African American Studies: Manuscripts

Housed in Firestone Library, the Manuscripts Division of the Department of Special Collections includes material documenting 5000 years of recorded history from all parts of the world, with strengths in Western Europe, the Near East, the United States, and Latin America. For assistance, please contact the Department of Special Collections.

rbsc@princeton.edu

609-258-3184

American Minstrel Show

Collector: American Minstrel Show

Title: American Minstrel Show Collection, 1854-1943 (bulk 1850s-1920s): Finding Aid

Abstract: The bulk of the American Minstrel Show Collection consists of advertisement material promoting minstrel performances from the 1850s through the 1920s. The collection includes broadsheets, posters, newspaper clippings and programs, as well as pictures and photographs of minstrel show performers. In addition, a small portion of the collection contains sheet music and song and joke books.

Location: Rare Books Division. The Department of Special Collections.

Call number: TC050

 

Beach, Sylvia.

Creator: Beach, Sylvia.

Title: Sylvia Beach Papers, 1887-1966 (bulk 1920s-1950s): Finding Aid

Abstract: The Sylvia Beach Papers consists of a complete personal archive of Sylvia Beach (1887-1962), the American author, publisher, and proprietress of the Paris bookshop Shakespeare and Company, the Paris bookshop which was a meeting-point for French, English, Irish and American writers during the 1920's and 1930's. Included are family, personal, and professional correspondence; manuscripts by Beach and others; materials relating to the publication of James Joyce's Ulysses; materials relating to Shakespeare and Company; photographs; artwork; phonograph records; memorabilia; and other miscellanea.

Photograph of Richard Wright in Box 278B and manuscript of his unpublished novel Man Underground, inBox 276, of the Sylvia Beach Papers, C0108.

Location: Manuscripts Division. The Department of Special Collections.

Call number: C0108

 

Brown, Francis C. (Francis Cabell), 1936-

Collector: Brown, Francis C. (Francis Cabell), 1936-

Title: Francis C. Brown Collection on Slavery in America, 1779-1868 (bulk 1820-1865): Finding Aid

Abstract: The Francis C. Brown Collection on Slavery in America consists of printed and manuscript documents related to slaves and the slave trade collected by Francis C. Brown. Much of the collection concerns the World Council of Churches, the Fellowship of St. Alban and St. Sergei, and the Parisian Russian émigré community.

Records of the history of slavery in Kentucky, Tennessee and Louisiana, most numerous of which are bills of sale, but also including the discharge papers of a black Union soldier, deeds of manumissions and other documents, in the Francis C. Brown Collection on Slavery in America.

Location: Manuscripts Division. The Department of Special Collections.

Call number: C0605

 

Charles Scribner's Sons.

Creator: Charles Scribner's Sons.

Title: Archives of Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1786-2003 (bulk 1880s-1970s): Finding Aid

Abstract: This collection consists of virtually all of the surviving records of Scribners (1846-1984), the New York City publisher, and reflect aspects of all of its publishing functions (soliciting and acquiring books, editing manuscripts, printing and manufacturing books, advertising and publicizing publications) and business concerns (book and magazine publisher, retail bookstore, subscription books department, educational books department, printing press and bindery, rare books department). Included are files of editorial correspondence with authors, manufacturing records about book production, advertising records, author contracts, a collection of dust jackets, book catalogs, ledgers, and photographs. While there are gaps in most of the series or record groups, there are records representative of all of the firm's former permutations: Baker & Scribner, Charles Scribner & Co., Scribner, Armstrong & Co., Scribner, Armstrong & Welford, Scribner & Co., Charles Scribner's Sons. The bulk of the material (1880s-1970s), however, dates from the period when the publisher bore its most familiar name, “Charles Scribner's Sons.” There is also material related to early publishers' organizations and international copyright.

Papers relating to Zora Neale Hurston’s relationship to her editors at Charles Scribner’s Sons Publishing House, Author Files III, Box 44.

Location: Manuscripts Division. The Department of Special Collections.

Call number: C0101

 

Federal Theatre Project (U.S.).

Creator: Federal Theatre Project (U.S.).

Title: Federal Theatre Project Collection, 1935-1939: Finding Aid

Abstract: The Federal Theatre Project Collection consists of bulletins, reports, speeches, catalogues, play programs, information releases, notices and reviews, clippings, protest leaflets, performance details, and other materials of the Federal Theatre Project established by the Works Progress Administration during the Depression, with Hallie Flanagan as the national director.

Records of Negro Theatre in the Federal Theatre Archives, TC015, Box 3, Folder.

Location: Rare Books Division. The Department of Special Collections.

Call number: TC015

 

Harper & Brothers.

Creator: Harper & Brothers.

Title: Selected Records of Harper & Brothers, 1909-1960 (bulk 1939-1955): Finding Aid

Abstract: The Selected Papers of Harper & Brothers consist primarily of the editorial and business correspondence of Harper & Brothers, a distinguished publishing firm, between 1909 and 1960.

Papers pertaining to the discovery of Gwendolyn Brooks as a poet, in Boxes 5 and 6 of the Harper Bros. Archive.

Location: Manuscripts Division. The Department of Special Collections.

Call number: C0103

 

Louisiana Slavery and Civil War.

Collector: Louisiana Slavery and Civil War.

Title: Louisiana Slavery and Civil War Collection, 1722-1872: Finding Aid

Abstract: The Louisiana Slavery and Civil War Collection consists of documents concerning the estate of the manumitted slave Marie Claire, a selection of Benjamin F. Butler correspondence, correspondence and documents concerning claims against the Union Army, and miscellaneous materials relating to Louisiana history.

Records of the history of slavery in Louisiana, the bulk of which relate to a manumitted slave named Marie Claire and are in French.

Location: Manuscripts Division. The Department of Special Collections.

Call number: C0033

 

Miller, Samuel, 1769-1850.

Creator: Miller, Samuel, 1769-1850.

Title: Samuel Miller Papers, 1754-1898 (bulk 1800-1849): Finding Aid

Abstract: Contains writings and correspondence of and relating to Samuel Miller, a nineteenth-century American Presbyterian clergyman and author.

Presbyterian clergyman involved in African-American education.

Location: Manuscripts Division. The Department of Special Collections.

Call number: C0277

 

Miscellaneous Slavery Collection, 1804-1885.

The material is arranged by accession number.

Summary note: Consists of an open collection of correspondence and documents related to slavery inAmerica in the 18th and 19th centuries. Included are a manuscript copy (1830) of the 1st census conducted in 1790, which includes statistics for slaves in each state; a bill of sale dated March 24, 1819, of a Negro woman named "Hannah," signed by Jacob Cozine, John Thomas, and Elizabeth Sprouls; a document dated November 2, 1821, about the division of slaves once owned by Berrald Innes, signed by James, Elizabeth, and Harry Innes; a bill dated December 10, 1861 about the sale of a slave named "Sam"; a bill from South Carolina dated December 19, 1845, about a slave named "Neptune," signed by Jas. E. Hogg and witnessed by John H. Howard; an agreement dated 1804 for the sale of cargo of a Capt. Wickham’s ship, which includes eighty slaves; and an autograph document (6 leaves) titled "List of Slaves on Three Mile River Estate [Westmoreland, Jamaica] 1st January 1830." The correspondence includes an autograph letter from the abolitionist Frederick Douglass to William B. Sprague, dated May 1, 1861, and another, dated April 15, 1885, to Frank B. Sanborn regarding Capt. John Brown and the events leading to the raid on Harper’s Ferry. There is also correspondence regarding "Negro Soldiers" in Tennessee dated from September to December 1865. Other correspondents include A. J. Alexander, J. P. Pryor (to President Andrew Johnson), Robert H. Ramsey, John E. Smith, Edwin M. Stanton, Maj. Gen. George Stoneman, and George H. Thomas.

An additional accession consists of receipts & accounts, 1829-1841, documenting puncheons of corn meal purchased at specified prices to maintain Africans and/or African-Antiguans held in slavery (or until abolition in 1834) by John Lavicount, Sr., on Lavicount’s Plantation, Antigua.

Provenance: The collection was formed as a result of a Departmental practice of combining into one collection material of various accessions relating to a particular person, family, or subject.

Location: Rare Books: Manuscripts Collection (MSS)

Call number: C1210

 

New York Urban League.

Creator: New York Urban League.

Title: New York Urban League Correspondence, 1922-1979 (bulk 1922-1933): Finding Aid

Abstract: The New York Urban League was founded circa 1913. Its stated goals were to “promote sympathetic understanding between white and colored people” and to improve the economic status of African-Americans through health, housing, and recreation programs as well as an effort to increase the number and the quality of jobs for minorities. The League's motto: “Not alms, but opportunity.” This collection is comprised mainly of the correspondence of Arthur C. Holden, president of the N.Y. Urban League from 1922-1931, and a member of the executive board until 1943. It contains general files of the organization's correspondence predominantly spanning the years 1922-1933, with a few items from the years 1968-1979.

Location: Manuscripts Division. The Department of Special Collections.

Call number: C0869

 

Padmore, George, 1903-1959.

Creator: Padmore, George, 1903-1959.

Title: George Padmore Collection, 1933-1945: Finding Aid

Abstract: Consisits of original letters, essays, and articles of George Padmore, one of a number of talented West Indians who helped shape African events in the 20th century. Padmore played a crucial role in developing the Fifth, and most important, Pan African Congress, intended to address the issues facingAfrica due to European colonization of much of the continent., and he was also instrumental in organizing black labor movements from the 1930s onwards.

Location: Manuscripts Division. The Department of Special Collections.

Call number: C1247

 

Slavery

Collector: Slavery

Title: Miscellaneous Slavery Collection, 1830-1885: Finding Aid

Abstract: Consists of an open collection of correspondence and documents relating to slavery in America in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Location: Manuscripts Division. The Department of Special Collections.

Call number: C1210

 

Slavery documents, 1688-1865.

Arranged in rough chronological order.

These privately owned manuscripts are available through the Department of Special Collections, Firestone Library.

Consists of documents relating to slavery in America. States include Georgia, Louisiana, Ohio,Pennsylvania, and Virginia. Included are many receipts of sale for slaves, slave manumissions, appraisals of property, an insurance policy for 100 slaves, a manifest from a slave ship, a demand for extradition for a man charged with stealing a slave, advertisements for reward for runaway slaves, tax receipts, and other miscellaneous documents and printed matter referring to slaves and the slave trade.

Location: Rare Books: William H. Scheide Library (WHS)

Call number: Scheide (32.6.8)

 

Tate, Allen, 1899-1979.

Creator: Tate, Allen, 1899-1979.

Title: Allen Tate Collection, 1931-1978: Finding Aid

Abstract: Allen Tate, American poet, edited The Fugitive (1922), wrote interpretive biographies of Stonewall Jackson and Jefferson Davis, and published numerous collections of poems and literary criticism. Papers consist primarily of letters and postcards by Tate to various friends, fellow poets, and associates.

Letter from Alain Locke to Allen Tate in Box 27, Folder 50, in the Allen Tate Papers.

Location: Manuscripts Division. The Department of Special Collections.

Call number: C0648

 

United States. Navy. African Squadron. Order book for the African Squadron, 1855-1857.

 

Jamestown sailed as flagship of the African Squadron under Commodore Crabbe, departing Key West 9 June and returning to Philadelphia 2 June 1857. One of the main functions of the African Squadron was the enforcement of American laws against slave trading.

Order book, in unknown hand, listing officers of the vessels composing the African Squadron in the years 1855-1857 and the orders for the same; abstract journal of U.S. Jamestown, flagship of Commodore Crabbe during the years 1855-1857; reports of inspection of the vessels composing the African squadron during the years 1855-1857; abstract of the cruise of the U.S. Jamestown, 1856-1857; and a copy of a letter appointing John E. Taylor as Acting Consul of the United States for the colony of Sierra Leone.

Location: Rare Books: Manuscripts Collection (MSS)

Call number: C0199 (no. 1068)

 

 

For assistance contact the Department of Special Collections

rbsc@princeton.edu

609-258-3184

Andre De Coppet Collection, 1566-1936 (bulk 1770-1865): Finding Aid Collector: De Coppet, Andre, 1892-1953. Abstract: The Andre De Coppet Collection represents the American history-related collecting activities of American broker and collector Andre De Coppet (Princeton Class of 1915). There are numerous manuscripts, personal letters, documents, and printed material from three main periods: the Revolutionary War, the Federal Period, and the Civil War. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C0063

Archives of Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1786-2003 (bulk 1880s-1970s): Finding Aid Creator: Charles Scribner's Sons. Abstract: This collection consists of virtually all of the surviving records of Scribners (1846-1984), the New York City publisher, and reflect aspects of all of its publishing functions (soliciting and acquiring books, editing manuscripts, printing and manufacturing books, advertising and publicizing publications) and business concerns (book and magazine publisher, retail bookstore, subscription books department, educational books department, printing press and bindery, rare books department). Included are files of editorial correspondence with authors, manufacturing records about book production, advertising records, author contracts, a collection of dust jackets, book catalogs, ledgers, and photographs. While there are gaps in most of the series or record groups, there are records representative of all of the firm's former permutations: Baker & Scribner, Charles Scribner & Co., Scribner, Armstrong & Co., Scribner, Armstrong & Welford, Scribner & Co., Charles Scribner's Sons. The bulk of the material (1880s-1970s), however, dates from the period when the publisher bore its most familiar name, “Charles Scribner's Sons.” There is also material related to early publishers' organizations and international copyright. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C0101

Beecher Family Collection, 1845-1886: Finding Aid Creator: Stowe, Harriet Beecher, 1811-1896. Abstract: Consists of selected manuscript material of three members of the Beecher family -- Harriet Beecher Stowe, Catharine Beecher, and Henry Ward Beecher -- who became nationally known for their work on abolition and women's suffrage. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C1217

Boarded Hall Estate (Barbados) Plantation Records, 1676-1887 (bulk 1712-1845): Finding Aid Creator: Harnage, George, compiler. Abstract: Consists of eighteenth and nineteeth-century records of Boarded Hall Estate, a slave plantation in Barbados in the West Indies. The material was found on the estate in the 1820s by George Harnage, the son of its last English owner, and annotated by him in subsequent years. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C1227

Edward Coles Papers, 1797-1881: Finding Aid Creator: Coles, Edward, 1786-1868. Abstract: Edward Coles was a prominent anti-slavery political figure, who most notably served as governor of Illinois when the state became officially anti-slavery through a referendum vote. These papers include personal notes from Coles, correspondence to and by Coles with friends, colleagues, and family, documents about Coles, and the writings of other people. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C0037

Edwin A. Parrott Collection, 1837-1912 (bulk 1859-1896): Finding Aid Creator: Parrott, Edwin A., 1830-1931. Abstract: Consists of correspondence, manuscripts, and documents by and about Edwin A. Parrott, who represented Ohio in the House of Representatives in 1863. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C1154

Francis C. Brown Collection on Slavery in America, 1779-1868 (bulk 1820-1865): Finding Aid Collector: Brown, Francis C. (Francis Cabell), 1936- Abstract: The Francis C. Brown Collection on Slavery in America consists of printed and manuscript documents related to slaves and the slave trade collected by Francis C. Brown. Much of the collection concerns the World Council of Churches, the Fellowship of St. Alban and St. Sergei, and the Parisian Russian émigré community. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C0605

Guild Family Collection, 1787-1823: Finding Aid Creator: Guild family. Abstract: Consists of correspondence and documents of the Guild family of Hunterdon County, New Jersey, including papers of brothers Benjamin and Ralph Guild. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C0435

John Bright Letters, 1845-1908: Finding Aid Creator: Bright, John, 1811-1889. Abstract: Consists of over forty letters by John Bright written while he was a member of Parliament and addressed to various individuals. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C0203

Louisiana Slavery and Civil War Collection, 1722-1872: Finding Aid Collector: Princeton University. Library. Dept. of Special Collections. Abstract: The Louisiana Slavery and Civil War Collection consists of documents concerning the estate of the manumitted slave Marie Claire, a selection of Benjamin F. Butler correspondence, correspondence and documents concerning claims against the Union Army, and miscellaneous materials relating to Louisiana history. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C0033

Lydia Maria Child Collection, 1857-1878: Finding Aid Creator: Child, Lydia Maria Francis, 1802-1880 Abstract: Consists of selected correspondence, manuscripts, and photographs of the nineteenth-century American author and abolitionist Lydia Maria Francis Child. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C1032

M. L. Parrish Collection of Victorian Novelists, 1806-1958 (bulk 1830s-1930s): Finding Aid Collector: Parrish, Morris Longstreth, 1867-1944. Abstract: The Morris L. Parrish Collection of Victorian Novelists, consisting of the library of books, manuscripts, photographs, artwork, and ephemera as collected by Morris Longstreth Parrish, Class of 1888, came to Princeton University in 1944 as a bequest. This finding aid focuses on Parrish's original collection of manuscripts, both bound and unbound, and includes his correspondence (related to his collecting activities) and letters both to and from many of the Victorian authors, as well as the manuscript and related (non-book) items given to and/or acquired for the collection by the Princeton University Library in subsequent years. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C0171

Miscellaneous Slavery Collection, 1700-1885: Finding Aid Collector: Princeton University. Library. Dept. of Special Collections. Abstract: Consists of an open collection of correspondence and documents relating to slavery in America, Africa, and the Caribbean area in the 17th through 19th centuries. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C1210

New Granada Slavery Collection, 1757-1812: Finding Aid Creator: Princeton University. Library. Dept. of Special Collections. Abstract: Consists of 58 manuscript leaves, comprising 27 Spanish documents, relating to the buying and selling of slaves in the Kingdom of New Granada (now Colombia). Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C1052

Rae Family Estate Collection, 1800-1857: Finding Aid Creator: Rae, James, d. 1815. Abstract: Consists of nineteenth-century legal and financial records relating to the estates of Scotchmen James Rae and his brothers, John and William, in England, Scotland, and Jamaica. These family records shed light on the economic conditions in Jamaica and the administration of estates there, which, in turn, reflect the island's social and racial conditions and the importance of trade between England and its colonies in the West Indies. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C1222

Robert Anderson Family Papers, 1790-1858 (bulk 1835-1858): Finding Aid Creator: Anderson, Robert, 1781-1859. Abstract: Consists of correspondence and documents of various members of the Anderson family, particularly Robert Anderson (1781-1859) of Yorktown and Williamsburg, Virginia. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C1230

The Rochester Courier Collection, 1850-1903: Finding Aid Creator: Folsom, C. W. (Charles William), 1826-1904. Abstract: The Rochester Courier was a weekly, local newspaper published on Friday nights in Rochester, New Hampshire, beginning in 1864. The collection consists of manuscript speeches, articles, editorials, and correspondence from the newspaper, reflecting some of the national issues which dominated American political life leading up to and following the Civil War, including the antislavery movement, the Missouri Compromise, and temperance. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C1100

Rush Family Papers, 1675-1885 (bulk 1817-1849): Finding Aid Creator: Rush, Richard, 1780-1859. Abstract: The collection documents the career of Richard Rush (Princeton Class of 1797) as lawyer, statesman, and diplomat, emphasizing diplomatic negotiations between the United States and Great Britain while he was minister to Great Britain (1817-1825) and between the United States and France when he was minister to France (1847-1849), as well as his successful efforts (1836-1838) in securing the Smithsonian bequest, which was used to establish the Smithsonian Institution. The papers of Richard Rush constitute the larger part of the collection; letters of his father, Benjamin Rush, M.D. (Princeton Class of 1760), and papers of his son, Benjamin Rush (Princeton Class of 1829, constitute the other major groups of papers in this family archive. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C0079

Samuel Miller Papers, 1754-1898 (bulk 1800-1849): Finding Aid Creator: Miller, Samuel, 1769-1850. Abstract:           Contains writings and correspondence of and relating to Samuel Miller, a nineteenth-century American Presbyterian clergyman and author. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C0277

Samuel Stanhope Smith Collection, 1794-1817: Finding Aid Creator: Smith, Samuel Stanhope, 1750-1819. Abstract: Consists of works, correspondence, and documents of Samuel Stanhope Smith, covering, for the most part, the years (1795-1812) he served as president of the College of New Jersey, now Princeton. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C0028

Sergeant Family Collection, 1746-1843: Finding Aid Creator: Sergeant, Jonathan, 1712-1777. Abstract: Consists of selected correspondence and documents by and about three members of the Sergeant family and their relationship with the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University) during the Colonial period: Jonathan Sergeant, his son Jonathan Dickinson Sergeant, and his grandson John Sergeant. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C1192

Sidney P. Clay Collection, 1783-1846 (bulk 1800-1844): Finding Aid Creator: Clay, Sidney P. (Sidney Payne), 1800-1834. Abstract: The Sidney P. Clay Collection consists of correspondence, documents, and photographs of Clay (Princeton Class of 1821) and members of his family, and includes some correspondence of the Reed family. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C0404

Thomas Jefferson Wertenbaker Papers, 1910-1959: Finding Aid Creator: Wertenbaker, Thomas Jefferson, 1879-1966. Abstract: Thomas Jefferson Wertenbaker was an American historian who taught at Princeton from 1910 to 1947. He was internationally recognized and wrote a number of important historical works. In 1947, he was president of the American Historical Association. His papers consist of Wertenbaker’s works, correspondence, photographs, miscellaneous material, and printed matter. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C0359

Thomas Nast Manuscript Collection, 1860-1922 (bulk 1860-1896): Finding Aid Creator: Nast, Thomas, 1840-1902. Abstract: Consists of selected correspondence of American political cartoonist Thomas Nast. Nast's popular artwork influenced presidential elections in the latter half of the nineteenth century, and the letters in this collection reflect both the professional and personal sides of his life. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C1135

Throop and Martin Family Papers, 1693-1951: Finding Aid Creator: Throop, Enos T. (Enos Thompson), 1784-1874. Abstract: Contains manuscripts, correspondence, documents, and photographs concerning the Throop and Throop Martin families of New Jersey. In addition to the family correspondence, there is an autograph collection and other miscellaneous items. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C0055

William Denton Correspondence, 1633-1893 (bulk 1830-1893): Finding Aid Creator: Denton, W. (William), 1815-1888. Abstract: Consists of about a hundred autograph letters by nineteenth-century British politicians, clergymen, and men of letters to clergyman and reformist William Denton. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C1185

William E. Potter Diary, 1859-1862: Finding Aid Creator: Potter, William E., 1905- Abstract: This diary was written by William E. Potter during his years at Harvard (law degree, 1861) and Princeton (B.A., 1863). For the most part the entries are daily with astute and observant comments on many of the public figures and events of this time. Among the more interesting entries are comments and descriptions of the Women's Rights Convention in Boston in 1860, the Massachusetts state prison; the election and inauguration of Abraham Lincoln; the surrender of Fort Sumter; the Battle of Bull Run; “pumping” (dunking) of Princeton students favoring secession; his religious awakening; and a final entry that reads simply “Enlisted.” Location:Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library. Princeton University Archives. Call Number: AC323

Winans Collection of New Jersey Documents, 1703-1883: Finding Aid Collector: Winans, Samuel Ross. Abstract: The Winans Collection of New Jersey Documents consists of almost 200 18th-century documents, mostly deeds to land, relating to several towns in Essex County, New Jersey, particularly Westfield, collected by Winans (Princeton Class of 1874). Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C0234

Woodruff Family Collection, 1795-1896 (bulk 1803-1850): Finding Aid Creator: Woodruff, George, 1765-1846. Abstract: Consists of selected papers of George Woodruff (Princeton Class of 1785), a lawyer, and various members of his family of Trenton, N.J. Location: Manuscripts Division. Call Number: C0740