Collection View
- Scope and Contents
This collection consists of ten handmade scrapbooks containing clippings from newspapers, magazines, and travel guides, as well as 15 vernacular Kodak photographic prints documenting a 1900 sightseeing trip to Yellowstone taken by Reverend William Taggart Meloy and his family members, including John T. Meloy, Emma Meloy, Daisy Meloy Rankin, and Dr. James D. Rankin. Locations include Ouray and Grand Junction, Colorado; Butte, Montana; Salt Lake City, Utah; and Yellowstone National Park.
The scrapbooks contain clippings of articles by Meloy that were published in The United Presbyterian, a weekly religious newsletter based out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Meloy was a weekly contributor to The United Presbyterian, and his letters back to Pittsburgh detailed his experiences and expectations on his trip West. The photographs included in the scrapbooks were not published in The United Presbyterian but were meant to share with family members back home. Images depict William Meloy in front of Old Faithful; James and Emma Meloy in front of a streetcar in Grand Junction, Colorado; Emma Meloy riding a donkey in Ouray, Colorado; and the party floating in the Great Salt Lake; among others. The scrapbooks detail what Meloy found exciting, disappointing, and awe-inspiring on his trip through the Rocky Mountains, and provide insights into tourism in the American West at the turn-of-the-twentieth century.
- Collection Creator Biography:
Meloy
William Taggart Meloy was a Presbyterian minister from Chicago, Illinois. He was born on October 4th, 1838, in Washington County, Pennsylvania, to John Meloy and Eliza Young Meloy. He graduated from Washington College in 1860, and in 1862, joined the U.S. Army to fight for the Union during the Civil War, where he served as a second lieutenant in the 122nd Ohio Volunteers. After the war, Meloy studied theology at the Western Theological Seminary in Allegheny City, Pennsylvania. He married Mary Brownlee on September 5th, 1865, and had six children. He began work as a pastor in Cadiz, Ohio, in 1865 but moved to Chicago in 1888 and became the pastor of the First United Presbyterian Church of Chicago. Meloy was a prolific writer and an avid traveler. He had a weekly column in the religious newsletter The United Presbyterian and wrote a few novels, including Wanderings in Europe (1896), which detailed his 1892 trip to Europe.
- Acquisition:
This material was found in the repository during a collections move. Original acquisition information is unknown.
- Appraisal
No materials were removed from the collection during 2020 processing.
- Processing Information
This collection was processed by Kelly Bolding in February 2020. Finding aid written by Kelly Bolding in February 2020, using description drafted by Megan B. Armknecht.
- Conditions Governing Access
Open for research.
- 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.
- Credit this material:
William Taggart Meloy Yellowstone Scrapbooks; Manuscripts Division, Department of Special Collections, Princeton University Library
- Permanent URL:
- http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/sb397f77d
- Location:
-
Firestone LibraryOne Washington RoadPrinceton, NJ 08544, USA
- Storage Note:
- Firestone Library (scamss): Box B-001458
