Contents and Arrangement

Vaux, James, Letter to Benjamin Guild Concerning Land in Andover, 1811 March 9

1 folder

Collection Overview

Collection Description & Creator Information

Description:

Consists of an assembled collection of miscellaneous legal and financial documents, correspondence, and other manuscript materials related to New Jersey history or inhabitants of New Jersey from the late 17th century through the mid 20th century. Documents primarily pertain to Mercer, Hunterdon, Middlesex, Somerset, Burlington, Monmouth, Bergen, Cumberland, Sussex, and Cape May counties, and some relate to areas around Princeton and Trenton.

This collection sheds light on the daily life of colonial New Jerseyans and their descendents, or on legal, political, or religious matters in the region, with most documents regarding the sale, mortgage, or legal transfer of lands in New Jersey. There are family and personal records and manuscript copies of official documents, including deeds and indentures, bills of sale, purchase agreements, receipts, financial accounts, land surveys, maps, drawings of buildings, wills, petitions for lawsuits, certificates of marriage, diplomas and licences, appointments to official posts, documents pertaining to indentured servants and power of attorney, petitions, genealogical research notes, broadsides, and correspondence.

Notable content includes documents and correspondence of governors of New Jersey as a colony, province, and state, including Jeremiah Basse (1698-1699), Jonathan Belcher (1747-1757), Sir Francis Bernard, 1st Baronet (1758-1760), Thomas Boone (1760-1761), William Livingston (1776-1790), George Franklin Fort (1851-1854), Marcus Lawrence Ward (1866-1869), and John Franklin Fort (1908-1911). There are also some documents related to the American Revolutionary War and the American Civil War, the Continental Congress, colonial matters in New Jersey, and early Princeton history, as well as reports, extracts of meetings and minutes, and other papers related to various societies, churches, and schools, including the New Jersey Literary and Philosophical Society, New Jersey Prison Instruction Society, Princeton Reading Society, Lawrenceville School, and Presbyterian churches around the state. While most materials in the collection date from the 19th century or before, among the 20th century items is a Princeton-based petition regarding Bruno Richard Hauptmann's trial for the kidnapping of Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr.

Collection History

Acquisition:

AM 1850

Archival Appraisal Information:

No materials were removed from the collection during 2018 processing beyond routine appraisal practices.

Access & Use

Access Restrictions:

The collection is open for research.

Conditions for Reproduction and Use:

Single photocopies may be made for research purposes. No further photoduplication of copies of material in the collection can be made when Princeton University Library does not own the original. Inquiries regarding publishing material from the collection should be directed to RBSC Public Services staff through the Ask Us! form. The library has no information on the status of literary rights in the collection and researchers are responsible for determining any questions of copyright.

Credit this material:

Vaux, James, Letter to Benjamin Guild Concerning Land in Andover; New Jersey Miscellaneous Collection, C1351, Manuscripts Division, Department of Special Collections, Princeton University Library

Location:
Firestone Library
One Washington Road
Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
(609) 258-3184
Storage Note:
Firestone Library (mss): Box 7