Seaman Family Papers
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Date
Creator
Extent
Language of Materials
Abstract
The Seaman Family Papers consist of the personal, business and legal papers of four related families based in Long Island and Dutchess County, New York. The Van Horns and Freemans were united with the Seamans and DeWindts by the marriage of Irmingarde Van Horne Freeman and George Williams Seaman in 1903.
Biographical Note
Missing Title
The marriage of Irmingarde Van Horne Freeman and George Williams Seaman joined together four Dutchess County, New York, families -- Van Horn, Freeman, DeWindt and Seaman. The following are family members mentioned within the collection and the relationship of each to Irmingarde or George W. Seaman. (Note: "DeWindt" is sometimes seen within the collection as "DeWint.")
Missing Title
Arrangement
Correspondence is arranged by family -- Freeman / Van Horn and DeWindt / Seaman -- and, within family, by individual. Within individual, arrangement is chronological. Some letters are not identifiable as to sender or recipient. They are kept together, at the end of each family group. See Series Descriptions for arrangement of other types of papers.
This collection is organized into the following eight series:
Missing Title
- Series I. Freeman/Van Horn Family Correspondence, 1836-1916, undated
- Series II. Seaman/DeWindt Family Correspondence, 1815-1916, undated
- Series III. School Documents and Papers, 1848-1893, undated
- Series IV. Military Documents, 1816-1846
- Series V. Legal Documents, 1761-1894, undated
- Series VI. Business and Financial Documents, 1813-1923
- Series VII. Personal Papers and Miscellany, 1805-1983, undated
- Series VIII. Printed Matter and Photograph, 1858-1970, undated
Scope and Content Note
An accumulation of personal and professional papers involving four related families on Long Island and in the Hudson Valley, this collection describes social life and customs as well as the structure and activities of several family businesses. Most of the items are dated between the 1830's and 1923 although there are some older legal documents (1761-1836) and a few items from mid and later twentieth century (1959, 1970, 1983).
The families represented in this collection were joined in 1903 with the marriage of Irmingarde Van Horne Freeman (granddaughter of Abner Van Horn) and George Williams Seaman (grandson of John Peter DeWindt and Caroline Amelia Smith).
Among the various items are personal correspondence among family members and with others; school documents and papers; military documents; legal documents including wills, patent documents; deeds, mortgages and leases; business correspondence, account books, receipts and other financial papers; photographs; newspaper clippings; essays and poetry; and many personal items such as the wedding book of Irmingarde and George Williams Seaman. Much of the material, especially that contained in the bound volumes, is related to business and finances, with the majority being Abner Van Horn's. The Seaman business material, however, is more descriptive of the history of the company (David Brown Company, George W. Seaman, Inc.).
The bound volumes are in relatively good condition although many of the covers are deteriorating and, in some of them, the ink has become faded. Several have been placed in boxes or enclosures. The correspondence and other papers are in good condition with some exceptions, noted in the Series Descriptions.
Subjects
Access Restrictions
Materials in this collection may be stored offsite. For more information on making arrangements to consult them, please visit www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.
Use Restrictions
Taking images of documents from the library collections for reference purposes by using hand-held cameras and in accordance with the library's photography guidelines is encouraged. As an alternative, patrons may request up to 20 images per day from staff.
Application to use images from this collection for publication should be made in writing to: Department of Rights and Reproductions, The New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024-5194, rightsandrepro@nyhistory.org. Phone: (212) 873-3400 ext. 282.
Copyrights and other proprietary rights may subsist in individuals and entities other than the New-York Historical Society, in which case the patron is responsible for securing permission from those parties. For fuller information about rights and reproductions from N-YHS visit: https://www.nyhistory.org/about/rights-reproductions
Preferred Citation
This collection should be cited as the Seaman Family Papers, MS 552, The New-York Historical Society.
Location of Materials
Provenance
Donation, Patricia Seaman Daniels, daughter of Irmingarde Freeman Seaman, 1990