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Table of contents What's This?

 

MISCELLANEOUS

Box 1, Folder 1

The American Eagle (Vol. 1, No. 2) 1852 September 29

General note

Printed newspaper published in Chelsea, Massachusetts and designed to emulate Chamber's Miscellany, a popular nineteenth century trivia periodical. Signed "Hollis and Haskell."
 

The American Eagle (Vol. 1, No. 2), 1852 September 29

Box 1, Folder 2

Society of the Burnside Expedition and of the Ninth Army Corps certificate of membership 1871 May 11

 

Society of the Burnside Expedition and of the Ninth Army Corps certificate of membership, 1871 May 11

Box 1, Folder 3

Genealogy of Thomas Hollis circa 1900

 

Genealogy of Thomas Hollis, circa 1900

Box 1, Folder 4

Letter from E. Hollis 1903

General note

The letter is possibly by George Hollis's brother Eben, or sister Ellen. The writer states that he or she is going on a Smithsonian expedition to Santa Maria, a volcano in Guatemala which erupted in 1902.
 

Letter from E. Hollis, 1903

Box 1, Folder 5

Letter from Louise M. Hollis to George F. Hollis 1879 July 3

General note

Letter from Hollis's second wife, Louise, b. 1841. She describes daily activities and the travails of being a "left-behind wife."
 

Letter from Louise M. Hollis to George F. Hollis, 1879 July 3

Box 1, Folder 6

Letter by William Stanley Hollis to John T. Granger 1903 February 9

General note

Letter from George Hollis' son to a lawyer in New York discussing his heritage, stating that his great-great-grandfather, Thomas Fracker, was a reported member of the Boston Tea Party.
 

Letter by William Stanley Hollis to John T. Granger, 1903 February 9

Box 1, Folder 7

Geology in Mexican history circa 1900

General note

Handwritten draft of an essay discussing the geology of Mexico and its silver and gold mining industries, with references to biblical and modern theories regarding geological deposits.
 

Geology in Mexican history, circa 1900

 

CIVIL WAR

Scope and Content of Series

SERIES 2) CIVIL WAR MATERIALS. Arranged in three subseries: A) Correspondence, B) Appointments, Promotions and Official Acts, and C) Memoirs.
A) Correspondence: Letters from and to Hollis during his Civil War service (1861-1865). The majority of the correspondence is with Hollis' mother, Hannah, and his girlfriend, and then first wife, Lizzie. Also included is correspondence with brothers Everet Stanley and William H.; Napoleon Collins, a former commander of the USS Octorara; and other superiors, friends and acquaintances. Of note is a letter from his hometown friend and 1st Massachusetts Infantry private, John W. Day, which includes a piece of paper allegedly dotted with the blood of Col. Ephraim Elmer Ellsworth. Arranged alphabetically by correspondent.
B) Navy Documents (1861-1865): Official Navy documents regarding Hollis' promotions from acting master's mate, to ensign, to acting master, as well as correspondence as Hollis sought to correct a mistake in his records after his detachment in 1865. Included is a memorandum by Hollis and correspondence (1865) regarding court martial proceedings Hollis brought against Acting Ensign Charles Sawyer III, who served under Hollis on the USS Fernandina.
C) Memoirs: Two undated, handwritten essays, "The Battle of Roanoke Island" and "How I Opened Communication with Sherman's Army and Became a Southern Planter."
 

Correspondence

Box 1, Folder 8

Letter from Napoleon Collins to George F. Hollis 1869 March 22

 

Letter from Napoleon Collins to George F. Hollis, 1869 March 22

Box 1, Folder 9

Letter from John W. Day to George F. Hollis 1861 July 5

General note

Letter includes an enclosed piece of paper reported by Day, Hollis' hometown friend and private in the 1st Massachusetts Infantry, to be dotted with the blood of the first officer to be killed in the Civil War, Col. Ephraim Elmer Ellsworth. Ellsworth was the 24-year-old personal friend of Abraham Lincoln who studied law in Lincoln's Illinois office and worked on Lincoln's political campaign. On May 24, 1861, the day after Virginia officially seceded, Col. Ellsworth became the first Union officer to die in the Civil War when he was shot by innkeeper James W. Jackson after Ellsworth cut down the large Confederate flag flying above Jackson's inn. His death was a "cause celebrae" when Lincoln had his friend's body lay in repose in the White House.
 

Letter from John W. Day to George F. Hollis, 1861 July 5

Box 1, Folder 10

Letters from Lizzie Hart to George F. Hollis 1867

General note

Three letters.
 

Letters from Lizzie Hart to George F. Hollis, 1867

Box 1, Folder 11

Letter from Everet Stanley Hollis to his brother, George F. Hollis 1863 December 16

 

Letter from Everet Stanley Hollis to his brother, George F. Hollis, 1863 December 16

Box 1, Folder 12

Letters from George F. Hollis to his mother, Hannah Sweet 1861 - 1864

 

Letters from George F. Hollis to his mother, Hannah Sweet, 1861 - 1864

Box 1, Folder 13

Letters from Eliza "Lizzie" Hollis to George F. Hollis 1861 - 1864

General note

Writer is Eliza A. (aka Lizzie) Hollis (nee Simmons), George Hollis's first wife.
 

Letters from Eliza "Lizzie" Hollis to George F. Hollis, 1861 - 1864

Box 1, Folder 14

Letters from George F. Hollis to his brother, William H. Hollis 1861 - 1862

 

Letters from George F. Hollis to his brother, William H. Hollis, 1861 - 1862

Box 1, Folder 15

Letter from Alexander Murray, lieutenant and commander of the USS Louisiana, to George F. Hollis 1862 April 28

 

Letter from Alexander Murray, lieutenant and commander of the USS Louisiana, to George F. Hollis, 1862 April 28

Box 1, Folder 16

Unidentified letter written in partial code 1861 September 20

 

Unidentified letter written in partial code, 1861 September 20

 

Navy Documents

Box 1, Folder 17

Official correspondence between George F. Hollis and the US Navy 1861 - 1865

General note

Promotions and discharge paperwork. Includes a letter from George Hollis to the Navy regarding an error in Hollis' official discharge papers that he sought to correct.
 

Official correspondence between George F. Hollis and the US Navy, 1861 - 1865

Box 1, Folder 18

Court Martial of Acting Ensign Charles Sawyer III 1865

General note

Contains a handwritten copy of charges brought by Hollis, as commander of the USS Fernandina, against Sawyer for neglect of duty and language unbecoming of an officer and subversive of good discipline.
 

Court Martial of Acting Ensign Charles Sawyer III, 1865

 

Memoirs

Box 1, Folder 19

Battle for Roanoke Island between 1862 and 1903

General note

Handwritten account of difficulties of finding vessels to navigate shallow North Carolina rivers to participate in the battle (1862 February 7-8) where Brigadier General Ambrose E. Burnside landed an amphibious force and took the Confederate fort. Also includes an account of a storm encountered as the convoy sailed to the battle site.
 

Battle for Roanoke Island, between 1862 and 1903

Box 1, Folder 20-21

How I Opened Communication with Sherman's Army and Became a Southern Planter between 1865 and 1903

General note

Handwritten account in two sections. Part one describes Hollis aboard the USS Fernandina in Ossabaw Sound, awaiting the arrival of General William T. Sherman's army to Savannah, Georgia as well as a description of the Union capture of Fort McAllister. There is also correspondence (1861, 1891) regarding Hollis' unsuccessful attempt to prove that his communication was, in fact, the first to inform the fleet that Sherman had made it to the coast. Part two gives an account of rescuing over two hundred African-American men, women and children from a rice swamp and helping to establish a freedman's colony on St. Catherine's Island, as well as a recounting of Hollis' scouting expedition to the mainland where he distributed directions to signal the fleet from Kilkenny Bluff if and when Sherman's troops should arrive.
 

How I Opened Communication with Sherman's Army and Became a Southern Planter, between 1865 and 1903

 

CAPE TOWN CONSULSHIP

Scope and Content of Series

SERIES 3) CAPE TOWN CONSULSHIP MATERIALS: Arranged in three subseries: A) Captain Buckley Affair, B) Correspondence, and C) Miscellaneous Materials.
A) Captain Buckley Affair (1892-1895): Correspondence, a newspaper clipping, handwritten sworn affidavits, inventories, and testimonials regarding Hollis' handling of valuables associated with a murder aboard the ship William Hales. While bound for Cape Town, a Chinese steward allegedly murdered ship captain George P. Buckley and his wife. The steward was not charged with the murder, as it was reported that he subsequently drowned. When the ship finally arrived in Cape Town, Hollis removed the jewelry from the bodies and had other valuables double-sealed in a trunk. The trunk was left on the ship under the care of the first-mate, Morrison, whom Hollis thought competent. Additionally, Hollis enlisted the local Chief of Police to join him onboard for an inquiry into the murders. The New York ship brokers appointed a new captain, Welcom Gilkey, who then arrested Morrison after discovering that most of the Buckley's valuables had disappeared. Gilkey accused Hollis of being an accomplice, or at the very least, grossly negligent in his handling of the Buckleys' possessions. Captain Buckley's son wrote to the State Department demanding action. The files contain the State Department's notice to Hollis of the accusations, but do not contain the request for his resignation received shortly thereafter, and before Hollis had time to respond. Hollis resigned but also gathered affidavits to prove that he was not negligent and that Gilkey, his accuser, was incompetent, untruthful, and an alcoholic. Hollis was eventually fully vindicated and the files contain 1865 correspondence from Melville Buckley to the State Department retracting his unfounded accusations. Hollis never resumed the consulship, but was instrumental in having his son, W. Stanley Hollis, appointed as consul agent.
B) Correspondence: Official correspondence that Hollis wrote or received as United States Consul as well as some personal correspondence. Included is a notice of the death of King Frederic of Germany (1888) from the German Consulate, correspondence from the Orange Free State government in the Afrikaans language, a letter to the editor of the Cape Times responding to an anonymous communication expressing outrage that blacks were allowed to attend Fourth of July celebrations at the consulate, and correspondence from his mother, Hannah, as well as friends he made while in South Africa. The files are arranged alphabetically by author.
C) Miscellaneous: Official receipts and handwritten notes, such as: an official certificate (1889) from the Transvaal government thanking Hollis for his service regarding a treaty with Italy written in Afrikaans; and handwritten copies of songs and poems popular in the period between the two Boer Wars, including a poem entitled, "To Oom Paul," a term of affection ("Uncle Paul" in Afrikaans) for South African statesman Paul Kruger, a translation of the "Transvaal National Hymn," and "God Save John Bull." (John Bull was a popular national personficiation of the Kingdom of Great Britain similar to "Uncle Sam" as a symbol of the United States.) The files are arranged alphabetically by subject title.
 

Captain Buckley Affair

Box 1, Folder 22

Affidavit by A. Clark, Cape Town Inspector of Police 1893 March 13

 

Affidavit by A. Clark, Cape Town Inspector of Police, 1893 March 13

Box 1, Folder 23

Copies of letters regarding Welcome Gilkey's role in the Buckley affair 1892 November 16

 

Copies of letters regarding Welcome Gilkey's role in the Buckley affair, 1892 November 16

Box 1, Folder 24

Transcriptions of newspaper articles that appeared in the Cape Times regarding George Fearing Hollis' accomplishments and departure 1893 April 13

 

Transcriptions of newspaper articles that appeared in the Cape Times regarding George Fearing Hollis' accomplishments and departure, 1893 April 13

Box 1, Folder 25

Inventories of the valuables of Captain and Mrs. Buckley 1892 November 22

 

Inventories of the valuables of Captain and Mrs. Buckley, 1892 November 22

Box 1, Folder 26

Letter from Melville Buckley to the US Department of State 1895 December 17

General note

Copy of original letter, with a newspaper clipping pasted on. Buckley retracts his prior accusations against Hollis' conduct.
 

Letter from Melville Buckley to the US Department of State, 1895 December 17

Box 1, Folder 27

Affidavit by physician William C. Schultz 1893 March 12

General note

Affidavit states that on November 11, 1892, Schultz found Captain Gilkey to be unconscious and suffering from acute alcoholism, not poison as Gilkey later claimed.
 

Affidavit by physician William C. Schultz, 1893 March 12

Box 1, Folder 28

Letter from Smith & Co. acknowledging news of the murder of Captain Buckley and his wife at sea from Captain Hollis 1892 October 4

General note

The letter appoints Captain Welcom Gilkey, the bearer of the letter, to be in command and asks Hollis to assist him.
 

Letter from Smith & Co. acknowledging news of the murder of Captain Buckley and his wife at sea from Captain Hollis, 1892 October 4

Box 1, Folder 29

US Department of State correspondence regarding the Buckley affair 1893 - 1895

General note

Handwritten and typescript correspondence including a copy of the accusation of Hollis' alleged mishandling of the Buckley's valuables written by their son, Melville Buckley.
 

US Department of State correspondence regarding the Buckley affair, 1893 - 1895

Box 1, Folder 30

Letter from United States Consular agent William Van Ness in Johannesburg expressing thanks to Hollis for his work and regret at his departure 1893 July 1

 

Letter from United States Consular agent William Van Ness in Johannesburg expressing thanks to Hollis for his work and regret at his departure, 1893 July 1

 

Correspondence

Box 1, Folder 31

Letters by A. F. Bosman 1892 - 1893

General note

Two letters. Handwritten correspondence in Afrikaans from a "landdrost" (local magistrate similar to a mayor or provincial governor) in Krugersdorf, the mining city founded in 1887 by Marthinus Pretorius and named after Paul Kruger.
 

Letters by A. F. Bosman, 1892 - 1893

Box 1, Folder 32

Letter from L. de Villiers to George F. Hollis 1900 August 15

General note

De Villiers was a friend from South Africa whose husband was a Bank of Africa employee.
 

Letter from L. de Villiers to George F. Hollis, 1900 August 15

Box 1, Folder 33

Letters from Hannah Sweet to her son, George F. Hollis 1888 - 1889

General note

Writer is George Hollis's mother.
 

Letters from Hannah Sweet to her son, George F. Hollis, 1888 - 1889

Box 1, Folder 34

Letter to the editor of the Cape Times by George F. Hollis 1890 July 5

General note

The letter is a response to an anonymous communication in the Cape Times expressing outrage that blacks were allowed to attend Fourth of July celebrations at the consulate.
 

Letter to the editor of the Cape Times by George F. Hollis, 1890 July 5

Box 1, Folder 35

Notice from the German Consulate announcing the death of King Frederic, Emperor of Germany 1888 June 16

 

Notice from the German Consulate announcing the death of King Frederic, Emperor of Germany, 1888 June 16

 

Miscellaneous

Box 1, Folder 36

Certificate of Appreciation from the Transvaal government thanking George Hollis for his assistance in regard to a treaty with Italy 1889 December 14

General note

Text in Afrikaans.
 

Certificate of Appreciation from the Transvaal government thanking George Hollis for his assistance in regard to a treaty with Italy, 1889 December 14

Box 1, Folder 37

Boer poems and songs circa 1888-1893

General note

Handwritten copies of songs and poems popular in the period between the two Boer Wars, including a poem entitled, "To Oom Paul," a term of affection ("Uncle Paul" in Afrikaans) for South African statesman Paul Kruger, a translation of the "Transvaal National Hymn," and "God Save John Bull."
 

Boer poems and songs, circa 1888-1893

Box 1, Folder 38

Receipts, notes and correspondence 1891

 

Receipts, notes and correspondence, 1891