American Life collection

This collection is made up of miscellaneous manuscript and printed items which, although ephemeral, illuminate in unexpected ways corners of American life. The letters, generally from unidentified writers, reveal something about business methods, education, and the life of the times. Farming, mining, land speculation, and the opening up of new territories are some of the subjects discussed in these letters.

Also included are legal and financial documents that record the transfer of offices, the price of land, and the cost of goods and services. Printed matter, such as land offerings, trade cards, advertisements of various sorts, campaign literature, and other ephemera are also included and add to the flavor of the periods covered. Both 19th and 20th century material is included in this collection.

Since the items are arranged by accession in numbered folders, there is no chronological or alphabetical order. Wherever possible, however, the material is grouped by subject. By scanning the subject headings in the register, the researcher can readily locate the topics covered.