Manuscript Collections

This collection contains selected records of the anti-hunger organization GardenShare. The records include administrative files spanning the years 1996-2011. These files include GardenShare’s bylaws, incorporation papers, records of fund raising, annual dinners, awards, workshops, newsletters, finances, recruitment, food pantries the organization worked with and various other information.

1883-1964 Army General and native of Waddington, N.Y. Graduate of West Point and Harvard, had administrative positions during WW I and worked in the War Dept. in Washington D.C. during WW II. The collection consists of family & military photos, yearbook of West Point (1907) & twenty-year book of West Point (1927); West Point by John Crane & James F. Kieley, as well as flags, medals and his sword.

George Redington, lawyer, land speculator and lumber entrepreneur was born November 23, 1798 in Vergennes, Vermont. His family moved to Madrid, New York in 1799. He was educated at the St. Lawrence Academy and taught school in Montreal from 1816-1819. He returned to Waddington to study law and was admitted into the bar in 1823.

George Roland Malby was born in Canton, St. Lawrence County, N.Y., September 16, 1857; attended Canton Union School and St. Lawrence University; studied law; was admitted to the bar in 1881 and commenced the practice of law in Ogdensburg, New York. He became a member of the State assembly from 1890-1895 and served in the State senate from 1895 until 1907. In 1907 he was elected as a Republican to the Sixtieth, Sixty-first, and Sixty-second Congresses and served until his death July 5, 1912 in New York City.

George O. Newbury was raised by the Pike family at their farm in Cornish, Maine. He was mortally wounded at Bermuda Head during the Civil War and died in June of 1864 at Hampton Hospital, Fort Munroe, Virginia. The letters were donated by William A. Hunt (Professor of History at St. Lawrence University) in memory of his mother Agnes Snow Hunt a direct descendant of the Pike family. The collection consists of letters written by George Newbury to the Pike family while he was serving with the 9th Regiment - Maine Volunteers during the Civil War.

George S. Parsons (1843-1927) was a lifelong resident of Gouverneur, NY who served in the 1st U. S. Volunteer Calvary from 1861-1862. After his service in this company Mr. Parsons joined the 11th N. Y. Calvary as part of "Scott's 900" and served from 1863-1865. Mr. Parsons served his country until sometime between July 12, 1863 and Aug. 26, 1863 when he was injured during a training exercise.  This collection contains 43 letters (original and two transcript copies). The letters date from Sept. 14,1862 to Feb.

The Richardson family came to the Brick Chapel area of Canton, St. Lawrence County, New York in 1805 from Vermont. Gertrude Richardson was born October 27, 1855. Shirley Claus was also from Canton, birth date unknown. The collection consists of the diaries of Gertrude Richardson from 1909-1942 (missing are 1910, 1927, 1933 and 1935) and the diaries of Shirley Claus 1932-1940 and 1949. Also included are a few photographs and a short biography of the Richardson family.

Genealogical collection on the Giffin family consisting of photos, diaries, correspondence, clippings, and publications (paper and microfilm) assembled by Florence Giffin Martin Johnson and Mary Giffin Strange. Includes material on Preston King, Doane family and Pemberton Johnson.

George K. and Fayette D. Graves, brothers from Rensselaer Falls NY, were the sons of James and Catherine Graves. George, born in 1842, served as a private in company G of the 142nd infantry division NYS volunteers. He was wounded in 1864, yet he continued to serve until the war was over in 1865. He died in 1916.

This collection consists of photographs, photo albums and diaries belonging to a Mrs. H.J. Phelps from Newton Center, MA.  The diary entries chronical the every day happenings in Mrs. Phleps' life.  The majority of the photos are both dated and described.  One of the photograph albums consists entirely of formal portrait photos while the other album is of candids and landscape shots.  An undated, but quite old, copy of the King James Bible is also part of the collection.

Dr. Henry D. Payne was born in Deapuville, New York, July 15, 1837. Dr. Payne served as a lieutenant in the Tenth New York Heavy Artillery during the Civil War and received an honorable discharge. Following his military service, Payne secured an apprenticeship with a local dentist in Watertown, later establishing his own successful practice.
Dr. Payne died in 1916. 

A. Barton Hepburn was born July 24, 1846 in Colton, New York and died January 25, 1922 in New York City after being struck by a bus. He was educated in Colton, St. Lawrence Academy in Potsdam, and Middlebury College in Vermont. He was a lawyer, legislator, head of the Railway Committee of 1879, served as Superintendent to the Banking Department of the State of New York, US Bank Examiner, Comptroller of Currency, and with Chase National. He was benefactor to Hepburn Hospital in Ogdensburg, New York and six libraries in St. Lawrence County, New York all which are named for him.

Charles (Carlos) Hernández was the head of a large family that emigrated from Cuba to New York in the early to mid 1800's. After living for a time in New York City, they settled in Grand View-on-Hudson, in Rockland County, NY. Hernandez was a merchant for several decades and much of the correspondence consists of letters from his agent in Havana, Antonio Gonzalez de Mendoza, regarding financial matters.

Hezekiah and Corintha Hall were residents of Norwood, New York. H.B. Hall died in 1895 at the age of 80. Corintha Hall died in 1940 at the age of 93. Corintha Yale Hall was H.B. Hall’s 4th wife. This collection contains two diaries, an expense book and an account book kept by Hezekiah B. Hall and three diaries and an expense book kept by Corintha Hall. H.B Hall’s diaries contain entries running consecutively from April 1881 through November 1894, while Corintha Hall’s diaries contain daily entries between February 1897 and March 1904. Both Mr. and Mrs.

Diary/journal kept by Hiram Herring in Rodman, Jefferson County, N.Y. from 1843-1860.

Howard Burt was a prosperous farmer, who lived in Hannawa Falls, N.Y. He was tried and convicted of murdering his father-in-law Asa Briggs in 1897, in an attempt to murder his wife Rhoda. The collection consists of materials relating to the murder and subsequent trial in Hannawa Falls, N.Y. that formed the basis for Irving Bacheller's book The House of Three Ganders. Included are newspaper clippings, transcripts of the trial and appeal, bullets, affidavits and photographs.

A collection consisting of 6 vellum leaves and 3 folded vellum sheets of 14th and 15th century illuminated manuscripts. Includes portrait of St. Lawrence.

A collection consisting of 75 incunabula leaves, chiefly Gothic type, originally brought together by the Leamington Book Shop, Washington, D.C. and aquired by the University in 1953.  Includes 3 additional leaves acquired by the library. Includes bibliographical references.

Born in Pierrepont, NY, and a graduate of St. Lawrence University, Bacheller was a best-selling turn-of-the-century author who later founded the Bacheller Syndicate which introduced several major authors, e.g. Stephen Crane, to American readers. His final career was that of circuit lecturer for the J. B. Pond Lyceum Bureau. Bacheller spent his final years in Winter Park, FL, home of Rollins College. The collection consists of business and personal letters, photographs, newspaper clippings, and manuscripts of published and unpublished works by Bacheller.

James Ricalton was born about 1844, in Waddington, NY, and died in Waddington in 1929.  He was a school teacher, traveler, inventor, and photographer.  After briefly attending St. Lawrence University (class of 1871) Ricalton left before taking a degree and moved to Maplewood, New Jersey in 1871 where he worked as a school teacher.  By all accounts, he was an extraordinary teacher, and his legacy is celebrated in the South Orange-Maplewood School District.

Jefferson County became a county on March 28, 1805. It is bordered on the north by the St. Lawrence River, the south by Lewis County, the east by St. Lawrence County and the west by Oswego County and Lake Ontario. The county has approximately 44 villages and towns and 1 city with the county seat in Watertown. The collection consists of high school yearbooks, almanacs, programs and flyers from various functions in the county and information on Watertown including a photo book. Also included are deed, newspapers, and several articles on Sackets Harbor, James LeRay de Chaumont and Watertown.

Born in 1913 in Greenwich Village, NY, John DePol taught himself to draw while still a teenager. During World War II he was stationed in Ireland, where he took time to study lithography at the Belfast College of Art. However, it was not until 1947 that he began to teach himself the art for which he was to become famous--that of wood-engraving.

John Reckard was born on January 13, 1842 in Leeds, Ontario, Canada. He lived for most of his life in Brier Hill, a small village outside of Morristown, New York. During his life John worked as a Wheelwright in Brier Hill. He joined the United States Army on August 3, 1863 and served in the 14th Regiment of the New York State Heavy Artillery Division. John was married twice.  John died on February 18, 1915 at the age of seventy-three years old; he is buried in the Morristown cemetery in Morristown, NY.  The majority of this collection is made up of the diaries of John Reckard.

Jonathan Wallace, (1784-1873) was a Universalist minister in Potsdam, New York until he was asked to leave the ministry due to an inappropriate relationship with a parishioner. The collection consists of Wallace's sermon's (most of which are referenced to biblical verses) and long poems. Also included is a framed portrait of Rev. Wallace.

Born in 1909, Joseph Dobose entered military training in the U.S. Army in 1942.  On June 13, 1944 he arrived in Greenock, Scotland. On August 10, 1944 he landed on Omaha Beach in Normandy. He crossed into Germany in early December 1944 and then returned to the U.S. in October of 1945 and was honorably discharged.

Joshua Britton was born in Westmorland, NH in 1803 and died at Fork Atkinson, WI in 1878. He was ordained as a Universalist Minister in 1832 and served as pastor in Dudley, MA; Stoddard, NH; Bradford, VT and Fort Atkinson, WI. The collection consists of Universalist pamphlets and clippings as well as letters to Britton from the 1840's and the 1850's.

An example of a Buddist religious text from Burma, Southeast Asia.  This collection consists of a total of 12 leaves of Burmese Kammavaca manuscript on gilt palm leaves or lacquered cloth.  10 of the manuscript pages have a cover of lacquered boards, representing a complete text used in a Buddist ordination ritual.

Born in Pierrepont, New York, in 1839, Orlando Knapp moved to Indiana, sometime around 1859, where he met and married Armina Cordelia Edmonds. They had two children before she died in 1862. At this point Orlando enlisted in the 12th Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry. While away from home he wrote to his sister, Charlotte, who lived in Pierrepont. After the war Orlando became a traveling salesman, working in Indiana, New Hampshire eventually settling in Howard City, Michigan. In the mid 1870's he ran a grocery store with his son James. He died in Howard City in 1917.