Hay Family Papers mssHay
Gayle Richardson
The Huntington Library
December 2020
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, California 91108
reference@huntington.org
Contributing Institution:
The Huntington Library
Title: Hay family papers
Creator:
Hay (Family : 1862-1959)
Identifier/Call Number: mssHay
Physical Description:
0.8 Linear Feet
(2 boxes)
Date (inclusive): 1862-1959
Date (bulk): 1862-1901
Abstract: A collection of material related to the
Hay family of Wisconsin, Chile, and New Jersey.
Language of Material: Materials are in
English.
Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at
the Huntington Library for more information.
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]. Hay family papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino,
California.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Charlotte M. Hook, April 1961.
The Hay family began with Thomas Hay, who fought in the 22nd Regiment of the Wisconsin
forces during the Civil War; during the war, he contracted dysentery. After the war, Thomas
and his wife, Elizabeth A. Delano Hay, moved to Chile for the sake of his health and where
Hay worked as a dentist. After Thomas' death in 1879, Elizabeth A. Hay moved back to Newark,
New Jersey; one of their daughters, Florence, later moved to Pasadena, California, to be a
teacher.
The Hay family papers contain 176 items from 1862 to 1959; the collection includes personal
and business letters, legal documents, as well as official documentation of Thomas Hay's
pension. The first three folders contain letters from Thomas Hay to his family during the
Civil War. The fourth and fifth folders focus on Elizabeth A. Hay's efforts to receive
Thomas' pension after his death. The sixth folder deals with Thomas' affiliation with
Freemasonry in both the United States and Chile. The seventh folder contains documentation
regarding Elizabeth A. Hay's estate upon her death. The remaining eight folders cover broad
aspects that are multi-generational, including correspondence, land deals, legal documents,
California teaching record, ephemera, and a photograph album. Please note, since the
Freemason documents were created within the institution, the date that is shown is the Anno
Lucis amount, which began in 4000 B.C.E.; therefore, simply subtracting 4000 from the number
shown reveals the more traditional date. Also included with the collection is the tin box
that reads "Elizabeth A. Hay" which was used to store these family papers.
Processed by Jeffrey Griffith, August 2013. In 2020, Gayle Richardson created the encoded
finding aid derived from an earlier finding aid.
Arranged by material format.
Former call number: mssHay family papers.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Freemasonry -- Chile -- History -- 19th century
Freemasonry -- United States -- History -- 19th century
Military pensions -- United States --
Civil War, 1861-1865
Georgia -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865
Kentucky -- History -- Civil War,
1861-1865
Saint Louis (Mo.) -- History -- Civil
War, 1861-1865
Tennessee -- History -- Civil War,
1861-1865
United States -- History -- Civil War,
1861-1865
Wisconsin -- History -- Civil War,
1861-1865
Family papers -- United States -- 19th century
Family papers -- United States -- 20th century
Letters (correspondence) -- United States -- 19th century
Pensions (compensation) -- United States -- 19th century
Photograph albums