Henry Whitcomb Holley Collection, 1847-1896

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Summary

Abstract:
This collection chiefly contains letterpress books of correspondence mainly related to the professional life of Minnesota railroad employee, land developer, and poet Henry Whitcomb Holley (1828-1897), including real estate transactions, mining claims, railroad construction/development, business enterprises, and his literary career on the side.
Extent:
4 Linear Feet (in 4 cartons)
Language:
English.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. Henry Whitcomb Holley Collection, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Background

Scope and content:

This collection contains 26 volumes and 10 items of correspondence. The letterpress books, which are extremely fragile, mainly comprises correspondence relating to Henry Whitcomb Holley's professional work concerning real estate transactions, mining claims, railroad construction/development, business enterprises, and his literary career on the side. Correspondence mainly concerns letters to his wife, Eliza Christie Holley, and letters from his friend, William Windom.

Biographical / historical:

Henry Whitcomb Holley (1828-1897) was born in Pierrepont Manor, New York, May 5, 1828, the son of David and Betsey (Randall) Holley. He graduated from Norwich University, Vermont, in 1849. From 1849-1856, he was a contracting engineer for railroads in Ohio, Indiana, and Wisconsin. Holley came to Minnesota in 1856 and settled in Chatfield. He was editor of the Chatfield Republican (1856-1861); a state senator (1859-1861); and receiver of the U.S. Land Office at Winnebago City (1861-1869). He began his engineering career with the Southern Minnesota Railroad in 1865, became chief engineer of construction, and was also the company's general manager and superintendent.

Other interests of Holley included: the Root River State Bank, of which he was one of the organizers, and land and real estate in Faribault County. Holley was also one of the organizers of the Root River State Bank and was in land and real estate in Faribault County. He also published a number of volumes of poetry.

Holley married Eliza Jane Christie in 1855. The children born to the couple were Maud, Kate, Elizabeth, Mabel, and Henry. Holley died in Everett, Washington, in 1897.

Acquisition information:
Purchased from Grahame Hardy, July 1953.
Processing information:

1. There are many pages that have been cut or removed from the volumes.

2. Many of the volumes, particularly the poetry volumes, contain loose materials.

3. There is an index in each letterpress book with a listing of the recipients.

4. The subject index does not exhaust every instance where the subject is mentioned, particularly within the letterpress books.

Arrangement:

The volumes are arranged by type then chronologically. The correspondence is arranged alphabetically.

Physical facet:
(36 items in 1 envelope and 26 volumes )
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

Open to qualified researchers by prior application through the Reader Services Department. For more information, contact Reader Services.

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]. Henry Whitcomb Holley Collection, 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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