Consists of four documents from the Pennsylvania Society for Promoting the Abolition of Slavery.

The first document is a report by a Committee of the House of Representatives of the State of Pennsylvania dated March 17, 1797, regarding a case resulting from noncompliance with a "law for the gradual abolition of slavery" that required the names, ages, and sexes when registering enslaved people. In the case recorded here, Timothy Green omitted their names. Therefore, it was resolved that Green should withdraw his petition, and those he formerly enslaved who had been freed should remain free. Written in a secretarial hand on a single sheet measuring 327 x 203 mm.

The second document records "An Act for the abolition of Slavery in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania" that was reported on March 24, 1797. It declares that "all men are born equally free and independent" regardless of their color or description. Also states that "an act for the gradual abolition of slavery" that passed on March 1, 1780, would be repealed upon the passing of this act. Written in a secretarial hand on the first two pages of a bifolium measuring 328 x 203 mm.

The third document is a letter by the Pennsylvania Society for Promoting the Abolition of Slavery, dated April 26, 1797, Philadelphia, to the London Society for Promoting the Abolition of Slavery on recent trials against those involved in the trade of enslaved people. The Pennsylvania Society acknowledges the argument in British Parliament that the United States would profit if Great Britain abolished slavery. The letter then cites an act of Congress of March 22nd, 1794, that disallows the "supplying foreigners with slaves." The Abolition Societies in New York and Rhode Island have thus pursued prosecutions against those engaging in such practices. They also request records from the Sierra Leone Company that would name Americans engaged in the slave trade. Four pages written on one folded sheet (327 x 203 mm) in a secretarial hand.

The fourth document is a Society resolution dated January 4, 1799, Philadelphia, and signed by secretaries James Milnor and Timothy Paxson. This extract from meeting minutes commends abolitionist attorney James Ross for his service to the cause of emancipation, namely "in the trial of the Commonwealth against Aberilla Blackmore" regarding "two oppressed Black people unlawfully held in bondage." Written in a secretarial hand on a single sheet measuring 338 x 203 mm.

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The letters refer to Indigenous people using racist language.

Consists of ten letters from George W. Brookins to his brother Harvey S. Brookins that detail George's experience in the Minnesota Volunteer Infantry during the Dakota War of 1862 and the American Civil War. George was a private in Company I of the 3rd Regiment, Minnesota Volunteer Infantry, and his brother Harvey was in Company E of the 8th Regiment, Minnesota Volunteers.

The first letter, dated September 30, 1862, details occurrences in the Battle of Wood Lake, including fellow infantrymen being fired upon by the Sioux opposition and talk of prisoners.

Other letters are written from Redwood, Fort Ridgley, Crystal Lake, and Fort Snelling. George reports that he is writing petitions to Minnesota Governor Ramsey and General Pope in an attempt to get transferred to Harvey's regiment. He also tells of his life as a soldier, visiting friends, late payments that result in men and officers leaving, and a dinner hosted by ladies in Minneapolis. By December, George had received a letter from Governor Ramsey that all petitions for transfer were refused "on the grounds that 'it makes confusion in the accounts of the men and is really a positive injury to them as they are likely to thereby loose [sic] their bounties.'"

In January 1863, the Regiment began its move south to the Southern Union campaign of the Civil War. George writes in two letters from Fort Snelling that he hopes to be able to get a clerk job, that there are 32 men in his company, more than any other company, and that they expect to leave soon.

In another letter written in January, George describes the trip down the Mississippi to Memphis and comments on the terrible cold. He also writes of men tearing down bunks to burn for warmth at Ft. Pickering. The Regiment ends up in Helena, Arkansas, and George notes 8 or 10 gunboats in the Mississippi and complains of "a regular system of swindling soldier's rations + selling," which results in soldiers not getting enough to eat.

From Winona on January 21, George reports that they are underway, arriving at Hastings the first night, followed by Red Wing, Lake City, Wabashaw, Minneiska, and Winona and that the Regiment was complete. On January 28, George writes that the Regiment arrived in Cairo, Illinois, by rail after a journey through Minnesota to Chicago.

George W. Brookins (1826-1885) was bron in Vermont and served as a private in Company I of the 3rd Regiment, Minnesota Volunteer Infantry, from 1861 to 1864.

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Consists of 37 silver prints, including two multipart panoramas, of views of Valdez, Alaska, and its vicinity by Phinney S. Hunt.

Three photographs show Keystone Canyon, an entranceway to Valdez, and six photos show scenes along Thompson Pass, a 2,678-foot high mountain pass through the Chugach Mountains near Valdez. These images include a view of the Summit Roadhouse. There are also images of Wortman's Roadhouse and of a garden at the Tonsina Roadhouse, both of which were situated along the Valdez-Fairbanks wagon road. The Tonsina Roadhouse was built by Jim Donaldson in 1900 and remains in operation today as the Tonsina River Lodge. There is also an image of Solomon's Gulch in Valdez, three photographs of nearby Knight Island, and a photograph captioned "Landing supplies and passengers at Valdez, Alaska," dated 1898.

A six-part panoramic photograph shows Childs Glacier and Miles Glacier. Also visible in this panorama is Miles Glacier Bridge, which was built by J. P. Morgan and the Guggenheim family for the Copper River and Northwestern Railway (CR&NW) to haul copper from the mining town of Kennicott to the port at Cordova. A three-part panorama shows Mt. Drum, Mt. Sanford, and Mt. Wrangle. A similar scene also appears in another photograph.

Also included is a birdseye view of the Copper River Mining Co., a photograph of the Kennicott Mine Company's discharge station, and seven photographs of scenes along the CR&NW line. Some images depict everyday life, such as Valdez resident Owen Meals "hilling potatoes," and a photograph of a man identified as "Marshall" standing next to his "barricade."

Phinney S. Hunt arrived in Valdez in 1898 as a gold rush prospector. He became a commercial photographer there and made thousands of photographs of Valdez. In 1915, Hunt became the official photographer for the Alaskan Engineering Commission.

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Two cabinet card portraits of Black men by F. Jay Haynes. One is a full-length portrait with Haynes' Palace Studio Car backmark on the verso. The man in this portrait is facing forward, wearing a jacket over a dress shirt, vest, and dress pants, and holds a cane. In the other portrait, the subject is angled to his right and wears a dress shirt, tie, and suit jacket with a flower lapel pin. This cabinet card has Haynes' St. Paul, Minn., address on the verso.

F. Jay Haynes (1853-1921) was a professional photographer who documented the settlement and expansion of the American Northwest during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Based in Minnesota and North Dakota, Haynes served as the official photographer for Northern Pacific Railway and Yellowstone National Park. Haynes first visited Yellowstone in 1881 and, a few years later in 1884, obtained permission to operate a photography studio there. He served as Yellowstone's official photographer from 1884 until 1920 when he was succeeded by his son, Jack Ellis Haynes (1884-1962).

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Legal document from Queen Anne's County, Maryland, dated June 16, 1857, ordering the arrest of Joel Fallowfield for conspiring to kidnap and murder enslaved man Saul Brown. Brown, enslaved by Charles McCollister, was imprisoned in the county jail.

The document is numbered 11 above the docket title "State of Maryland vs. Joel Fallowfield," followed by sheriff A. A. Duhamel stating that Fallowfield was not found ("Non[ ]est"). Lists the judge as the Honorable P. B. Hopper and signed by clerk John Palmer. With embossed state seal.

Saul Brown was convicted of the murder of William H. Porter in 1855 and sentenced to be hanged on February 29, 1856, by Judge Hopper according to an article titled "Jackson's Execution: The Last Execution in Queen Anne's Was 38 Years Ago" published in The Transcript, Thursday, May 31, 1894.

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This propaganda leaflet, also known as a "LeMay leaflet," was created by the United States Army Air Force. It was dropped by B-29 Superfortress bombers over 12 Japanese cities on 27 July 1945, a little over a week before the United States detonated the first atomic bomb over Hiroshima on August 6.

The front features a photomechanical illustration of five bombers dropping incendiary bombs over Yokohama. Circles along the bottom border represent 11 potential targets. The list of cities includes Aomori, Nishinomiya, Ogaki, Ichinomiya, Kurume, Uwajima, Nagoke, Hakodate, Tu, Uji Yamada, and Tokyo. Hiroshima or Nagasaki were not included, although the leaflet specifically notes other cities may also be targeted. The reverse side of the leaflet contains the warning text in Japanese.

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Consists of a manuscript letter written by Reverend W. L. McAlister, superintendent of Fort Coffee Academy and New Hope School for Girls, to Paul M. Palmer of Somerville, Fayette County, Tennessee. In the letter, Reverend McAlister notes that his work at the schools is progressing despite it being so new to him. He shares that the school has 50 boys and 30 girls, that both boys school teachers are ministers, and that there are regular class meetings. He notes that the circuit preacher is a Choctaw man who assists with interpreting (unnamed in the letter but referring to John Page). The letter also details recent illness in the reverend's family and their loneliness without friends where they are.

Reverend Wilson L. McAlister (1803-1859) was a minister in the Methodist Episcopal Church South and served as superintendent of Fort Coffee Academy and New Hope School for Girls located on the Arkansas River in the Choctaw Nation.

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Consists of a 1-page manuscript critique with edits of Ian Finley's "Celtic Art: An Introduction,"as well as a 1-page typed critique of Patrick Piggott's "The Life and Music of John Field, 1782-1837" with a proof copy of the book with scoring and corrections (possibly by Heaney). Also includes two postcards from Heaney to Kieran Sheedy: one from Detroit concerning a documentary on the composer John Field and the other from Dublin regarding a documentary about the troubled first production of Seán O'Casey's play "The Plough and the Stars" in 1926.

Seamus Heaney was a poet, translator, and critic born in County Derry, Northern Ireland. He authored over 20 volumes of poetry and criticism over the course of his career. Heaney was a member of Aosdana and won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1995.

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Consists of a two-page typed letter from a Spanish soldier serving in Ceuta asking his brothers to send money and his personal identification documents so he can desert. He writes that he is afraid for his life as tens of thousands of men have died in the past month, and the Moors are about to enter Tétouan. Written in Ceuta, dated 5 de septiembre de 1924, and addressed to Señor Don. José Alier Carranza, Barcelona. Signed at bottom of the first page by Juan.

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Consists of a 17-page typescript written from an Italian perspective on the history, cultural customs, and superstitions of the inhabitants of Cyrenaica. The first section recounts the history of Cyrenaica from the Carthaginian Empire through Italian colonization. The second section states practices and beliefs regarding childbirth, marriage, and eating habits, among other topics. It also generalizes about the personal characteristics of the askaris and their views on serving in the military. The text cuts off on page 17, as the sheet is torn and its bottom half is missing.

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Letter from Massachusetts Governor John Hancock to South Carolina Governor Benjamin Guerard, written March 30, 1784, Boston, regarding a group of enslaved people. Hancock states that he brought forth to the General Court a letter from Guerard and encloses "the whole of the transactions respecting the negroes" at the court's request.

Includes only the 1-page letter, not the document from the General Court.

Signed with initials by John Hancock and addressed to Benjamin Guerard, Esq. Docket title on the back: "To the Governor of South Carolina, 1784."

John Hancock was an American patriot, statesman, and signer of the Declaration of Independence. Born on January 23, 1737, in Braintree, Mass., he was educated at Harvard College (now Harvard University). In 1766 he was elected to the Massachusetts legislature, and from 1775 to 1780 Hancock was a member of the Continental Congress, serving as a presiding officer. By virtue of this office, he was the first to sign the Declaration of Independence, which he did boldly in large strokes. He was the first governor of the state of Massachusetts, holding that office from 1780 to 1785 and from 1789 until his death.

1 item1 page21 x 16 cm

A letter from M. A. Huntington of Middlefield [Center?] to Emily A. F. Winsor, care of Sarah Pratt in New York. The letter was written on abolitionist stationery consisting of a letterhead with an anti-slavery drawing, and the phrase, "Am I not a man and a brother?" The letter itself recounts Huntington's visits to various cities in New York state and other social pleasantries.

An abolitionist from Middlefield Center, New York.

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A letter from Anne Lincoln of Boston, MA to her mother, Mary C. Lincoln of Northborough, MA. The letter was written on abolitionist stationery consisting of a letterhead with an anti-slavery drawing, and the phrase, "Am I not a woman and a sister?" The letter sends news of their family and friends, and plans for upcoming family visits that winter.

Daughter of Jairus and Mary Cotton Lincoln.

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Five typescript letters in English and four pages of correspondence in Gujarati, including what appears to be an official order, documenting state actions against Indian lawyer and activist Manilal Kothari.

The letters show attempts by state officials in Gujarat, Gondal, and Shahpura to restrict Kothari from entering their regions. One hand-signed letter in English, dated January 18, 1932, and marked "Secret," is addressed to His Highness Maharaja Shri Sir Bhagvatsinhji Sagramji, from The British Resident at Rajkot. Two hand-signed typescript letters dated January 1932 and marked confidential, relate to an exclusion notice that was served on Kothari by GondaI State that he refused to sign. An additional letter in Gujarati appears to be a copy of this notice. The last two letters are typescript letters dated April 27 and May 3, 1935. They detail correspondence between the Dewan of Gondal state and the Pradham of Shahpura State about whether Kothari was prohibited from entering Gondal. Several pages are in Gujarati.

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This document states that Joseph Burnap will fully support the child that pregnant single woman Mary Buxton is currently carrying so that the town of Reading will not be financially responsible for the child.

Signed at the bottom by Joseph Burnap and witnesses William Brown and Elizabeth Brown in Reading, Middlesex County, Massachusetts. Written with the support of other men: Nathaniel Wiley, Ebenezer Upton, Benjamin Flint, Benjamin Brown, James Bancroft, Joseph Bancroft, and John Hart.

Docket title on the back: "Capt Burnap Bond."

Paper loss at foldlines affecting several words.

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Consists of a single sheet with a list of jobs done by Constable Josiah Waters between 1728-1730 and the payment he seeks for them from the Town of Charlestown. Each list item includes a fee. Several lines state delivering warrants warning people out of town, including Mary Vine and Thomas Webb with his wife and two children. Waters also requests that the town abate James Brown.

The document lists the Town of Charlestown as debtor to Josiah Waters at the top.

Pen used to excise an error, accompanied by signed verification: "Error Excised by Josiah Waters."

Docket title on the back: "Josiah Waters letter."

1 item1 sheet31 x 20 cm

Letter written by De la Heuze, who was likely a French naval officer, reporting on circumstances at Môle St. Nicolas and Port Royal.

De la Heuze writes that he departed from Môle St. Nicolas on 25 Thermidor (= 12 August) and due to a mistake made by the captain the ship only arrived at Port Royal, Jamaica nine days later on 4 Fructidor (= 21 August). During the 24 hours he was at Port Royal, De La Heuze witnessed low morale and poor conditions: the arsenals were empty, food prices were extremely high, wine was unaffordable, flour was rare, and the death-rate of sailors was very high due to yellow fever. American ships that normally supplied necessary goods had not arrived for some time.

The letter also mentions Captain General Sir George Nugent (1757-1849), governor of Jamaica during this period, as well as concerns for French pirates, noting that Jacques Mathieu who had recently killed the captain of an English ship. De la Heuze also recalls an English admiral's praises regarding Donatien de Vimeur, Vicomte de Rochambeau, who was the highest commander of the French army at Saint-Domingue at the time.

In the postscript, De la Heuze adds that he is treated with respect and that he returned to Môle as soon as he received the letters from the admiral of a ship that was anchored in Port Royal.

1 item4 pages32 cm

W. C. Fowler letter to Charles Sumner, dated Jan. 1, 1868, on behalf of Mary Custis, on regaining ownership of the family's Arlington home. He also mentions a bill in the Senate of Connecticut to teach the metric system in schools, and he notes the success of his book published by Harper.

The letter is written in ink on lined paper with an embossed stamp that reads "Congress" in the upper left corner of the first page.

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Consists of a letter from Elijah Hicks to John Ross written during Hicks' travels with General John E. Wool. The letter is written near the end of Hicks' journey with Wool, just before his return to Washington. Hicks shares that he met Thomas Ritchie, who was at the time the editor of the Richmond Enquirer, but notes that he "had no opportunity to introduce the Cherokee questions," referencing the diplomatic work that he and other Cherokee delegates were undertaking to prevent the forced removal of their people. Hicks' letter also touches upon the Second Seminole War, the Panic of 1837, and other events.

Elijah Hicks was born in the old Cherokee Nation east of the Mississippi River, and assumed a high position as a leader in 1832 and 1833. After the signing of the Treaty of New Echota, he was part of an anti-treaty faction led by John Ross that worked to prevent the forced removal of the Cherokee though diplomatic means.

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Consists of a letter from Sir Richard Francis Burton to "Kirk" written during Burton's time as the British Consul at Triest, Italy. Written in Suez, Egypt, the letter discusses traveling through Aden (part of British India at the time), and future travel plans through the Middle East and Africa. The letter refers to writing a "revisited chapter" during his travels, as well as Burton's travel plans until he could write to Kirk again from Trieste.

Captain Sir Richard Francis Burton was a British explorer, writer, translator, diplomat, and military officer.

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Indenture dated November 1, 1847, that transfers land ownership from Gerrit Smith of Peterboro to James M. Williams of Brooklyn for one dollar. The land is in Franklin County, described as the southwest quarter of lot 182 of "Township Nine, Old Military Tract, containing 40 acres." It is signed at the bottom by Gerrit Smith.

The name Francis H. Pa[?]r has been crossed out and replaced with James M. Williams. The name Chas. D. Miller is also crossed out at the bottom of the sheet. On the back, the document is signed by James W. Nye, Judge of Madison County, and dated November 20, 1847.

This land was part of the Blacksville settlement.

1 item1 sheet25 x 21 cm

Manuscript proclamation prohibiting the sale, or conveying by any means, of alcohol to an Indigenous person (referred to as "an Indian"), effective January 1, 1848. Signed by California Governor Richard Barnes Mason, at Monterey. Handwritten in English and in Spanish, in ink on a folded blue sheet. The English and Spanish versions are on opposite sides of the fold. The English version is titled "Proclamation," and the Spanish version is titled "Proclama."

Handwritten note on the back: "Please stick this up in some public place."

1 item25 x 20 cm

Consists of a manuscript map of a plot of land (approximately two square miles) on a bend of the Delaware River near Oxford, New Jersey, created around the mid-eighteenth century. The plot includes "good meadow land" on both the New Jersey and Pennsylvania sides of the river, a section of "Beaver Dam Brook" (now Beaver Brook, a tributary of the Pequest River, which is also shown). Much of the plot is "Good Land, all well timber'd, pretty clear of Stones; but very hilly and a great deal unfit to plow," but there is a pond and a "good swamp and clear of stones."

The map also provides details of local amenities outside the plot itself, including "Gruno Pond & very good fishing" (now known as Mountain Lake), separated from the plot by a range of hills. There is a saw mill 140 chains further down Beaver Brook, and two miles up it is a grist mill. The single road that runs through the property leads to "Jonathan Roberstson's [sic] Furnace" (now Oxford Furnace), a blast furnace for pig iron built in 1741 by Jonathan Robeson (c. 1695-1766).

A note about the scale is below the map: "Reduc'd from ye original of 20 Chains to the Inch, to 30 Chains to the Inch."

By repute this map relates to property speculation by David Barclay, of Youngsbury (1729-1809).

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