Hartnell (William) Papers, 1823 - circa 1830s

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Summary

Title:
William Hartnell papers
Dates:
1823 - circa 1830s
Abstract:
Documenting educational and commercial life in California in the 1820s and 1830s, the collection consists of a treatise on algebra (183?), Tratado sobre el Algebra, written by P. Nicholson and translated into Spanish by Hartnell; and a daybook (1823-1827) and account book (1815-1816, 1826-1828), maintained by Hartnell, containing financial accounts for various missions, government offices, commercial houses, ships, and individuals with whom Hartnell conducted business in California.
Extent:
1 Linear Feet (3 boxes comprising 1oversize volume and 2 volumes in slipcases)
Language:
The algebra textbook is in Spanish; the daybook and account book are in English and Spanish, with English predominating.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item, date] William Hartnell papers (MS Vault 028) California Historical Society Collection at Stanford, Dept. of Special Collections and University Archives, Stanford University Libraries, Stanford, California.

Background

Scope and content:

Documenting educational and commercial life in California in the 1820s and 1830s, the collection comprises a treatise on algebra (183?), Tratado sobre el Algebra, written by P. Nicholson and translated into Spanish by William Hartnell; and Hartnell's business records, consisting of a daybook (1823-1827) and account book (1815-1816, 1826-1828).

Kept in Monterey, the daybook records purchases of foodstuffs and other goods by various individuals and organizations in California with whom Hartnell traded, including and especially the missions, between 1823 and 1827.

The account book contains financial accounts for various missions, government offices, commercial houses (including the William E. P. Hartnell House), and individuals in California, as well as records for ships arriving in California, for the years 1826 to 1828. Records for the years 1815 and 1816 (pages 405-406), concerning trade with Mathew Carter of New York, are scanty. Endpapers are inscribed in Spanish by José M. Herrera, "habilitado provisionalmente por la Republica Mexican por los años de 1826 y 1827 en el Territorio de Californias," or provisional paymaster of the Mexican Republic in California.

Biographical / historical:

Born in England in 1798, William Edward Petty Hartnell, also known as Guillermo Eduardo Hartnell, came to California in 1822 after spending several years in South America in the employ of Lima's John Begg and Co. Beginning in 1823, Hartnell, with his partner Hugh McCulloch, conducted an extensive trade with the California missions, exchanging hides and tallow, foodstuffs, and other goods. Hartnell converted to Catholicism in 1824, married María Teresa de la Guerra in 1825, and became a Mexican citizen in 1830. In 1834, Hartnell was granted the Alisal Ranch near Monterey, where he founded a school, the Casa de Educacion y Pupilage, which would be attended by his children and other students. He also held offices under the Mexican and United States governments of California, serving as visitador-general of missions (1839-1840), and official interpreter for United States (1847-1850). Hartnell died in 1854.

Acquisition information:
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. K.K. Bechtel, 1955. Transferred to Stanford University Libraries in 2025.
Physical location:
Special Collections and University Archives materials are stored offsite and must be paged three business days in advance. For more information on paging collections, see the department's website: https://library.stanford.edu/libraries/special-collections.
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Bibliography:

Sources consulted for Biography note:

Bancroft, Hubert Howe. <em>The works of Hubert Howe Bancroft, Volume XIX: History of California, Volume II, 1801-1824</em>. Santa Barbara: Wallace Hebberd, 1966.

Bancroft, Hubert Howe. <em>The works of Hubert Howe Bancroft, Volume XX: History of California, Volume III, 1825-1840</em>. Santa Barbara: Wallace Hebberd, 1966.

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Finding aid prepared by Marie Silva
Date Encoded:
This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2026-04-20 11:50:46 -0700 .

Access and use

Restrictions:

Collection is open for research.

Terms of access:

Material in the public domain does not have any restrictions on use.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item, date] William Hartnell papers (MS Vault 028) California Historical Society Collection at Stanford, Dept. of Special Collections and University Archives, Stanford University Libraries, Stanford, California.

Location of this collection:
Department of Special Collections, Green Library
557 Escondido Mall
Stanford, CA 94305-6004, US
Contact:
(650) 725-1022
chscollection@stanford.edu
Website