North (John Wesley) Papers, 1849-1947

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Summary

Title:
John Wesley North papers
Dates:
1849-1947
Creators:
North, J. W. (John W.)
Abstract:
Papers belonging to John Wesley North, American pioneer, lawyer, politician, and industrialist.
Extent:
19 Linear Feet (25 boxes, 1 volume, 1 oversize folder)
Language:
Materials are in English.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. John Wesley North papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Background

Scope and content:

The collection consists of letters, manuscripts, one letter book, a photograph album, and ephemera related to the life and activities of John Wesley North and his wife, Ann Loomis North. Subject matter includes the early history and settlement of Minneapolis and Northfield, Minnesota from 1849 to 1861; pioneer life in Nevada from 1861 to 1865; southern reconstruction in Tennessee from 1865 to 1869; the promotion and settlement of Riverside, California, and Fresno County, California from 1870 to 1890. Of note in the collection are three letters from John Wesley North to George S. Loomis related to the nomination of Abraham Lincoln for the presidency in 1860. The collection also includes newspaper clippings, photographs, two maps of Minnesota, and ephemera.

Biographical / historical:

John Wesley North (1815-1890) was a lawyer, politician, industrialist, and pioneer. He graduated from Wesleyan University and first practiced law in New York; he later practiced in Minnesota, Nevada and California. He married Ann Hendrix Loomis of Dewitt, New York; they had six children. North was appointed surveyor general in 1861 and associate justice of the Supreme Court of the Territory of Nevada in 1862 by President Abraham Lincoln. He was instrumental in the settlement of Minneapolis in 1849 and Northfield, Minnesota in 1855, and Washoe City, Nevada in 1861. North moved his family to Knoxville, Tennessee in 1869 to pursue business opportunities and social reform. Then in 1870, he established the colony of Riverside, California and organized the Southern California Colony Association. North also practiced law in San Francisco and later promoted the founding of Oleander, near Fresno, California, where he died in 1890.

Acquisition information:
Purchased from Mary North Shepard, June 1945; gifts from 1944 to 1948. Gifts of Anne Shepard, August 1955; Robert Warn, January 1968.
Processing information:

Collection was processed by Huntington Library staff in June 1945. In 2020, Brooke M. Black created a finding aid.

Arrangement:

Arranged in chronological order.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Bibliography:

Stonehouse, Merlin. John Wesley North and the reform frontier (Minneapolis : University of Minnesota Press, 1965).

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Brooke M. Black
Date Encoded:
This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2024-05-07 14:11:23 -0700 .

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]. John Wesley North 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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