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Collection Overview

Creator:
Simmons, J. O. (Jonathan Oscar), 1821-1890
Title:
J. O. Simmons Papers
Repository:
Manuscripts Division
Permanent URL:
http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/6108vm810
Dates:
1836-1889
Size:
2.4 linear feet and 3 boxes
Storage Note:
  • Firestone Library (scamss): Boxes B-001642 to B-001644
Language:
English

Abstract

Consists of correspondence, financial documents (e.g. account books and receipts), ephemera, and legal documents (e.g. permits, contracts, and affidavits) from J. O. Simmons (1821-1890). Simmons worked in a variety of professions in Ohio, Minnesota, Mississippi, Louisiana, and the Dakota Territory, including as a merchant, storekeeper, farmer, attorney, surveyor, county clerk, justice of the peace, and homeopathic doctor. The collection largely documents agricultural and mercantile exchanges on the Mississippi River during and after the American Civil War, the employment of African American and immigrant laborers during the early Reconstruction era, and land dispute issues among white settlers in the Territory of Dakota in the 1870s.

Collection Description & Creator Information

Scope and Contents

The materials in this collection relate to J. O. Simmons' family and work from the late 1830s to 1880s. The collection documents agricultural and mercantile exchanges on the Mississippi River during and after the American Civil War, the employment of African American and immigrant laborers during the early Reconstruction era, and land dispute issues among white settlers in the Territory of Dakota in the 1870s. The collection contains correspondence; ephemera (circulars, pamphlets, and broadsides); financial documents, such as account books, bills, invoices, and receipts; and legal documents, including but not limited to, quit claims, deeds, permits, contracts, agreements, licenses, affidavits, petitions, and court statements and testimonies. There are also some of Simmons' personal writings, which include a few lines of verse and several essays on his politics. The bulk of the collection is the correspondence that spans the 1840s to 1880s, and which cover the span of Simmons' life, beginning in Ohio.

Arrangement

Materials are arranged in the order in which they were received.

Collection Creator Biography:

Simmons

J. O. Simmons (1821-1890) was a merchant, storekeeper, farmer, attorney, surveyor, county clerk, justice of the peace, and homeopathic doctor. He spent the first part of his life in Westfield, Ohio before moving to Little Falls, Minnesota in the mid-1850s. He went to Mississippi in 1865, where he entered into a shipping and provisioning enterprise, first with his brother-in-law, F. B. (Frederick Bradley) Chamberlain, and then on his own. As a merchant and landowner on the Mississippi River during the Reconstruction, he leased his land on the Amy Plantation in Carroll Parish, Louisiana to African American farmers.

After the death of his wife, Harriet Lee Simmons in 1869, Simmons left his business enterprises in the South to his eldest son, Jonathan O. Simmons. He had several other children who also entered into the mercantile trade in the South, and in Minnesota. Simmons returned to Little Falls for a short period before heading west to the Dakota Territory in around 1870. He occupied land on what became the site of Bismarck, North Dakota, and became involved as an attorney in a land dispute case between the Northern Pacific Railroad and white settlers in the Dakota Territory.

Collection History

Acquisition:

Purchased from McBride Rare Books in 2020 (AM 2021-38).

Appraisal

Dealer-supplied research materials were removed from the collection during 2021 processing.

Processing Information

This collection was processed by Amy C. Vo in 2021. The dealer had a folder of materials that was added to the collection in 2017, which had not yet been added to the dealer's arrangement. During processing in 2021, these materials were incorporated according to the dealer's arrangement. Item count noted on each folder may not coincide with the actual count.

Finding aid written by Amy C. Vo in 2021, incorporating description written by the dealer, and retaining dealer-supplied folder titles.

Access & Use

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is 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:

J. O. Simmons Papers; Manuscripts Division, Department of Special Collections, Princeton University Library

Permanent URL:
http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/6108vm810
Location:
Firestone Library
One Washington Road
Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
(609) 258-3184
Storage Note:
  • Firestone Library (scamss): Boxes B-001642 to B-001644