Horatio Nelson Rust papers, 1799-1906, bulk 1870-1906

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Summary

Creators:
Rust, Horatio N. (Horatio Nelson), 1828-1906
Abstract:
A collection of correspondence, manuscripts, and diaries of Horatio Nelson Rust, United States Indian agent, horticulturalist, and resident of Pasadena, California.
Extent:
25.38 Linear Feet (21 boxes, 1 oversize folder)
Language:
Materials are in English.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. Horatio Nelson Rust papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Background

Scope and content:

A collection of 1,229 items from 1799 to 1906, it consists of letters, manuscripts, volumes, diaries, scrapbooks, and ephemera related to the life and work of Horatio Nelson Rust. Subject matter includes: Indian culture in the Southwest; horticulture in Southern California; and the Freedmen's Bureau; there is also material regarding abolitionist John Brown and his family. Correspondents represented in the collection include: Franklin George Adams, Spencer Fullerton Baird, Thomas Robert Bard, George Amos Dorsey, Edward Dwight Eaton, Thomas Featherstonhaugh, Jessie Benton Frémont, John Charles Frémont, John Watson Foster, Horace Greeley, Richard Josiah Hinton, Edward Hitchcock, Frederick Webb Hodge, Oliver Wendell Holmes, William Henry Holmes, Helen Hunt Jackson, A.L. Kroeber, Charles Fletcher Lummis, Otis Tufton Mason, John Muir, Frederick Ward Putnam, James Redpath, Alexander Milton Ross, F.B. Sanborn, Carl Schulz, Edward Parmelee Smith, Frederick Starr, and Henry A. Ward.

Biographical / historical:

Horatio Nelson Rust (1828-1906) was a U.S. Indian agent, horticulturalist, and Pasadena, California resident. Born in Amherst, Massachusetts, Rust was influenced by early abolitionists and became acquainted with American abolitionist John Brown (1800-1859), leader of the Harper's Ferry raid. Rust married Fidelia Humphrey (1830-1899) in September 1851. His interest in archaeology led to his exploration and investigation of North American Indian antiquities. Rust served as an U.S. Indian Agent to the Mission Indians of Southern California from 1890 to 1893; he also helped to establish an Indian school at Perris, California. Rust was influential in civic affairs and active in the discussion over the incorporation of Pasadena and South Pasadena, California; he died in South Pasadena on November 14, 1906.

Acquisition information:
Gift of Charles Yale, June 1942 and purchase August 1942; RU 1231 purchased from Charles Yale, July 24, 1942. Gift of Mrs. Nellie Rust Lockwood and Edward A. Rust, June 1943. Gift of Mrs. Nellie Rust Lockwood, February 1946.
Processing information:

Processed by Huntington Library Staff, circa 1950. In 2020, Gayle Richardson created the finding aid derived from a legacy summary report. In 2022, Melissa Haley enhanced description of the presidential material present in the collection as part of the American Presidential Papers Project.

Arrangement:

Arranged chronologically.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

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

Terms of access:

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.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. Horatio Nelson Rust papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Location of this collection:
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108, US
Contact:
(626) 405-2191
reference@huntington.org
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