1797-1878
Guide to the Collection
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| Creator: | Binney family |
| Title: | Binney family papers |
| Dates: | 1797-1878 |
| Physical Description: | 1 document
box |
| Call Number: | Ms. N-2323 |
| Repository: | Massachusetts Historical Society
1154 Boylston Street
Boston, MA 02215
library@masshist.org |
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Abstract:
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This collection contains the family correspondence
of three generations of the Binney family, primarily of Boston, Mass.,
consisting of family and professional correspondence including correspondence
relating to Amos Binney (1830-1880) in his position as chief paymaster of the
U.S. Army during the Civil War, two account books, and a travel
journal.
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Amos Binney (1778-1833) was a merchant and agent
of the U.S. Navy, born in Boston, Mass. He was the son of Amos Binney
(1745-1782) and Mary Prentice (1751-1813) of Hull. Amos Binney (1778-1833)
married Hannah Dolliver (1779-1847) of Marblehead. He was the father of Dr.
Amos Binney (1803-1847). Between the years 1810 and 1811, he resided on Snow
Hill Street in Boston.
John Binney (1780-1838) was a merchant seaman and
commander of the United States garrison in Wiscasset, Maine (then
Massachusetts). He was the son of Amos Binney (1745-1782) and Mary Prentice
(1751-1813) of Hull, and brother of Amos Binney (1778-1833). His daughter, Mary
Ann Binney (1805-1884), married her cousin, Dr. Amos Binney (1803-1847), in
1827 in Boston.
George Hayward (1791-1863) graduated from Harvard
College in 1809 and received a medical degree at the University of Pennsylvania
in 1812. He held a professorship in Clinical Surgery at Harvard Medical School
and was one of the first surgeons to perform a major operation using general
anesthesia. Hayward married Mary Ann Binney (1805-1884) after the death of her
first husband, Dr. Amos Binney (1803-1847).
Amos Binney (1802-1878) was a Methodist Episcopal
minister and a teacher at Wilbraham Academy in Wilbraham, Mass. He was the son
of Spencer and Mary (Jones) Binney of Hull, and a cousin of Amos Binney
(1778-1833) and John Binney (1780-1838). He was the co-author of
Binney's Theological Compend (1875) and numerous
religious commentaries.
Amos Binney (1803-1847) graduated from Brown
University in 1821 and Harvard Medical School in 1826. He was the son of Amos
Binney (1778-1833) and Hannah Dolliver (1779-1847). He married his cousin, Mary
Ann Binney (1805-1884), in 1827 in Boston. He was the father of Amos Binney
(1830-1880) and the founder of the Boston Society of Natural History.
Amos Binney (1830-1880) was the chief paymaster
of the United States Army during the Civil War. He was the son of Dr. Amos
Binney (1803-1847) and Mary Ann Binney (1805-1884). In 1856, he married Dr.
Nancy E. Clark (1825-1901) in Boston.
The Binney family papers consist of one document box spanning the years
1797-1878. The papers cover three generations of the Binney family who lived
primarily in Boston and New England. The collection documents family, business,
and travel activities.
The bulk of the collection consists of correspondence, two account books,
and a travel journal. Of the correspondence, the majority consists of letters
between merchant and U.S. Navy agent Amos Binney (1778-1833) and his brother
John Binney (1780-1838); letters of introduction for Dr. Amos Binney
(1803-1847); professional correspondence of Amos Binney (1830-1880), chief
paymaster of the U.S. Army during the Civil War, as well as his correspondence
with his mother, Mary Ann Binney Hayward; and the letters of Dr. George Hayward
(1791-1863), including letters from Henry Clay, Oliver Wendell Holmes, and
Rufus Choate. An account book belonging to John Binney (1780-1838) records the
merchant seaman's travels and expenses. An account book belonging to Rev. Amos
Binney (1802-1878), a cousin of Amos Binney (1778-1833) and John Binney
(1780-1838), lists the expenses of the Methodist Episcopal pastor during his
preaching circuit in New England. The travel journal of Dr. Amos Binney
(1803-1847), describes the social, historical, and educational aspects of the
southern United States during the doctor's journey.
The collection also contains a letter offering Dr. Nancy E. Clark
(1825-1901), wife of Amos Binney (1830-1880), a position as chair of midwifery
at the Female Medical College of Pennsylvania. Clark was the second female
medical school graduate to practice in New England.
The Massachusetts Historical Society (MHS) holds the following collections
related to the Binney family papers:
Gould, Augustus A. Memoir of Dr. Amos Binney.
Boston, 1850.
Moses Inglee vs. Mrs. George Hayward papers, 1853-1858. Ms. N-1471.
Gift of Martha Binney C. Vick, April 2010, with the exception of the Amos
Binney (1802-1878) account book, which was acquired by purchase, October
2010.
The collection is organized into the following series:
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| I. Amos Binney (1778-1833) correspondence, 1810-1811 |
| II. Amos Binney (1803-1847) papers, 1818-1846 |
| | A. Correspondence, 1818-1846 |
| | B. Journal, 1835-1836 |
| III. Amos Binney (1830-1880) correspondence, 1851-1878 |
| | A. Family correspondence, 1851-1878 |
| | B. Professional correspondence, 1864-1865 |
| IV. Binney family papers, 1797-1859 |
| | A. John Binney account book, 1797-1801 |
| | B. Amos Binney account book, 1824-1847 |
| | C. George Hayward papers, 1812-1859 |
| | D. Miscellaneous papers, 1800-1856 |
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| Box | Folder | Volume |
| Box 1 | Folders 1-11 | I. Amos Binney (1778-1833) correspondence,
1810-1811
Arranged chronologically.This series consists mostly of correspondence between Capt. Amos Binney
(1778-1833) on Snow Hill Street in Boston and his brother John Binney
(1780-1838) at the U. S. garrison in Wiscasset, Maine in the years 1810-1811.
The letters detail family events, financial requests, activities at the
garrison, and weather.
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| | II. Amos Binney (1803-1847) papers,
1818-1846
This series consists letters to Amos Binney as well as his travel journal.
The correspondence from 1818-1826 consists of letters from his friends and
classmates about social life and university curriculum. The correspondence
between 1845 and 1846 consists primarily of letters of introduction, including
correspondents Alexander Lauren and Edward Hitchcock. The journal details Dr.
Binney's travels in the years 1835 to 1836 in which he recounted the social,
historical, and educational aspects of the cities in the South he visited by
rail.
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| Box 1 | Folder 12-13 | | A. Correspondence,
1818-1846
Arranged chronologically.This sub-series includes letters written between 1818-1826 to Amos Binney
from his peers, including Joseph H. Patter, George R. Russell, and John A.
Bates. Additional correspondence includes letters of introduction written in
1845-1846 for Dr. Amos Binney from C. B. Adams and Edward Hitchcock, as well as
a letter from Alexander Lauren to Binney.
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| Box 1 | Folder 14-26 | | B. Journal,
1835-1836
This volume is the travel journal of Dr. Amos Binney written from 1835-1836.
It recounts Binney's travels through Hartford, New Haven, New York,
Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington D.C., Dumfries, Fredericksburg, Richmond,
Raleigh, Columbia, Charleston, Savannah, and New Orleans. There is an in-depth
description of the sights of Washington D.C. including the U. S. House of
Representatives, the Capitol rotunda, the Senate Chambers, the Library of
Congress, the State Department, and the War Department. In Dr. Binney's
account, he describes his visits to institutions and societies such as the
American Philosophical Society, the Academy of Natural Sciences, the Geological
Society of Pennsylvania, and others.
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| | III. Amos Binney (1830-1880) correspondence,
1851-1878
This series consists of family correspondence between Amos Binney
(1830-1880), his mother Mary Ann Binney Hayward, and her second husband, Dr.
George Hayward, between 1851 and 1878. The letters detail the Haywards' travels
to Paris, as well as estate and property issues that Amos Binney resolved for
his mother. In addition, the series contains professional correspondence
related to his position as chief paymaster of the U.S. Army in the 1860s.
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| Box 1 | Folder 27-31 | | A. Family correspondence,
1851-1878
Arranged chronologically.This sub-series consists of letters between Amos Binney, his mother Mary Ann
Binney Hayward, and his stepfather Dr. George Hayward. The letters describe a
journey to Paris by the Haywards, estate issues of the Binney family, and
Amos's position as chief paymaster of the U.S. Army written from Washington
D.C., Baltimore, and Norfolk, Virginia. It also includes a list of property
belonging to Amos Binney and letters concerning the sale of family
paintings.
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| Box 1 | Folder 32 | | B. Professional correspondence,
1864-1865
Arranged chronologically.Contained within this sub-series are the letters from Major Amos Binney in
his position as chief paymaster of the U.S. Army while in Norfolk, Virginia. It
includes correspondence between the Office of the Paymaster and the First
National Bank concerning a loan, a telegram, and a copy of a check to Major
General B. W. Brice.
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| | IV. Binney family papers,
1797-1859 |
| Box 1 | Folder 33 | | A. John Binney account book,
1797-1801
The double-entry account book of John Binney (1780-1838) details his
expenses from 1797 to 1801. It mentions travels to Cuba for Havanna sugar;
Hamburg, Germany; and Tobago in 1801. It also contains newspaper clippings of a
history of Hull, Mass. from the Hingham Journal
in 1850.
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| Box 1 | Folder 34 | | B. Amos Binney account book,
1824-1847
The account book of Rev. Amos Binney (1802-1878) details the expenses he
incurred on his preaching circuit as a Methodist Episcopal minister from 1824
to 1847. It includes the Massachusetts towns of Mansfield, Easton, Roxbury,
Palmer, Three Rivers, and Middleborough; the Rhode Island towns of Kingston and
Newburyport; and Stonington, Conn. It also includes the clothing expenses for
his daughter, Harriet Binney.
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| Box 1 | Folder 35 | | C. George Hayward correspondence,
1812-1859
Arranged chronologically.This sub-series contains the correspondence of Dr. George Hayward
(1791-1863), who married Mary Ann Binney (1805-1884) after the death of her
first husband, Dr. Amos Binney (1803-1847). It includes letters from Henry
Clay, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Robert C. Winthrop, and Rufus Choate; letters of
introduction for Dr. George Hayward;, and a letter from the London Athenaeum
Club.
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| Box 1 | Folder 36 | | D. Miscellaneous papers,
1800-1856
Arranged chronologically.These papers include a 19th-century reproduction of the 5 March 1770
Boston Gazette. It also includes an 1800 deed
belonging to Mary Prentice Binney (1751-1813), a handwritten Prentice family
genealogical chart, and letters dated from the 1850s most likely written to
Mary Ann Binney Hayward. An 1856 letter offers Dr. Nancy Clark (1825-1901),
later married to Amos Binney (1830-1880), the position of chair of midwifery at
the Female Medical College of Pennsylvania.
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Binney family papers, Massachusetts Historical Society.
This collection is indexed under the following headings in
ABIGAIL,
the online catalog of the Massachusetts Historical Society. Researchers
desiring materials about related persons, organizations, or subjects should
search the catalog using these headings.
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| Persons: |
| | Binney, Amos, 1778-1833. |
| | Binney, Amos, 1802-1878. |
| | Binney, Amos, 1803-1847. |
| | Binney, Amos, 1830-1880. |
| | Binney, John, 1780-1838. |
| | Binney family. |
| | Choate, Rufus, 1799-1859. |
| | Clark, Nancy E., 1825-1901. |
| | Clay, Henry, 1777-1852. |
| | Hayward, George, 1791-1863. |
| | Hayward, Mary Ann Binney, 1805-1884. |
| | Holmes, Oliver Wendell, 1809-1894. |
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| Organizations: |
| | Methodist Episcopal Church--Clergy. |
| | United States--Army--Pay Dept. |
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| Subjects: |
| | Account books--1797-1801. |
| | Account books--1824-1847. |
| | Clergy--New England. |
| | Diaries--1835. |
| | Diaries--1836. |
| | Family history--1750-1799. |
| | Family history--1800-1849. |
| | Family history--1850-1899. |
| | Merchants--Massachusetts--Boston. |
| | Physicians--19th
century--Massachusetts. |
| | Railroad travel--diaries. |
| | Southern states--Description and
travel. |
| | United States--History--Civil War,
1861-1865--Army. |
| | Women physcians. |
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