Faxon Dean Atherton Papers, 1831-1932

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Summary

Creators:
Atherton, Faxon Dean, 1815-1877
Extent:
9 boxes and 2 oversize boxes (4.5 linear feet)
Language:
Collection materials are in English and Spanish.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Faxon Dean Atherton Papers. MS 5 (Vault), The California Historical Society, North Baker Research Library.

Background

Scope and content:

The collection comprises business records and correspondence documenting Atherton's mercantile relationships and activities in Boston, California, Hawaii, and Valparaiso; correspondence, deeds, and other documents relating to Atherton's real estate investments in California, including Las Milpitas Ranch and Bolsa de San Cayetano Ranch in Monterey County, San Lorenzo Ranch in Alameda County, Los Putos Ranch in Solano County, and Valparaiso Park in San Mateo County; and legal documents and other papers concerning Atherton's estate after his death. Proclamations and correspondence in English and Spanish (1845-1848) document escalating tensions between the United States and Mexico in California in the 1840s, culminating in the Mexican War. The collection also contains Atherton's diary for the years 1836 to 1839, which he kept while he lived in California, as well as business letters and receipts created by Atherton's sons, George H. B. Atherton and Faxon D. Atherton, Jr., and letters concerning the Atherton family genealogy.

Correspondents include Thomas O. Larkin, José Castro, Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo, Alpheus B. Thompson, Nathan Spear, George Henry Bowen (Atherton's friend and business partner in Valparaiso), and Alexander B. Grogan (Atherton's California business agent and executor of his estate).

Biographical / historical:

A native of Dedham, Massachusetts, Atherton first came to the Pacific coast around 1834 to work for a ship chandlery firm in Valparaiso, Chile. He settled in Valparaiso in 1840 and became a successful merchant dealing in hides and tallow, foodstuffs, and other commodities. Eventually he became one of the wealthiest men on the Pacific coast.

From 1836 to 1838, Atherton worked as a clerk for Alpheus B. Thompson, a merchant engaged in the hides and tallow trade on the California coast. During this period, Atherton penned his California diary and formed friendships with many prominent Californians, including Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo and Thomas O. Larkin (with whom he was to be associated in several real estate and commercial ventures). Around 1860, Atherton returned to California to settle permanently, liquidating his assets in Valparaiso and reinvesting his money in the new state. Atherton's real estate purchases included Valparaiso Park in San Mateo County; the land now forms much of present-day Atherton. He also served on the Board of Trustees of the Lick Trust and played an instrumental role in the construction of a railroad to Hayward.

Atherton married Dominga Goñi, daughter of a prominent Chileno family. They had seven children, among them George H. B. Atherton, who later married Gertrude Franklin Horn, one of California's most important authors.

Acquisition information:
The collection was donated by Edward Engle Eyre and Dean Atherton Eyre in 1964.
Arrangement:

The collection is arranged in chronological order and divided into two series: Business and personal papers, 1831-1876, and Estate and genealogical papers, 1877-1932. Folder titles and scope and content notes have been supplied to facilitate access.

Physical location:
Collection is stored onsite.
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

California Historical Society collections have been transferred to Stanford University Libraries. Collections will be unavailable as Stanford accessions them and updates records. Please contact chscollection@stanford.edu with any inquiries.

Terms of access:

Copyright has not been assigned to The North Baker Research Library. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Library Director. Permission for publication is given on behalf of The North Baker Research Library as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the reader.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Faxon Dean Atherton Papers. MS 5 (Vault), The California Historical Society, North Baker Research Library.

Location of this collection:
Department of Special Collections, Green Library
557 Escondido Mall
Stanford, CA 94305-6004, US
Contact:
(650) 725-1022
chscollection@stanford.edu
Website