Papers of the Hamilton family, 1818-1974

The papers of the Hamilton family consist mainly of correspondence, with numerous photographs and a small quantity of writings and drawings. The correspondence documents the relationships among members of five generations for over one-hundred and fifty years. The majority of the correspondents are women. The letters provide information on the relationships of mothers and daughters, mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law, sisters and cousins, and also those of husbands and wives, fathers and daughters, brothers and sisters, grandparents and grandchildren.

The collection is divided into four series. The correspondence (series I and II) is arranged by generation, and is followed by miscellaneous papers (series III) and photographs (series IV). The arrangement was begun by researchers using the as yet unprocessed correspondence; they established the division by generation, with letters organized by writer. Incomplete letters that could be dated have been filed with other dated correspondence, and to a limited degree parts of letters have been reunited.

Series I, First Two Generations, centers around Allen Hamilton, the first member of the family to settle in America. Subseries A contains letters from Allen Hamilton's parents, Andrew Hamilton and Elizabeth (Allen) Hamilton, in Ireland. Subseries B includes the letters of Allen Hamilton and his wife Emerine Jane (Holman) Hamilton, the bulk of which are to their son, Andrew Holman Hamilton. Also included are school receipts for Allen Hamilton's ward and a copy of his will. Subseries C provides information on the family of Phoebe Ann Taber, Allen Hamilton's ward and later his daughter-in-law. This subseries contains letters between her grandparents, parents and other relatives.

Series II, Children and Grandchildren of Allen and Emerine Hamilton, is the major portion of the collection. The series is divided into five subseries, each representing a child of Allen and Emerine and his/her family.

The most prominent of these relationships can be found in the correspondence of Jessie and Agnes Hamilton (sisters), Edith and Jessie Hamilton (cousins), and Alice and Agnes Hamilton (cousins). These women were born in the 1860s, brought up in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and educated at Miss Porter's School. The earliest letters date from 1878, but the bulk of the correspondence was written between the 1880s and the 1930s. These letters detail day-to-day life at the Hamilton compound in Fort Wayne, at Miss Porter's School, and later in the various careers these women followed.

The most complete group of letters is the one between Jessie and Agnes. Jessie Hamilton (1866-1960), an etcher and painter in oils, was instrumental in founding the Fort Wayne Art School. Her younger sister Agnes (1868-1971) was a settlement house worker. Agnes was long identified with settlement work in Philadelphia and was on the executive committee of The Lighthouse there. Family data in the correspondence are supplemented by Agnes' diary, which details family life during her childhood and continues through her school years at Miss Porter's.

The letters of Jessie and Agnes to their cousins Edith and Alice are less complete; however, many letters from Edith and Alice are extant. Edith (1867-1963), a Bryn Mawr College graduate and one of the first women admitted to study at the University of Munich, was headmistress of Bryn Mawr School (1896-1922) and later a classicist. As the author and translator of numerous books (notably The Greek Way), she has been credited with arousing among general readers an interest in classical and Biblical life and literature. Alice (1869-1970) recorded in her letters personal observations on such diverse subjects as Hull-House, factory conditions, and teaching at Harvard Medical School, where in 1919 she became the first woman professor.

Subseries A consists of the correspondence of Andrew Holman Hamilton ("Holman"), a United States Congressman and businessman in Fort Wayne; his wife Phoebe Ann (Taber) Hamilton; their three daughters: Katherine, Jessie, and Agnes; and their sons: Allen, a physician, his wife Helen, and their son Andrew Holman; Taber, a businessman, his wife Abigail, and their children: William Rush Gillan, Taber, Jr., and Phoebe Taber. Much of the correspondence to Jessie and Agnes is from friends.

Subseries B includes the correspondence of Montgomery Hamilton, his wife Gertrude Corinne (Pond) Hamilton; their four daughters: Edith, Alice, Margaret, a teacher and headmistress at Bryn Mawr School, and Norah, an artist; their son Arthur ("Quint") Hamilton, an educator, and his wife Mary (Neal).

Subseries C, D, and E contain letters of the three remaining Hamilton daughters: Mary (Hamilton) Williams and her sons Allen Hamilton and Creighton; Margaret V. Hamilton; and Ellen (Hamilton) Wagenhals and her children.

Series III, Other Correspondence and Miscellaneous Writings, includes correspondence, writings, and a few drawings. Subseries A contains correspondence and fragments of letters to and from unidentified Hamilton family members; manuscript writings (a family story game, poetry, recipes, etc.); and drawings (mostly in pencil, undated and unsigned). Subseries B groups together other correspondence which is neither to nor from Hamilton family members.

Series IV, Photographs, brings together pictures of many members of the Hamilton family. Some photographs, mostly snapshots, are enclosed in letters; these have been noted in the Inventory. Other persons represented are more distant relatives, in-laws, and friends. Many of the photographs are identified; only some are dated. There are loose photographs, three photograph albums, and several daguerreotypes and ambrotypes.