Register of the Rhodes Family Papers, 1838-1942

Processed by Holt Atherton staff; revised by Don Walker; machine-readable finding aid created by Don Walker
Holt-Atherton Department of Special Collections
University Library, University of the Pacific
Stockton, CA 95211
Phone: (209) 946-2404
URL: http://www.pacific.edu/Library/Find/Holt-Atherton-Special-Collections.html
© 1998
University of the Pacific. All rights reserved.



Register of the Rhodes Family Papers, 1838-1942

Collection number: Mss30

Holt-Atherton Department of Special Collections

University Library

University of the Pacific

Contact Information

Processed by:
Holt Atherton staff; revised by Don Walker
Date Completed:
October 1998
Encoded by:
Don Walker
© 1998 University of the Pacific. All rights reserved.

Descriptive Summary

Title: Rhodes Family Papers,
Date (inclusive): 1838-1942
Collection number: Mss30
Creator: E.L. Pister, Richard Rhodes & Robert Chandler
Extent: .5 linear ft. + 1 microfilm
Repository: University of the Pacific. Library. Holt-Atherton Department of Special Collections
Stockton, CA 95211
Shelf location: For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the library's online catalog.
Language: English.

Administrative Information

Access

Collection is open for research.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Rhodes Family Papers, Mss30, Holt-Atherton Department of Special Collections, University of the Pacific Library

Access Points

Personal Names

Rhodes, William Henry (1822-1876)
Rhodes, Elisha (1791-1858)
Rhodes, Mary W. Kimball (1808-1893)
Rhodes, Robert H.
Rhodes family
Pister family
Smith family

Subjects

Voyages to the Pacific coast
Authors -California
Ranch life -California -San Joaquin County
Women -California -San Joaquin County
Medicine -New York -History
Economic conditions -California -San Joaquin County
San Joaquin County (Calif.) -History -Sources
Texas -History -Sources
United States -History -Mexican War, 1846-1848
United States -History -Civil War, 1861-1865

Personal Names

McDermott family

Biography

Dr. Robert H. Rhodes, a physician from New York City, came to California in 1849. His cousin, Col. Elisha A. Rhodes (1791-1858), a widower, had earlier gone to Texas where he was appointed U.S. Consul(1838). There Elisha married a widow, Mary Kimball (1808-1893) of Houston, and they had two sons, Cullen C. (b. 1839) and Edward A. (b. 1841). Both Elisha and Mary Rhodes also had children by their previous marriages. One of Col. Rhodes' sons, William Henry Rhodes (1822-1876), later achieved fame in California as author "Caxton" Rhodes. Elisha Rhodes was incapacitated by a stroke during the late 1840s and his wife, Mary, went to California with William H. (1850), leaving her husband behind. In 1852 she returned to Texas and brought the entire Rhodes family to California, settling them on Windsor Ranch about five miles from Stockton. After Col. Rhodes' death Mary Rhodes continued to operate their ranch for many years. She was also active in prisoner relief work during the Civil War.
William Henry Rhodes studied at Harvard Law School (1844). Upon his arrival in San Francisco, Rhodes practised law and dabbled in politics. When his Southern sympathies caused difficulties for him in California during the Civil War, Rhodes withdrew to Virginia City, Nev. (1863-1865). At war's end, he returned to California where he launched a literary career, publishing poetry and science fiction under the nom de plume "Caxton." While holding a judgeship in the 12th Circuit Court, Rhodes also became well-known for public readings of his works, the most noteworthy of which was probably the anthology, Caxton's Book, published in the year of his death (1876).

Scope and Content

The Rhodes Family Papers consist of correspondence (1838-1877), Robert H. Rhodes diary (1848-1849), California ranch business records(1858-1898), and miscellaneous biographical and genealogical materials pertaining to the Rhodes, Smith, Pister and McDermott families.

 

BOX 1: RHODES FAMILY PAPERS

 

1.1: DIARY OF DR. ROBERT H. RHODES (1848-1849) [describes career as medical student; voyage to California; incl. some plays & poetry]

 

1.2: RHODES FAMILY CORRESPONDENCE & OTHER PAPERS (1838-1877)

 

a-Col. Elisha Rhodes letter describing conditions in Texas on his arrival (1838)

 

b-Mary Rhodes letter describing Sam Houston (1843)

 

c-Galveston residents to John C. Calhoun (1844) [testifies to Rhodes' good character]

 

d-Deed to Windsor Ranch (1856)

 

e-Edward A. Rhodes, Virginia Military Institute to family (1860)

 

f-Mary Rhodes to Edward A. Rhodes (1861) [describes sectional hostilities in Calif.]

 

g-? Rhodes, Texas to Mary Rhodes (1877) [protests election of Rutherford B. Hayes]

 

1.3: MISC. BUSINESS PAPERS (1868-1880) [25 items; principally rcpts. for ranch supplies and eqpt.; some tax rcpts., etc.]

 

1.4: MISC. BUSINESS PAPERS (1881-1883) [15 items]

 

1.5: MISC. BUSINESS PAPERS (1884-1886) [18 items]

 

1.6: MISC. BUSINESS PAPERS (1887-1898) [15 items]

 

1.7: MISC. GENEALOGICAL MATERIAL (1857-c1942) [15 items; primarily family corresp. showing relationships of Rhodes, Smith and Pister families; incl. some poetry by Mary Rhodes]

 

1.8: MARY RHODES [clippings re]

 

BOX 2: WILLIAM H. "CAXTON" RHODES

 

2.1: BIOGRAPHICAL & GENERAL INFO

 

a-Genealogy

 

b-Biography from History of the Island City of Galveston

 

c-Biography from The Poets

 

d-Biography from Science Fiction in Old San Francisco

 

2.2: SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS & RECITATIONS

 

2.3: DESCENDANTS

 

2.4: MCDERMOTT (MATERNAL LINE) FAMILY INFO

 

2.5: WRITINGS AND ACTIVITIES

 

a-Woman suffrage

 

b-Caxton's Book (1876) [photocopy]

 

c-"The hobby horse," SF Call (7-26-1874)

 

d-Indian Gallows & Other Poems (1846) [photocopy]

 

e-"Caxton: The enrobing of liberty," from May Wentworth. Poetry of the Pacific (1867)

 

2.6: MISC. PUBLISHED MATERIALS, INCL. "THE VIGILANCE COMMITTEE OF 1856"