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Lanman (Charles) papers
LSC.0728
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Contributing Institution:
UCLA Library Special Collections
Title: Charles Lanman papers
Creator:
Lanman, Charles
Identifier/Call Number: LSC.0728
Physical Description:
2.0 linear feet
(4 boxes)
Date (inclusive): 1840-1892
Abstract: Charles Lanman (1819-1895) was an editor, librarian, and author. He also wrote travel accounts of his explorations in wilderness
areas of the eastern United States, and is best known as the publisher of the
Dictionary of Congress, first issued in 1859. The collection consists of holograph manuscripts of Lanman's published works, portions of two unpublished
manuscript autobiographies, manuscripts of his works on travel in the U.S., and his biographical sketches.
Physical Location: Stored off-site. All requests to access special collections material must be made in advance using the request button located
on this page.
Language of Material: Materials are in English.
Open for research. All requests to access special collections materials must be made in advance using the request button located
on this page.
Restrictions on Use and Reproduction
Property rights to the physical objects belong to UCLA Library Special Collections. All other rights, including copyright,
are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright
and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.
Provenance/Source of Acquisition
Purchased from W.H. Lowdermilk, 1960.
UCLA Catalog Record ID:
9919730583606533
[Identification of item], Charles Lanman Papers (Collection 728). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research
Library, University of California, Los Angeles.
Processed by James V. Mink.
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Lanman was born on June 14, 1819 in Monroe, Michigan; worked ten years at a business in New York City before returning to
Michigan to edit the
Monroe gazette in 1845; the next year was the associate editor of the
Cincinnati chronicle, and in 1847 was an assistant on the New York express; in 1849 he became librarian of the War Department in Washington, D.C.;
in 1850 he became librarian of copyrights and private secretary of Daniel Webster, and in 1853 examiner of depositories for
the southern states; from 1855-57 he served as librarian and head of the returns office in the Interior Department, in 1866
the librarian of the House of Representatives, and from 1871-82, secretary to the Japanese legation; wrote travel accounts
of his explorations of wilderness areas of the eastern United States; best known as the publisher of the
Dictionary of Congress, first issued in 1859; he died in 1895.
Collection consists of holograph manuscripts of Charles Lanman's published works, all with revisions for editions that were
never published. Also includes portions of two unpublished manuscript autobiographies. Contains manuscripts of his works on
travel in the U.S. and his biographical sketches.
The letters, papers and manuscripts of Charles Lanman (1819-1895) are scattered in a number of repositories throughout the
United States. This small collection of Lanman's writings was purchased in 1960 from W.H. Lowdermilk & Company, booksellers,
Washington, D.C., with the assistance of Dr. E. Maurice Bloch of the Department of Art, UCLA.
Lowdermilk & Company purchased the Charles Lanman Library, and apparently this collection of manuscripts was among the books
in the library. The library has long since been dispersed, however, the manuscripts were retained and were discovered in 1960
by Dr. Bloch in the basement of Lowdermilk & Company, Washington, D.C.
The collection contains some of Lanman's published and unpublished works. Two Lanman letters, purchased by the Library in
1940, have been added to the collection. The following is a register with description of the items in the collection.
James V. Mink
Arranged in the following series:
- Eventide recollections, My ships of thought, or, A booklover's monologue (Box 1).
- Haphazard personalities, Curious characters and pleasant places (Box 2). "Presidential recollections," "Recollections of Michigan," "Octavius Perinchief," "Letters from a motley crew," "Literary ladies," "An quixotic Yankee," "The old Connecticut Academy," "Narrow escaper," untitled manuscript (Box 3).
- "Adventures of an angler in Canada," Letters from the Alleghany Mountains and the source of the Potomac, "A summer in the wilderness," "A tour to the River Restigouche," "A winter in the South," "From the River Potomac to Mount Desert," "In the evening twilight" (Box 4).
- Correspondence (Boxes 3-4).
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Travelers' writings, American.
Librarians -- United States -- Archives.
Authors, American -- 19th century -- Archives.
Manuscripts for publication
Lanman, Charles, 1819-1895--Archives.