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Miriam Hazzard letter

 Collection — Folder: S622
Identifier: S0622

Scope and Contents

This collection contains a 6-page letter from Miriam Hazzard to family and friends in Indiana from Claquato, Lewis County, Washington Territory on June 20, 1882. Her letter relates the places she and her family traveled through during their train trip out west in April, 1882. She mentions several times the different snow sheds that the train passed through and that the family suffered "deathly illness" aboard ship traveling from San Fransico, California to Portland, Oregon. Mrs. Hazzard also describes the landscape of Lewis County and the people they met after arriving in Washington Territory.

Dates

  • 1882

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

Miriam Hazzard was born on December 23, 1842 in Scott County, Indiana to Zepheniah and Marinda Spurgeon. She married William Hazzard (1831-1920) on December 29, 1861 and they had five children: Morton E. (1863-1868), Russell (1866-1921), Minnie (1869-1944), William (1871-1935), and Oliver Perry Morton (1876-1920). She and her family moved from Scott County, Indiana to Claquato, Lewis County, Washington Territory in April, 1882 and she resided there until her death on October 3, 1929.

Sources:

Ancestry.com. "Miriam Hazzard." 1880 United States Federal Census. Accessed August 28, 2015. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.

Ancestry.com. "Miriam Spurgeon." 1860 United States Federal Census. Accessed August 28, 2015. http://www.ancestrylibrary.com.

FindaGrave.com. "Morton E. Hazzard." Find a Grave Index. Accessed August 28, 2015. http://www.findagrave.com.

FindaGrave.com. "Miriam Spurgeon Hazzard." Find a Grave Index. Accessed August 28, 2015. http://www.findagrave.com.

Historical Note

Claquato, originally named Davis Prairie, was founded by Lewis Hawkins Davis in 1852. The name Claquato means "high land" in the Salish language and was the county seat of Lewis County until 1874. After the Union Pacific Railroad bypassed the town, the county seat and most residents moved three miles east to Chehalis, Washington. Though the town was officially vacated in 1902, the Claquato Church, completed in 1858, is the oldest standing building in the state of Washington.

Sources:

"Claquato Church." National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form (Wash. 1973). Accessed August 29, 2015. http://focus.nps.gov/pdfhost/docs/NRHP/Text/73001882.pdf.

Hall, Sharon. "Ghost Town Wednesday: Claquato, Washington." Digging History. Accessed August 29, 2015. http://digging-history.com/2015/03/11/ghost-town-wednesday-claquato-washington/.

Nestor, Sandy. Indian Place Names in America, Volume 1: Cities, Towns, and Villages. Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2003.

Extent

0.01 Cubic Feet (1 folder)

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 Tom Billings on 1969/02/03.

Accruals

No further additions are expected.

Processing Information

Collection processing completed 2015/08/29 by Laura Eliason. EAD finding aid created 2015/08/29 by Laura Eliason.
Title
Miriam Hazzard letter
Status
Completed
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
Undetermined
Script of description
Code for undetermined script

Repository Details

Part of the Rare Books and Manuscripts Repository

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