Collection Guide
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Barney (Hiram) Papers
mssHB
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Table of contents
Contributing Institution:
The Huntington Library
Title: Hiram Barney papers
Creator:
Barney, Hiram
Identifier/Call Number: mssHB
Physical Description:
22 Linear Feet
(45 boxes, 12 volumes, 1 oversize folder)
Date (inclusive): 1772-1924
Date (bulk): 1836-1894
Abstract: This collection contains the political, business, legal, and family papers of lawyer and collector of the port of New York
Hiram Barney (1811-1895) and concern a wide variety of subjects including real estate, primarily in Iowa, and New York; court
cases (often pertaining to the debt collection) and other legal services; politics generally, but especially patronage distribution;
family affairs, business transactions concerning the Erie and other canals; small railroads (largely in the Lake Plains region);
Mexico and Mexican-American relations; the Civil War; and the U.S. Customs Service.
Language of Material: English.
Open to qualified researchers by prior application through the Reader Services Department. For more information, contact Reader
Services.
The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material,
nor does it charge fees for such activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and
obtaining necessary permissions rests with the researcher.
[Identification of item]. Hiram Barney papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Purchased from Walter T. Shatford, 1962.
Hiram Barney, lawyer and collector for the Port of New York, was born in Henderson, New York, on May 30, 1811. After graduating
from Union College in 1833, he held a law clerkship and was admitted to the New York bar in 1836. Barney's legal career began
with the firm of William Mulligan in 1836. In 1838, he entered into a partnership with William D. Waterman and in 1841, with
William Mitchell. During the early years of his career, Barney, largely engaged as a "collections" lawyer, did much of his
business in the West, especially Iowa. In 1849, Barney formed yet another partnership with Benjamin F. Butler and his son,
William Allen Butler. After the retirement of the elder Butler and the arrival and departure of James Humphrey, the firm became
known as Barney, Butler, and Parsons. Barney remained with his firm until 1874, when he was retained as special counsel. Barney's
final legal partnership began in 1878 with Edward D. Cowman.
In addition to carrying out his legal obligations, Barney became active in the anti-slavery movement and related political
parties. Possibly he was influenced by his marriage to Susan Aspinwall Tappan, the daughter of Lewis Tappan, a prominent abolitionist.
In 1840, Barney was nominated for Congress by the Anti-Slavery Party, but received only 350 votes. Barney attended the Free
Soil Party Convention in 1848, and in 1852, he headed the electoral ticket on behalf of Hale and Julian. Following the organization
of the Republican Party in 1856, Barney served as a delegate to the Philadelphia Convention, but voted for Sumner instead
of Fremont. In 1860, he attended the convention in Chicago which nominated Abraham Lincoln for president. Barney was said
to have collected $35,000 in New York to further Lincoln's candidacy. His association with Lincoln was close and constant.
Lincoln's appointment of Barney to the post of Collector of the Port of New York in 1861 proved anything but rewarding. Barney
inherited a collector-ship bogged down with political patronage and graft. As Collector, he was overwhelmed with applications,
testimonials, and office seekers. The Civil War intensified his responsibilities. In addition Barney attempted to continue
with his professional business, much of which demanded his absence from the state. Duped by those he trusted, Barney proved
unequal to the demands of the office. Following investigations by the Treasury Department, Barney resigned. His personal integrity
seems never to have been questioned and he retained the respect and affection of his friends and business associates. However,
his health broke under the strain.
Having overextended his business interests, hard times in the 1870's dogged Barney year after year. The death of his first
wife, Susan (Tappan) Barney, added to his burden. On August 26, 1880, Barney married Harriet E. Kilbourne, the daughter of
one of his Iowa business associates, by whom he had several children. He seems never to have fully recuperated, either in
business or health. When he died on May 18, 1895, he was attempting to dispose of the family estate, Cedar Knolls, at Kingsbridge,
New York.
This collection contains the political, business, legal, and family papers of lawyer and collector of the port of New York
Hiram Barney (1811-1895) and concern a wide variety of subjects including real estate, primarily in Iowa, and New York; court
cases (often pertaining to the debt collection) and other legal services; politics generally, but especially patronage distribution;
family affairs, business transactions concerning the Erie and other canals; small railroads (largely in the Lake Plains region);
Mexico and Mexican-American relations; the Civil War; and the U.S. Customs Service.
The Barney Collection is divided into three main sections: Business and Political Papers, New York Custom House Papers, and
Family Papers. The collection also contains one box of photographs and three boxes of miscellaneous printed materials. (For
a complete listing of the contents, consult the Box and Folder List.)
The BUSINESS AND POLITICAL PAPERS (boxes 1-31), arranged in alphabetical order by author, contain the documents and letters
of various groups and individuals, including Hiram Barney, whose papers are further subdivided into correspondence, legal
documents, real estate documents, and miscellaneous documents.
Included in this section is the correspondence of nationally known business men, politicians, soldiers, etc. This correspondence
contains many references to the anti-slavery movement in the North, the Civil War, Republican Party politics, and Barney's
friendship with Abraham Lincoln. Also scattered through this section are transportation papers which indicate Barney's interest
in and connection with the opening up of waterways, the railroad, and the telegraph from the Atlantic to the Mississippi.
Most of Barney's real estate papers pertain to the Half-Breed Tract lying between the Mississippi and Des Moines rivers. This
land was ceded to the Federal Government by the Sauk and Fox Indians. The documents include individual cessions by specific
Indians and papers pertaining to the first proprietors. Related to Barney's real estate documents are the Francis Scott Key
papers. Key, a friend of Barney's, acted as attorney-in-law for the proprietors. He died before he could collect his fee (in
lands) and his estate, and Barney inherited that responsibility.
Barney's legal documents extend from 1825 to 1888. They include articles of partnership, court cases, powers of attorney,
notes for collection, etc.
The NEW YORK CUSTOM HOUSE PAPERS (boxes 32-34) consist of documents and correspondence concerning the general operations,
patronage, and personnel of the Custom House, as well as records of the frauds investigation conducted by the U.S. Treasury
Department. To gain a full idea of Barney's activities as collector, the correspondence in the Business and Political Papers
between Hiram Barney and Salmon P. Chase, Charles P. Clinch, William P. Fessenden, Abraham Lincoln, Manton M. Marple, Albert
M. Palmer, and Edward D. Smith must also be consulted.
The FAMILY PAPERS (boxes 35-41) were probably collected by one of Barney's daughters, Sara Barney. Arranged alphabetically
by author, these papers, with the exception of those pertaining to Hiram Barney, are of little interest to the collection
as a whole.
Materials created by US presidents in this collection include: James A. Garfield letter to Hiram Barney, 1877 December 6 (HB
Box 18 (3)); Ulysses S. Grant letter to Philip H. Sheridan, 1865 July 25 (HB Box 18 (10)); Ulysses S. Grant letter extract,
approximately 1879 (HB Box 18 (11)); Ulysses S. Grant letter to Edwin M. Stanton, 1865 February 24 (HB Box 18 (12)); Ulysses
S. Grant letters to John McAllister Schofield, 1867-1881 (three items, HB Box 18 (9)); Benjamin Harrison letters to John McAllister
Schofield, 1889-1892 (four items, HB Box 18 (36)); Rutherford B. Hayes letters to John McAllister Schofield, 1879 May 17,
August 12 (HB Box 18 (40)); James Madison appointment to Aaron Hassert, 1812 May 22 (HB Box 3); William McKinley letter to
John McAllister Schofield, 1896 November 9 (HB Box 22 (24)). Some presidential items are contemporary copies.
This finding aid was updated in 2022 by Melissa Haley as part of the American Presidential Papers Project with enhanced description
of the presidential material present.
Individual call numbers in the collection: mssHB Boxes 1-45.
The following items have been transferred to the
Abraham Lincoln collection , mssLincoln. The remaining Abraham Lincoln items in this collection are contemporary copies.
- Abraham Lincoln, Washington, D.C, letter to John M. Schofield, 1863 June 22 (HB Box 22 (7))
- Abraham Lincoln, Washington, D.C., letter to John M. Schofield, 1863 October 1 (HB Box 22 (7))
- Abraham Lincoln, Washington, D.C., letter to John M. Schofield, 1863 October 28 (HB Box 22 (7))
- Abraham Lincoln, Washington, D.C. appointment of Hiram Barney as Collector of Customs, New York, 1861 March 30 (HB 2)
- Hiram Barney letterbooks, 1861-1877 (Call number: mssHM 70910-70912)
- Business ledgers of the White Elk vineyard (Call number: mssHM 5-12)
- Chase, Salmon P. (Salmon Portland), 1808-1873. Letterpress book of the Secretary of the Treasury. 1863, June 1 -- Dec. 31 (Call number: mssHM 71515)
Organized in the following series: 1. Business and political papers; 2. New York Custom House records; 3. Family papers.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Transportation -- United States -- 19th century.
Railroads -- United States -- 19th century.
Telegraph -- United States -- 19th century.
Canals -- New York (State)
Antislavery movements -- United States.
Real property -- New York (State)
Real property -- Iowa.
Customs administration -- United States.
Lawyers -- United States -- Archives.
Politicians -- United States -- Archives.
Businessmen -- United States -- Archives.
Fraud investigation -- New York (State)
United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Sources.
United States -- Foreign relations -- Mexico
Mexico -- Foreign relations -- United States
New York (State) -- Politics and government -- 19th century.
Family papers -- United States -- 19th century.
Personal papers -- United States -- 19th century.
Professional papers -- United States -- 19th century.
Corporation records -- United States -- 19th century.
Government records -- United States -- 19th century.
Judicial records -- United States -- 19th century.
Barney, Hiram -- Archives
Bryant, William Cullen, 1794-1878
Bryant, William Cullen, 1794-1878 -- Correspondence
Butler, William Allen, 1825-1902
Butler, William Allen, 1825-1902 -- Correspondence
Clinch, Charles P. (Charles Powell), 1797-1880
Clinch, Charles P. (Charles Powell), 1797-1880 -- Correspondence
Chase, Salmon P. (Salmon Portland), 1808-1873 -- Correspondence
Corning, Erastus, 1794-1872
Corning, Erastus, 1794-1872 -- Correspondence
Delavan, Edward C. (Edward Cornelius), 1793-1871
Delavan, Edward C. (Edward Cornelius), 1793-1871 -- Correspondence
Fessenden, William Pitt, 1806-1869
Fessenden, William Pitt, 1806-1869 -- Correspondence
Grant, Ulysses S. (Ulysses Simpson), 1822-1885
Harrison, Benjamin, 1833-1901
Hayes, Rutherford B., 1822-1893
Jay, John, 1817-1894
Jay, John, 1817-1894 -- Correspondence
Key, Francis Scott, 1779-1843
Key, Francis Scott, 1779-1843 -- Archives
Kozlay, Eugene A., 1779-1843
Kozlay, Eugene A., approximately 1828-1883 -- Correspondence
Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865 -- Correspondence
Madison, James, 1751-1836
McKinley, William, 1843-1901
Pierce, Edward Lillie, 1829-1897
Romero, Matías, 1837-1898
Romero, Matías, 1837-1898 -- Correspondence
Seymour, Horatio, 1810-1886 -- Correspondence
Sherman, William T. (William Tecumseh), 1820-1891 -- Correspondence
Stevens, Breese Jacob
Stevens, Breese Jacob -- Correspondence
Tappan, Lewis, 1788-1873 -- Correspondence
Alexander Hamilton United States Custom House (New York, N.Y.) -- Archives
Republican Party (U.S. : 1854- )
U.S. Customs Service