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Ewing family volumes

 Collection
Identifier: V048

Scope and Contents

This collection contains account books, daybooks, ledgers, and letter books of the Ewing family, particularly those used by brothers William Griffith (W.G.) and George Washington (G.W.) Ewing regarding their companies in Fort Wayne, Indiana, their fur trade business, and their trade with Native Americans (1829- 1865). The collection also includes a daybook, ledger, and three letter books used for G.W. Ewing’s estate (1866-1877).

Dates

  • 1829-1877

Creator

Historical note

The Ewing brothers, William Griffith (W.G.) and George Washington (G.W.), formed the firm of W.G. and G.W. Ewing Company, a trading house in Fort Wayne, Allen County, Indiana, operating from 1827-1854. The company's activities included fur trading in Indiana, Michigan and the West, in association with the firm of Suydam, Sage and Company of New York (1820s-circa 1850); trading with Native Americans in northern Indiana, Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Missouri, and Kansas from the 1820s to the 1860s; and general merchandise business in Fort Wayne and other locales in northern Indiana. The company also engaged in real estate investments in Fort Wayne, Chicago, St. Louis, Minnesota, and elsewhere in the Midwest. The brothers also formed several other partnerships with local businessmen, such as Richard Chute in Minnesota, to aid their interests in specific regions.

Sources:

Items in the collection.

Trennert, Robert A., Jr. Indian Traders on the Middle Border: The House of Ewing, 1827-54. Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska, 1981.

Extent

5 Cubic Feet (17 volumes)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Related Materials

Materials relating to this collection may be found in the following collections in Rare Books and Manuscripts, Indiana State Library, Indianapolis, IN:

L323: Ewing family collection

Subjects

Related Names

Finding Aid & Administrative Information

Title
Ewing family collection
Status
Completed
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
Undetermined
Script of description
Code for undetermined script

Repository Details

Repository Details

Part of the Rare Books and Manuscripts Repository

http://www.in.gov/library/manuscripts.htm
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