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Smith family letters and manuscripts
Creator: Smith (Family : Smith, Sidney, 1799-1869)
Call Number: D.551
Dates: 1827-1836
Physical Description: 0.23 Cubic feet
Language(s): Materials are in English
Repository: Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester
Table of Contents:
Biographical/Historical Note
Scope and Content
Arrangement
Subject(s)
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Access
Use
Citation
Content List
Series I: Letters to family members
Series II: Sermons and poetry
Collection Overview
Title: Smith family letters and manuscripts
Creator: Smith (Family : Smith, Sidney, 1799-1869)
Call Number: D.551
Dates: 1827-1836
Physical Description: 0.23 Cubic feet
Language(s): Materials are in English
Repository: Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester
Biographical/Historical Note
Sidney Smith (1799-1869) grew up in Poplar Ridge of Cayuga County in New York where he kept a general store with his brother, Thomas. His mother was Polly Smith, and his father, Dr. Barnabas Smith (1769-1855), was the first physician of the town and served as postmaster and representative of the state Assembly in Albany. After 1820, Smith lived in an area of Lockport, New York called the "Burned-Over District," a frontier area of religious ferment and fervor. Smith worked in the general mercantile business on the newly built Erie Canal. He had three children. The Smith family lived around Lockport, Union Springs, and Venice, New York. Sidney Smith died of a heart disease at the age of 70 in 1869.
Scope and Content
The Smith family letters and manuscripts (1827-1836) is comprised of two series containing handwritten documents transcribed by Sidney Smith, though one letter is signed by William Smith and two others are by Polly Smith, yet the word "copied" appears on the documents in Sidney's hand.
Arrangement
Series I: Letters to family members
Series II: Sermons and poetry
Subject(s):
New York (State)--Erie Canal
New York (State)--Cayuga County
New York (State)--Lockport
Sermons
Correspondence
Smith, Sidney, 1799-1869
Smith, Polly
Smith (Family : Smith, Sidney, 1799-1869)
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Acquired through the generosity of the John A. Waters Book endowment, 2019.Access
The Smith family letters and manuscripts is open for research use. Researchers are advised to contact Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation prior to visiting. Upon arrival, researchers will also be asked to fill out a registration form and provide photo identification.Use
Reproductions are made upon request but can be subject to restrictions. Permission to publish materials from the collection must currently be requested. Please note that some materials may be copyrighted or restricted. It is the researcher's obligation to determine and satisfy copyright or other case restrictions when publishing or otherwise distributing materials found in the collections. For more information contact rarebks@library.rochester.eduCitation
[Item title, item date], Smith family letters and manuscripts, D.551, Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester
Administrative Information
Author: Emilee Brecht
Publisher: Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester
Address:
Rush Rhees Library
Second Floor, Room 225
Rochester, NY 14627-0055
rarebks@library.rochester.edu
URL:
Finding aid publication date: 2019
Content List
Creator: Smith (Family : Smith, Sidney, 1799-1869)
Call Number: D.551
Dates: 1827-1836
Physical Description: 0.23 Cubic feet
Language(s): Materials are in English
Repository: Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester
Table of Contents:
Biographical/Historical Note
Scope and Content
Arrangement
Subject(s)
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Access
Use
Citation
Content List
Series I: Letters to family members
Series II: Sermons and poetry
Collection Overview
Title: Smith family letters and manuscripts
Creator: Smith (Family : Smith, Sidney, 1799-1869)
Call Number: D.551
Dates: 1827-1836
Physical Description: 0.23 Cubic feet
Language(s): Materials are in English
Repository: Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester
Biographical/Historical Note
Sidney Smith (1799-1869) grew up in Poplar Ridge of Cayuga County in New York where he kept a general store with his brother, Thomas. His mother was Polly Smith, and his father, Dr. Barnabas Smith (1769-1855), was the first physician of the town and served as postmaster and representative of the state Assembly in Albany. After 1820, Smith lived in an area of Lockport, New York called the "Burned-Over District," a frontier area of religious ferment and fervor. Smith worked in the general mercantile business on the newly built Erie Canal. He had three children. The Smith family lived around Lockport, Union Springs, and Venice, New York. Sidney Smith died of a heart disease at the age of 70 in 1869.
Scope and Content
The Smith family letters and manuscripts (1827-1836) is comprised of two series containing handwritten documents transcribed by Sidney Smith, though one letter is signed by William Smith and two others are by Polly Smith, yet the word "copied" appears on the documents in Sidney's hand.
Arrangement
Series I: Letters to family members
Series II: Sermons and poetry
Subject(s):
New York (State)--Erie Canal
New York (State)--Cayuga County
New York (State)--Lockport
Sermons
Correspondence
Smith, Sidney, 1799-1869
Smith, Polly
Smith (Family : Smith, Sidney, 1799-1869)
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Acquired through the generosity of the John A. Waters Book endowment, 2019.Access
The Smith family letters and manuscripts is open for research use. Researchers are advised to contact Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation prior to visiting. Upon arrival, researchers will also be asked to fill out a registration form and provide photo identification.Use
Reproductions are made upon request but can be subject to restrictions. Permission to publish materials from the collection must currently be requested. Please note that some materials may be copyrighted or restricted. It is the researcher's obligation to determine and satisfy copyright or other case restrictions when publishing or otherwise distributing materials found in the collections. For more information contact rarebks@library.rochester.eduCitation
[Item title, item date], Smith family letters and manuscripts, D.551, Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester
Administrative Information
Author: Emilee Brecht
Publisher: Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester
Address:
Rush Rhees Library
Second Floor, Room 225
Rochester, NY 14627-0055
rarebks@library.rochester.edu
URL:
Finding aid publication date: 2019
Content List
Series I: Letters to family members
Polly Smith addresses her letters to "dear children" or "respected friends." The letters written by Polly are copied by her son, Sidney Smith, in his handwriting. William Smith writes a letter to his father discussing business meetings. Letters by Sidney Smith are often addressed to his mother, father, sister Anna, or brother Thomas. He discusses business matters and the transport of goods on the Erie Canal. At one point, Sidney Smith offers a method of secret communication to be used in the letters with his brother, Thomas, though it is unknown why. Sidney reports that he attended a Methodist meeting as well as the orthodox friends (Quaker) meeting, hearing "good discourse from a woman from Philadelphia," that could possibly refer to Lucretia Mott.
Box 1, Folder 1Sidney Smith, 1827-1836
Box 1, Folder 2Polly Smith, 1832-1836
Box 1, Folder 3William Smith, April 8, 1832
Series II: Sermons and poetry
The material in this series consists of nine manuscripts of sermons, which appear to have been hand-copied by Sidney Smith. Additionally, there is one manuscript that appears to be a handwritten copy of a poem originally in the book Caroline of Lichtfield by Isabelle de Montolieu. Another undated manuscript seems to be eulogizing a "Doctor Mesterlo" who was a Dutch clergyman. Sidney Smith notes on the bottom of several manuscripts that he made the copies in 1836.
Box 1, Folder 4Religious writings copied by Sidney Smith, September 13, 1836 - unknown