TABLE OF CONTENTS
Descriptive Summary of the Collection
Scope and Content of the Collection
Series 1: Family Papers, 1856-1950
Series 2: Genealogy Materials, 1896-1928
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Inventory of the Woolson Family Papers, 1856-1950, bulk 1889-1910
Machine-readable finding aid encoded by Kelly Kress, 2009. ©2009. |
Descriptive Summary of the Collection |
|
| Creator | Woolson family |
| Title | Woolson Family Papers, |
| Dates | 1856-1950 |
| Dates | bulk 1889-1910 |
| Extent | 2 linear feet (3 boxes and 4 volumes) |
| Abstract | Letters, scrapbooks, photographs, diaries, clippings, and genealogical materials concerning the Woolson family of New Hampshire, Ohio, and Chicago. |
| Language | Materials are in English. |
| Repository | Newberry Library, Roger and Julie Baskes Department of Special Collections |
| Collection Call Number | Midwest MS Woolson |
| Collection Stack Location | 3a 44 11 |
Administrative Information
Cite As
Woolson Family Papers, The Newberry Library, Chicago.
Provenance
Gift of Weona Sutton, 1989.
Processed by
Kelly Kress, 2009.
Acknowledgements
This inventory was created with the generous support of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this inventory do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Access
The Woolson Family Papers are open for research in the Special Collections Reading Room; 1 box at a time (Priority III).
Ownership and Literary Rights
The Woolson Family Papers are the physical property of the Newberry Library. Copyright may belong to the authors or their legal heirs or assigns. For permission to publish or reproduce any materials from this collection, contact the Roger and Julie Baskes Department of Special Collections.
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Biography of Woolson Family
The materials in this collection are related primarily to Alvin M. Woolson (1841-1925), a merchant and businessman in Toledo, Ohio, and his daughter Weona Woolson Engle (1879-1970), who lived in Chicago after her marriage to Walter J. Engle.
Alvin Mansfield Woolson was born in Huron, Erie County, Ohio, in 1841, the son of Ira Knight and Arietta Mansfield Woolson. As a boy he worked on his family's farm and was also hired out as a printer's apprentice. At the outbreak of the Civil War he enlisted in the First Regiment, Ohio Volunteers Heavy artillery, formerly the 117th Regiment of Infantry, Ohio Volunteers, and attained the rank of sergeant major. After the war, Woolson worked with the Union Pacific Railway in Kansas and traveled extensively in the west before returning to Ohio in 1868 and establishing a store in the town of Berlin Heights. Woolson married Frances Delia Tillinghast in 1870, and the couple lived briefly in Wauseon, Ohio, before relocating permanently to Toledo in 1875. Woolson established the Woolson Spice Company in 1882, and built it into a successful coffee business which became well known for its printed trade cards. Woolson sold the company in 1897, and for the remainder of his life was active in many civic activities and clubs in Toledo. Alvin and Frances Woolson had three daughters: Maude (1873-1929), married to Herman Brand; Weona (1879-1970), married to Walter J. Engle; and Constance (1885-1970), married to John Barney. Constance was named for her father Alvin's cousin, the novelist Constance Fenimore Woolson, a grand-neice of James Fenimore Cooper.
Weona Woolson Engle was born in Toledo, Ohio in 1879. She grew up with her sisters Maude and Constance in an affluent environment made possible by her father Alvin's successful coffee business. After her marriage to Walter J. Engle, the couple settled in Chicago, where they maintained a home on East Division Street. The Woolson family owned automobiles and took many driving trips which are documented in the photo album Weona Woolson Engle kept. Weona and Walter Engle had one daughter, Weona Charlotte (1902-2001). Weona Charlotte married William Armstrong and had one daughter, Weona, born in 1925 and married to Henry Sutton in 1944. Weona Sutton lives in the Chicago area and is a member of Ballet Chicago's Board of Directors.
The Woolsons are descended from Thomas Woolson, born in Newton, Massachusetts in 1630, and his wife Sarah Hyde, and can trace the family lineage to Great Britain. Branches of the family settled in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, California and Ohio, and include the McFarland, Yerington, Claflin, and Hunt families. Other family members include the novelist Constance Fenimore Woolson (1840-1894), and Albert Woolson (1850-1956), the last surviving Union veteran of the Civil War.
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Scope and Content of the Collection
Letters, genealogical research, photographs, scrapbooks, and other items related to the Woolson family of Chicago, Ohio and New Hampshire.
The papers include materials related to Woolson family members, primarily Alvin M. Woolson and his daughter Weona Woolson Engle. Included are a diary, a memoir, a volume of Civil War stories and a travelogue of a trip to Florida written by Alvin M. Woolson, and also correspondence related to him. There is a short story written by Weona Woolson Engle, as well as correspondence from her husband Walter Engle, mementos from various travels, and items from her childhood. Also included is the Life of Elijah Woolson, written entirely in cipher by his son Ira Knight Woolson and translated by Alvin M. Woolson, Elijah Woolson's grandson. There are also transcribed copies of some Woolson family historical documents.
The collection also contains genealogy materials collected by Ira H. Woolson, including family trees, questionnaires, and other research, Woolson family photographs, and scrapbooks kept by Weona Woolson Engle and her mother and grandmother, Frances Delia Woolson and Eliza Squire Tillinghast.
Narrative descriptions of the subject matter, types of material, and arrangement of each series are available through the Organization section of the finding aid.
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Organization
Papers are organized in the following series:
- Series 1: Family Papers, 1856-1950. Box(es) 1-2
- Series 2: Genealogy Materials, 1896-1928. Box(es) 2-3
- Series 3: Photographs,1888-1934. Box(es) 3-
- Series 4: Scrapbooks, 1889-1911. Box(es) 1-3
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Selected Search Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the Newberry Library's public catalog. Researchers desiring additional materials on a particular topic should search the catalog using these headings.
Names
- Lincoln Park Zoo--Photographs
- Louisiana Purchase Exposition (1904 : Saint Louis, Mo.)--Photographs
- Woolson family
- Woolson Spice Company
- Woolson, Alvin M., 1841-1925
- Woolson, Ira H. (Ira Harvey), 1856-1927
Subjects
- Automobile ownership -- Ohio
- Automobile travel -- Florida
- Automobile travel -- Ohio
- Automobile travel -- United States
- Businessmen -- Ohio -- Toledo
- Businessmen -- United States -- History -- 19th century
- Ciphers (codes) -- 1851-1900
- Coffee industry -- United States--Toledo
- Europe -- Description and Travel
- Genealogies
- Manuscripts, American -- Illinois -- Chicago
- Middle Bass (Ohio)
- Ohio -- History -- 19th century
- Photograph albums
- Photographs -- 1851-1900
- Photographs -- 1901-1950
- Put-in-Bay (Ohio)
- Scrapbooks -- 1851-1900
- Scrapbooks -- 1901-1950
- Toledo (Ohio) -- History -- 19th century
- United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Personal narratives
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Container List
Series 1: Family Papers, 1856-1950 |
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| Materials related to Woolson family members, primarily Alvin M. Woolson and his daughter Weona Woolson Engle. Included are a diary, a memoir, a volume of Civil War stories and a travelogue of a trip to Florida written by Alvin M. Woolson, and also correspondence related to him. There is a short story written by Weona Woolson Engle, as well as correspondence from her husband Walter Engle, mementos from various travels, and items from her childhood. Also included is the Life of Elijah Woolson, written entirely in cipher by his son Ira Knight Woolson and translated by Alvin M. Woolson, Elijah Woolson's grandson. Transcribed copies of some Woolson family historical documents are also included. | |||||||||||
| Arranged alphabetically by subject. | |||||||||||
| Box | Folder | Contents | |||||||||
| 1 | 1 | Barney, Constance Woolson - letter from Harry L. Clough, 1932 | |||||||||
| 1 | 2 | Engle, Weona Charlotte (Armstrong) - childhood notes & drawings, ca. 1908-1912 | |||||||||
| 1 | 3 | Engle, Weona Charlotte (Armstrong) - Chicago Latin School report card, ca. 1909 | |||||||||
| 1 | 4 | Engle, Weona Charlotte (Armstrong) - music recital program, 1914 | |||||||||
| 1 | 5 | Engle Weona Woolson - childhood notes & drawings, 1886, n.d. | |||||||||
| 1 | 6 | Engle, Weona Woolson - European trip mementos, 1908 | |||||||||
| 1 | 7 | Engle, Weona Woolson - invitations & calling cards, ca. 1910 | |||||||||
| 1 | 8 | Engle, Weona Woolson - letters & telegrams from Walter Engle, 1910, n.d. | |||||||||
| 1 | 9 | Engle, Weona Woolson - letter to mother (Frances Woolson), 1889 | |||||||||
| 1 | 10 | Engle, Weona Woolson - Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals pledge, ca. 1890s | |||||||||
| 1 | 11 | Engle, Weona Woolson - miscellaneous clippings & printed materials from scrapbooks, ca. 1910 | |||||||||
| 1 | 12 | Engle, Weona Woolson - miscellaneous notes, 1880s-1890s | |||||||||
| 1 | 13 | Engle, Weona Woolson - piano receipts, 1912 | |||||||||
| 1 | 14 | Engle, Weona Woolson - placecards from friend's wedding, 1910 | |||||||||
| 1 | 15 | Engle, Weona Woolson - postcard to Walter Engle, 1932 | |||||||||
| 1 | 16 | Engle, Weona Woolson - story, "Surprise," n.d. | |||||||||
| 1 | 17 | Engle, Weona Woolson - telegram from Herman Brand (brother-in-law), 1910 | |||||||||
| 1 | 18 | Woolson, Alvin M. - A.M. Woolson Collection, Ohio Historical Society, 1928 | |||||||||
| 1 | 19 | Woolson, Alvin M. - Army Stories, 1862-1865. (Folder contains loose items; see oversize for volume) 1895 | |||||||||
| 1 | 20 | Woolson, Alvin M. - clippings: biographical & obituaries, 1924-1925, 1950 | |||||||||
| 1 | 21 | Woolson, Alvin M. - diary, 1891-1892 | |||||||||
| 1 | 22 | Woolson, Alvin M. - letter to Walter J. Engle, 1910 | |||||||||
| 1 | 23 | Woolson, Alvin M. - letter to Weona Woolson Engle, 1925 | |||||||||
| 1 | 24 | Woolson, Alvin M. - letter from C.S. Hill, 1904 | |||||||||
| 1 | 25 | Woolson, Alvin M. - letter to Captain John C. Hutsinpiller, 1925 | |||||||||
| 1 | 26 | Woolson, Alvin M. - letter from J.C. Tillinghast (nephew), 1906 | |||||||||
| 1 | 27 | Woolson, Alvin M. - memoir, ca. 1922 | |||||||||
| 1 | 28 | Woolson, Alvin M. - "Narrative of Automobile Tour Through Florida," 1910 | |||||||||
| 1 | 29 | Woolson, E.C. & Jane - broadside: Administrator's Sale, 1860 | |||||||||
| 1 | 30 | Woolson, Ira K. - Life of Elijah Woolson (written in cipher), ca. 1850s | |||||||||
| 1 | 31 | Woolson, Ira K. - Life of Elijah Woolson (copied from cipher by Alvin M. Woolson), n.d. | |||||||||
| 2 | 32 | Woolson, Isaac - letter to Nathan Woolson (brother), 1820 (transcripton), 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 33 | Woolson, Joseph - will, 1677 (transcription), ca. 1890s | |||||||||
| 2 | 34 | Woolson, Thomas - tavern license, 1630 (transcription), ca. 1890 | |||||||||
| 2 | 35 | Woolson, Thomas - will, 1708 (transcription), n.d. | |||||||||
| 2 | 36 | Woolson Family - clippings: obituaries & miscellaneous, 1899-1944, n.d. | |||||||||
| 2 | 37 | Woolson Family - Christmas dinner menu, 1888 | |||||||||
| 2 | 38 | Woolson Family - deeds, 1796-1816 (transcriptions, Waterbury VT Town Clerk's Office), 1896 | |||||||||
| 2 | 39 | Woolson Family - reunion: autograph book, 1925 | |||||||||
| 2 | 40 | Woolson Family - reunion: clippings & mementos, 1925 | |||||||||
| 2 | 41 | Woolson Spice Company - annual meeting menu, 1887 | |||||||||
| 2 | 42 | Woolson Spice Company - "War Songs Dedicated to the Women's Relief Corps," 1886 | |||||||||
| 2 | 43 | Yearington, Emma Woolson - letter to Charles Woolson (father), 1856 | |||||||||
Series 2: Genealogy Materials, 1896-1928 |
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| Materials collected by Ira H. Woolson, including family trees, questionnaires, and other genealogy research, as well as Ira H. Woolson's correspondence and inquiries regarding the Woolson family. | |||||||||||
| Arranged alphabetically by subject. | |||||||||||
| Box | Folder | Contents | |||||||||
| 2 | 44 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Emily H. Abbot, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 45 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Fred P. Bemis, 1900 | |||||||||
| 2 | 46 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Clara Woolson Benedict, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 47 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Alex Brown, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 48 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & E. Challenger, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 49 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Mrs. Calvin Claflin, 1899 | |||||||||
| 2 | 50 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & John Claflin, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 51 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & L. Claflin, 1896 | |||||||||
| 2 | 52 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Augustus M. Clough, 1926 | |||||||||
| 2 | 53 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & John G. Culver, 1901 | |||||||||
| 2 | 54 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Mrs. A.H. Douglass, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 55 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & T. Walin-Morgan Draper, 1898 | |||||||||
| 2 | 56 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Mrs. John W. Hunsberger, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 57 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & E.H. Hunt, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 58 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & M. Lockwood, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 59 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Thomas W. Lowell, 1898 | |||||||||
| 2 | 60 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Helen E. Pool, 1923 | |||||||||
| 2 | 61 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & P.W. Pool, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 62 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Popular Science Magazine (re: G.A. Woolson), 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 63 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Mrs. William Preston, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 64 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & probate court of E. Cambridge, Mass., 1896 | |||||||||
| 2 | 65 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Phebe Shaw Randolph, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 66 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Lincoln S. Robbins, 1897-1898 | |||||||||
| 2 | 67 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Susan Smith, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 68 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Sarah J. Snyder, 1896 | |||||||||
| 2 | 69 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Sudbury, Mass. Town Clerk, 1896 | |||||||||
| 2 | 70 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Frank Woolson Tarling, 1915 | |||||||||
| 2 | 71 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Abbie Woolson Todd, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 72 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Waterbury, VT Town Clerk, 1896 | |||||||||
| 2 | 73 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson &C.H. Wight, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 74 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Alex F. Woolson, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 75 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Carria Woolson, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 76 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & D. Morrell Woolson, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 77 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Eleanor E. Woolson, 1921, n.d. | |||||||||
| 2 | 78 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Frank A. Woolson, 1917 | |||||||||
| 2 | 79 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Isaac Woolson, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 80 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & James L. Woolson, 1902 | |||||||||
| 2 | 81 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & John H. Woolson, 1896-1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 82 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & John H. Woolson, 1896 | |||||||||
| 2 | 83 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Leroy L. Woolson, 1896-1898 | |||||||||
| 2 | 84 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Orosco C. Woolson, 1909 | |||||||||
| 2 | 85 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & William Henry Woolson, 1899 | |||||||||
| 2 | 86 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & Jane A. Woodsind, ca. 1890s | |||||||||
| 2 | 87 | Correspondence - Ira H. Woolson & W.H. Yearington, 1897 | |||||||||
| 2 | 88 | Correspondence - miscellaneous, 1913-1928 | |||||||||
| 3 | 89 | Family trees, 1897, n.d. | |||||||||
| 3 | 90 | Research - Buffalo Woolsons and McFarland family, ca. 1980s | |||||||||
| 3 | 91 | Research - Claflin and Hunt families, 1890s | |||||||||
| 3 | 92-93 | Research - General, 1890s | |||||||||
| 3 | 94 | Research - Philadelphia and Cape May Woolsons, 1890s | |||||||||
Series 3: Photographs, 1888-1934 |
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| Photographs of Woolson family members, as well as their homes, automobiles, and vacations in Ohio and other locations. The photo album, compiled by Weona Woolson Engle, includes family photos at Alvin M. Woolson's home in Toledo, the Woolson family farm, various automobile excursions, vacations at Middle Bass, Put-In-Bay and Cedar Point in Ohio, the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago, the Pan American Exposition in Buffalo, NY in 1901, the dedication of the William McKinley statue in Toledo in 1903, the St. Louis World's Fair (Louisiana Purchase Exposition) in 1904, and vacations in Europe and North Africa in 1906. | |||||||||||
| Arranged alphabetically. | |||||||||||
| Box | Folder | Contents | |||||||||
| 3 | 95 | Photographs - Brand Bank, Toledo, OH, ca. 1890s | |||||||||
| 3 | 96 | Photographs - Brand family garage & license plates (incl. valentines day card), 1934 | |||||||||
| 3 | 97 | Photographs - Brand, Maude Woolson & Herman Brand, ca. 1890s | |||||||||
| 3 | 98 | Photographs - Castalia, OH schoolhouse, n.d. | |||||||||
| 3 | 99 | Photographs - Catalina Island, CA & hydroplane, ca. 1930s | |||||||||
| 3 | 100 | Photographs - Middle Bass, OH, ca. 1890s | |||||||||
| 3 | 101 | Photographs - Middle Bass, OH (cyanotypes), ca. 1890s | |||||||||
| 3 | 102 | Photographs - Tillinghast, O.C. (copy), n.d. | |||||||||
| 3 | 103 | Photographs - Toledo, OH snowstorm, 1900 | |||||||||
| 3 | 104 | Photographs - Woolson, Alvin M. (copy), ca. 1855 | |||||||||
| 3 | 105 | Photographs - Woolson, Alvin M., ca. 1920 | |||||||||
| 3 | 106 | Photographs - Woolson, Alvin M. & family, 1891 | |||||||||
| 3 | 107 | Photographs - Woolson, Alvin M. & family: Frances Woolson, Weona Engle, John Engle, Weona Charlotte Engle (album), ca. 1903 | |||||||||
| 3 | 108 | Photographs - Woolson, Alvin M. & family: home, Toledo, OH, 1888 | |||||||||
| 3 | 109 | Photographs - Woolson, Alvin M. storefront, OH, n.d. | |||||||||
| 3 | 110 | Photographs - Woolson, Arietta Mansfield (copy), ca. 1860s | |||||||||
| 3 | 111 | Photographs - Woolson, Frances Tillinghast, ca. 1924 | |||||||||
| 3 | 112 | Photographs - Woolson, Ira Knight (copy), ca. 1860s | |||||||||
| 3 | 113 | Photographs - Woolson, James Byron (copies), ca. 1857, 1861-1865 | |||||||||
| 3 | 114 | Photographs - Woolson, Theron S., 1898 | |||||||||
| 3 | 115 | Photographs - Woolson, Silas Batchellor (copy), 1870 | |||||||||
| 3 | 116 | Photographs - Woolson, William Allen (copies), ca. 1861, 1875 | |||||||||
| 3 | 117 | Photographs - Woolson family with automobiles, ca. 1910 | |||||||||
| 3 | 118 | Photographs - Woolson family farm, ca. 1910 | |||||||||
| 3 | 119 | Photographs - Woolson family farm (cyanotypes), ca. 1910 | |||||||||
| 3 | 120 | Photographs - Woolson family, Mt. Vernon, OH, 1924 | |||||||||
| 3 | 121 | Photographs - Woolson family, unidentified family members, ca. 1910 | |||||||||
| 3 | 122 | Photographs - Woolson family - unidentified family members (cyanotypes), ca. 1910 | |||||||||
| 3 | 123 | Photographs - unidentified city in Ohio, ca. 1920s | |||||||||
| 3 | 124 | Photographs - unidentified buildings, ca. 1920s | |||||||||
| Photograph album, 1900 - ca. 1908 | |||||||||||
Series 4: Scrapbooks, 1889-1911 |
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| Two scrapbooks compiled by Weona Woolson Engle and one compiled by her mother and grandmother, Frances Delia Woolson and Eliza Squire Tillinghast. The first scrapbook, compiled by Frances Delia Woolson & Eliza Squire Tillinghast, is comprised of clippings, and printed materials mostly related to Frances Delia Woolson's married life, events she hosted with husband Alvin M. Woolson, the engagements of Maude, Weona, and Constance Woolson, victorian-era cards and images, and clippings related to the Tillinghast and Pomeroy families. Weona Woolson Engle's memory book, compiled when she was about 20, includes various printed materials, drawings, and other mementos from her childhood and early adulthood. The third scrapbook includes items related to Weona Woolson Engle's marriage and married life, various trips and social occasions, and clippings related to friends and relatives. | |||||||||||
| Arranged chronologically. | |||||||||||
| Volume | Contents | ||||||||||
| 1 | Scrapbook: compiled by Frances Delia Woolson and Eliza Squire Tillinghast, 1880-1911 | ||||||||||
| 2 | Scrapbook: "memory book" compiled by Weona Woolson Engle ca. 1889 | ||||||||||
| 3 | Scrapbook: compiled by Weona Woolson Engle, 1902 | ||||||||||