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Hamilton family papers

 Collection
Identifier: L062

Scope and Contents

This collection contains business papers, correspondence, receipts and deeds from the firm of Hamilton and Taber, including Cyrus Taber's correspondence with Allen Hamilton. Much of the correspondence regards business, various Indian treaties, railroads, politics, and the settlement of Hamilton's estate following his death in 1864. Materials date from 1788 through 1963, with the bulk of the collection dating from Allen Hamilton's career. Materials are arranged chronologically, with business records filed together with the small amount of personal papers in the collection. Personal papers in the collection include those of Allen Hamilton's son Andrew H. Hamilton (1834-1895) from his time as a student and as a United States Congressman (1875-1879), and family correspondence dating from the 1820s through the early 1900s.

There are also oversize items: an "Abstract of amounts allowed claimants under the treaties..." document, ranging from 1836 to 1838, and "Hamilton's 4th addition" map of lots for sale, undated (OBD013). The collection also includes three volumes: an account book, 1844-1845 and two journals, 1856-1857; 1866-1879 (V466).

Correspondents in the collection include early Indiana politicians, Indian agents, and other well-known Indiana residents. These include Thomas H. Blake, Jesse D. Bright, Michael G. Bright, T. Hartley Crawford, John D. Defrees, John Dowling, Thomas Dowling, John B. Duret, Henry C. Ellsworth, George W. Ewing, William G. Ewing, Francis Godfroy, Samuel Hanna, Andrew J. Harlan, Thomas A. Hendricks, William Hendricks, Jesse L. Holman, William S. Holman, Edmond O. Hovey, Henry S. Lane, James F. D. Lanier, Ebenezer F. Lucas, Jonathan McCarty, Hugh McCulloch, Samuel Merritt, Samuel Milroy, Elias Murray, Abel C. Pepper, Daniel D. Pratt, George H. Proffit, James Rariden, Joseph Richardville, William Rockhill, Samuel C. Sample, Caleb B. Smith, Oliver H. Smith, John Test, Richard W. Thompson, John Tipton, David Wallace, Nathaniel West, Albert S. White, Charles White, Jesse L. Williams, Daniel Worth, and Joseph A. Wright.

Dates

  • 1788-1963

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Legal title, copyright, and literary rights reside with Rare Books and Manuscripts, Indiana State Library, Indianapolis, IN. All requests to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted to Rare Books and Manuscripts.

Biographical Note

Allen Hamilton was born in 1798 in Ireland. In 1820, he moved to Lawrenceburg, Dearborn County, Indiana where he worked as a clerk in the land office. In 1823, he moved to Fort Wayne, Allen County, Indiana, where he worked as a deputy clerk for the U. S. Land Office. He served as sheriff of Allen County sheriff (1824-1826); Fort Wayne postmaster (1825-1831), and as county auditor, clerk, and recorder (1831-1838). He was a merchant and a lawyer with the firm of Hamilton and Taber and was involved in politics as a Whig and a Democrat from the 1830s to 1861. Allen Hamilton married to Emerine Jane Holman in 1828 and together they had four children. Allen Hamilton died in 1864 in Saratoga, New York.

Andrew Holman Hamilton was born June 7, 1834 and was the son of Allen and Emerine Hamilton. He graduated from Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Indiana in 1854 and went on to Harvard Law School. He was admitted to the bar in 1859 and began his practice in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Hamilton married Phoebe Tabor on March 27, 1861 and together they had five children. He served as a Democrat in the United States House of Representatives (1875-1879). Andrew Holman Hamilton died May 9, 1895 and is interred in Lindenwood Cemetery.

Allen Hamilton was born in January 1874 and was the son of Andrew Holman and Phoebe Hamilton. He worked as a physician.

Montgomery Hamilton was born about 1844 and was the son of Allen and Emerine Hamilton. He worked as a merchant and landlord. Her married Gertrude and together they had five children. He died on June 9, 1909.

Edith Hamilton was born August 12, 1867 and was the daughter of Montgomery and Gertrude Hamilton. She studied Latin and was a holder of the Mary E. Garrett European Fellowship for Graduate Students in 1895-96. She attended Leipzig and Munich Universities. On returning to America she became the first headmistress of Bryn Mawr School in Baltimore. Edith Hamilton died May 31, 1963.

Alice Hamilton was born on February 16, 1869 and was the daughter of Montgomery and Gertrude Hamilton. She was the managing director of the Illinois Occupational disease Survey and worked on identifying and curing industrial diseases. In 1919 she was appointed the chair of Industrial medicine of Harvard Medical School where she served for 23 years.

Margaret Hamilton was born in June of 1871 and was the daughter of Montgomery and Gertrude Hamilton. She worked as an aide to her sister Edith at Bryn Mawr School and later served as headmistress for five years.

Arthur Hamilton , also known as "Quint", was born March 31, 1886 and was the son of Montgomery and Gertrude Hamilton. He studied Romance languages and worked at the University of Wisconsin. He worked with the Red Cross during World War I. He then became a professor of Romance language at Illinois University and the Dean of Foreign Students. Arthur Hamilton died in 1967.

Source:

United States Congress. "Hamilton, Andrew Holman." Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. United States Congress. Accessed June 4, 2007. https://bioguideretro.congress.gov/Home/MemberDetails?memIndex=H000102.

Ancestry.com. Accessed July 2, 2007. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.

Extent

17.2 Cubic Feet (51 manuscript boxes, 1 extra-large oversize folder, 3 volumes)

Language of Materials

English

Arrangement

This collection is arranged chronologically.

Custodial History

This collection was received by Rare Books and Manuscripts as a donation from the Columbian Book Company on 1937/05/01; Joseph K. Killy, 1942/02/20; W.W. Carey, 1945 April; Radcliffe College, 1979/05/04; and W. R. Johnson, 1991/01/16.

Accruals

No further additions are expected.

Processing Information

Collection processing and finding aid completed by Barbara Hilderbrand during July 2007. EAD finding aid revised 2021/11/24 by Lauren Patton.
Title
Hamilton family papers
Status
Completed
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Part of the Rare Books and Manuscripts Repository

Contact:
140 North Senate Avenue
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204 U.S.A.
317-232-3671