Thompson & West records, 1828-1891

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Summary

Creators:
Thompson & West
Abstract:
Papers belonging to the 19th century California publishing company Thompson & West.
Extent:
2.79 Linear Feet (3 boxes)
Language:
Materials are in English.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. Thompson & West records, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Background

Scope and content:

The collection consists of materials gathered for the publishing of local histories in California and Nevada from 1875-1890 (most of which relates to Yuba and Sutter counties in California). There is also some material on mining in California and Nevada (especially the Comstock Lode) and the San Francisco Committee of Vigilance. The collection also contains some materials on individuals such as Thomas Berdue, Samuel Brannan, Kit Carson, and William Thorrington. The collection also contains three scrapbooks of press clippings about the histories, 12 original drawings, and two books of engravings.

Biographical / historical:

Thomas Hinkley Thompson (1841-1915) and Albert Augustus West (1841-1918), both from Illinois, formed a partnership in Oakland, California, in 1875 to publish books patterned after the state and local histories which became popular in the United States in the latter half of the 19th century. These volumes were sold by subscription and were generally accompanied by biographies of the subscribers and prominent citizens.

Acquisition information:
Purchased from Dawson's Book Shop, July 1958.
Processing information:

Processed by Huntington Library staff. In 2022, Brooke M. Black created a finding aid.

Arrangement:

Organized in the following series: 1. Correspondence etc.; 2. Envelopes; 3. Volumes.

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]. Thompson & West records, 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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