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Dudley (Thomas Haines) Papers
mssDU  
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Table of contents What's This?
  • Conditions Governing Access
  • Conditions Governing Use
  • Preferred Citation
  • Immediate Source of Acquisition
  • Immediate Source of Acquisition
  • Biographical / Historical
  • Scope and Contents
  • Subject Matter
  • Processing Information
  • Persons And Organizations Represented by 15 or More Items
  • Additional Information
  • Other Finding Aids
    • Contributing Institution: The Huntington Library
    Title: Thomas Haines Dudley papers
    Identifier/Call Number: mssDU
    Physical Description: 78.6 Linear Feet (73 boxes)
    Date (inclusive): 1841-1959
    Date (bulk): 1861-1872
    Abstract: The collection primarily contains correspondence and documents of Thomas Haines Dudley from 1861 to 1872.
    Language of Material: English.

    Conditions Governing Access

    Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at the Huntington Library for more information.

    Conditions Governing Use

    In order to quote from, publish, or reproduce any of the manuscripts or visual materials, researchers must obtain formal permission from the office of the Library Director. In most instances, permission is given by the Huntington as owner of the physical property rights only, and researchers must also obtain permission from the holder of the literary rights. In some instances, the Huntington owns the literary rights, as well as the physical property rights. Researchers may contact the appropriate curator for further information.

    Preferred Citation

    [Identification of item], Thomas Haines Dudley papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

    Immediate Source of Acquisition

    Purchased through Stanley V. Henkels from E. Lawrence Dudley, grandson of Thomas Haines Dudley, 1923.

    Immediate Source of Acquisition

    Addenda gift of Philip Van Doren Stern, date undetermined.

    Biographical / Historical

    Thomas Haines Dudley (1819-1893) was an American diplomat and politician. A New Jersey Quaker, he became active in the state and national Whig and then Republican politics in the early 1840s. As U.S. consul to Liverpool from 1861 to 1872, he was in charge of secret service throughout the Civil War and was active in attempts to prevent Confederate shipbuilding in England. From 1865 to 1872, he was involved in settling property claims arising out of the war. In the 1880s, he published a number of pro-protectionist pamphlets. His son, Edward Dudley, served as Vice Consul and Acting Consul in Liverpool in 1871 and 1872 and was a partner in his father's New Jersey law firm.

    Scope and Contents

    The collection primarily contains correspondence and documents of Thomas Haines Dudley. Dudley's personal and political correspondence, including 22 volumes of diplomatic correspondence, reflect his entire political career. Also present are 1 volume of copies of Confederate correspondence, documents (including 8 account books and 2 volumes of memoranda), 6 scrapbooks of newspaper clippings, and miscellaneous pamphlets, photographs, and other printed material. Subjects include Whig and Republican politics; local, state, and national elections and conventions, including the 1860 Republican National Convention; political affairs in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, including information on Camden and Amboy Railroad and Transportation Company; the politics and government in the New England states, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois are covered to a somewhat lesser extent. There are some items relating to the U.S. Sanitary Commission. Items also document affairs of the American consulate in Liverpool, especially pertaining to Confederate shipbuilding and blockade running, British claims against the United States after the war and efforts to confiscate Confederate property in England, and routine consular matters. This portion of the collection includes photographs and drawings of Confederate ships. Dudley's legal practice and personal affairs, including his interest in political economy, are reflected in his correspondence with Henry Charles Carey. Presidential items in this collection include Chester A. Arthur letter to Thomas Haines Dudley, 1872 February 1 (DU 87); Ulysses S. Grant letter to Thomas Haines Dudley, 1866 March 9 (DU 1820); Andrew Johnson letter to Thomas Haines Dudley, 1865 December 24 (DU 2434).

    Subject Matter

    1843-1860

    1. Development & strengthening of Whig & Republican Parties
    2. Local, state & national elections, Fund raising for same
    3. Local and national conventions including 1860 Republican National Convention
    4. Politics and government of New Jersey & Pennsylvania - to a somewhat lesser extent, of the New England States and of Ohio, Indiana and Illinois.
    5. Political economy (particularly in the letters of Henry Charles Carey)
    6. Camden & Amboy Ry. & Camden Ferry Co.
    7. Dudley's legal practice
    8. Personal correspondence (minor)

    1861-1872

    1. Construction by British firms of warships for C.S.A. U. S. efforts (legal & diplomatic) to induce the British government to seize & detain then under Britain's Foreign Enlistment Act (a neutrality act)
    2. Blockade runners
    3. Detectives' report re. both the above. Photographs, sketches & descriptions for use of U.S. Navy
    4. Registry, manifests, statistics of ships clearing from British ports 1861-1865
    5. Confederate finances - including cotton loans, cotton warrants, activities of Fraser Trenholm & Co. (financial agent for C.S.A. in Great Britain)
    6. U.S. claims for & legal actions to obtain C.S.A. assets & property in Great Britain after the war.
    7. Sale of Confederate ships awarded to the U.S. by British Courts.
    8. Preparation of Alabam Claims for presentation to Geneva Tribunal of Arbitration as provided in 1871 Treaty of Washington.
    9. Preparation of & Interrogatories on Memorials to Mixed Commission on American and British Claims as provided in same Treaty for civilian suits.
    10. Protests, petitions, mass meetings & legal actions vs. Dudley by (or insigated by) disgruntled individuals.
    11. Consuls - regulations - assistance to distressed seamen
    12. Consular services to U.S. nationals &/or relatives in Lancashire, England
    13. Dudley's stock & bond transactions
    14. Designs & price estimates for house being built for Dudley in New Jersey. Equipment for same. Stocking of his farm
    15. U.S. politics & national elections - only a few items
    16. Immigration to U.S. - only a few items of any significance
    17. Personal correspondence - only a few items of any significance
    18. Potato famine - correspondence - mainly in letter books
    19. Cow cholera - correspondence - mainly in letter books
    20. U.S. Sanitary Commission & Sanitary Fairs

    1872-1891

    1. Politics
    2. Agricultural organizations & conventions
    3. Tariff - including opposition of Cobdon Clubs
    4. Dudley's legal practice
    5. Personal correspondence

    Processing Information

    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.

    Persons And Organizations Represented by 15 or More Items

    (exclusive of letter books & of detectives who made only routine reports)
    1. Abbot, George J 22 pieces
    2. Adams, Charles Francis 17 pieces
    3. Badeau, Adam 24 pieces
    4. Bemis 15 pieces
    5. Borthwick, Wark & Co 22 pieces
    6. Bright, John 35 pieces
    7. Carey, Henry Charles 109 pieces
    8. Chandler, George H 109 pieces
    9. Chandler, George H 16 pieces
    10. Cleveland, Charles Dexter 38 pieces
    11. Cook, William 40 pieces
    12. Cushing, Caleb 25 pieces
    13. Davis, John Chandler Bancroft 20 pieces
    14. Dayton, Williams Lewis 18 pieces
    15. De Costa, John 16 pieces
    16. Downward, William & Co 63 pieces
    17. Dudley, Thomas Haines 237 pieces
    18. Duncans, Squarey, Blackmore, Pearson & Hill 107 pieces
    19. Evarts, William Maxwell 23 pieces
    20. Field, Roscoe, Field & Francis 113 pieces
    21. Forbes, John Murray 27 pieces
    22. Fox, Alfred 16 pieces
    23. Freeman, Thomas F 15 pieces
    24. French, William 18 pieces
    25. Great Britain 82 pieces
    26. Hale, Charles 15 pieces
    27. Halligan, Thomas 80 pieces
    28. Harvey, Jevons & Ryley 104 pieces
    29. Heine, William 21 pieces
    30. Jevons, William Alfred 109 pieces
    31. Langley, J. Baxter 20 pieces
    32. Latham, John 23 pieces
    33. Maguire, Matthew 107 pieces
    34. McChesney, Joseph H 19 pieces
    35. Moran, Benjamin 235 pieces
    36. Morse, Freeman Harlow 86 pieces
    37. Murray, Andrew 16 pieces
    38. Prettyman John S 24 pieces
    39. Redfield, Isaac Fletcher 38 pieces
    40. Rothery & Co 20 pieces
    41. Seward, William Henry 20 pieces
    42. Squarey, Andrew 22 pieces
    43. Thomas, R. M 15 pieces
    44. Thompson, Charles 44 pieces
    45. Underwood, Warner Lewis 44 pieces
    46. Wells, David Ames 16 pieces
    47. West, William B 15 pieces
    48. Wilding, Henry 134 pieces
    49. Wilson, Charles Lush 51 pieces
    50. Winslow, John Ancrum 16 pieces
    51. Yonge, Clarence Randolph 29 pieces

    Additional Information

    Alternate Names of Ships

    1. Active - Beatrice - Rappahannock Scylla - Victor
    2. Echo - Jefferson Davis - Putnam
    3. Agincourt - No. 278
    4. Economist - Bonita
    5. Alabama - No. 290 - Enrica
    6. El Monassir - Laird's Ram - Wyvern
    7. Alabama 2-Canton of London Pampero - Texas - Tournado
    8. El Toussan - Laird's Ram - Scorpion (Sister ship to El Monassir)
    9. Agnes Louisa - Grapeshot
    10. Enrica (see Alabama)
    11. Alexandra - Mary
    12. Eureka - Joseph L. Gerrity - Gerrity
    13. F. Crenshaw - Gracie
    14. Annie Childs - North Carolina Victory - Julia Usher T.D. Wagner
    15. Florida - Malacca - Oreto - Manassas
    16. Georgia - Virginia 2 - Japan
    17. Antonica - Herald
    18. Gibraltar - Sumter
    19. Ariel - Colonel Lamb
    20. Giraffe - Robert E. Lee
    21. Atlanta - Tallahassee Chameleon
    22. Gracie - F. Crenshaw
    23. Bonita - Economist
    24. Granite City - Dundee
    25. Beatrice (see Active)
    26. Grapeshot - Agnes Louisa
    27. Bendige - Millie
    28. Herald - Antonica
    29. Canton of London (see Alabama 2)
    30. Joseph L. Gerrity - Gerrity - Eureka
    31. Chameleon (see Atlanta)
    32. Japan (see Georgia)
    33. Cherokee - Thistle
    34. Jefferson Davis (see Echo)
    35. Colonel Lamb (see Ariel)
    36. Julia Farmer - Martha Whitmore
    37. Conrad - Tuscaloosa
    38. Julia Usher (see Annie Childs)
    39. Danmark - Santa Maria
    40. Laird's Rams (see sister ships El Monassir and El Toussan)
    41. Defiance No. 292
    42. Lancashire - Stonewall - Sphinx Stoerkodder)
    43. Douglas - Margaret
    44. Dundee - Granite City
    45. Lilla - Mary Wright
    46. Malacca - (see Florida)
    47. Duntroon Castle - Shenandoah
    48. Richard Wright - Sea King
    49. Manassas - (see Florida)
    50. Eagle - Mary Anne
    51. Margaret - Douglas
    52. Martha Whitmore - Julia Farmer
    53. Scylla (see Active)
    54. Mary (see Alexandra)
    55. Scorpion (see El Toussan)
    56. Mary Anne - Eagle
    57. Sea Hawk - Merlin
    58. Mary Wright - Lilla
    59. Sea King (see Duntroon Castle)
    60. Merlin - Sea Hawk
    61. Shenandoah (see Duntroon Castle)
    62. Merrimac 1 - Virginia 1
    63. Stoerkodder (see Lancashire)
    64. Merrimac 2 - Nargis
    65. Stonewall (see Lancashire)
    66. Millie - Bendage
    67. Southerner - Westminster
    68. Mohawk - Pekin
    69. Sumter (see Gibraltar)
    70. Nargis - Merrimac 2
    71. T. D. Wagner (see Annie Childs)
    72. North Carolina (see Annie Childs)
    73. Tallahassee (see Atlanta)
    74. Oreto (see Florida)
    75. Texas (see Alabama 2)
    76. Pampero - (see Alabama 2)
    77. Thistle - Cherokee
    78. Pekin - Mohawk
    79. Tournado (see Alabama2)
    80. Princess Royal - Rosalind
    81. Tuscaloosa - Conrad
    82. Putnam (see Echo)
    83. Victor (see Active)
    84. Rappahannock (see Active)
    85. Victory (see Annie Childs)
    86. Richard Wright (see Duntroon Castle)
    87. Virginia 1 - Merrimac 1
    88. Robert E. Lee (see Giraffe)
    89. Virginia 2 (see Georgia)
    90. Rosalind - Princess Royal
    91. Westminster - Southerner
    92. Santa Maria - Danmark
    93. Wyvern (see El Monassir)
    1. Agrippina
    2. Helen Morris
    3. Tallahassee
    4. Ajax
    5. Hercules
    6. Thomas
    7. Alabama
    8. Japan
    9. Tuscarora
    10. Alexandra
    11. Joseph L. Gerrity
    12. Virginia
    13. Annie Childs
    14. Julia Usher
    15. Wasp
    16. Ariel
    17. Kearsarge
    18. White Inch
    19. Atlanta
    20. Laird's Rams
    21. Badgar
    22. Lark
    23. Bahama
    24. Louisa Ann Fannie
    25. Beatrice
    26. Laurel
    27. Canton of London
    28. Mary
    29. Chameleon
    30. Niagara
    31. City of Richmond
    32. No. 290
    33. Colonal Lamb
    34. Olinde
    35. Deerhound
    36. Oreto
    37. Owl
    38. Dolphin
    39. Pampero
    40. Duntroon Castle Edward Hawkins
    41. Penguin
    42. Emily St Piere
    43. Rappahannock
    44. Fingal
    45. Robert E. Lee
    46. Florida
    47. Rosine Ruby
    48. Fox
    49. St Thomas
    50. Georgia
    51. Sea King
    52. Gerrity
    53. Shenandosh
    54. Gibraltar
    55. Southerner
    56. Great Western
    57. Stonewall
    58. Hawk
    59. Sumter

    Other Finding Aids

    Of possible assistance in utilizing the collection are:
    1. Partial list of ships frequently mentioned (In Information File)
    2. List of alternate names of ships (In Information File)
    3. Register of official dispatches (DU 1070)
    4. Register of Confederate & suspicious ships (DU 1059)
    5. The English Blockade Steamers (DU 4057)

    Subjects and Indexing Terms

    Arthur, Chester Alan, 1901-1972
    Grant, Ulysses S. (Ulysses Simpson), 1822-1885
    Johnson, Andrew, 1808-1875
    Collection Contents
    Interesting or Important Items
    Bound Volumes
    Correspondence and documents
    Clippings, printed material, photographs
    Addenda: Research material re: Confederate ironclads
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