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S. J. Sedgwick collection

 Collection
Call Number: WA MSS S-2360

Scope and Contents

The S. J. Sedgwick Collection contains manuscript notes and texts for 4 of S. J. Sedgwick's slide lectures on the West ("Big Trees and Yosemite Valley," "Central Pacific Railroad," "Indians," and "Monterey, California") and one on geology, as well as the manuscript draft and later proofs of the 4th edition of "Announcement of Professor S. J. Sedgwick's Illustrated Course of Lectures and Catalogue of Stereoscopic Views of Scenery of ... the Rocky and Sierra Mountains...", produced by the Union Pacific Railroad Company. There are also 2 photographs of the State of Washington ferry; a scrapbook documenting Sedgwick's work for George A. Crofutt, and a scrapbook documenting his work for George A. Crofutt, publisher of a series of western travel guides, which includes his contract, diary entries, correspondence with Crofutt, clippings, and 2 printed maps; other business correspondence; printed bills and advertisements for the "Across the Continent" series and other lectures, many with woodcut illustrations after photographs; photographers' lists of lantern slides available for sale; and other papers.

Dates

  • 1868-1895

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research

Conditions Governing Use

The S. J. Sedgwick Collection is the physical property of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University. Literary rights, including copyright, belong to the authors or their legal heirs and assigns. For further information, consult the appropriate curator.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Materials acquired by gift and purchase from various sources as indicated on individual folders. Source information is recorded in the finding aid or on the folders. For further information, consult the appropriate curator.

Arrangement

Organized into six series: I. Correspondence, 1871-1895. II. Scrapbook, 1869-1886. III. Lectures, 1870-1890, undated. IV. Advertisements, 1868-1882, undated. V. Lantern Slide Catalogs, 1876, undated. VI. Other Papers, undated.

Extent

2.13 Linear Feet (3 boxes + 2 broadside + 1 portfolio)

Language of Materials

English

Catalog Record

A record for this collection is available in Orbis, the Yale University Library catalog

Persistent URL

https://hdl.handle.net/10079/fa/beinecke.sjsedgwick

Additional Description

Overview

The S. J. Sedgwick Collection consists of manuscript notes and drafts for several of S. J. Sedgwick's slide lectures on the West ("Big Trees and Yosemite Valley," "Central Pacific Railroad," "Indians," and "Monterey, California") and one on geology; the manuscript draft and later proofs of the 4th edition of "Announcement of Professor S. J. Sedgwick's Illustrated Course of Lectures and Catalogue of Stereoscopic Views of Scenery of ... the Rocky and Sierra Mountains...", produced by the Union Pacific Railroad Company; and a scrapbook documenting his work for George A. Crofutt, publisher of a series of western travel guides. There are also printed bills and advertisements for Sedgwick's lectures. Both woodcuts and printed maps are included in the collection.

S. J. Sedgwick

S. J. Sedgwick was born near Geneva, New York, circa 1820. He became a principal in the Buffalo public school system at age 22, and went on to establish his own school, the Metropolitan Academy and Gymnasium, in New York City in 1852. He also edited the "Gymnast," a paper dedicated to physical education. In 1857, he received a Master's Degree from Union College, and taught in New York City public schools from 1858 until the Civil War. Following the war, he joined the photographic corps of the Union Pacific Railroad Company. When he returned to New York, he developed a popular series of lantern slide lectures called "Across the Continent," showing the West from Omaha to the Pacific. In 1873, Sedgwick worked as an agent for "Crofutt's Trans-Continental Tourists' Guide," travelling again throughout the West. Sedgwick also lectured on world religions, geology, astronomy, and art history.

Processing Information

Collections are processed to a variety of levels, depending on the work necessary to make them usable, their perceived research value, the availability of staff, competing priorities, and whether or not further accruals are expected. The library attempts to provide a basic level of preservation and access for all collections, and does more extensive processing of higher priority collections as time and resources permit.

These materials have been arranged and described according to national and local standards. For more information, please refer to the Beinecke Manuscript Unit Processing Manual.

Subjects

Related Names

Finding Aid & Administrative Information

Title
Guide to the S. J. Sedgwick Collection
Status
Completed
Author
Sarah Lerner
Date
March 2019
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description note
Finding aid written in English.

Repository Details

Part of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library Repository

http://beinecke.library.yale.edu/
Contact:
P. O. Box 208330
New Haven CT 06520-8330 US
(203) 432-2977

Location

121 Wall Street
New Haven, CT 06511

Opening Hours

Access Information

The Beinecke Library is open to all Yale University students and faculty, and visiting researchers whose work requires use of its special collections. You will need to bring appropriate photo ID the first time you register. Beinecke is a non-circulating, closed stack library. Paging is done by library staff during business hours. You can request collection material online at least two business days in advance of your visit, using the request links in Archives at Yale. For more information, please see Planning Your Research Visit and consult the Reading Room Policies prior to visiting the library.

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