Manuscripts

Born to be hanged: the log of the life of Captain Harry W. Lyon, as told to Lorrin L. Morrison

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Description: A typewritten manuscript of the amazing adventures of Harry W. Lyon from his birth in 1885 to his historic transpacific flight in 1928; it covers these adventures in some detail but it is not clear as to who is the actual author of this manuscript. It contains both original typewritten pages as well as some carbon copy pages; the page numbering is not consistent, and some pages have autograph corrections in pencil.
Type: Manuscripts(Opens in new tab)
Production date: approximately 1935.
Call number: mssHM 84046
Provenance: Provenance unknown. In library as of May 2021. Transferred from the Huntington Institutional Archives in 2021.
Restrictions: Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at the Huntington Library for more information.
Rights: The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining permission rests with the researcher.

My own Walker, journal of a dutiful wife, 1789-1801

Manuscripts

A typewritten, carbon copy transcription of the journal of Anna Walker edited by Edward Hall; the journal describes her life married to George T. Walker and his career in the British army. The transcription has Hall's autograph notes, additions and corrections; the pages have been trimmed down to different sizes and the page numbering is not consistent with some numbers repeated or skipped. Also included: the original "Perry Instantaneous Binder" and a paper folder with an autograph note by Hall: "Copy 170 2 of Revised version of 1789-1801 period (produced in 1952)."

mssHM 82875

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Kelley, Williams H. and others. Testimonial to Captain M. A. Healy ... from the Masters & Owners of the North Pacific Whaling Fleet. San Francisco

Manuscripts

The collection contains 39 pieces of correspondence, 4 diaries, a letterbook from the U.S. Revenue-Cutter Service ship, "Bear," two large scrapbooks, and an illuminated manuscript testimonial to Capt. Healy in a leather pouch. Three of the diaries (1884, 1890, & 1891) are by Healy's wife, Mary Jane Roach Healy, and the fourth is by his son, Fred A. Healy (written aboard the "Corwin"). The scrapbooks contain clippings related to Capt. Healy's adventures in Alaska as well as general articles about Alaska, its population, whaling, the missionary Sheldon Jackson, and reindeer.

mssHM 47618

Life sketch of Simon Baker [microform]: 1952

Manuscripts

Microfilm of the typed life history of Simon Baker by Melba Dolores Hogenson. The brief autobiography traces Baker's childhood, his conversion to Mormonism, the death of his wife and his marriage to Charlotte Leavitt in 1845, his move to Utah, his trade with gold miners in 1849-1850, his various mission and colonization trips in Utah and Nevada, and many notes on his personality and personal anecdotes. The autobiography is preceded by five manuscript pages identified as "journal before 1848" (it is not clear if these pages refer to Baker).

MSS MFilm 00398 item 01

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Derrotero General del Mar del Sur: [cartographic material]

Manuscripts

This significant Spanish derrotero contains 149 charts depicting the West Coast of the New World from Mexico to the Straits of Megellan. In addition, this manuscript has no chart titles or index. This derrotero was once thought to be that captured by Bartholomew Sharpe and used as the basis for William Hacke's atlas (see mssHM 265). However a close comparison of the charts with those of the Basil Ringrose atlas (based on the derrotero captured by Captain Henry Morgan) and the Hacke atlas indicate that this derrotero was not the principal source for Hacke's work. It appeared likely that this copy was the one captured by Morgan in a 1671 raid on Panama. Textual and material research carried out in 2024 by Juliet Wiersema, now suggest that the manuscript is an English copy of a derrotero held in the Society of Antiquaries of London (Ms. 221). Consistent spelling errors and watermark evidence strongly support an English, not Spanish origin. See: Wiersema, J. (2026). Farewell South Seas! Captured Spanish derroteros or English-made Copies? Imago Mundi, 78(1), 24–47. https://doi.org/10.1080/03085694.2026.2641936

mssHM 918

Horoscope for Sultan Amir Zadeh Rustam, 1419

Manuscripts

This volume is the horoscope of Sultan Amir Zadeh Rustam. It was written in 822 AH in Persian (with some Arabic) by Yahya ibn Imad bin Yahya Al-Munajjim al-Kashi. It is probably the copy presented to the Sultan. It includes finely illuminated borders and sarlauh on initial pages but dampstained. Some color is fading. The volume also includes some notes about the manuscript, probably from the 1940s.

mssHM 71897

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Le prisonnier de la Bastille, la fin des mousquetaires, 3 tableaux

Manuscripts

An autograph manuscript in three sections, written in French, possibly in the hand of Alexandre Dumas; there are pencil notes stating it is partially written by Dumas, but he also employed many assistants to help with his work. It includes settings and stage directions for the tableaux 1-3. The approximate date of the manuscript is 1861 which would mean the manuscript could have been written while Dumas was living in Italy. The manuscript has some damage to the edges of the pages and in the center of the final pages. It is accompanied by materials which provide additional provenance information: autograph notes about the manuscript in an unknown hand; Janet Saville letter to Robert M. Foster, October 18, 1951, with envelope; Thorndike Saville, Jr., letter to David M. Foster, November 16, 2010, with envelope and copy of bank record.

mssHM 84107

Born to be hanged: the log of the life of Captain Harry W. Lyon, as told to Lorrin L. Morrison

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My own Walker, journal of a dutiful wife, 1789-1801

Kelley, Williams H. and others. Testimonial to Captain M. A. Healy ... from the Masters & Owners of the North Pacific Whaling Fleet. San Francisco

Life sketch of Simon Baker [microform]: 1952

Derrotero General del Mar del Sur: [cartographic material]

Horoscope for Sultan Amir Zadeh Rustam, 1419

Le prisonnier de la Bastille, la fin des mousquetaires, 3 tableaux