David Munson papers
Collection
Identifier: L114
Scope and Contents
This collection includes correspondence, newspaper advertising, newspaper clippings, photographs, invoices, scrapbooks, and award ribbons from David Munson in Indiana and the United States, ranging from 1838 to 1913, regarding the Munson Lightning Rod, advertising, the Munson family, and business accounts.
Dates
- 1838-1913
Creator
- Munson, David, 1820-1907? (Person)
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
David R. Munson was born in New Jersey in 1820. He was married to Isabella Ralston Johnston in Marion, Indiana on February 6, 1849, shortly after he moved to Indiana. They had four sons: William G., David R., Alvin J. and Samuel A. Munson invented the Munson lightning conductor (an improvement over Benjamin Franklin's original lightning rod), patenting more than 100 different rods and fixtures, and founded the Munson Lightning Conductor Company in 1850 in Indianapolis, Indiana. At one time the company was located at 220 E. Washington St. In 1907, Munson died at the age of 87 after a fall during the installation of a lightning rod in Curtisville, Indiana. He is buried next to his wife, who died in 1901, in the Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis.
Sources:
Items in the collection.
Ancestry.com. "David Munson." 1880 United States Federal Census. Accessed December 31, 2015. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "David Munson." Indiana, Index to Select Marriages, 1780-1992. Accessed December 31, 2015. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Findagrave.com. "David Munson." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed December 31, 2015. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/39641882/david-munson.
Findagrave.com. "Munson, Isabella Ralston." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed December 31, 2015. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/39641951/isabella_ralston_munson.
"Inventor Munson Dead." Indianapolis Sun, April 4, 1907, 10. Accessed December 31, 2015. NewspaperArchive.
Sources:
Items in the collection.
Ancestry.com. "David Munson." 1880 United States Federal Census. Accessed December 31, 2015. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Ancestry.com. "David Munson." Indiana, Index to Select Marriages, 1780-1992. Accessed December 31, 2015. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.
Findagrave.com. "David Munson." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed December 31, 2015. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/39641882/david-munson.
Findagrave.com. "Munson, Isabella Ralston." Find a Grave Memorial. Accessed December 31, 2015. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/39641951/isabella_ralston_munson.
"Inventor Munson Dead." Indianapolis Sun, April 4, 1907, 10. Accessed December 31, 2015. NewspaperArchive.
Extent
0.3 Cubic Feet (1 manuscript box)
Language of Materials
English
Arrangement
This collection is arranged by subject.
Custodial History
This collection was received by Rare Books and Manuscripts as a donation from Gladys Munson Wurzburg on 1941/08/15 and 1942/08/06.
Accruals
No further additions are expected.
Processing Information
Collection processing completed 2015/12/31 by Edythe Huffman. EAD finding aid created 2015/12/31 by Edythe Huffman. EAD finding aid revised 2024/05/23 by Brittany Kropf.
Creator
- Munson, David, 1820-1907? (Person)
- Title
- David Munson 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
140 North Senate Avenue
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204 U.S.A.
317-232-3671
