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Collections of college and personal papers, as well as a select number of individual documents, have been briefly described in entries available for browsing and searching on this site. All collection and document descriptions contain a representative image and a summary of the contents.
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June 26, 1873
This copy of the printed program for the commencement exercises held on June 26, 1873 shows the members of the graduating class and the speeches that they were scheduled to deliver.
Format: Memorabilia and Ephemera
Location: Dickinsoniana Programs
Subject: Dickinson College Events
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: 1873 Commencement Program
June 26, 1873
William C. Wilson prepared this oration, entitled “College Life Its Lights and Shadows," for the commencement ceremonies held June 26, 1873. Authoring an original speech was among the graduation requirements for Dickinson College seniors at that time. Transcript included.
Format: Speeches and Sermons
Location: Orations-1873-W754c
Subject: Dickinson College Student Life, Education
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: "College Life Its Lights and Shadows," by William C. Wilson
March 20, 1874
Naturalist Spencer Fullerton Baird (Class of 1843) writes to Dr. Alfred W. Bennett, thanking him for sending a package of notes. Baird acknowledges similar gifts in the introduction of the Annual Report for 1873 and is sending Bennett a copy; he also "hopes that the new Scientific Monthly will be started before a great while" and asks Bennett to be a contributor.
Format: Letters/Correspondence
Location: I-Friends-1986-5
Subject: Literary Pursuits, Science and Technology
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: Letter from Spencer Baird to Alfred Bennett
June 5, 1874
Professor Charles Himes writes Professor William Fisher a "strictly confidential" letter to discuss several sensitive issues related to Dickinson College. Professor Himes mentions the upcoming Board of Trustee meeting and discusses how they might decide to fill several faculty vacancies. In addition, Himes explains how the financial situation at Dickinson might impact how the Trustees decide to fill the faculty positions. Himes ('55) and Fisher ('70) both teach at Dickinson. Transcript included.
Format: Letters/Correspondence
Location: MC 2000.12, B1, F3
Subject: Dickinson College Academic Affairs, Dickinson College Administration, Education, Personal and Family Life
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: Letter from Charles Himes to William Fisher
July 27, 1874
Professor Charles Himes writes Professor William Fisher to discuss various affairs at Dickinson College. Professor Himes notes an allegation that Fisher might soon be directly involved in, and warns him to be cautious of these allegations. Himes ends with some brief information about a mutual acquaintance, Professor James McCauley. Himes ('55) and Fisher ('70) both teach at Dickinson. Transcript included.
Format: Letters/Correspondence
Location: MC 2000.12, B1, F3
Subject: Dickinson College Academic Affairs, Dickinson College Administration, Education, Personal and Family Life
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: Letter from Charles Himes to William Fisher
August 17, 1874
Professor Charles Francis Himes writes Professor William Fisher to discuss a controversy related to how the Dickinson College Board of Trustees decided to fill faculty positions. Himes also mentions his recent activities and travels as well as prospects for the upcoming year. Himes ('55) and Fisher ('70) both teach at Dickinson. Transcript included.
Format: Letters/Correspondence
Location: MC 2000.12, B1, F3
Subject: Dickinson College Academic Affairs, Dickinson College Administration, Education, Personal and Family Life
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: Letter from Charles Himes to William Fisher
1875
The Dickinson College catalog for the 1874-1875 academic year. Through the years, the annual catalog was variously titled "The Bulletin," "Catalogue and Register," "Course Catalog," and similar variants. The catalog typically includes the list of courses offered, requirements for enrollment, requirements for graduation, tuition and other fees, and campus facilities, college policies, and lists of teaching faculty, college trustees, and various administrators.
Format: Books and Pamphlets
Location: Dickinsoniana Periodicals
Subject: Dickinson College Academic Affairs, Dickinson College Administration, Education
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item:
circa 1875
Horatio King responds to a request for his autograph. The note may have been removed from the bottom of a letter. King, father of Horatio Collins King (Class of 1858), served as Postmaster General and was the first to officially deny the right of secession in early 1861 by tying franking privileges to loyalty to the Union. Transcript included.
Format: Letters/Correspondence
Location: I-Friends-1995-1
Subject: Personal and Family Life, Politics and Government
Time Period: 1860-1879
circa 1875
A copy of the monthly pamphlet "Young and Old," no. 46, edited by Horatio Collins King (Class of 1858).
Format: Newspapers and Magazines
Location: I-PfliegerP-2005-1
Subject: Literary Pursuits
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: "Old and Young" No. 46, edited by Horatio Collins King
April 6, 1875
Professor William Henry Allen delivers a speech, "Dickinson College: An Historical Sketch," about the first 90 years of the College's history to the Philadelphia Conference Historical Society. The Dickinsonian publishes Allen's speech in the April 6, 1875 issue. Transcript included.
Format: Newspapers and Magazines
Location: Dickinsoniana Periodicals
Subject: Dickinson College Academic Affairs, Dickinson College History, Education
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: "Dickinson College: An Historical Sketch," by William Allen (Transcript)
June 21, 1875
Clergyman and abolitionist Moncure Daniel Conway (Class of 1849) bids farewell to newspaper editor St. Clair M'Kelway before leaving Belgium. Conway encloses postage for 100 issues of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, M'Kelway's publication, and promises to "read no other paper."
Format: Letters/Correspondence
Location: I-AsbellY-2004-2
Subject: Personal and Family Life, Travel and Tourism
Time Period: 1860-1879
June 24, 1875
John Henderson Ahl receives his Bachelor of Arts Diploma from Dickinson College on June 24, 1875.
Format: Certificates and Diplomas
Location: Diploma Collection
Subject: Education
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: Bachelor of Arts Diploma - John Ahl
July 20, 1875
Abolitionist Henry Ward Beecher writes to Horatio Collins King about King's apparent change of mind on becoming a publisher for Christian Union. Beecher accepts King's decision regretfully after admonishing that "backward" steps can be taken if they lead to "better promise in the future." Envelope included.
Format: Letters/Correspondence
Location: I-HartC-1981-1
Subject: Literary Pursuits, Religion and Spirituality
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: Letter from Henry Beecher to Horatio Collins King
October 12, 1875
Harriet Beecher Stowe writes Horatio C. King to discuss musical compositions and to suggest changes to the Christian Union. "I want the C Union to put the public in early possession of the signal hymns of the [revival?] times," as Stowe explains. King is the editor of the Christian Union. Transcript included.
Format: Letters/Correspondence
Location: I-Friends-2011-2
Subject: Religion and Spirituality, Visual and Performing Arts
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: Letter from Harriet Beecher Stowe to Horatio Collins King
February 2, 1876
S. Homer Dosh writes to his mother, Mrs. J. H. C. Dosh, about life in Carlisle as a student at Dickinson College. He comments on the Presbyterian church, saying that the ministers are boring and that there "is not fire enough in the meetings." In addition, Dosh expresses an interest in possibly continuing his studies at John Hopkins University after graduating from Dickinson. Transcript included.
Format: Letters/Correspondence
Location: I-BaconJ-1961-1
Subject: Carlisle and Cumberland County, Dickinson College Student Life, Education, Personal and Family Life, Religion and Spirituality
Time Period: 1860-1879
March 29, 1876
Naturalist Spencer Fullerton Baird (Class of 1843) writes to James T. Ames about his hopes of having "a good long talk." Baird tried calling at Ames's hotel, but he was not there. Baird gives Ames his hours at the Smithsonian and invites him to visit there or at his home.
Format: Letters/Correspondence
Location: I-Friends-1983-11
Subject: Personal and Family Life
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: Letter from Spencer Baird to James Ames
April 10, 1876
Dickinson College President James McCauley writes Daniel Gilman, President of Johns Hopkins University, in order to recommend S. Homer Dosh, a senior at Dickinson. Dosh is an excellent student and is a "young man of excellent character – is a professing Christian, and has, during his stay with us, been correct in all his ways," as McCauley explains. Transcript included.
Format: Letters/Correspondence
Location: I-BaconJ-2001-1
Subject: Dickinson College Student Life, Education
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: Letter from James McCauley to Daniel Gilman
[1876?]
S. Homer Dosh writes his thesis, titled "Some Experiments in Taking Transparencies," about developing photographs while a student at Dickinson College. While using a piece of ground glass behind the negative film is the most satisfactory method, Dosh admits that the method is "inconvenient, and very often cannot be recorted to at all." Dosh includes several photographs as examples in his thesis.
Format: Essays and Dissertations, Photographs
Location: I-BaconJ-2001-2
Subject: Dickinson College Student Life, Education, Science and Technology
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: "Some Experiments in Taking Transparencies," by S. Homer Dosh
May 29, 1876
Professor Joshua Lippincott writes Daniel Gilman, President of Johns Hopkins University, in order to recommend S. Homer Dosh, a senior at Dickinson, for a program at that institution. "[Dosh] has proved himself both industrious and successful" at Dickinson, as Lippincott explains. Transcript included.
Format: Letters/Correspondence
Location: I-BaconJ-2001-1
Subject: Dickinson College Student Life, Education
Time Period: 1860-1879
May 30, 1876
Professor Charles F. Himes writes Daniel Gilman, President of Johns Hopkins University, in order to recommend S. Homer Dosh, a senior at Dickinson, for a program at that institution. Himes discusses Dosh's thesis, "Some Experiments in Taking Transparencies," and assures Gilman that the thesis is Dosh's own work. Dosh's work ethic will "make him a credit to his Alma Mater, as well as the institution that receives him," as Himes notes. Transcript included.
Format: Letters/Correspondence
Location: I-BaconJ-2001-1
Subject: Dickinson College Student Life, Education
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: Letter from Charles Himes to Daniel Gilman
June 20, 1876
Amy A. Carothers writes to Doctor Cornelius Rea Agnew, thanking Agnew for his donation of five dollars to Carothers' class of Indians. Carothers also notes that Howling Wolf is under Agnew's treatment for an eye condition. Transcript included.
Format: Letters/Correspondence
Location: CIS-MC-001, B1, F1
Subject: Education, Native Americans
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: Letter from Amy A. Carothers to Cornelius R. Agnew
June 29, 1876
John Webster Henderson prepared this oration, entitled “The Elevation of the Masses ," for the commencement ceremonies held June 29, 1876. Authoring an original speech was among the graduation requirements for Dickinson College seniors at that time. Transcript included.
Format: Speeches and Sermons
Location: OrationsX-1876-H496e
Subject: Education, Social Reform and Advocacy
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: "The Elevation of the Masses," by John W. Henderson
June 29, 1876
F. Harry Hoffer prepared this oration, entitled “The Statesman and the Politician," for the commencement ceremonies held June 29, 1876. Authoring an original speech was among the graduation requirements for Dickinson College seniors at that time. Transcript included.
Format: Speeches and Sermons
Location: OrationsX-1876-H698s
Subject: Politics and Government
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: "The Statesman and the Politician," by F. Harry Hoffer
October 28, 1876
Naturalist and Smithsonian administrator Spencer Fullerton Baird writes to his colleague Charles Bell. Baird thanks Bell for his "assistance in securing for us the magnificent collection of mining materials in the Canadian exhibit" of the 1876 Centennial International Exhibition in Philadelphia. Baird also mentions that he has written to an unspecified Major Sibley to ask about the collection of silver ores.
Format: Letters/Correspondence
Location: I-Friends-1987-3
Subject: Education, Science and Technology
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: Letter from Spencer Baird to Charles Bell
October 30, 1876
Naturalist and Smithsonian administrator Spencer Fullerton Baird writes to his colleague Charles Bell at the Canadian Geological Survey, following up on his previous letter. He writes to urge Bell "to press the matter to a decision on the subject of transfers to the Smithsonian as soon as possible."
Format: Letters/Correspondence
Location: I-Friends-1987-3
Subject: Education, Science and Technology
Time Period: 1860-1879
View Item: Letter from Spencer Baird to Charles Bell