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Home » About » Blog » New Manuscripts Finding Aids: February – May 2019

The Clements Library is pleased to announce that the following manuscript collections are now described online and may be requested for use in the reading room.

American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions. Prudential Committee minutes, 1848-1892 – Processed by Cari Griffin

This collection contains handwritten minutes, many with revisions and excisions, for 49 meetings of the Prudential Committee of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions between 1848 and 1892. Written by multiple clerks, the minutes contain information on attendance, votes, resolutions, current and future missions, letters received, appointees, offers of service, reports from the field, salaries, grants, funding distribution, and other subjects.

Levi Aldrich scrapbook, 1841-1849 – Processed by Sara Quashnie

This “Scrapbook bound by L. A.” contains handwritten final drafts of editorial pieces written by Dr. Levi Aldrich of Shrewsbury, Vermont, as well as several clippings and copies of poems by other authors. The writings occupy 57 of 59 numbered pages in a lengthier blank book. The majority are final drafts of written pieces for The Universalist Watchman (Montpelier, Vermont) and The Rutland Herald (Rutland, Vermont), and other publications. He contributed obituaries, essays on faith, articles on medicine, and editorials on society and technology.

William Case Clark Notebook, 1779-1788 – Processed by Sara Quashnie

This 30-page notebook by William Case Clark of South Kingston, Rhode Island, contains very brief notes on the 1776 British attack on Newport, Rhode Island, a copy of the numbers of soldiers of different ranks killed in the Battle of Bunker Hill, financial accounts for the purchase of foodstuffs in the 1780s, and a weather journal spanning January to May 1775. Clark also copied extracts from the poems “The Ballad of Chevy Chase” and “A New Song Called the Gaspee.”

Creigmus v. Youngs Collection, 1893 – Processed by Cari Griffin

This collection consists of seven documents and handwritten notes related to a slander suit filed with the New York Supreme Court in Montgomery County, February 1893. The complaint, filed by Elisabeth B. “Lizzie” Creigmus’s attorneys, alleges that defendant Michael Youngs publically accused Creigmus of canine castration and bestiality.

Edward B. Hartshorn Journal, 1858-1873 – Processed by Sara Quashnie

This volume contains the journal of Edward B. Hartshorn from January 1858 to September 1863, anonymous writings regarding a possible trip to locations in the Mediterranean and Europe (including Palestine, Syria, Greece, Constantinople, London, France, and Rome), financial accounts for 1872 to 1873, arithmetic exercises, and a short poem on death.

Nehemiah S. Hayden Journal and Account Book, 1858 – Processed by Sara Quashnie

This 93-page journal and account book chronicles a year in the life of Nehemiah S. Hayden, a sailor and shipbuilder from Essex, Connecticut, including voyages aboard the John H. Elliott to Antwerp, Belgium, and the clipper ship Frederick Gebhard to Savannah, Georgia. On 80 pages of journal entries, Hayden recounted the weather, shipboard tasks, and movement of other vessels, and offered brief glimpses of his personal life on and off ship. Five scattered pages of accounts entries detail Hayden’s expenses for clothing, sundries, and services for 1858. Completing the volume is an anonymous 8-page work of prose (including the date January 15, 1858), telling the story of a young woman’s heartbreak over the loss of her sailor love and his return to her after his rescue by an English ship. The front and back pastedowns bear sketches of a three-masted, square rigged ship (apparently the Frederick Gebhard ) and a two-masted, gaff rigged vessel.

Hart Hosley Exercise and Commonplace Book, 1835-1839 – Processed by Jayne Ptolemy

Between 1835 and 1839, Hart Hosley produced an exercise and commonplace book while attending the Canton Academy in Canton, New York, and while later living in Boston, Massachusetts. The bulk of the volume consists of a translation from French into English of François Fenelon’s The Adventures of Telemachus, the Son of Ulysses. Selections of poetry, proverbs, songs, and mathematics problems comprise the rest of the volume. Pressed leaves appear throughout. The covers feature printed decorative paper (possibly wallpaper) of a woman playing a lute beside a dancing cherub.

Mary Greenhow Lee Collection, 1861-1907 – Processed by Sara Quashnie

This collection is made up of letters, notes, and ephemera of Mary Greenhow Lee of Winchester, Virginia, who was a staunch supporter of the Confederate States of America. Included are travel passes, a contraband search memorandum, and an anonymous captured letter providing intelligence on “that little widow” Lee and “her gang of old maids” and other secessionists on Market Street. Bessie Elizabeth Johnston Gresham (Mrs. Thomas Baxter Gresham) acquired most of the pieces in this collection directly from her friend Mary Lee.

Point Lookout Prison Camp Collection, 1863-1865 – Processed by Robert S. Cox and Mary Parsons

The Point Lookout Prison Camp collection includes official correspondence, prisoners’ letters, sutlers’ receipts, and other documents relating to Confederate prisoners of war held at the Point Lookout Military Prison, Maryland, largely between the summers of 1863 and 1864.

Demas Lindley Sears Papers, 1916-1983 – Processed by Cheney J. Schopieray

This collection is made up of 158 letters, 8 speeches and writings, 36 documents, 25 ephemeral items and currency, 5 pamphlets or booklets, 43 newspaper clippings, 26 lithographs, and 99 photographs by or related to Lieutenant Colonel Demas Lindley Sears. The bulk of the collection pertains to his service as a mid-level intelligence officer in the U.S. Army’s 37th Infantry Division during World War II. A small portion of the collection reflects his service in the 8th Ohio Infantry Regiment during the Punitive Expedition of 1916 and in the First U.S. Cavalry during World War I.

James E. Taylor Letters, [ca. 1880-1897] – Processed by Sara Quashnie

This collection is comprised of three letters by James E. Taylor, an artist famous for his work in Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper, to Colonel George Meade, son of General George Meade. The letters respect the sale and trade of photographs of deceased Civil War officers. The letters are accompanied by a list of photographs owned by Taylor depicting officers who died in the Civil War.

William Anthony Notebook, 1851-1855 – Processed by Sara Quashnie

This 111-page pocket notebook documents the studies and travels of William Anthony, a student at Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from 1851 to 1855. The bulk of the entries are medical notes regarding patients Anthony encountered during his time at Jefferson.

John Thomas Batt Papers, 1772-1808 – Processed by Corey Schmidt

This collection is made up of 49 letters and 11 documents and other items, consisting primarily of the incoming correspondence of barrister John Thomas Batt from English and Irish aristocrats, politicians, and state figures. The letters pertain to the end of the American Revolution, the Franco-American alliance, political turmoil in Ireland from the 1780s through the early 1800s, and matters relating to English politics.

Herman Beck Language Practice Book, 1852 – Processed by Theresa Dowker

Herman Beck created this book of German-English language practice exercises on ethics, business administration, letter writing, bookkeeping, and other subjects. The volume includes some teacher corrections as well as printed, colored illustrations and a map of Europe.

Samuel Blodget Collection, 1802-1803 – Processed by Cari Griffin

This collection is made up of four letters, a bill, and a receipt, providing information about merchant, economist, and amateur architect Samuel Blodget, Jr.’s proposal for a National University and a monument to George Washington, to be erected in Washington, D.C.

William Rawle Brooke Diary, 1863-1865 – Processed by Sara Quashnie

This diary chronicles William Rawle Brooke’s service with the Third Pennsylvania Cavalry during the Civil War (he later changed his name to William Brooke Rawle). It begins with Brooke’s initial Army commission in May 1863 and concludes in August 1865, shortly before his discharge. Brooke described daily army life, provided detailed accounts of battles, and other events of note.

Du Bois Medicinal Recipe Book, [ca. 1895] – Processed by Sara Quashnie

This notebook (241 pages) contains medicinal recipes as well as instructions for making other health, beauty, and household products. It contains several newspaper clippings and paper inserts, including one letter by Pierre Du Bois.

Kate G. Geary Autograph Album, 1877-1884 – Processed by Jayne Ptolemy

The Kate G. Geary Autograph Album contains signatures, poems, proverbs, and other contributions of Geary’s male and female acquaintances in Michigan from 1877 to 1884.

Richard B. and Agnes Irwin Family Correspondence, [1796]-1894 – Processed by Sara Quashnie

This collection is comprised of 76 letters written and received by members of the Irwin family (direct descendants of Benjamin Franklin). The majority of the collection consists of letters written by educator Agnes Irwin, Richard Biddle Irwin, who served as George McClellan’s aide-de-camp, and their mother Sophia Bache Irwin during the first half of the Civil War.

Manuscript Recipe Book Collection, 1793-1959 – Processed by Sara Quashnie

This collection comprises thirty American manuscript recipe books dated from 1793 to 1959 with the bulk dating from the nineteenth century. Two of the books contain portions in German, while the rest are in English. Most regions of the United States are present, with the Northeast and Southern States best represented. Desserts represent the bulk of the recipes, cakes being the most popular. Some recipes include attributes to friends, family, or cookbooks, and some contain notes on quality of the dish. Directions for making medicinal remedies and practical household needs (such as cleaning product recipes or advice on fabric care) may also be included. Many volumes contain handwritten or printed inserts.

New York and Canada Line Account Book, 1869-1921 – Processed by Cari Griffin

The first section of this volume contains 73 pages of accounting records for the New York and Canada Line, which shipped cargo on the Northeast Atlantic seaboard and along the St. Lawrence Seaway. The entries date from 1869 to 1873. A second section of the volume contains accounting and inventory records for an unidentified slate company, between 1889 and 1910. The final page contains a single entry by an unknown party for a lumber purchase in 1921.

Petit Family Land Documents, 1840-1902 – Processed by Cari Griffin

This collection consists of 87 legal documents pertinent to land transactions conducted by Edward Petit (1812-1875) and his family in the Port Huron area of St. Clair County, Michigan, 1840-1902.

Leslie W. Quirk and Walker H. Mills Correspondence, 1926-1931 – Processed by Cheney J. Schopieray

This collection contains eight typed letters by author Leslie W. Quirk to his friend, fellow World War I veteran Walker H. Mills, and retained copies of Mills’s nine responses to Quirk. Mills and Quirk served together in the American Field Service on the Western Front, Réserve Mallet, Motor Transport Company 839. Quirk struck up the correspondence in 1926 as he began writing a juvenile novel about the war, which he eventually published as Jimmy Goes to War (1931). They discussed the potential contents of the book, what parts of the story it would leave out or keep in, and descriptive details (such as insignia colors, the text of French signs, and other minutia). An inscribed copy of Jimmy Goes to War to Walker Mills accompanies the letters. The volume contains manuscript notations that appear to be an effort to identify the real names of fictionalized characters in the story.

Reading (Mass.) Documents, 1666-1731 – Processed by Cari Griffin

This collection consists of 17 manuscript documents respecting local affairs in Reading, Massachusetts, between 1666 and 1731. The documents address property, indigent persons, town meetings (calls to meet and issues addressed), and financial matters.

Charles S. Thomas and Jerome M. Snook Collection, 1868-1872 – Processed by Cheney J. Schopieray

This collection is made up of 14 letters by (or on behalf of) Charles Spalding Thomas to his friend Jerome M. Snook, while Thomas lived in Prairieville and Ann Arbor, Michigan, and Denver, Colorado. In 1868 and 1869, Thomas sent requests to Snook, who worked as a clerk at the Beebe & Scott clothing store in Kalamazoo, asking him to clean his coat and secure him a pair of ladies’ skates. Thomas wrote his letters of 1870 and early 1871 from Ann Arbor, where he studied law at the University of Michigan. Following his graduation in 1871, he corresponded from his home state of Georgia. Thomas sent his final letters from Denver, Colorado, where he settled to practice law. The correspondence pertains to acquaintances, the weather, women, lecturers, advice about Snook’s upcoming attendance at the University of Michigan, and the 1872 presidential election.

William W. Winters Biography, [1853?] – Processed by Cari Griffin

This manuscript is a 141-page biography of William W. Winters (1826-1895), a one-time medical student from Ohio, cabinetmaker, daguerreotypist, and Methodist Minister, among other professions. The biography and subsequent pasted-in documents draw heavily from Winters’s own diary entries and trace the events of his life from 1826 to 1853, including his divorce from his wife, who he accused of adultery.