RG 30. Personal Papers

Scope and Contents The collection of Sela G. Wright consists primarily of letters, 1847-66, written by Wright or his relatives. Included are Wright’s letters from Red lake, Minnesota, while among the Ojibwe Indians, which are partly written in Ojibwe; letters written while working with the Black community in the South, 1863-66; a letter containing a description of a sailor’s death off Java, 1847; and a letter containing information concerning the funeral services by C.G. Finney for an Oberlin student, 1847....

Scope and Contents The letters of founder John J. Shipherd represent the most important single source on the founding of Oberlin. Philo P. Stewart left no papers. The Shipherd papers should be read along with the early files found in the records of the Office of the Treasurer.Consisting of original documents, ca. 1831-45 and undated, the John J. Shipherd papers mainly constitute letters sent or received by Oberlin’s founder. The approximate twenty letters sent by him, 1831-37, are to his family or to...

Scope and Contents This collection consists of only two documents from John S. and Caroline E. Service (1970, 1978).The first document is a memorandum entitled “A Partial Examination of One Aspect of the Many Gross Errors Contained in The Amerasia Papers,” written by John S. Service and dated September 18, 1970. Service critically examined the U.S. government’s foreign policy with China and, in particular, the Communists in the late 1940s and early 1950s. He expressed...

Scope and Contents The papers consist, in the main, of letters received by Hall and of a diary of 13 volumes that he kept from 1884 until his death. There are also letters written by Hall, several while in Germany with his first wife in 1888-1889, and others while in Europe and England in 1905. Many of the letters written to him were by his brothers Russell (AB 1865) and Thomas (AB 1872), Theodore E. Burton and C.B. Martin. Other corespondents include W.G. Ballantine, E.I. Bosworth, John Ellis, W.G. Frost,...

Scope and Contents This small collection consists of the original Spaulding Manuscript and a negative photostat copy of it. Also included is a photostat copy of a one-page document signed by Solomon Spaulding that is titled "Articles of Agreement,” 1 January 1811. This document concerns the transfer of property to John Dunn.Other documents concern the origin of the Spaulding Manuscript and its placement at Oberlin College. These include typescript copies of statements by Professor George F. Wright...

Scope and Contents The Charles Livingstone Papers at the Oberlin College Archives mainly comprise Charles Livingstone’s account of the Zambezi Expedition of 1858 to 1864, handwritten in journal books. (The second of the four volumes of the account is not in this collection). The fourth volume is dated 1864. The brothers Charles and David Livingstone drew upon this account to write their book Narrative of an Expedition to the Zambesi and its Tributaries, and the Discovery of the Lakes...

Scope and Contents

The small collection of the papers of the Woodbury-Fay families are arranged into three series: 1. Biographical File; 2. Correspondence; and 3. Photographs and Illustrations.

There are various spellings of the names of the members of this family. Mehetabel Pettengill, in particular, appears in different spellings by various correspondents. She herself spelled her name Mehetabel Pettengill.

Scope and Contents The Leonard D. and Julia Turney King Papers consist primarily of letters (Series 1. Correspondence) between the husband and wife during Leonard’s time in the gold fields in California in 1852-54. Additional letters during this period were received from Cyrus Turney, Julia’s father; L.F. Warner, a druggist who handled disbursements for Leonard; William Warr (two letters of 1854 addressed to “Dear Friends” about the gold fields); Leonard’s sister Martha; and Alonson and Mrs. Macomber. An 1854...

Scope and Contents The six folders in this collection consist primarily of Mary Sheldon's composition book, essays detached from the composition book, and other miscellaneous material. The composition book, 1842-1853, includes essays titled "Duties of Students", "The Sabbath", "Women and Politics", "History of the facts relative to the late Illness of our Literary Society" (read August 29, 1849), and "The Circuit Preacher." Essays detached from Sheldon's composition book, 1850-1852, include pieces on "Our Duty...

Scope and Contents The papers of Susan Wealthy Orvis consists mainly of notes (c. 1934-39) taken by Orvis during the lectures of Graduate School of Theology professors Robert Elliot Brown, Francis William Buckler, Clarence Tucker Craig, George Walter Fiske, Clarence Herbert Hamilton, and Walter Marshall Horton. Also included are notes used by Orvis in her teaching at the Schauffler College of Religious and Social Work in Cleveland (1935-1937); correspondence (1922-26, 1934-35, and n.d.); and biographical...