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William Rich Hutton Papers: Finding Aid
mssHM 43213-43227, mssFAC 807-845, mssFAC 1010
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Title: William Rich Hutton Papers
Dates (inclusive): 1840-1861
Collection Number: mssHM 43213-43227, mssFAC 807-845, mssFAC 1010
Creator:
Hutton, Wm. R. (William Rich), 1826-1901.
Extent: 149 pieces in 2 boxes
Repository:
The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens.
Manuscripts Department
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, California 91108
Phone: (626) 405-2129
Email: reference@huntington.org
URL: http://www.huntington.org
Abstract: This collection contains 96 drawings, 14 original letters, and 39 facsimiles of letters and manuscripts of California
surveyor, topographer, and engineer William Rich Hutton (1826-1901). Includes both watercolor and pencil drawings of California
(including Los Angeles, Monterey, San Francisco, the New Almaden Quicksilver Mine,
and the California Missions), Baja California, Mexico, and Peru.
Language: 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]. William Rich Hutton Papers, The Huntington Library, San
Marino, California.
Gift and purchase from Mary A. Hutton, 1939-1946; photostat (FAC 817) from John
J. Lynch, City Clerk, San Jose, CA, December 26, 1939; and photostat (FAC 1010)
from California Historical Society, San Francisco.
Alternative Form of Materials Available
Visit the
Huntington Digital Library
to view the digitized drawings from this collection.
William Rich Hutton (1826-1901), surveyor, topographer, and engineer, came to California in 1847
as a clerk with his uncle, Major William Rich, paymaster for U.S. volunteer troops.
For the next six years, Hutton was employed as a surveyor and draftsman. During this
time he made watercolor and pencil drawings of California scenes. In 1853 he
returned to the East and worked as an engineer on various projects including the
Washington Bridge and Hudson River Tunnel in New York City. Hutton’s younger
brother, James D. Hutton, was also a topographer and artist.
The collection contains 96 drawings, 14 original letters, and 39 facsimiles of
letters and manuscripts.
The illustrative material includes both watercolor and pencil drawings of California
(including Los Angeles, Monterey, San Francisco, the New Almaden Quicksilver Mine,
and the California Missions), Baja California, Mexico, and Peru. The ones in color
are noted below in the container list. One of the drawings is a facsimile (FAC
1010).
The majority of letters by William Rich Hutton are written to his uncle William Rich
and his mother Salome Rich Hutton. There is also some correspondence between William
Rich Hutton and his brother James D. Hutton. There are also letters by author María
Amparo Ruiz de Burton (these letters are in Spanish), California Governor Persifor
Frazer Smith, and Henry Wager Halleck. Some subjects of the correspondence include:
Los Angeles, San Francisco, Benjamin Davis Wilson, Edward Otho Cresap Ord, William
Goodwin Dana and his Nipomo Ranch (Dana Adobe), the New Almaden Mine, geologist
Louis Agassiz, Henry H. Burton, Jessie Benton Frémont, and the Civil War in
Washington DC and Baltimore. There are several facsimiles of manuscripts by William
Rich Hutton, mostly anecdotes about his time in California.
Note: FAC 1010 is physically located after drawing #32.
Letters and manuscripts are arranged chronologically in one box. Hutton's drawings
(96) are arranged in numerical order in the oversize box. Cards are filed in both
the alphabetical and chronological sections of the Manuscripts catalog.
Agassiz, Louis, 1807-1873.
- Subject in Persifor Frazer Smith, 1798-1858, letter (1849, June 9) to William Rich. HM 43227.
Burton, Henry H.
- Subject in William Rich letter (1849, July 30) to Salome Rich Hutton. HM 43226.
Dana, William Goodwin, 1797-1858.
- Subject in Wm. R. (William Rich) Hutton, 1826-1901 “The Wedding” [1850, July]. FAC 813.
Dana Adobe.
- Subject in Wm. R. (William Rich) Hutton, 1826-1901 “The Wedding” [1850, July]. FAC 813.
Frémont, Jessie Benton, 1824-1902.
- Subject in William Rich letter (1849, July 30) to Salome Rich Hutton. HM 43226.
New Almaden Quicksilver Mine (Calif.).
- Subject in H. W. (Henry Wager) Halleck, 1815-1872, letter (1855, May 31) to Wm. R. (William Rich) Hutton, 1826-1901. FAC 814.
Ord, Edward Otho Cresap, 1818-1883
- Subject in Wm. R. (William Rich) Hutton, 1826-1901, letters (1849) to William Rich. FAC 834-840.
Ruiz de Burton, María Amparo, 1832-1895.
- Subject in William Rich letter (1849, July 30) to Salome Rich Hutton. HM 43226.
United States – History – Civil War, 1861-1865 – Baltimore (Md.).
- Subject in James D. Hutton letters (1861) to Wm. R. (William Rich) Hutton, 1826-1901. HM 43221-43224.
Wilson, Benjamin Davis, 1811-1878.
- Subject in Wm. R. (William Rich) Hutton, 1826-1901, letter (1849, Sep. 1) to William Rich. FAC 840.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the
Huntington Library's Online Catalog.
Agassiz, Louis,
1807-1873.
Burton, Henry
H.
Dana, William Goodwin,
1797-1858.
Frémont, Jessie
Benton, 1824-1902.
Hutton, Wm. R.
(William Rich), 1826-1901.
Ord, Edward Otho
Cresap, 1818-1883.
Wilson, Benjamin
Davis, 1811-1878.
New Almaden Quicksilver
Mines (Calif.) -- Pictorial works.
Drafters -- California --
Archives.
Missions -- California -- Pictorial
works.
Surveyors -- California --
Archives.
Baja California (Mexico
: Peninsula) -- Pictorial works.
California --
Description and travel.
California --
Pictorial works.
California -- History
-- 19th century -- Sources.
California -- Social
life and customs -- 19th century.
Los Angeles (Calif.)
-- Description and travel.
Los Angeles (Calif.)
-- History -- 19th century -- Sources.
Los Angeles (Calif.)
-- Pictorial works.
Mexico -- Pictorial
works.
Monterey (Calif.) --
Description and travel.
Monterey (Calif.) --
History -- 19th century -- Sources.
Monterey (Calif.) --
Social life and customs -- 19th century.
Monterey (Calif.) --
Pictorial works.
Peru -- Pictorial
works.
San Francisco (Calif.)
-- Description and travel.
San Francisco (Calif.)
-- History -- 19th century -- Sources.
San Francisco (Calif.)
-- Pictorial works.
Santa Barbara (Calif.)
-- Pictorial works.
United States --
History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Anecdotes.
Drawings -- California -- 19th century.
Drawings Mexico Baja -- California --
19th century.
Letters (correspondence) -- California
-- 19th century.
Letters (correspondence) Mexico Baja
-- California -- 19th century.
Watercolors -- California -- 19th
century.
Watercolors Mexico Baja -- California
-- 19th century.
Halleck, H. W. (Henry Wager),
1815-1872.
Hutton, James D.
Rich, William, 1800-1864.
Ruiz de Burton, María Amparo,
1832-1895.
Smith, Persifor Frazer, 1798-1858.