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Buckingham Smith papers and collected materials

Call Number

MS 2413

Date

1529-1941, n.d., inclusive

Creator

Smith, Buckingham, 1810-1871

Extent

6 Linear feet

Language of Materials

The collection contains materials in English, Spanish, and Native American languages. Original titles in Spanish were maintained with translations provided in the scope and contents notes.

Abstract

The collection documents Smith's extensive research on the Spanish colonization of North America. The bulk of the collection consists of Smith's own notes and correspondence, in addition to his collection of manuscripts and maps, mostly related to the history of Florida. Topics discussed in the correspondence include Smith's acquisition of manuscripts and rare books; his service as a diplomat in Mexico and Spain; and the history of St. Augustine, Florida. The collection includes original documents and transcriptions of the Timucuan language; dictionaries of Native American languages; and correspondence from Spanish Catholic missionaries about Native Americans.

Map of the coast of Florida from BV2 is digitized and available in the Shelby White and Leon Levy Digital Library.

Biographical Note

Thomas Buckingham Smith was a lawyer, diplomat, antiquarian, and author. Smith was born on October 21, 1810 on Cumberland Island, Georgia. The family moved to St. Augustine, Florida in 1820, when Smith's father was appointed U.S. Consul to Mexico. Smith attended Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut and earned a degree from Harvard Law School in 1836. Following graduation, Smith worked in the Maine office of Samuel Fessenden, a politician and abolitionist. He returned to St. Augustine in 1839 and served as a secretary to Robert R. Reid, governor of the Territory of Florida from 1839-1841. Smith served as a member of the Florida Territorial Legislative Council in 1841. He married Julia Gardner of Concord, New Hampshire in 1843.

Throughout his life, Smith was a devoted student of North American history, specifically Spanish colonialism and Native American cultures and languages. In order to further his studies, Smith lobbied U.S. government officials for diplomatic appointments abroad. He was successful in obtaining positions in the U.S. embassies of Mexico (1850-1852) and Spain (1855-1858). While abroad, Smith actively purchased, transcribed and translated manuscripts related to the Spanish colonization of North America. Smith also supplemented his income by selling rare books and manuscripts to collectors in the U.S., including Peter Force, an editor and politician, whose collection was purchased by the Library of Congress in 1867. During the 1850-1860s, Smith translated and edited several publications, including Colección de varios documentos para la historia de la Florida y tierras adyacentes (1857), A grammatical sketch of the Heve language (1861), Narratives of the career of Hernando de Soto in the conquest of Florida (1866), and Relation of Alvar Nunez Cabeca de Vaca (1871).

Smith died in New York City in 1871 and was buried in St. Augustine.

Scope and Contents Note

The bulk of the collection consists of Smith's own notes and correspondence, in addition to his collection of manuscripts and maps, mostly related to the history of Florida.

Topics discussed in Smith's correspondence include the acquisition of manuscripts and rare books; his service as a diplomat in Mexico and Spain; and the history of St. Augustine, Florida. Correspondents include Joseph Henry, scientist and secretary of the Smithsonian Institution; George Henry Moore, historian and librarian at N-YHS; and Francis Parkman, Jr., historian and trustee of the Boston Athenæum.

Smith's interest in Spanish colonization and Native American history is found throughout the collection. The collection includes original documents and transcriptions of the Timucuan language; dictionaries of Native American languages; and correspondence from Spanish Catholic missionaries about Native Americans. In addition, the collection includes hand-drawn replications of 17th-18th century maps of Florida and Mexico. Evidence of slavery and the slave trade can be found in correspondence from the mercantile firm Panton, Leslie & Company, and the "The Story of Uncle Jack," which is an account of one of Smith's slaves.

Conditions Governing Access

Materials in this collection may be stored offsite. For more information on making arrangements to consult them, please visit www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.

Conditions Governing Use

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

Location of Materials

Materials in this collection may be stored offsite. For more information on making arrangements to consult them, please visit www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.

Related Materials Note

Information concerning the the acquisition of Smith's books, archival collections and art objects by N-YHS can be found in: New-York Historical Society Institutional Archive management committee records (NYHS-RG 1), Series IV. Official Papers, Folder: Official Papers. 1872 (6 of 6). Buckingham Smith Acquisition.

Additional items related to Smith within the New-York Historical Society Institutional Archive can be found in: General Correspondence (NYHS-RG 2), folder label: Correspondence. 1858 January-April and General Correspondence (NYHS-RG 2), folder label: 1927-29 Correspondence. R (3 of 3).

Published books, either owned or authored by Smith, can be located in the online catalog by searching the term "Buckingham Smith."

Collection processed by

Julia Lipkins

About this Guide

This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2023-08-21 15:49:41 -0400.
Using Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language: Description is written in: English, Latin script.

Processing Information Note

The Smith papers were arranged and catalogued on multiple occasions throughout the 20th century. Some materials, including manuscripts, transcriptions and maps, were bound and microfilmed in 1948, others in the 1970s; these items are clearly marked in the finding aid.

Repository

New-York Historical Society
New-York Historical Society
170 Central Park West
New York, NY 10024