Francis Allen Macomber papers

Collection

Identifier: D.195

Staff Only

Biographical / Historical note

Francis Allen Macomber (born Alabama, New York, 1837; died Rochester, New York, October 13, 1893) graduated from the University of Rochester in 1859. He was a law student in Rochester from 1859 to 1861, practiced law in the city from 1861 to 1879, and then served as a judge on the New York State Supreme Court, 7th Judicial District, from 1879 until his death in 1893. He served as a trustee of the University of Rochester from 1871 until 1893. His papers consist of incoming correspondence (mainly from his friends Oscar Folsom and Samuel Selden Partridge), a speech, documents relating to his career, and a family photograph album. The largest series of correspondence is a group of about ninety (90) letters, 1858 to 1863 (with the majority from 1860-61), from Oscar Folsom. Folsom (1840-1875), from Folsomdale (near Buffalo), was a classmate of Macomber's at the University of Rochester. He became a lawyer in Buffalo, where he was a law partner of Grover Cleveland at the time of his death on July 23, 1875 in a carriage accident. His only child, Frances, married President Cleveland in the White House in 1886.

Scope and Contents

Folsom's long, detailed letters discuss current events (both local and national), his career, social life, and friends.

The second group of letters in the collection are those by Samuel Selden Partridge (1839-1913). Partridge was a fellow law student with Macomber in the Rochester law office of Henry R. Selden. He enlisted in the Thirteenth New York Regiment in May, 1861. The nearly fifty (50) letters, 1861 to 1863, to Macomber graphically relate his experiences in the Civil War. Five of the letters have been published in "Civil War Letters of Samuel S. Partridge of the 'Rochester Regiment'", Blake McKelvey editor; pp. 77-90 of "Rochester in the Civil War," Rochester Historical Society Publication Fund Series, volume 22, Rochester, The Society, 1944. The letters are those of: May 7, 1861; July 24, 1861; August 14, 1861; July 6, 1862; and September 26, 1862. Partridge later became a lawyer in Phelps, New York. His son, author Bellamy Partridge, memorialized him in the book Country Lawyer, published in 1939. These letters have been transcribed and are available to researchers in the department.

The rest of the correspondence consists of sixteen (16) letters, 1858-1868 and 1893, from various people, including Macomber's father, mother, brother, and friends. Other material in the collection includes an 1860 political speech by Macomber, three internal revenue licenses to practice law in the 1860s, his income tax return from 1868, and a family photograph album, probably from the 1880s. Also with the papers is a series of letters, written in 1942, between Francis Selden Macomber (1867-1956; Francis Allen Macomber's son) and Bellamy Partridge (1878-1960) about the Samuel S. Partridge Civil War letters.

Creator

Macomber, Francis Allen, 1837-1893 (Person)
Folsom, Oscar, 1840-1875 (Person)
Partridge, Samuel Selden, 1839-1913 (Person)
Macomber, Francis Selden, 1867-1956 (Person)
Partridge, Bellamy, 1877-1960 (Person)

Dates

Creation: 1858-1893
Creation: 1942

Language of Materials

English

Extent

2 box(es)

Access

The Francis Allen Macomber Papers is open for research use. Researchers are advised to contact the Rare Books, Special Collections & Preservation Department prior to visiting. Upon arrival, researchers will also be asked to fill out a registration form and provide photo identification.

Use

In consultation with a curator, reproductions may be made upon request. Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from a curator. Researchers are responsible for determining any copyright questions.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift of Allen Macomber, grandson of Francis Allen Macomber, November 20, 1984.

Transcriptions of the Samuel Selden Partridge letters are the work and gift of Naor Wallach, August 2019.

Preferred Citation

[Item title, item date], Francis Allen Macomber Papers, D.195, Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester