David Hosack Family Papers, 1793-1916 (mostly 1818-1850)

Contents and Arrangement

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Collection Overview

Creator:

Hosack, David, 1769-1835 and Hosack, David, 1769-1835

Title:

David Hosack Family Papers

Repository:

Manuscripts Division

Permanent URL:

http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/dv13zt222

Dates:

1793-1916 (mostly 1818-1850)

Size:

1 box and 0.4 linear feet

Storage Note:

Firestone Library (scamss): Box 1

Language:

English

Abstract: David Hosack (1769-1835) was an American physician, botanist, educator, and graduate of Princeton University (Class of 1789). This collection consists of correspondence, deeds, indentures, wills, maps, printed materials, and other assorted family papers related to estates and land owned by David Hosack and his family. Many of the papers concern land in the Lackawanna River valley of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania.

Collection Description & Creator Information

Scope and Contents

The collection consists of a group of personal and family papers of David Hosack (1769-1835, Princeton Class of 1789), mainly concerning family estates and tracts of land owned by David Hosack in the Lackawanna River valley of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. There is correspondence of David Hosack and his brother-in-law, Thomas Eddy (1758-1827), with Ebenezer Bowman, John Conyngham, James Griffin, Jacob Cist, and others, as well as a small amount of correspondence of Hosack's son, Alexander E. Hosack (1805-1871), and Eddy's son, Thomas Eddy, Jr., and some related correspondence between others. Also present are deeds and indentures of the Hosack family in New York and Pennsylvania; wills, inventories, and other estate papers for Henry A. Coster, David Hosack, and Sophia H. Hosack; and various survey reports, notes on coal deposits, lists of land warrants, and maps of the land tracts in Luzerne County. Among the printed materials are a notice of land for sale in Luzerne County (1819) by David Hosack, a survey report for a proposed railroad in the Lackawanna and Wyoming coal valleys (1831), and clippings related to coal mining.

This collection was formerly referred to as the David Hosack Collection.

Collection Creator Biography:

Hosack, David, 1769-1835

David Hosack (1769-1835), a physician, botanist, and educator, was born in New York City. He began his education at Columbia College (Columbia University) but later transferred to the College of New Jersey (Princeton University) and graduated in 1789. After completing additional studies at the College of Philadelphia (University of Pennsylvania) and the University of Edinburgh, he became a professor of natural history and materia medica at Columbia College, while maintaining his own private medical practice. Hosack became well-known in the medical field during the yellow fever epidemic of 1797-1798, and he was the attending physician at the Aaron Burr-Alexander Hamilton duel. He also established the Elgin Botanical Gardens and was one of the founders of the New York Historical Society and Bellevue Hospital.

Hosack's second wife was Mary Eddy, sister of Thomas Eddy (1758-1827) of Philadelphia. Eddy was a prominent philanthropist and prison reformer. Hosack's son, Alexander Eddy Hosack (1805-1871), became a surgeon.

Hosack, David, 1769-1835

Collection History

Acquisition:

Gift of Emily Stuart in 1989 (AM 90-67).

Custodial History

Emily Stuart found the papers in the basement of her home at 34 Mercer Street in Princeton in 1988 or early 1989.

Appraisal

No appraisal information is available.

Processing Information

This collection was processed in 1995. Finding aid written in 1995.

The finding aid was revised by Kelly Bolding in 2018.

Access & Use

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research use.

Conditions Governing Use

Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections, nor does it require researchers to obtain its permission for said use. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us through the Ask Us! form.

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.

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