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COLLECTION Identifier: HUD 1851.14

Collection of Harvard College bills sent to Charles Augustus Chase

Overview

Charles Augustus Chase (1833-1911) was a member of the Harvard Class of 1855. After graduating from Harvard, Chase worked for the Boston Daily Advertiser as a reporter and office editor until 1862. Chase then held several public offices, serving as treasurer of Worcester County, Massachusetts from 1864 to 1875, and then as Register of Deeds in 1876. His collection of bills demonstrates Chase's financial transactions while an undergraduate at Harvard, and include his spending on Harvard tuition, board, washing, books, clothing and shoes, furniture, oil, and more.

Dates

  • Creation: 1851-1855 and [undated]

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research.

Extent

.17 cubic feet (1 half-document box)

The Collection of Harvard College bills sent to Charles Augustus Chase documents his financial records while he was an undergraduate student at Harvard College from 1851 to 1855. It includes bills for Harvard tuition; board paid to multiple female landlords; purchases from Cambridge furniture makers Whitney & Brackett; books and school supplies paid to famed publisher John Bartlett; washing expenses paid to several women; as well as oil, clothing and shoes, photographs, and post office bills. It also includes an invoice for badges for "Webster," possibly referring to Daniel Webster, paid for by the Class of 1855 but "kept by [Chase] as Treasurer."

Biographical note on Charles Augustus Chase

Charles Augustus Chase (1833-1911) was a member of the Harvard Class of 1855. According to documentation in this collection, Chase also served as the Class Treasurer. After graduating from Harvard, Chase worked for the Boston Daily Advertiser as a reporter and office editor until 1862. Chase was then elected into public office, serving as treasurer of Worcester County, Massachusetts from 1864 to 1875, and then as Register of Deeds in 1876. Chase was elected treasurer of the Worcester County Institution for Savings in 1879, and served in that role until 1904, when he was elected president. Charles married Mary Teresa Clark (circa 1835-1884) on April 29, 1863; the couple had two daughters, Mary Alice (1865-1940) and Maud Eliza (1867-1950). Chase died in Worcester, Massachusetts in 1911.

Arrangement

The bills are arranged in chronological order.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift of Mrs. Albert Rice [Mary Hovey Gage], May 1963.

Related Materials

The Harvard University Archives also holds the Charles Augustus Chase Account book of College expenses, 1851-1855 (HUD 1851.13) and the Harvard College Class of 1855 album of Charles Augustus Chase, 1855 (HUD 255.705.4).

Inventory update

This document last updated 2022 February 9.

Processing Information

This collection was processed in May 2019 by Olivia Mandica-Hart. Processing included physical re-housing and the creation of this finding aid. Titles were transcribed from the documents; titles enclosed in brackets were devised by the archivist.

Upon research by archivists, the full names for Mrs. Martha Wetherbee and Mrs. Martha Young could not be traced.

Title
Chase, Charles Augustus, 1833-1911. Collection of Harvard College bills sent to Charles Augustus Chase, 1851-1855 and [undated] : an inventory
Status
completed
Author
Harvard University Archives
Date
May 6, 2019
Description rules
dacs
Language of description
und
EAD ID
hua07019

Repository Details

Part of the Harvard University Archives Repository

Holding nearly four centuries of materials, the Harvard University Archives is the principal repository for the institutional records of Harvard University and the personal archives of Harvard faculty, as well as collections related to students, alumni, Harvard-affiliates and other associated topics. The collections document the intellectual, cultural, administrative and social life of Harvard and the influence of the University as it emerged across the globe.

Contact:
Pusey Library
Harvard Yard
Cambridge MA 02138 USA
(617) 495-2461