Collection of Individual Manuscript Items, 1774-1945

Collection Overview

Title: Collection of Individual Manuscript Items, 1774-1945

Predominant Dates: 1808-1865

ID: MSS ManuscriptItems

Primary Creator: Agassiz, Louis (1807-1873)

Extent: 0.35 cubic feet. More info below.

Arrangement: Alphabetical by author.

Languages of Materials: German [ger], French [fre], Spanish;Castilian [spa], English [eng]

Abstract

The Collection of Individual Manuscript Items is an artifical collection of handwritten and typed manuscripts pulled together from a number of miscellaneous sources. The provenance of many items is unknown.

Scope and Content Notes

This collection is comprised of individual letters, notes, and other manuscript items deriving from multiple authors. Letters from prominent individuals, such as John Jacob Astor and Louis Agassiz, appear in the collection, along with anonymous creators. Notable items include the deed to a slave and her son, dated 1829; a typescript fragment of a speech from Albert Einstein, and a letter from Washington Territory governor Isaac Stevens. Several items were found tucked in rare books; where this is the case, the call number of origin has been noted. Other items were formerly cataloged manuscripts appearing in the library catalog; where this is the case, the original call number has been noted.

Administrative Information

Accruals: Additions to the collection are expected as manuscript items are discovered.

More Extent Information: 1 box; 1 map folder

Statement on Access: The collection is open for research.

Acquisition Source: Manuscripts were found in rare books, removed from cataloged print collections, or purchased

Other Note: Item 1.21, Letter from James Watt, is missing as of August 2016.

Creators

Agassiz, Louis (1807-1873)
Astor, John Jacob (1763-1848)
Borglum, Gutzon (1867-1941)
Bryant, William Cullen (1794-1878)
Chadwick, James (1891-1974)
Einstein, Albert (1879-1955)
Roosevelt, Theodore (1887-1944)
Stevens, Isaac Ingalls (1818-1862)
Sutter, John Augustus (1803-1880)
Watt, James (1736-1819)

People, Places, and Topics

Agassiz, Louis, 1807-1873--Correspondence.
Astor, John Jacob, 1763-1848--Correspondence.
Atomic bomb--Japan--History.
Borglum, Gutzon, 1867-1941--Correspondence.
Bryant, William Cullen, 1794-1878--Correspondence.
Death--Poetry.
Land grants--Virginia--Northern Neck.
Land grants--West Virginia.
Radium industry--History.
Slaves--Virginia--History.
Stevens, Isaac Ingalls, 1818-1862--Correspondence.
Sutter, John Augustus, 1803-1880--Correspondence.
Tonics (Medicinal preparations)
Watt, James, 1736-1819--Correspondence.

Box and Folder Listing

Box-Folder 1.1: Agassiz, Louis. Letter, June 27, 1865

A letter written by Jean Louis Rodolphe Agassiz to his former students from Rio de Janiero, Brazil. In the letter he expresses appreciation for his students, comments on his studies of natural history in Brazil, and sends his regrets that he cannot be with them as the school is closing for the year. Transcription included. Found in QL351 .A27 1863 History of Science Rare Book Collection.

Box-Folder 1.2: Astor, John Jacob. Letter, October 24, 1808

A letter written from New York explaining and paying his $555 debt to Mure and Joliff. Transcription included.

Box-Folder 1.3: Borglum, Gutzon. Letter, March 6, 1934

A letter to his daughter stating he has received consent from all of the senators adding names of some politicians and some wives to a list. Letterhead of Metropolitan Club, Washington, D. C.

Box-Folder 1.4: Bryant, William Cullen. Letter, February 28, 1839

Letter written from New York to Joseph B. Boyd explaining his late reply and stating that an autograph has been enclosed.

Box-Folder 1.5: Chadwick, James. Letter, February 18, 1967

A letter written from Wynne's Park, Denbigh, N. Wales to an unknown corresepondent stating he cannot send an autographed photograph. Chadwick writes briefly about his life, education, and his scientific endeavors including the discovery of the neutron.

Box-Folder 1.6: Dingess, John. Deed to enslaved person, October 21, 1829

Deed to enslaved person "named Soll with her son named Morris aged about seven years," sold to James Jenks, witnessed by Anthony Lawson and Joseph Straton in Logan County, Virginia.

Box-Folder 1.7: Einstein, Albert. Typescript draft, June 6, 1945

Pages 3, 7 and 8 of a rough draft for article “Only Then Shall We Find Courage”, regarding Einstein’s opinion about atomic bombs and foreign policy. Handwritten corrections and notes. Removed from Atomic Energy Collection.

Box-Folder 2.1: Fairfax, Thomas, 6th Baron of Cameron. Land grant, July 3, 1779

Grants Henry Baker of Frederick County a tract of land in Northern Neck area of Virginia.

Box-Folder 1.8: Goehring, Otto. Letter, May 17, 1915

Letter to the noted gemologist George F. Kunz, thanking him for his interest in his work and discussing the new element brevium of 1913 and his dissertation on uranium. He mentions Kasimeir Fajans and his theories. In German. Removed from Atomic Energy Collection.

Box-Folder 1.9: Herschel, W.J., June 30, 1894

A letter stating that a gift is attached as a thank you for the intended subject of the letter. He also requests the name and address of the registrar who did work for him. Found in GN192 .G21, McDonald Rare Book Collection

Box-Folder 1.10: McRae, William. Letter, July 1, 1823

Updates John Golden of Palmyra, Missouri on news of mutual friends and family, reports on the price of whiskey nearby, and encourages Golden to resettle nearby to sell whiskey.

Box-Folder 1.11: Marckwald, W. Letter, March 14, 1904

Letter to noted gemoloist George F. Kunz with a sample of radium teeluride for his exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History; discusses scarcity of Joachimsthal pitchblende and remarks on the difficulty of purchasing commercial radium samples. Transcription included. In German. Removed from Atomic Energy Collection.

Box-Folder 1.12: Pugh, Jonathan. Land lease, November 11, 1774

Grant of land in Hampshire County (now West Virginia) to Andrew Millslagle.

Box-Folder 1.13: Raniskey, Y. B. Letter, December 11, 1853

Letter to relations from Colusa County, California near the Sacramento River. He describes his land and farming and asks for news of home.

Box-Folder 1.14: Recipe for Read's Tonic, by Charles Read, circa 1800-1850

"For Dyspepsia, weakness of Stomach and Bowels, or for general debility, this is one of the best restoratives."

Box-Folder 1.15: Roosevelt, Theodore, Jr. Letter, November 8, 1924

Thanks Mr. C. O. Holt for his support during Coolidge's election.

Box-Folder 1.16: Stevens, Isaac. Letter, February 16, 1858

Letter to Reverend A. P. Peabody in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Stevens acknowledges a letter of recommendation for Mr. Charles C Cushman and informs Peabody that Cushman will be named Postmaster in New Dungeness, Washington Territory. Formerly F891 .S731 1853 in History of Pacific Northwest Collection.

Box-Folder 1.17: Stevens, Isaac. Facsimile letter, April 11, 1858

Letter to Edmund Sylvester, Olympia regarding construction of a road from Fort Walla Walla to Puget Sound. Formerly F891 .S731 1853 in History of Pacific Northwest Collection.

Box-Folder 1.18: Sutter, John A. Letter, June 1842

"Letter from New Helvetia to the sheriff of San Francisco replying to a letter in which inquiry had been made concerning two Frenchmen who had arrived at San Francisco in a state of great want. Of one of the men Sutter says he knows nothing, but the other Teodoro Sicard he vouches for, asking them to show him every consideration because he will be able to make complete restitution as soon as he returns to his friends." Typed description accompanying letter. Letter in Spanish.

Box-Folder 1.19: de Tallyrand, Charles-Maurice. Letter, June 18, 1832

Typed translation reads: "I have followed the orders of Monseigneur; the letter which was written to [unknown] dinner is [unknown] this evening, full of gratitude for all the bottles of his Highness' wine. [I supplied in agreement] homage of my respect and assurance of my regrets." In French.

Box-Folder 1.20: "The Tibetan." Essay, "The Release of Atomic Energy", August 9, 1945

Written from the Arcane School, 11 West 42nd Street, 32nd Floor, New York City. A typewritten analysis of the atomic bombing of Japan in light of Eastern mystical philosophies. Removed from Atomic Energy Collection.

Box-Folder 1.21: Watts, James. Letter, July 2, 1782

Written to Mr. John Hall, engineer at Messers Sam'l Walker's Comp'y of Rotherham, Yorkshire regarding the working gear of an engine. Formerly TJ184 .W3 in History of Science Rare Book Collection.

Box-Folder 1.22: Unknown. Letter

Written from New Haven, Leiston, Suffolk. Found in QP509 .D6 1925, History of Science Rare Book Collection.

Box-Folder 1.23: Unknown. Letter, unknown date

In French.

Box-Folder 1.24: Unknown. Notes on Grindelia, circa 1914

"Copied from a Materia Medica." Handwritten note on letterhead of Angelus Hospital, Los Angeles. Found in McDonald QK201 .H4

Box-Folder 1.25: Unknown. Poems, circa 1850

Handwritten poems on death.