Low, Fleming, and King family papers
Call Number
Date
Creator
Extent
Language of Materials
Abstract
Correspondence, documents, and ephemera stemming from the related Low, Fleming, and King families. Includes a 1794 letter to New York merchant and developer Nicholas Low (1739-1826) from Alexander Hamilton, and letters to the firm Low & Wallace from American and European importers and exporters, such as the Widow John Lang, Son & Co. of Bremen. Also present are a number of 19th century United States revenue stamps that were torn or soaked from documents by a collector.
Biographical / Historical
Late in life, New York merchant and developer Nicholas Low (1739-1826) married Alice (Haliburton) Fleming, a widow who brought two sons to the marriage, one of whom was Augustus Fleming (1785-1865). Low's children with Alice included a daughter, Henrietta Liston Low (1799-1882), who married (as his second wife) Charles King (1789-1867), son of diplomat Rufus King (1755-1827). Among the children of Charles and Henrietta (Low) King was Cornelius Low King (1829–1893). By his first marriage Charles King had a son, Rufus King (1814-1876), who, in turn, had a son named Rufus King Jr. (1838-1900). (All names underlined are represented by documents in the present collection.)
Arrangement
The collection is organized in five series, with material sorted chronologically within each series:
- Series I
- Nicholas Low and Low & Wallace, 1794-1814
- Series II
- Augustus Fleming, 1828-1865
- Series III
- King family, 1861-1934
- Series IV
- Miscellaneous documents, 1868-1908, undated
- Series V
- Philately, postal history, numismatics, circa 1862-1945, undated
Scope and Contents
Merchant Nicholas Low (1739–1826), in partnership with his brothers-in-law Hugh and Alexander Wallace, and nephew, William Wallace, imported Irish linens, salt, gunpowder, dry goods, and wine, while exporting corn, wheat, tobacco, rice, cotton, potash, and flaxseed. The collection includes letters from a number of his business contacts such as Magrath & Higgins (Madeira), Post & Russell (New York), Widow John Lang, Son & Co. (Bremen), James Waring & Co. (London), Richard H. Wilcocks & Co. (Philadelphia), and Ramsey, Gatchell and Bancroft (Waterford, Ireland). Also present is a 1794 letter from Alexander Hamilton, the postscript to which congratulates Low on his recent marriage, and a letter from Low's daughter, Henrietta, showing concern for the fate of Baltimore in the days following the British attack on Fort McHenry of September 13–14, 1814. (See Series I.)
Augustus Fleming, stepson of Nicholas Low, is represented by a few items: one letter (1828), a receipt (1865), and canceled checks (1845, 1863–1864). (See Series II.)
Nicholas Low's daughter, Henrietta Liston Low (1799-1882), married Charles King (1789-1867), son of diplomat Rufus King (1755-1827), so the collection includes some material (largely correspondence and receipts) from their descendants, such as the commission of son Cornelius Low King (1829–1893) as First Lieutenant in the 14th Regiment of Infantry during the Civil War. (See Series III.)
A group of miscellaneous documents—some possibly originating with the King family, but not identified as such—includes letters, receipts, two printed items to the Veterans of the Seventh Regiment, and a photoreproduction of a bas relief portrait of Abraham Lincoln. (See Series IV).
The collection includes an assemblage probably made by a numismatist and/or a philatelist, as it contains examples of foreign paper currency, and postage and revenue stamps torn or soaked from documents (in many cases the stamps remain attached to fragments of documents). In August 1862, the United States (Union) government began taxing various goods, services, and legal transactions. Taxes were paid by purchasing a revenue stamp of the appropriate denomination and affixing it to the taxable item. (See Series V.)
Subjects
Organizations
Genres
People
Access Restrictions
This collection may be stored offsite. To arrange to consult it, please go to 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: www.nyhistory.org/rights-and-reproductions.
Preferred Citation
The collection should be cited as: "Low, Fleming, and King Family Papers, MS 3091, The New-York Historical Society."
Location of Materials
Immediate Source of Acquisition
This collection, the gift of Noëlle King and the King family, was received in two parts: the bulk in 2018 (accession no. MS.2018.049), and the oversized commission in Series III in 2019 (accession no. MS-2019-001).
About this Guide
Processing Information
Archivist Joseph Ditta arranged and described this collection in June 2019.
Repository
Series I. Nicholas Low and Low & Wallace, 1794-1814, inclusive
Letter from Alexander Hamilton (Philadelphia) to Nicholas Low (New York), 1794 September 17
Scope and Contents
Transcription:
General Schuyler directed [t]hat when the time came for paying for a coach building for him here, I should draw upon you for the money. That time is come & I am not otherwise provided so that I have this day drawn upon you in favour of John Kean Esq for the cost being Fifteen hundred Dollars what I request you to pay & charge to him. We are all alive here preparing for the [Insurgents?] Yours A Hamilton
P.S. Is it true that I ought to congratulate you on having become a benedict [i.e., a newly married man]. If so accept my heartfelt congratulations [illegible] N Low Esq
Letters (2) from Peter Colt (Paterson, N.J.) to Nicholas Low (New York), 1795 May 14, 24
Scope and Contents
Nicholas Low was a director of the Society for Establishing Useful Manufactures in Paterson, New Jersey, and became its governor in 1792. The Society sought to make Paterson a center of cotton manufacturing, but the venture was ultimately unsuccessful, and the Society folded in 1796.
Letter from Magrath & Higgins (Madeira) to Low & Wallace (New York), 1804 June 23
Scope and Contents
Original + manuscript copy.
Letter from Post & Russell (New York) to Low & Wallace (New York), 1804 October 25, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Post & Russell were agents for the ship Ophelia.
Letters (6) from Widow John Lang, Son & Co. (Bremen) to Low & Wallace (New York), 1805-1806, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Dated 1805 August 5; 1806 March 4, May 2, May 8, May 16, August 2.
Letter from James Waring & Co. (London) to Low & Wallace (New York) [copy], 1806 April 29
Indenture, William Wallace and John Shaw, bound to the United States of America, $300.00., 1806 November 10
Letters (2) from Richard H. Wilcocks & Co. (Philadelphia) to Low & Wallace (New York), 1806 September 6, November 15, inclusive
Letter from Ramsey, Gatchell and Bancroft (Waterford, Ireland) to Low & Wallace (New York), 1807 October 7
Letter from Henrietta Low (Claverack, N.Y.) to her father, Nicholas Low (Ballston Springs, N.Y.), 1814 September 17
Scope and Contents
Henrietta Low, writing to her father just a few days after the British attack on Fort McHenry of September 13-14, 1814, mentions how "We are all here anxious about the fate of Baltimore but the southern mail had not come in when the latest that we have had was sent to press."
Series II. Augustus Fleming, 1828-1865, inclusive
Letter from James [_____] (Claverack, N.Y.) to Augustus Fleming (New York), 1828 October 6
Canceled checks, Bank of New York, 1845 June – November, inclusive
Canceled checks, Bank of New York, 1863 September – 1864 July, inclusive
Receipt for goods purchased of James G. King's Sons, New York, 1865 June 22
Series III. King family, 1861-1934, inclusive
Covers (4) addressed to Rufus King, 1860s–1880s, inclusive
Scope and Contents
It is unclear if these covers were sent to Rufus King (1814-1876) or to his son, Rufus King Jr. (1838–1900).
Commission of Cornelius Low King as First Lieutenant in the 14th Regiment of Infantry., 1861 August 17
Scope and Contents
Signed by U.S. President Abraham Lincoln and Secretary of War Simon Cameron.
Letter from Union League Club to William G. King, 1863 April, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Printed circular letter regarding the Union League Club's upcoming membership drive.
King family receipts, 1865–1868, inclusive
The Weekly Detroit Free Press, vol. 58, no. 19, 1883 May 12
Scope and Contents
Newspaper with printed subscription label for "Wm. G King."
Postal card addressed to "Office of the Low Estate", 1886 February [4]
Scope and Contents
The address, "1 Cottage Place, New York City, N.Y.," corresponds to that of Rufus King Jr.
Letter from Pavonia Yacht Club (Jersey City) to Rufus King [Jr.] (New York), 1890 September 1
Scope and Contents
Combined invitation to board meeting and membership dues receipt, with folding membership card / dues payment register, sent to Rufus King [Jr.], 1 Cottage Place, New York City.
Letter from Hughes' Yacht Agency (New York) to Rufus King [Jr.], 1892 November 1
Covers (6) addressed to Mrs. Charles King, Mrs. Margaret S. King, Mrs. Williams King, 1928–1934, inclusive
Series IV. Miscellaneous documents, 1868-1908, undated, inclusive
W. S. Carr receipts (3), 1868, inclusive
Miscellaneous receipts (2), 1868, inclusive
Printed circular "To the Veterans of the Seventh Regiment," New York, 1889 January 28
Veterans of the Seventh Regiment, New York, General Orders No. 2, 1889 March 19
Letter from Hatch & Foote, Bankers (New York) to F. N. Phinney (New York), 1893 January [10]
Scope and Contents
Letter and prospectus from Hatch & Foote, mortgage agents, soliciting bond investments in the rolling stock of the Columbus, Shawnee and Hocking Railway Company.
Postal cards, 1895, 1906, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Addressed to S. O. R. Townsend, New York (1895) and to Miss Dorothy Ely, Philadelphia (1906).
Letter from Herbert S. Ogden (New York) to William Ruscoe (Wilton, Conn.), 1906 May 4
Scope and Contents
A list of instructions from Ogden to Ruscoe, who was, apparently, Ogden's gardener and stableman.
Abraham Lincoln portrait, 1908, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Photoreproduction of Byron M. Pickett's 1873 oval bronze bas relief of Abraham Lincoln's right profile, copyright 1908 by L. G. Muller.
Check fragments (2), undated, inclusive
Series V. Philately, postal history, numismatics, circa 1862-1945, undated, inclusive
United States postage stamps, undated, inclusive
Foreign postage stamps, undated, inclusive
Covers (28) addressed to Miss Charlotte E. Williams (Ithaca, N.Y.), 1903–1916, inclusive
Covers (4) addressed to Mrs. J. B. Williams (Ithaca, N.Y.), 1905–1906, inclusive
United States revenue stamps. $0.02 (4 folders), [1862-1872], inclusive
Scope and Contents
Stamps issued for "bank check" and general use.
United States revenue stamps. $0.05, [1862-1872], inclusive
Scope and Contents
Stamps issued for "certificate" and "inland exchange."
United States revenue stamps. $0.10, [1862-1872], inclusive
Scope and Contents
Stamps issued for "contract" and "power of attorney."
United States revenue stamps. $0.25, [1862-1872], inclusive
Scope and Contents
Stamps issued for "insurance" and general use.
United States revenue stamps. $0.50, [1862-1872], inclusive
Scope and Contents
Stamps issued for "foreign exchange," "life insurance," "mortgage," "original process," "surety bond."
United States revenue stamps. $1.00, [1862-1872], inclusive
Scope and Contents
Stamps issued for "inland exchange."
United States revenue stamps. $1.50, [1862-1872], inclusive
Scope and Contents
Stamps issued for "general use."
United States revenue stamps. $2.00, [1862-1872], inclusive
Scope and Contents
Stamps issued for "conveyance," "mortgage," "probate of will."
United States revenue stamps. $3.00, [1862-1872], inclusive
Scope and Contents
Stamps issued for "charter party."
United States revenue stamps. Multiple denominations, [1862-1872], inclusive
Scope and Contents
$0.05. "Certificate," "inland exchange," general use.
$0.10. "Contract."
$0.25. "Certificate," "entry of goods."
$0.50. "Conveyance," "foreign exchange," "original process."
$1.00. "Manifest."
$2.00. "Conveyance," "mortgage."
Foreign currency, 1941–1945, inclusive
Scope and Contents
100 Yuan, China (1941)
1,000 pesos, Japanese Government, Philippines (1945)
5 Yen, Japan (undated)