Nancy Tatnall Fuller Research Collection on Joseph Swift

The Nancy Tatnall Fuller Research Collection on Joseph Swift consists of correspondence between Joseph Swift and family members along with correspondence, transcripts, research notes, and other papers which Nancy Tatnall Fuller produced or consulted while researching Joseph Swift in the Wild West (1997). The papers have been organized into two series, Family Correspondence of Joseph Swift and Research Files of Nancy Tatnall Fuller, which span the dates 1858-1997. The collection is housed in three boxes. Box 3 contains Oversize material.

Series I, Joseph Swift Family Correspondence , is organized into three subseries: Outgoing, Incoming, and Third Party. Each subseries is arranged chronologically. Transcripts and annotated photocopies of some letters, created by Nancy Tatnall Fuller during her research, are housed in folders at the end of the first two subseries (folders 10, 20, and 21).

Topics covered in letters sent by Joseph Swift include steamboat travel, his health, mail delivery on the Montana frontier, his employment with Francis M. Thompson, settler relations with Piegan Indians, cattle herding, and the Montana gold rush. Incoming correspondence consists of letters from Swift's father and siblings which describe local news, Civil War battles, the draft, and unrest among "the Sioux in Minnesota" (folders 13, 14). Swift appears to have written a letter (not included in the collection) to his mother shortly after Henry Plummer's execution in January 1864. Samuel Swift's reply on March 16, 1864 indicates that his son's account of the execution in Bannack did not explain the connection he harbored to the dead man (folder 16). In the two existing 1864 letters Swift wrote to his family, he made no further mention of vigilante activities.

Third Party correspondence includes letters between Swift's wife, Gertrude Dorr Swift, and family members, a brief letter from Horatio Dorr to Joseph's brother William and an 1876 letter from Adeline Dorr, Gertrude's sister, to Joseph Swift's son and daughter-in-law (folder 26). The letters are primarily about family matters. Transcripts and annotated photocopies created by Nancy Tatnall Fuller are housed in folders at the end of the first two subseries (folders 10, 20 and 21).

Series II, Nancy Tatnall Fuller Research Files , is organized into four subseries: Correspondence, Printed Material, Subject Files, and Other Papers. Correspondence is arranged alphabetically by name of correspondent and consists predominantly of letters between Fuller and individuals or organizations she believed could supply her with material for her book.

Printed Material is arranged alphabetically by name of author. The subseries includes Fuller's book, Joseph Swift in the Wild West (1997), Bannack: Cradle of Montana (1991) by F. Lee Graves, and photocopies of articles and other works which Fuller consulted during her research. Some of the photocopies are annotated.

Subject Files contains obituaries for Francis M. Thompson and Joseph Swift along with photocopied articles and a series of Montana highway maps.

Other Papers is arranged alphabetically by type of material and includes Fuller's labelled binder dividers; manuscript and typescript notes for Joseph Swift in the Wild West; drafts of a timeline for Joseph Swift's life; and photocopies of title pages for works included in Fuller's bibliography.

Series III, Additions Since 2003, includes correspondence relating to Joseph Swift's investments as well as to the settlement of the estates of Samuel and Elizabeth Swift. A group of letters relates to Joseph Swift's investment in the Tally-on-Top Salesbook Company. The Joseph Swift Personal Papers subseries is arranged in chronological order and consists of insurance forms, a stock certificate from the Uncle Sam Gold Mining Company (Joseph Swift was secretary of the company), accounting sheets, receipts, property tax receipts, and Elizabeth Swift's account with the Pennsylvania Company for Insurance. Includes a manuscript tally of Joseph Swift's interest in the estate of Elizabeth Swift. Geometric Drill Company material includes a prospectus for the company, a contract, and company financial information.

Nancy Tatnall Research Files is organized into Printed Material and Other Papers. Printed Material includes maps, periodicals, and photocopies which Tatnall consulted while writing her book. Other Papers consists of a tracing of an overland journey by rail, steamship and foot from Philadelphia to Bannack; a photocopy of the tracing; and several photocopied images of the Swift family, with identification in ink by Tatnall.