Scope and Contents
A collection of letters of the family of Henry Dutton (1796-1869), Yale College 1818, 38th governor of Connecticut and Yale law professor (1847-1869). The letters of his only son, Henry Melzar Dutton (1838-1862), Yale College 1857 and Yale Law 1859, written while working as a lawyer in Litchfield, Connecticut, until April 1861 and then serving as a 1st Lieutenant with Company C of the 5th Regiment of Connecticut Volunteers during the Civil War until his death on August 9, 1862, constitute the bulk of the collection. Also included are letters between other members of the Dutton family as well as related families; genealogical information; and short biographies of Henry Dutton, Eliza Eliot Dutton, and Henry Melzar Dutton.
All of the letters between Henry Melzar Dutton and his parents, as well as all of Eliza Eliot Dutton's correspondence in the collection have been transcribed by the donor.
Dates
- 1859-1890, 2018
- Majority of material found within 1859-1890
Creator
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
Unpublished materials authored or otherwise produced by the creator(s) of this collection are in the public domain. Copyright to the biographical works on Henry Dutton, Eliza Eliot Dutton, and Lt. Henry Melzar Dutton is retained by Charles W. McLandress until January 1, 2060, or upon his death, whichever occurs first, after which all copyright he holds in the biographical sketches is transferred to Yale University. Copyright status for other collection materials is unknown.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Charles W. McLandress, 2018.
Arrangement
The collection is organized by type of material.
Extent
0.5 Linear Feet (1 box)
Language of Materials
English
Catalog Record
A record for this collection is available in Orbis, the Yale University Library catalog
Persistent URL
Abstract
A collection of letters of the family of Henry Dutton (1796-1869), Yale College 1818, 38th governor of Connecticut and Yale law professor (1847-1869). The letters of his only son, Henry Melzar Dutton (1838-1862), Yale College 1857 and Yale Law 1859, written while working as a lawyer in Litchfield, Connecticut, until April 1861 and then serving as a 1st Lieutenant with Company C of the 5th Regiment of Connecticut Volunteers during the Civil War until his death on August 9, 1862, constitute the bulk of the collection. Also included are letters between other members of the Dutton family as well as related families; genealogical information; and short biographies of Henry Dutton, Eliza Eliot Dutton, and Henry Melzar Dutton. Transcriptions of most of the family letters were created by the donor.
Biographical / Historical
Henry Dutton was born on February 12, 1796 in Plymouth, Connecticut. He graduated from Yale College in 1818, and studied law under Roger M. Sherman (Yale College 1792). In 1847 Dutton was appointed as a Professor of Law at Yale College, which he held thorughout his lifetime. He was a member of the Connecticut House of Representatives: 1828, 1834, 1838, 1839, and 1850; as well as the Connecticut Senate in 1849. In 1854, Dutton became the 38th Govenor of Connecticut. He died on April 26, 1869.
Elizabeth (Eliza) Eliot Joy Dutton was born in 1796, the daughter of Captain Melzar Joy and Anna Eliot. She married Henry Dutton on September 8, 1823 in Fairfield, Connecticut and they had four children: Mary, Anna, Harriet, and Henry. Eliza died on August 24, 1883 in New Haven, Connecticut.
Henry Melzar Dutton was born in 1838, the only son of Henry and Eliza Eliot Joy Dutton. He graduated from Yale College in 1857 and Yale Law 1859 before serving as a Lieutenant for the Fifth Connecticut Volunteer Infantry Regiment. Henry Melzar Dutton died during the U.S. Civil War on on August 9th, 1862.
Other family members and related individuals included in the collection: Mary Eliot Dutton Graves (1826-1865); Anna Dutton Graves Thrall (1854-1930); and Joseph Brainerd Thrall (1849-1935).
Processing Information
Manuscripts and Archives staff arranged and described these materials according to national and local standards.
- Title
- Guide to the Henry Dutton Family Papers
- Author
- compiled by Michelle Peralta
- Date
- June 2022
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Part of the Manuscripts and Archives Repository
Yale University Library
P.O. Box 208240
New Haven CT 06520-8240 US
(203) 432-1735
(203) 432-7441 (Fax)
beinecke.library@yale.edu
Location
Sterling Memorial Library
Room 147
120 High Street
New Haven, CT 06511