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King (Clarence) Papers
mssKingcr  
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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
  • Arrangement
  • General
  • Related Materials

  • Contributing Institution: The Huntington Library
    Title: Clarence King papers
    Creator: King, Clarence, 1842-1901
    Identifier/Call Number: mssKingcr
    Physical Description: 6.43 Linear Feet (7 boxes, 9 volumes, 1 expansion folder, 1 envelope)
    Date (inclusive): 1859-1902
    Abstract: A collection of professional and personal material related to Clarence King, American geologist, mining engineer, and writer.
    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]. Clarence King papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

    Immediate Source of Acquisition

    Gift of Marian Hague, Eleanor Hague, and James Hague, November 1948.

    Biographical / Historical

    Clarence Rivers King (1842-1901) was an American geologist, mining engineer, and writer. He graduated from Yale Scientific School in 1862, then journeyed West and joined the California Geological Survey as a volunteer. From 1867 to 1877, King directed the geological and scientific survey of the Fortieth Parallel from eastern Colorado to the California border. The next year he was made head of the newly established United States Geological Survey, a position he held until entering private practice as a mining engineer in 1881 but the mining ventures he was involved in were not successful. King did publish, as author or editor, many publications based upon his geological work, including: Mountaineering in the Sierra Nevada (1872) and the multi-volume Report of the Geological Exploration of the Fortieth Parallel. United States Government Printing Office (1870–1878). King died of tuberculosis on December 24, 1901 in Phoenix, Arizona, and was buried in Newport, Rhode Island.

    Scope and Contents

    A collection of approximately 752 items from 1859 to 1902, which consists of the scientific and professional papers of Clarence King. The material includes correspondence, notebooks, letter books, notes, surveys, sketches, manuscripts, photographs, and ephemera. The 43 scientific notebooks in the collection include material on the California Geological Survey of 1864 to 1866, and the United States Geological Exploration of the Fortieth Parallel from 1867 to 1872. The collection also includes correspondence between James D. Hague and G. P. Putnam's Sons regarding Hague's publication of Clarence King's Memoirs (1904). While the collection is rich in detail about King's many professional activities, most of the personal dimensions of his life (such as his marriage to Ada Copeland, an African American resident of New York City, their five children, and their subsequent life together, which he concealed for decades) are not reflected in these papers.

    Processing Information

    Processed by Huntington Library Staff, circa 1950. In 2022, Gayle Richardson created the finding aid derived from a legacy summary report.

    Arrangement

    Arranged by subject and format.

    General

    Former call number: mssKing, Clarence papers.

    Related Materials

    The James D. Hague papers (mssHague) and the James D. Hague papers addenda (mssHague1).

    Subjects and Indexing Terms

    Geologists -- United States
    Geology -- California
    Geology -- West (U.S.)
    Mines and mineral resources -- Mexico
    Mines and mineral resources -- West (U.S.)
    Mining engineers -- United States
    California -- Surveys
    Sierra Nevada (Calif. and Nev.) -- Surveys
    West (U.S.) -- Surveys
    Field notes -- West (U.S.)
    Letter books -- United States
    Letters (correspondence) -- United States
    Manuscripts (documents) -- United States
    Notebooks -- West (U.S.)
    Photographs -- West (U.S.)
    Professional papers -- United States
    Surveys (documents) -- West (U.S.)
    Hague, James D. (James Duncan), 1836-1908
    G.P. Putnam's Sons
    Geological Survey of California
    Geological Survey (U.S.) -- History
    United States Geological Exploration of the Fortieth Parallel (1867-1881)