The Percival Nash Collection consists of copies of Nash's diary (1904-1906); correspondence between Nash and members of the Nash family, including his stepbrother W. Gifford Nash; copies of article manuscripts by Nash; and photographs documenting Nash’s time in the Yukon Territory of Canada, and in Manhattan, Nevada.
The collection includes two pieces of correspondence. The first is a typewritten letter from Percival Nash to his stepbrother Gifford W. Nash from the Yukon Territory in Canada, and is dated February 9, 1903. In the letter, Nash discusses his experiences hunting and trapping in the Yukon, and expresses the desire to work with a fellow trapper Mike McMurray. Of particular note in this letter is the story Nash relates of breaking his leg on the way to McMurray’s camp. The second letter, from an unidentified relative of Nash’s and dated January 30, 1911, references Nash’s work in Nevada, presumably referring to his work as a surveyor and Assistant Secretary of the Manhattan Dexter Mining Company.
The collection also includes two unpublished works written by Nash. The first, entitled The Ghost in the Snow, relates the story of the death of a man known only as “Frenchy” on the Stewart River in the Yukon Territory. The second work is a photocopy of an unidentified, hand-written article draft about fur trapping in Canada in which Nash describes the “various Northern furs,” and covers everything from building a camp and trading post, to acquiring and training sled dogs from puppies.
Three copies of Nash’s diary are included in the collection: a photocopy of the original, a hand-written transcription done by Mary Dimick (a Corvallis resident, and OSC alum), and a typescript copy. In the diary, Nash recounts, among other things, where he and his fellow trappers made camp as they traveled through the territory; the animals they encountered, including those they trapped or killed for sustenance or trade (e.g. moose, wolverine, ermine, marten, and mink); activities Nash engaged in during his “down time” (e.g. repairing or constructing clothes, baking, washing clothes, fixing up his cabin); daily weather conditions; and other trappers Nash visited or worked with, most of whom are only referred to by last name (e.g. Joslin, Brewster, Forten, McNaughten, Barker, Morrison, Sinnott, Frank Williams, Bob Waken, and his partner Frank Braine).
Of particular note in the diary are entries written between February 17 and February 20, 1906 in which Nash discusses developing his photographs, and trading and camping with nearby First Nations peoples. Nash makes frequent mention of this trading again in April 1906, and throughout the rest of the year. The typescript copy of the diary has been digitized and is available upon request.
Images in the collection document Nash’s travels and activities in the Yukon Territory of Canada – namely the environs of the Stewart River and Dawson City – between 1900 and 1906. A typed list of negatives compiled by Nash’s daughter Betty Nash Carlson in 1983 provides additional context for the images. The majority of the prints are 8x10 inch. A list of the prints in the collection - with additional descriptive information - is included with the photographs. Some descriptive language used in the print list is outdated and offensive.
Yukon Territory locations documented in the collection include Duncan Creek, Fraser Creek, and the Hess River, all tributaries of the Stewart River; Sheep Mountain and Mount Joy; Fraser Falls and Pleasant Lake; Lansing Creek and Dawson City; and the Lansing Creek Trading Post. Also included is an image of an “Indian burial ground” at the Lansing Creek Trading Post.
People featured in the images include Nash; Jim Christi (or Christy); Dave Huy (or Hug); Frank Braine; Cameron Hunt, “proctor” for the Hudson Bay Trading Company at the Lansing Creek Trading Post; and Boston Mackay, a man who served as one of Cameron Hunt’s porters. Mackay may have been Métis, and may also have been involved in the North-West Resistance of 1885.
Topics, activities, and additional subjects documented include the fauna of the Yukon Territory (martin, ermine, mink, moose, wolves, sheep, and a Canada lynx); panning for gold and whipsawing lumber; portaging a canoe (carrying it overland); early 20th-century automobiles; sled dogs attached to a sled; a sternwheeler on the Stewart River near Dawson City; and a studio portrait that may be of Nash, his wife Mary, and their children.
Also included is a photograph of the “Free Miner’s Certificate” issued to Nash by the “Dominion of Canada.” Privileges granted by the document include “fishing, shooting, and cutting timber for necessities; building of houses and boats; and mining operations.”
