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Finding Aids to Official Records of the Smithsonian Institution Archives

Record Unit 561

Smithsonian Institution. Assistant Secretary in charge of the United States National Museum

Correspondence and Memoranda, 1858-1869 and undated

Repository:Smithsonian Institution Archives, Washington, D.C. Contact us at osiaref@si.edu.
Creator:Smithsonian Institution. Assistant Secretary in charge of the United States National Museum
Title:Correspondence and Memoranda
Dates:1858-1869 and undated
Quantity:0.5 cu. ft. (1 document box)
Collection:Record Unit 561
Language of Materials:English
Summary:

These records consist of correspondence written to Smithsonian Institution Assistant Secretary Spencer Fullerton Baird by officers of the HBC documenting their collecting activities on behalf of the Institution. Principal correspondents include George Barnston, Laurence Clarke, Jr., Charles P. Gaudet, Donald Gunn, William L. Hardisty, Strachan Jones, James Lockhart, Roderick Ross MacFarlane, W. Mactavish, and Bernard Rogan Ross. Also included is correspondence from Elliott Coues to Baird concerning an expedition to Labrador, 1860; and miscellaneous notes and lists concerning natural history specimens.

This correspondence was apparently pulled from Baird's official files. Researchers interested in the HBC should also consult Record Units 26, 33, 52, 53, 305, 7002, 7215, and 7221.

Historical Note

In the late 1850s, the Smithsonian Institution began receiving large collections of ethnographic and natural history material from arctic America, gathered by officers of the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC). The Smithsonian's relationship with HBC was primarily a result of Robert Kennicott's explorations on behalf of the Institution during the 1850s.

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Descriptive Entry

These records consist of correspondence written to Smithsonian Institution Assistant Secretary Spencer Fullerton Baird by officers of the HBC documenting their collecting activities on behalf of the Institution. Principal correspondents include George Barnston, Laurence Clarke, Jr., Charles P. Gaudet, Donald Gunn, William L. Hardisty, Strachan Jones, James Lockhart, Roderick Ross MacFarlane, W. Mactavish, and Bernard Rogan Ross. Also included is correspondence from Elliott Coues to Baird concerning an expedition to Labrador, 1860; and miscellaneous notes and lists concerning natural history specimens.

This correspondence was apparently pulled from Baird's official files. Researchers interested in the HBC should also consult Record Units 26, 33, 52, 53, 305, 7002, 7215, and 7221.

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Preferred Citation

Smithsonian Institution Archives, Record Unit 561, Smithsonian Institution, Assistant Secretary in charge of the United States National Museum, Correspondence and Memoranda

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Container List

Box 1

Folder 1 Hudson's Bay Correspondence

Box 1 of 1

Folder 2 H. Balderston, 1860

Box 1 of 1

Folder 3 George Barnston, 1859-1862

Box 1 of 1

Folder 4 George Barnston, fragments and undated

Box 1 of 1

Folder 5 Bowen & Co., 1866

Box 1 of 1

Folder 6 J. C. Burbank & Co., 1862-1863

Box 1 of 1

Folder 7 Robert Campbell, 1861

Box 1 of 1

Folder 8 James R. Clare, 1866

Box 1 of 1

Folder 9 Laurence Clarke, Jr., 1861-1867

Box 1 of 1

Folder 10 James S. Clouston, 1860-1861, 1863

Box 1 of 1

Folder 11 Elliott Coues, 1860

Box 1 of 1

Folder 12 Henry Connolly, 1860-1865

Box 1 of 1

Folder 13 William Cowan, 1868-1869

Box 1 of 1

Folder 14 William J. Christie, 1863, 1865

Box 1 of 1

Folder 15 A. G. Dallas, 1863

Box 1 of 1

Folder 16 John W. Dodge, 1860

Box 1 of 1

Folder 17 C. Drexler, 1860

Box 1 of 1

Folder 18 James Flett, 1862

Box 1 of 1

Folder 19 Charles P. Gaudet, 1862, 1864-1865, 1868

Box 1 of 1

Folder 20 James A. Grahame, 1863, 1865

Box 1 of 1

Folder 21 Gun Catalogs

Box 1 of 1

Folder 22 Donald Gunn, 1860-1868

Box 1 of 1

Folder 23 Thomas Hardisty, 1867-1868

Box 1 of 1

Folder 24 William L. Hardisty, 1864-1865, 1867, 1869

Box 1 of 1

Folder 25 Edward M. Hopkins, 1860-1868

Box 1 of 1

Folder 26 Strachan Jones, 1863-1867

Box 1 of 1

Folder 27 W. W. Kirby, 1864-1866

Box 1 of 1

Folder 28 James Lockhart, 1861-1868

Box 1 of 1

Folder 29 R. McDonald, 1864

Box 1 of 1

Folder 30 J. M. McDougall, 1867

Box 1 of 1

Folder 31 W. Mactavish, 1860-1868

Box 1 of 1

Folder 32 William P. McFarland, 1866

Box 1 of 1

Folder 33 Roderick Ross MacFarlane, 1863

Box 1 of 1

Folder 34 J. MacKenzie, 1860-1864

Box 1 of 1

Folder 35 William J. McLean, 1864, 1867-1868

Box 1 of 1

Folder 36 J. S. Onion, 1862, 1864, 1867

Box 1 of 1

Folder 37 John Reid, 1863-1864

Box 1 of 1

Folder 38 Bernard Rogan Ross, 1858-1869

Box 1 of 1

Folder 39 Bernard Rogan Ross, fragments and undated

Box 1 of 1

Folder 40 George Simpson, 1859-1860

Box 1 of 1

Folder 41 Donald A. Smith, 1864, 1866

Box 1 of 1

Folder 42 W. Thomson Smith, 1864

Box 1 of 1

Folder 43 Unidentified Correspondence

Box 1 of 1

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