Abel Stearns Papers: Addenda 2
Finding aid prepared by Brooke M. Black in 1998.
The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical
Gardens
Manuscripts Department
The Huntington Library
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, California 91108
Phone: (626) 405-2191
Email: reference@huntington.org
URL: http://www.huntington.org
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Descriptive Summary
Title: Abel Stearns Papers: Addenda 2
Dates: 1817-1878
Collection Call Number: mssHM 57166-57209
Creator:
Stearns, Abel, 1798-1871
Extent:
44 items in 1 box
Repository: The Huntington Library,
Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens. Manuscripts
Department
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, California 91108
Phone: (626) 405-2191
Email: reference@huntington.org
URL: http://www.huntington.org
Abstract: This collection contains
personal and business correspondence of Southern California businessman and politician
Abel Stearns (1798-1871) from Stearns' early years in California. The collection
primarily deals with the history of Spanish California, as well as early commerce
and trading in the region.
Language of Material: The records are in English and
Spanish.
Access
Open to qualified researchers by prior application through the Reader Services Department. For more information, contact Reader
Services.
Administrative Information
Publication Rights
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]. Abel Stearns Papers: Addenda 2, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.
Provenance
Purchased from Dawson's Book Shop, January, 1991.
Biographical Note
Abel Stearns was a pioneer ranch owner and businessman of Los Angeles, California. Orphaned in
1810, he left his native Massachusetts and went to sea, making trips to China, the
East Indies, and Latin America. By the early 1820s he was back in the United States
trying to establish himself as a businessman, dealing mainly in shoes. In 1826 he
left for Mexico, settling in Mexico City. As partner in a colonization enterprise
for Upper California, he became a naturalized citizen and moved to Monterey in 1829.
While awaiting approval of a land grant, he turned to merchandising. In about 1833
Stearns settled in Los Angeles, joined Juan Bandini in the trading business, and
married Bandini's daughter Arcadia. Stearns became involved in almost every type of
business, held minor political offices, and was sent as a representative of the Los
Angeles district to the state constitutional convention in Monterey in 1849. He
began acquiring rancho property and by 1858 was the owner of vast landholdings and
cattle herds and the wealthiest man in Los Angeles county. As a member of the state
assembly in 1861, he took an active part in promoting the Los Angeles and San Pedro
Railroad. Stearns was forced to sell a great deal of his property when he became
bankrupt after the drought of 1863-1864, which caused the decline of the cattle
industry in California. He died in San Francisco in 1871.
Related Materials in the Huntington Library
Scope and Content
This collection, which is arranged alphabetically by author, is made up of
correspondence and documents from Stearns' early years in California. The collection
primarily deals with the history of Spanish California, as well as early commerce
and trading in the region. It also contains a few items prior to Stearns' move to
California, concerning his business on the East Coast. Also included in this
collection is a letter to Robert S. Baker, second husband of Arcadia (Bandini)
Stearns Baker, from Edward Fitzgerald Beale of the Department of the Interior.
Correspondence: The letters deal with personal and business matters, including
Stearns' plan for obtaining land in Upper California and creating a colony for
Americans. Included are letters from Jose Maria de Echeandia, Governor of California
under Mexico, Friar Narciso Duran, Friar Luis Gil y Taboada, and several business
partners, both Mexican and American.
Documents: These include bills of lading, contracts regarding a land grant with the
official seals of Mexico on them, and several receipts for goods sold and purchased,
including cost of merchandise. The collection also contains the constitution and
articles of association for the Philadelphia Cordwainer's Company.
Arrangement
Arranged alphabetically by author.
Indexing Terms
Personal Names
Stearns, Abel,
1798-1871
Corporate Names
Hudson's Bay
Company
Subjects
Fur trade--California
California--Commerce--History--Sources
California--History--19th
century--Sources
California--History--1850-1950--Sources
Genre
Business records--California--19th
century
Letters
(correspondence)--California--19th century
Invoices
Personal papers--California--19th
century
Professional papers--California--19th
century
Box 1
Papers of Abel Stearns: Addenda 2.
1817-1878
Physical Description: 1 box
HM 57166-57167
Abella, Ramon 2 letters to Abel Stearns
1830
HM 57168
Cardenas, Jose Ignacio de 1 letter to Abel Stearns
1830
HM 57169
Clark, Ferdinand 1 letter to Abel Stearns
1822, May 9
Note: Preceding the letter is an agreement signed by Clark and Peter
Valdes
HM 57170-57171
Duran, Narciso 2 letters to Abel Stearns
1829-1830
HM 57172
Echeandia, Jose Maria de 1 letter to Abel Stearns
1829, October 22
HM 57173
Elwell, Robert J. 1 letter to Abel Stearns
1830, April 14
HM 57174
Escobar, Marcelino 1 receipt for amounts paid
1830, October 6
HM 57175
Estenega, Tomas Eleuterio 1 letter to Abel Stearns
post 1829 and pre 1847
HM 57176
Fernandez, Juan 1 letter to Ignacio Rodriguez
1829, February 21
HM 57177
Forbes, Alexander 1 letter to Abel Stearns
1830, June 14
HM 57178
Fortuny, Buenaventura 1 letter to Abel Stearns
1830, December 25
HM 57179
Gil y Taboada, Luis 1 letter to Abel Stearns
1831, April 5
Note: Name used in endorsement on cover sheet, Fr. Luis Gil Abella, is
incorrect
HM 57180
Guerra y Noriega, Jose de la 1 receipt for amount received for
passage on ship
1829, May 23
HM 57181
Hartnell, William Edward Petty 1 receipt for items purchased by
"Mr. Hook"
1830, October 8
HM 57182-57184
Martinez, Ignacio 3 letters to Abel Stearns
1830-1831
HM 57185-57186
Padres, Jose Maria 2 letters to Abel Stearns
1829-1831
Note: Also "letters" wrapper
HM 57187
Peck, Sherman 1 letter to Abel Stearns
1828, December 5
HM 57188
Peralta, Antonio Maria 1 receipt for items purchased by Abel
Stearns
1830, September 15
HM 57189
Philadelphia Cordwainer's Company. Constitution and Articles of
Association
[1825]
HM 57190
Rodriguez, Francisco 1 document allowing Timothy Murphy to ship
goods
post 1828 and pre 1853
HM 57191-57193
Rodriguez, Ignacio 3 letters to Abel Stearns,
1828-1829
Note: Following is a letter by Laura Andino
HM 57194
Sanches, Jose 1 receipt for payment by Abel Stearns
1830, September 25
HM 57195
Schurz, Carl 1 letter to Edward Fitzgerald Beale
1878, January 5
Note: Following is a letter by Beale to Robert S. Baker, second husband
of Arcadia (Bandini) Stearns Baker
HM 57196
Scott, James 1 letter to Abel Stearns
1830, April 28
HM 57197
Stearns, Abel, 1798-1871, and George Washington Eayrs 1 document,
articles of agreement pertaining to use of land grant
1829, February 10
Note: Signed by Abel Stearns, George Washington Eayrs, Leocadio Ortega,
Alexandro Guinchard and Amos S. Tomkins
HM 57198
Stearns, Abel, 1798-1871, and George Washington Eayrs 1 document,
articles of agreement to transfer land to Amos S. Tomkins
1829, February 10
Note: Signed by Abel Stearns, George Washington Eayrs, Leocadio Ortega,
Alexandro Guinchard and Amos S. Tomkins.
HM 57199
Stearns, Abel, 1798-1871, and George Washington Eayrs 1 document,
articles of agreement to transfer land to Alexandro
Guinchard
1829, February 11
Note: Signed by Abel Stearns, George Washington Eayrs, Leocadio Ortega,
Alexandro Guinchard and Amos S. Tomkins
HM 57200
Stearns, Abel, 1798-1871 1 letter to Jose Maria de
Echeandia
1829, August 20
HM 57201
Stearns, Abel, 1798-1871 1 letter to Sherman Peck
1829, October 17
HM 57202
Stevenson, William 1 certificate verifying identity of George
Washington Eayrs
1817, June 16-21
Note: Witnessed by Francis Tufts, Benjamin Homer, John D. Williams,
Jonathan Hunewell, Henry Purket, Benjamin Lamb, William Parsons, and
William Eayrs
HM 57203
Sunol, Antonio 1 letter to Abel Stearns
1830, September 2
HM 57204-57205
Taber, Thomas 2 letters to Abel Stearns
1825
Note: Preceding is bill of lading for shoe materials
HM 57206
Vallejo, Mariano Guadalupe 1 letter to Abel Stearns
1831, July 4
HM 57207-57208
Viader, Jose 2 letters to Abel Stearns
1830
HM 57209
----- 1 receipt for goods purchased
1830, September 15-16
Note: Two names listed: Capt. Moon and Peralta