Manuscripts
William H. Carlisle letters
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Sylvester A. Ballou letter
Manuscripts
Letter is a typewritten copy. It is addressed to "Dear Parents and Sisters," and written from the "battle field in the rear of Vicksburg." He talks about the battle of Vicksburg, prisoners, and the wounded.
mssHM 84211
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Lyman H. Howland letters to his son
Manuscripts
Lyman H. Howland wrote seven of these letters to his son, Garrald, after he left New Bedford to become an itinerant miner in California, Idaho, Nevada, and Montana. The first letter is a 16-page description of his 1892 railroad journey to Sacramento. In 1894, Howland is living in Spokane, Washington and talks of mining prospects. In 1896, Howland is mining in Troy, Idaho, and in 1897, he is mining in Sylvanite, Montana. Besides mining and his life as a miner, Howland also lectures his son on the evil of alcohol, talks of sending for his son to join him, and asks about family and friends back in New Bedford. Two of these letters are incomplete.
mssHM 83122-83129
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William Wilson Cowan letters
Manuscripts
In the letters, which Cowan wrote to his wife, daughter and father, he describes his eight-month overland journey from Indiana to California. He includes details regarding the hardships of the trip including disease and the death of several of his traveling companions, problems with the captain of the company, lack of provisions along the way, and delays due to bad weather. In the one letter he wrote from California, he describes California and his life in Weaverville, the conditions in the city, the high prices of food and supplies, the behavior of his fellow gold miners, and the difficulty of mining for gold. Included with the nine letters is a poem, written by Cowan, entitled "A Memento on Leaving for Calafornia [sic]," and a manuscript, written by an unknown person, which gives details about Cowan's life and his sudden death from typhoid fever in December 1849. Also included are negative photostats of all eleven items.
mssHM 68061-68071
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Danforth H. Medbery memoir
Manuscripts
Medbery wrote this memoir of his time in California in 1919 at the age of 80. It begins with his voyage to California on the "Northern Star." He arrives in San Francisco 24 days later. He talks about his work in a mill, the machinery he uses there, looking for gold and the equipment he builds; he also talks about his other jobs selling fruit and vegetables and copper mining in Copperopolis, California. He also talks about politics, violence, attending church and teaching Sunday school, and social life in general. While in California, his wife, Mary, was often in California too, but she would eventually move back East before him.
mssHM 82465
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Experiences and reminiscences of Raymond William Milnor
Manuscripts
In this manuscript, Milnor reminiscences about his life. He talks about his childhood in Iowa where he played around railroad tracks and attended a school with a graduating class of 14 students. He talks about his work with the railroads and trips he took. He talks briefly about his time in the war and time spent at Yellowstone Park on his journey to California. Milnor ends his reminiscences with several pages covering his life in southern California - his varying jobs, the many times his family moved around, his daughters' education, family vacations, his retirement, etc.
mssHM 73895
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William H. Taft, Washington, D.C., letter to Calderon Carlisle, Washington, D.C. :
Manuscripts
Is sending twenty copies of the brief on the Sayward case as requested; requests copies of petition, suggestion, and briefs. Postscript and initials in hand of Taft. The Sayward case involved the seizing of a British ship in the Bering Sea in 1887 for hunting fur seals, a violation of an Act of Congress.
mssHM 23510