidesdorff, Robert T. Ridley, and J. D. Stevenson. Some of the entries are accompanied by hand drawn plats.
mssHM 68413
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Manuscripts
This essay was read by Adams before the California Historical Society on April 8, 1890. Adams states that "the Stage is the mirror of mankind; the reflex of society." He begins with a poetic description of California, then relates the first days of paying entertainment in San Francisco, in the form of "Mr. Rowe's the first Circus." He describes the early city of San Francisco as he remembers it, and reports that the first concert in the city's history was given on June 22, 1849 by Stephen C. Massett. The first theater was The Eagle Theater, which opened in late 1849 as a covered tent, and the first performance was of "The Wife, or A Tale of Mantua" given on January 16, 1850, given by the Eagle Theater Company. Adams reminisces of theater manager Tom Maguire and the various theaters under his management, and of the Adelphi Theater, built in 1851. Adams reports that the French, Chinese, and Germans had their own performances as well, and that there was Spanish bullfighting and horse racing near the Mission Dolores. He writes of many performers, including Adelaide Neilson and Edwin Forrest. When the Metropolitan Theatre opened in 1853, it was lauded as "the most magnificent temple of histrionic art in America," according to Adams.
mssHM 19063
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Manuscripts
Mortgage indenture regarding land in Mendocino County, California, once owned by the late William A. Richardson. The indenture describes that Richardson and his wife Maria in 1853 and 1854 "did convey. . . certain lands" in Mendocino County to Charles S. Compton and Donald Davidson, who in turn sold the land to Robert Walkinshaw, Benjamin Davidson, and William Hood. $35,000 was also paid to Richardson's heirs to clear debts on the estate, with those funds being held in trust for Julius May by Davidson, Samuel R. Throckmorton, and Davidson's attorney, Alexander Forbes. The indenture releases Throckmorton from claims on the land and also releases the land from any further mortgages or liens. Possibly in the handwriting of Benjamin Davidson. Signed by Davidson and by Forbes for Walkinshaw.
mssHM 72998
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Manuscripts
HM 4384, dated January 1850, describes the problems between Chilean and American miners in the Calevaros mining district. The Chileans had been driven from the mines in northern California, and responded "with pistols, knives, and other weapons of offence," threatening to shoot the Americans if they did not leave. At a meeting of resident American citizens, twelve resolutions were passed in an attempt to quell the problem. The Chileans protested, and did not abandon the mines, and were fined as per the resolutions. The Americans then disbanded the Chileans by force. HM 4385, dated April 1851, relates the issues between American and French miners of the Garde Mobile at Mokelumne Hill. The French government sent members of its Garde Mobile to California to protect mining interests at Mokelumne Hill, and "caused a great excitement, as they marched on the Hill." They made an attempt to raise the French flag but were told "the Stars and Stripes...was on the only one that could fly." The French struck a rich vein, and then claimed the entire hill for France. A skirmish ensued, and the French eventually left the hill at the request of a French consul. These items are handwritten transcriptions taken from HM 322, Journal of a voyage from Newburyport, Mass., to San Francisco, Cal.
mssHM 4384-4385