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Arthur Lawrence Bolton diaries, 1898-1899.
BANC MSS 2015/123 box 1
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Title:
Arthur Lawrence Bolton diaries, 1898-1899Creator/Contributor:
Bolton, Arthur Lawrence, 1876-1958, creator, author.Abstract:
Two bound memorandum books of an ornithologist covering the period of time he spent searching for gold in during the Klondike
gold rush. Dated entries are in pencil and contain details of his observations and activities. Both diaries contain information
on the inside front cover concerning actions to be taken with his journals in the event of loss, accident or his death. Includes
the original black coated linen cloth pouch that was used to store them together. Loose materials found in each diary are
stored in separate folders in the collection.
Published pocket-size memorandum book for 1898 with tables, almanac, etc. containing handwritten entries about preparations
in San Francisco for a voyage to Alaska that commences on March 13, 1898. Entries are sparse during the voyage until November
when they contain more detail after arriving in Alaska. The December 31st entry finds Bolton reflecting on his efforts and
questioning his decision to go to the Klondike. Loose notes and pressed flowers in the diary have been removed and stored
in a separate folder.
Pocket-sized blank memorandum book with lined pages containing handwritten dated entries from January 1-December 24, 1899.
"Ornithology Notes" is written on the inside front cover. The first few pages of the book contain a handwritten list of scientific
orders and families of birds followed by a simlar list for "water birds." The second list is annotated with three codes that
indicate the locality of each species, a mark for California alone, a mark for California and the Pacific Coast, and a mark
for the Pacific Coast excluding California. The daily entries concern camp life and activities and there is some mention in
the later entries of Bolton running a "hospital" for his "scurvy patients." Loose snippets of writing found in the back of
the diary have been removed and stored in a separate folder.
Date:
1898 (issued)Subject:
n-us-ca -- n-us-ak -- n-us--- -- n------ -- n-cn---Bolton, Arthur Lawrence -- 1876-1958 -- Diaries
Gold miners -- Yukon -- Klondike River Valley
Gold mines and mining -- Yukon -- Klondike River Valley
Scurvy -- Yukon -- Klondike River Valley
Birds -- California
Water birds -- California
Birds -- Pacific Coast (U.S.)
Water birds -- Pacific Coast (U.S.)
Ornithologists -- California
Ornithology -- Study and teaching
Naturalists -- California
Klondike River Valley (Yukon) -- Gold discoveries
Alaska -- Description and travel
Note:
Arthur Lawrence Bolton diaries, 1898-1899, BANC MSS 2015/123, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.
Purchase; from Ken Harrison Western Americana; 20150504.
Arthur Lawrence Bolton (August 30, 1876-August 17, 1958) studied ornithology at Stanford University under Leverett Mills Loomis
and spent field time in the Farallon Islands. In 1898, he journeyed to Alaska where he searched for gold and wrote prose.
He served as the Superintendant of Grounds at the University of California, Berkeley from 1902-1905. He was the Northern California
representative for the State Board of Architects and a member of the California Academy of Sciences. He was also an Honorary
member of the Poetry Society of England and a prolific writer of short stories and poetry. He married Mary Saylor Bolton (1879-1971)
and had three children, Eleanor Saylor Bolton, Arthur, Jr., and Beatrice Mary Bolton. The family lived on La Loma Avenue,
in Berkeley, California.
In English.
Type:
Diaries.Physical Description:
print
0.2 (1
Language:
English
Identifier:
BANC MSS 2015/123 box 1