THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY RARE BOOKS AND MANUSCRIPTS DIVISION ACCESSION SHEET Accession # *87 M 13 51 M 104 Location Dl-i-2 Title BRYANT FAMILY PAPERS. Approximate inclusive dates 1813-1906 Bulk dates 1824-1901 Received from Estate of Wilberforce Eames and purchase from Margo Ferris Date of receipt ca. 1937 additions in 1951 Volume on arrival unknown Number of boxes (after reboxing) 2 AB; 1 FB 1 linear ft. Condition good, although several letters torn and damaged Restrictions n.a. Description see attached sheet Special Formats - Photographs - Maps - Audio Tapes - Films - Graphics - Artifacts - Machine-readable records - Other (list) book______________ Temporary catalog card added entries see attached sheet Members of the Bryant Family of Illinois descended from Peter Bryant (1767-1820) and Sarah Snell Bryant (1768-1847) of Cummington, Massachusetts. Of their five sons, only the poet, William Cullen Bryant (1794-1878) settled in New York; Austin (1793-1866), Cyrus (1798-1865), Peter Rush/Arthur (1803-1883), and John Howard (1807-1902) settled in or around Princeton, Illinois. Although the brothers were primarily involved in farming, John wrote poetry and both he and Cyrus held public office. John sat on the state legislature and Cyrus acted as Bureau County circuit court clerk. Their sister, Louisa C. Bryant (1805-1868) married Justin Hixon Olds (1806-1879) of Belchertown, Massachusetts and settled with him in Lamoille, Illinois. The Bryant Family Papers, 1813-1906, contain letters to and from Peter and Sarah Snell Bryant, their sons Cyrus and John H. Bryant, Cyrus' sons Cullen, Peter, and Marcus, and John's son, Elijah. Most of the correspondence consists of letters exchanged with other family members, although there are also letters to friends and business associates. The correspondence of Cullen Bryant while a cadet at West Point, 1860-1864, contains numerous letters to and from his father and brothers. John H. Bryant's correspondence is dominated by over 100 letters, 1872-1901, from his niece Julia S. Bryant, the daughter of William Cullen Bryant. There are also letters from his friend and biographer, Edwin R. Brown. Justin Hixon Olds is represented by several letters to his parents, 1836-1842. Topics discussed throughout the correspondence include details of pioneering and farming in Illinois and Kansas (where Cyrus' son Peter eventually settled), family affairs and finances, and discussions of politics, particularly slavery and the Civil War. The papers contian no letters to or from William Cullen Bryant; these can be found in the Bryant-Godwin Papers. In addition to correspondence, the papers contain Louisa C. Bryant's diary for 1837, manuscript poems of John H. Bryant, land papers, sharecropper contracts, and an account book of Cyrus and John H. Bryant, 1833-1861; a notebook with transcripts of letters sent to the Cummington Society of Husbandmen and Manufacturers, 1824-1829; school compositions of Peter and Cullen Bryant; photographs, and other family memorabilia. BRYANT FAMILY PAPERS Container List Box Contents CORRESPONDENCE 1 Peter Bryant (1767-1820), 1813 Sarah Snell Bryant, 1835-1846 John H. Bryant, 1848-1901 Elijah Bryant 1855 2 Cyrus Bryant, 1824-1865 Cullen Bryant, 1859-1864; 1874 Peter & Marcus Bryant, 1854-1875; 1906 Justin Hixon Olds & Louisa C. Bryant Olds, 1836-1842 Sylvia Drake, 1853 Elijah Fish, 1864 3 OTHER PAPERS Manuscript poems by John H. Bryant The Life and Poems of John Howard Bryant by E.R. Brown, 1894 Notebook: Communications to the Cummington Society of Husbandmen and Manufacturers....1824 /List of books in the library of Cyrus Bryant Cyrus Bryant's singing Book, 1825 Land papers & sharecropper contracts, 1834-1861 Legal papers prepared by Cyrus Bryant as court clerk, Bureau County circuit court, 1839-1861 School compositions of Peter and Cullen Bryant Photographs Account book, 1833-1834 Diary of Louisa C. Bryant Olds, 1837 Accession # 88 M 54 Location D1-i-2 Title BRYANT FAMILY PAPERS ADDITIONS. Approximate inclusive dates 1809-ca. 1903 Date of receipt 8/2/88 Received from Jeff Weber Rare Books Volume on arrival 1 carton Number of boxes (after reboxing) 2 AB; 1 FB 1 linear ft. Condition good Restrictions n.a. Description see attached sheet Container List Box 1 Correspondence and other manuscript material Box 2 Printed material Box 3 Photographs Special Formats - Photographs - Maps - Audio Tapes - Films - Graphics - Artifacts - Machine-readable records - Other (list) books__________________ Temporary catalog card added entries McVay, William E. Diaries United States- -Politics and government, 1849-1877 Description This addition to the Bryant Family Papers, 1809-ca. 1903, contains correspondence, manuscript poetry and essays, a diary, land deeds, photographs, newspaper clippings, and printed material. The vast majority of the papers belonged to John Howard Bryant and the family of his granddaughter, Kate Bryant McVay. John H. Bryant's papers include 28 incoming letters, 1833-1901. Among them are 13 letters, 1836-1874, from his brother William Cullen Bryant; 7 letters, 1889-1897, from his close friend and biographer E.R. Brown, and letters from his uncle Ebenezer Snell, sister-in-law Frances F. Bryant and her daughter Julia S. Bryant (the wife and daughter of William Cullen Bryant); John Bigelow; William Jennings Bryan, and Charles Dudley Warner. William Cullen Bryant's letters relate details of family health and travels, discuss political news, his land in Illinois, and include disparaging remarks about New York City, transcendentalist poetry, and several newspapers. E.R. Brown's letters concern his farm and business, lectures he gave, J.H. Bryant's poetry, the gold standard, and his annoyance with organized religion, the Mafia, and temperance cranks. Included also are holograph manuscripts of his poetry, several land deeds, other certificates and documents, and two letters to his grandson-in-law, William E. McVay. McVay was married to Bryant's granddaughter, Kate, the daughter of his youngest son, Elijah Wiswall Bryant, and his wife Laura Smith. The papers contain typescripts of three essays or lectures (ca. 1903) by McVay, a letter to Kate Bryant from Spaulding Bartlett, and her high school report card, 1885. Papers of other family members include an 1809 diary kept by Bryant's mother, Sarah Snell Bryant, a facsimile of a letter of his father Dr. Peter Bryant (1820), a photograph album and loose photographs of members of the extended Bryant family (including the McVay, Bannister, Curtis, and Smith families), printed material from Bryant family reunions and celebration, and newspaper clippings.