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Halpine (Charles G.) Papers
mssHP  
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Collection Details
 
Table of contents What's This?
  • Conditions Governing Access
  • Conditions Governing Use
  • Preferred Citation
  • Immediate Source of Acquisition
  • Biographical / Historical
  • Scope and Contents
  • Processing Information
  • General
  • Arrangement

  • Contributing Institution: The Huntington Library
    Title: Charles G. Halpine papers
    Creator: Halpine, Charles G. (Charles Graham), 1829-1868
    Identifier/Call Number: mssHP
    Physical Description: 12.5 Linear Feet (9 boxes, 1 oversize folder, 1 microfilm reel)
    Date (inclusive): 1848-1889
    Abstract: Primarily correspondence and writings of Charles G. Halpine, a journalist, poet, and Union soldier, dating from 1848 to 1868.
    Language of Material: Materials are in 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

    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]. Charles G. Halpine papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

    Immediate Source of Acquisition

    Gift of Mrs. Charles G. Halpine, 1966.

    Biographical / Historical

    Charles Graham Halpine (1829-1868) was born Charles Boyton Halpin in Oldcastle, County Meath, Ireland, the son of a Church of Ireland clergyman and editor of the Dublin Evening Mail. He studied medicine and law at Trinity College and wrote for various newspapers in Dublin and London. Halpine married Margaret G. Milligan in 1849; he emigrated to the United States in 1850. He became the co-editor of The Carpet-Bag journal, worked for the New York Herald and The New York Times, and in 1857 became the principal editor of The Leader, a newspaper that supported Senator Stephen A. Douglas. In April 1861, Halpine enlisted in Company D of the 69th New York State Militia. During the Civil War, he held various positions with the general volunteers and obtained staff positions with General David Hunter and General John A. Dix; he was twice breveted and ended the war as a brigadier general. Throughout his military service, Halpine continued to write for northern newspapers, often under the guise of Private Miles O'Reilly, a fictional Irish soldier. Following the Civil War, he served as Register of the County of New York, and assumed the editorship of The Citizen, a reform newspaper. In addition to his career in journalism, Halpine also wrote poetry and fiction. He died in New York of a chloroform overdose at age 39.

    Scope and Contents

    The collection primarily consists of correspondence and writings of Charles G. Halpine, dating from 1848 to 1868. Also present are photographs (mostly cartes-de-visite of Civil War soldiers), ephemera, newspaper clippings, an 1864 pocket diary, an incomplete novel draft, and a biographical sketch of Halpine written by his wife, Margaret G. Halpine. Correspondence discusses New York politics and literary life, and Halpine's experience in the U.S. Civil War. Correspondents include Horace Greeley, John Milton Hay, David Hunter, Christopher Raymond Perry Rodgers, Benjamin Penhallow Shillaber, Alfred Howe Terry, and Margaret G. Halpine. Some letters written by Halpine and others are photocopies made from microfilm loaned by William Hanchett in 1967.

    Processing Information

    This finding aid was created in 2022 by Melissa Haley as part of the American Presidential Papers Project with enhanced description of the presidential material present. The items had been assembled physically and arranged by Huntington Library former staff in the mid-20th century.

    General

    Individual call numbers included in the collection: mssHP 1-201.

    Arrangement

    Correspondence is arranged chronologically; Halpine's poems are organized alphabetically by title.

    Subjects and Indexing Terms

    American literature -- 19th century
    American poetry -- 19th century
    Irish Americans -- Archives
    Journalism -- United States -- History -- 19th century
    Journalists -- United States -- Correspondence
    New York (N.Y.) -- History -- 19th century -- Sources
    New York (N.Y.) -- Politics and Government -- To 1898 -- Sources
    United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Greeting cards
    United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Poetry
    Cartes-de-visite (card photographs)
    Letters (correspondence) -- United States -- 19th century
    Poems -- United States -- 19th century
    Writings (documents) -- United States -- 19th century
    Greeley, Horace, 1811-1872
    Halpine, Margaret G.
    Hunter, David, 1802-1886
    Johnson, Andrew, 1808-1875
    Rodgers, C. R. P. (Christopher Raymond Perry), 1819-1892
    Shillaber, B. P. (Benjamin Penhallow), 1814-1890
    Terry, Alfred Howe, 1827-1890