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Collections List

This area contains 200 manuscript collections, comprising nearly 1800 linear feet of material, plus a number of individual manuscript items. Each of these collections is described in brief on ODYsseus the Libraries’ online catalog. Additionally, many have detailed finding aids, searchable here. Others will be added to this list as they are completed. If you find you have questions about the collections after you have read the catalog entries or finding aids, please contact us.
St. Lawrence Seaway log book.

Log of Ships on Saint Lawrence River

Log book of ships passing Massena, N.Y. on the Saint Lawrence Seaway kept by the Cook family from 1958-1966. Includes name of each ship, length, dates and direction.

Print Collection Collection number: #114
1958 - 1966

Lucia Millham Collection

Lucia Millham (Mrs. Newton Millham) from Glen Cove, New York was the former Lucia Pink of Kew Gardens. In 1932 she graduated from St. Lawrence University, Canton, New York. This unprocessed collection consists of correspondence dating from 1798 until 1892, with most letters are from the Hazelton (Haselton) family. Other items included are a stockholder meeting notice of the Potsdam and Watertown Railroad Company (1853), pamphlet on Hon. William Kelly (Democratic Candidate for Governor of State of New York), deed between Louisa Olin and S. W. Heaton, the "Constitution of Little York Universalist Society in the Town of Fowler", and an academic year booklet from Townshend Academy in Townshend, Vermont. St. Lawrence University received this collection in 1993.

Print Collection Collection number: #73
1798 - 1892
Image of mother and baby with poem from Mabel Sprague Laidlaw scrapbook.

Mabel Sprague Laidlaw Collection

Diaries of Mabel S. Laidlaw and her daughter Helena Laidlaw Livermore of Canton, St. Lawrence County, N.Y. Collection consists of diaries kept by a wife and a daughter of a Doctor in Canton, N.Y., and provides a daily log of domestic life in the first part of the century. Other items include automobile records, autograph books, scrapbooks, photographs, clippings, correspondence and microfilm of diaries.

Print Collection Collection number: #24
1893 - 1953
Photograph of the Mabel Wait diaries.

Mabel Wait Diaries

The collection consists of four diaries (1901, 1906, 1908 and 1917) and four photocopies of diaries (1899, 1900, 1902 and 1903). The diaries include accounts of Mabel's daily activities and a report on the weather of the day. The 1899, 1900, 1901 and 1902 diaries also contain detailed lists of daily expenses of the household, with monthly and yearly totals. The diaries are an excellent source of information about life in Canton and St. Lawrence County, NY.

Print Collection Collection number: #26
1899 - 1917
Page from Book of Public Land in the Town of Madrid, New York, 1841.

Madrid Town Account Books

Two account books for the town of Madrid, N.Y. Town Supervisor's account book 1829-1868 and "Book of public land of the town of Madrid", 1840-1859. Both contain names of individuals, dates, and amounts paid.

Print Collection Collection number: #117
1829 - 1869

Maitland C. De Sormo Papers

The collection consists of 117 letters from various historians (Paul Jamieson and Atwood Manley), the bulk of the correspondence is from individuals at St. Lawrence University in Canton, N.Y. where he received an honorary degree and a North Country Citation.

Print Collection Collection number: #99
1951 - 1986
McCormick homestead.

Malcolm McCormick Research Files

This collection contains newspaper clippings, photo albums and information collected by Malcolm McCormick highlighting the early days of Canton, NY. Included in this collection is a history of the theater in Canton. Malcolm also collected information on the beginnings of St. Lawrence University.

Print Collection Collection number: #150
Portraits of members of the Man Family.

Man Family Papers

The Man Papers, consisting of around 500 items, cover a period from the 1800's to the 1870's and include the personal, business and legal papers of the Man family of Malone, N.Y. The family was among the first settlers of Malone, and later Constable and Westville when those towns split from Malone.

Print Collection Collection number: #17
1830 - 1903
Marianne Moore.

Marianne Moore Collection

The collection consists of photographs, correspondence with Dr. Frank Piskor, President of St. Lawrence University from 1969 to 1981, and newspaper clippings (mostly New York Times Book Review). Also included are poems and articles by and about Moore, journals where her poems were published, i.e. "Texas Quarterly", "The Story" and "Poetry" are also a part of this collection.

Print Collection Collection number: #49
1936 - 1972
Bound materials from the Marion Anderson Hyman F.D.R. Collection.

Marion Anderson Hyman Collection of Franklin D. Roosevelt

The collection consists of scrapbooks, campaign buttons, coins and similar ephemera. Also included are clippings and photographs, two typewritten letters written and signed by Roosevelt as president, a photograph album, newspaper clippings, magazines with articles about FDR, a copy of his will, his inaugural addresses, a phonograph album, FDR ancestry and a 1936 Democratic Book.

Print Collection Collection number: #50
1882 - 1959

Mark Swanson Adirondack Diaries Collection

Mr. Swanson describes his writings as “Thoreauvian in nature”, documenting the author’s “day to day life in and relationship with the region”.

Print Collection Collection number: #207
2002
Construction of the Norwood Pulp Mill about 1900.

Martin Family Papers

The collection consists primarily of business letters, ledgers and account books of the various businesses and the personal diaries of Orrin Martin. Included also are legal papers, photographs of the pulp mill construction, and newspaper clippings of Hollis and Marion's accident.

Print Collection Collection number: #48
1845 - 1928
Chicago Daily News coverage of the Martin Luther King assassination.

Martin Luther King Chicago News Clippings

Martin Luther King Jr. was a Baptist minister and an iconic figure in the Civil Rights movement in the 1950s and 60s.  The items in this collection consist mainly of clippings from Chicago newspapers shortly after King's assassination.

Print Collection Collection number: #153
1968 - 1968

Mary Smallman Genealogical Collection

This collection consists mostly of family genealogy records of Mary H. Smallman. It contains genealogy charts, photos and writings by Doris Jones Hadlock (mother of Mary H. Smallman) recounting her childhood in Bigelow and Gouverneur, New York in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Doris also recounts her life with husband Perry in Rio de Janeiro Brazil from 1941-1957 while he was working at RCA Brazil.

Print Collection Collection number: #161
1810 - 1985
Gladys Gray, SLU 1919.

Max and Gladys Gray Merrill Collection

The collection consists of approximately 100 letters and ephemeral documents. The majority are letters from Max to Gladys beginning in 1917 when Max enters the service, through 1922. Most of the letters are in original envelopes and are signed “Max”.

Print Collection Collection number: #218
1915 - 1922
Portrait of the Mayhew family.

Mayhew Family Papers

The collection consists mainly of family memorabilia and ephemera spanning the 1910s through the 2000s, including photos, cards, letters and miscellaneous family papers. These items give a glimpse into the daily activities of a middle class family in rural northern New York. Many business records from Mayhew Wholesale Candy and Tobacco Company are also part of the collection.

Print Collection Collection number: #98
1849 - 1996
Some of the Merrill L. Howard diaries.

Merrill L. Howard Diaries

This collection is made up of the diaries of Merrill L. Howard of Pierrepont, N.Y.  It contains two diaries written by Mr. Howard, one in 1868 and one in 1875.

Print Collection Collection number: #27
1868 - 1875
Cousino Vietnam War Diorama.

Michael D. Cousino Sr. Vietnam War Dioramas Collection

The collection consists of six dioramas using various materials, depicting scenes of torture, small scale battles, platoon patrols, soldiers at rest and the downing of a U.S. helicopter.

Print Collection Collection number: #183
1968 - 1975
Image of Mike Ranger

Michael W. Ranger Endowment for Special Collections

The Michael W. Ranger Endowment for Special Collections at St. Lawrence University is a permanent endowed fund for the Special Collections in the Owen D. Young Library. The endowment will fund the purchases of materials to acknowledge and reflect Mike’s love of history, St. Lawrence University, and the North Country (the northernmost counties of New York State.) Under the supervision of the Special Collections and Archives Librarian, the collection will bring both unique primary source materials into the collection, as well as appropriate titles for the Rare Book Collection. 

Print Collection Collection number: #226
2023

Miscellaneous Manuscripts

Miscellaneous Manuscripts.

Print Collection Collection number: #97

Murray Civil War Diary

Lewis Murray of Morley in St. Lawrence County, was a soldier for the Union during the Civil War. He served as an orderly in Company K 6th, New York Calvary. His entries start in December of 1861 and end in January of 1864.
The booklet is a 25 page document summarizing Lewis Murray’s time in the 6th NYS Calvary.

Print Collection Collection number: #191
1861 - 1864
The Thundering Herd, Eighth Armored Division.

Murray Family Papers

This unprocessed collection consists of primarily the correspondence between William Murray to his wife Beatrice (Fulton of New York City) during World War II.

Print Collection Collection number: #75
1862 - 1945
Photographs from the Nathaniel Burwash Collection.

Nathaniel Burwash Collection

The collection consists of photographs of African pottery making, post cards of African Art, broadsides and articles on the American Artist Leonard Baskin.

Print Collection Collection number: #47
1952 - 1970
Natural Farmer's Cooperative of the St. Lawrence Valley.

Natural Farmer's Cooperative/Rural Life Association Records

The Natural Farmers Association (later, Co-operative) of the St. Lawrence Valley formed in late 1977 as the result of a number of organizational meetings among small farmers, gardeners and homesteaders in St. Lawrence County.

Print Collection Collection number: #171
1979 - 1990
Propaganda from the Nazi Literature Collection.

Nazi Literature Collection

This collection consists of 10 pamphlets published by the Nazis during the 1930s and several newspaper clippings from the same period. It was donated to the library by Dr. Mary Saleski, a member of the Modern Languages Department.

Print Collection Collection number: #33
1933 - 1938
Transcript of New York and Ontario Power Company hearings from 1918.

New York & Ontario Power Company Records

The collection consists of plans, maps, charts, reports, studies, deeds, abstracts, and correspondence all related to the New York and Ontario Power Company to attempt to build a dam from Waddington to Ogden Island in the St. Lawrence River.

Print Collection Collection number: #21
1787 - 1928

New York Company Papers

This collection, consisting of 8 documents written in French, concerns land transactions in Castorland, N.Y.

Print Collection Collection number: #28
1797 - 1803
Edward J. Noble in his gyroplane.

Noble Family Papers

The collection consists of letters written to Harvey and Edna by their children while in college and as young adults beginning to make their way in the world. Included are Edward's letters from San Francisco at the time of the 1906 earthquake. Also included is family memorabilia: photographs, memorabilia of Yale and Purdue, financial papers, and travel guides.

Print Collection Collection number: #30
1867 - 1932
The Rushton canoe Punkie.

North Country Boats and Boating Collection

This ongoing collection seeks to document the activities of boat builders and boaters; both recreational and commercial. Specific emphasis is given to non-power craft, including canoes, kayaks, guide boats, skiffs, and sail boats, although power craft are not excluded.

Print Collection Collection number: #167
1897 - 2011
An image from the North Country Glass Plate Negative collection.

North Country Glass Plate Negative Collection

The collection consists of glass plate negatives by unknown photographer(s) depicting people, places, and activities in the North Country (NY) between 1895-1925.

Print Collection Collection number: #122
1895 - 1925
1880's map of the village of Canton.

North Country Map Collection

Maps relating to the North Country, NY.  The collection consists of, but is not limited to, maps of St. Lawrence, Franklin, Jefferson and Lewis Counties ; St. Lawrence River, St. Regis Mohawk Reservation, Ogdensburg, Macombs Purchase, Adirondack Mountains, and New York State railroads.

Print Collection Collection number: #70
North Country Murder File.

North Country Murder File

This collection contains newspaper clippings, photocopies of news articles and other accounts of various murders committed in the North Country.  Folders are organized alphabetically by the victim's last name.

Print Collection Collection number: #151
1852 - 1970
Carte de Visite photographs of baby Willie Gale and Sherman Jenison.

North Country Photographic Portraits Collection

The collection consists of approximately 400 photographic images of men and women living primarily in the St. Lawrence County area in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Print Collection Collection number: #214
1860 - 1920
Share certificate from the Rome, Watertown and Ogdensburg Railroad Company.

North Country Railroad Coll.

The North Country Railroad collection is an on-going collection of materials relating to railroads in the North Country of New York.

Print Collection Collection number: #45
1839
Inuit print

North of Sixty: Canadian Inuit Prints and Drawings

Inuit prints and drawings primarily from the Kinngait Studios in Cape Dorset and the Uqqurmiut Arts Center in Pangnirtung, both on Canada’s Arctic Baffin Island, Nunavut.

Digital Collection
Cover of American Nudist Leader Magazine, April 1955.

Nudist Periodicals Collection

An extensive collection of magazines that explore all aspects of nudism including philosophy, lifestyles, camps, and societal issues.

Print Collection Collection number: #144
1933 - 1968
Letter from Oliver Seymour Phelps collection.

Oliver Seymour Phelps Papers

This collection contains personal family papers from the Oliver Seymour Phelps family.

Print Collection Collection number: #143
1798 - 1890
Ceremony celebrating completion of the Moses-Saunders Power Project.

Olshefski, Norbert Massena/Seaway Photographs

This collection consists of some 1,100 photographic negatives in 120 mm format taken in and around the Massena, New York area when Mr. Olshefski was employed by the Syracuse Post Standard in the late 1950's.

Print Collection Collection number: #206
1957 - 1959
Letter from the Orson Leroy Reynolds correspondence from 1864.

Orson Leroy Reynolds Correspondence

Orson Reyonlds of Bombay, Franklin County, New York, enlisted in the 6th New York Heavy Artillery. The collection consists of 25 letters written to his wife.

Print Collection Collection number: #84
1864 - 1865
Owen Young enjoying a round of golf on the new SLU course in 1926.

Owen D. Young Collection

The Young collection documents five decades of national and international business and political history, including the post World War I reparation period which saw Young as the key figure in the Dawes Plan of 1924 and the Young Plan of 1929 with its provisions for the still existing Bank of International Settlements.

Print Collection Collection number: #87
1974 - 1962

Our Manuscript collection is comprised of 221 distinct collections, comprising nearly 1800 linear feet of material. Each of these collections is described in brief on records in the SLU Libraries’ online catalog. Additionally, our manuscript collections have detailed finding aids, which are available on this page and through our catalogs  If you find you have questions about the collections after you have read the catalog entries or finding aids, please contact us.

Paul Doty, Interim Librarian for Special Collections & University Archives Voice: (315) 229-5483 e-mail: pdoty@stlawu.edu