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William Jones Rhees Papers: Finding Aid
mssRH 1-4598
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Title: William Jones Rhees Papers
Dates (inclusive): 1744-1907
Collection Number: mssRH 1-4598
Creator:
Rhees, William Jones, 1830-1907.
Extent: Approx. 4,700 pieces in 64 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 the papers of Smithsonian chief clerk,
bibliographer, and collector William Jones Rhees (1830-1907), of materials assembled
chiefly for their autograph value, though the collection contains various
groups of related materials. Includes papers of American physicist and surveyor Alexander Dallas
Bache (1806-1867), American geographer Henry Rowe Schoolcraft (1793-1864), National Institute for the Promotion of Sciences,
and
the Smithsonian Institution, as well as correspondence of William Jones
Rhees, letters and papers addressed to the United States Pension Bureau, letters and
papers related to Indian affairs, and miscellaneous autograph letters and documents.
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 Jones Rhees Papers, The Huntington Library, San
Marino, California.
Chiefly purchased from Romenia F. Rhees, February 24, 1922. A few items were purchased from Flora G. Rhees, February 6, 1935.
Related Materials in the Huntington Library
- Additional photographs related to the collection in the Photo Archives include: photPF 3490-3529; 3555-3577. These are from various sources, but related to the Smithsonian Institution and some of the photographs may have come with the Rhees papers.
William Jones Rhees (1830-1907) was a bibliographer, collector, and chief clerk of the Smithsonian
Institution. Rhees became chief clerk of the Smithsonian Institution in July 1852, and served in this capacity
until 1891, when he was placed in charge of the archives, publications, etc. His association with the Smithsonian Institution
continued until his death.
An enthusiastic autograph collector, Rhees accumulated numerous
unrelated letters and papers of prominent men as well as more coherent groups of
manuscripts relating to his official position.
This collection contains the papers of Smithsonian chief clerk,
bibliographer, and collector William Jones Rhees (1830-1907), of materials assembled
chiefly for their autograph value, though the collection contains various
groups of related materials. Includes papers of American physicist and surveyor Alexander Dallas
Bache (1806-1867), American geographer Henry Rowe Schoolcraft (1793-1864), National Institute for the Promotion of Sciences,
and
the Smithsonian Institution, as well as correspondence of William Jones
Rhees, letters and papers addressed to the United States Pension Bureau, letters and
papers related to Indian affairs, and miscellaneous autograph letters and documents.
There is also personal correspondence of William Jones Rhees and correspondence with Sons of the
American Revolution, particularly the chapter at Washington, D.C. This portion of
the collection holds letters from Dorothea Lynde Dix. Letters and addresses to the
United States Pension Bureau contain routine letters regarding pensions or
applications. Letters and papers relating to Indian affairs pertain to various
Indian agents and factors, including Benjamin Hawkins, William Hull, William Irvine,
Return Jonathan Meigs, and others. There are also 134 letters collected chiefly for
their autograph value, and receipts for Smithsonian publications.
Individuals represented by 5 or more pieces consist of:
- Agassiz, Louis (41 items)
- Alden, James (11 items)
- Alexander, John Henry (9 items)
- Alexander, Stephen (10 items)
- Bache, Alexander Dallas (61 items)
- Barnard, Frederick Augustus Peter (12 items)
- Cass, Lewis (12 items)
- Caswell, Alexis (7 items)
- Chase, Salmon Portland (10 items)
- Chauvenet, William (7 items)
- Cobb, Howell (9 items)
- Colfax, Schuyler (16 items)
- Craven, Tunis Augustus (7 items)
- Dana, Charles Anderson (6 items)
- Dana, James Dwight (39 items)
- Davis, Charles Henry (20 items)
- Dix, Dorothea Lynde (25 items)
- DuPont, Samuel Francis (11 items)
- Emory, William Hemsley (5 items)
- Fessenden, William Pitt (5 items)
- Field, Cyrus West (6 items)
- Force, Peter (13 items)
- Gibbs, Oliver Wolcott (28 items)
- Gilbert, Samuel Augustus (12 items)
- Gilliss, James Melville (36 items)
- Gould, Benjamin Apthorp (30 items)
- Gray, Asa (17 items)
- Guyot, Arnold (6 items)
- Hamlin, Hannibal (10 items)
- Hare, Robert (6 items)
- Hayes, Isaac Israel (6 items)
- Henry, Joseph (78 items)
- Hilgard, Julius Erasmus (13 items)
- Hill, Abrose Powell (6 items)
- Humphreys, Andrew Atkinson (15 items)
- Jenkins, Thornton Alexander (13 items)
- Kennedy, Joseph Camp Griffith (7 items)
- LeConte, John (5 items)
- LeConte, John Lawrence (7 items)
- LeFroy, Sir John Henry (11 items)
- Lesley, J. Peter (5 items)
- Lieber, Francis (32 items)
- Llody, Humphrey (7 items)
- McCosh, James (6 items)
- Maclean, John (40 items)
- Markoe, Francis (9 items)
- Meigs, Montgomery Cunningham (9 items)
- Mitchell, Henry (7 items)
- Newcomb, Simon (7 items)
- Patterson, Carlile Pollock (10 items)
- Pearce, James Alfred (24 items)
- Peirce, Benjamin (38 items)
- Phelps, Thomas Stowell (10 items)
- Poe, Orlando Metcalfe (5 items)
- Porter, David Dixon (10 items)
- Porter, Noah (10 items)
- Potter, Alonzo (8 items)
- Preble, George Henry (5 items)
- Quetelet, Lambert Adolphe Jacques (8 items)
- Rodgers, Christopher Raymond Perry (8 items)
- Rodgers, John (5 items)
- Rogers, Fairman (28 items)
- Sabine, Sir Edward (30 items)
- Seward, William Henry (7 items)
- Silliman, Benjamin, Jr. (31 items)
- Simpson, James Harvey (9 items)
- Stevens, Isaac Ingalls (18 items)
- Smith, Gerrit (7 items)
- Totten, Joseph Gilbert (26 items)
- Trenchard, Stephen Decatur (16 items)
- Trowbridge, William Petit (23 items)
- Tyndale, Hector (11 items)
- Tyndall, John (16 items)
- Waite, Morrison Remick (35 items)
- Wilkes, Charles (26 items)
Arranged in the following manner:
- Miscellaneous correspondence (Boxes 1-2)
- Indian Affairs materials (Box 3)
- Pension Bureau materials, 1817-1885 (Box 4)
- Henry Rowe Schoolcraft correspondence, 1815-1874 (Box 5-6)
- National Institute materials, 1844-1859 (Boxes 7-11)
- Alexander Dallas Bache Correspondence, 1822-1904 (Boxes 12-35)
- Smithsonian Institution materials 1831-1906 (Boxes 36-55)
- William Jones Rhees Correspondence, 1822-1904 (Boxes 56-59)
- Miscellaneous (boxes 60-64)
- Receipts for Smithsonian Publications, A-Z (Boxes 60-62)
- Miscellaneous fragments and ephemera (Box 63)
- Miscellaneous photographs (Box 64)
- Index to the autographs (RH 4596)
Cards are filed in alphabetical and chronological sections of the Manuscripts
card catalog.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the
Huntington Library's Online Catalog.
Bache, A. D. (Alexander
Dallas), 1806-1867 -- Archives.
Schoolcraft, Henry
Rowe, 1793-1864 -- Archives.
Dix, Dorothea Lynde,
1802-1887 -- Correspondence.
Hawkins, Benjamin,
1754-1816 -- Correspondence.
Hull, William,
1753-1825 -- Correspondence.
Irvine, William,
1741-1804 -- Correspondence.
Meigs, Return
Jonathan, 1740-1823 -- Correspondence.
Smithsonian Institution
-- Archives.
National Institute for
the Promotion of Science -- Archives.
Smithsonian Institution
-- Archives.
Sons of the American
Revolution -- Archives.
Smithsonian Institution
-- Archives.
United States. Pension
Bureau -- Archives.
Autographs -- Collectors and collecting
-- United States.
Indian agents --
Correspondence.
Autographs -- United States.
Collections -- United States.
Letters (correspondence) -- United
States.
Personal papers -- United States.
Professional papers -- United States.
Documents.
Bach, A. D. (Alexander Dallas),
1806-1867.
Schoolcraft, Henry Rowe, 1793-1864.
Dix, Dorothea Lynde, 1802-1887.
Hawkins, Benjamin, 1754-1816.
Hull, William, 1753-1825.
Irvine, William, 1741-1804.
Meigs, Return Jonathan, 1740-1823.
Smithsonian Institution.
Sons of the American Revolution.
United States. Pension Bureau.
National Institute for the Promotion
of Science.