Fred Lockley Papers
Call Number
Date
Creator
Extent
Language of Materials
Abstract
This collection documents the career and family life of journalist, author, and rare book dealer Fred Lockley. Much of the material pertains to the history of the Pacific Northwest, and to Oregon, in particular. The Fred Lockley Papers primarily contain correspondence, essays and interviews, and diaries.
Biographical Note
Missing Title
Fred Lockley was a journalist and author of numerous books on Oregon and Pacific Northwest history. His columns in the Oregon Journal drew from thousands of interviews of Northwest residents. He also worked as a rare book dealer, specializing in the American West.
See Who's Who in America, 1950-1951, Vol. 26.
Arrangement
This collection is arranged into three major series: Correspondence, Essays and Interviews, and Diaries and Volumes. There are also nine single folder series, including genealogical and family material, financial records, photographs, prints, poetry, ephemera, certificates, clippings, and notes.
Missing Title
- Series I: Correspondence, 1839-1958, undated
- Series II: Essays and Interviews, 1919, 1951-1955, undated
- Series III: Diaries and Volumes, 1880-1939
- Single Folder Series
Scope and Content Note
This collection documents the career and family life of journalist, author, and rare book dealer Fred Lockley. Much of the material pertains to the history of the Pacific Northwest, and to Oregon, in particular. The Fred Lockley Papers primarily contain correspondence, essays and interviews, and diaries. Correspondence includes letters from Lockley's friends, family members, colleagues, and readers; letters and copies of letters from Lockley; and letters between various family members. The bulk of letters concern personal matters, Lockley's columns and publications, rare books and book sales, Western history and reminiscences, and travels. This collection also contains copies of Lockley's essays and interviews with Northwest residents, some of which were presumably published in his column in the Oregon Journal. In addition, several date books for Fred Lockley and his second wife, Laura Simpson Lockley, detail daily life for the couple in the 1930s. The Fred Lockley Papers also contain a small amount of genealogical material, financial records, prints and photographs, ephemera, poetry, clippings, and notes.
Subjects
Families
Genres
People
Access Restrictions
Open to qualified researchers.
Photocopying undertaken by staff only. Limited to twenty exposures of stable, unbound material per day. (Researchers may not accrue unused copy amounts from previous days.)
Use Restrictions
Permission to quote from this collection in a publication must be requested and granted in writing. Send permission requests, citing the name of the collection from which you wish to quote, to
Library Director
The New-York Historical Society
170 Central Park West
New York, NY 10024
Preferred Citation
This collection should be cited as the Fred Lockley Papers, The New-York Historical Society.
Provenance
Numerous donations by Lockley, 1950s.
About this Guide
Edition of this Guide
Repository
Series I: Correspondence, 1839-1958, undated
Subseries 1: Letters to Lockley, 1897-1955
Scope and Contents note
This subseries includes letters from Lockley's friends, family members (especially in Montana and Hawaii), colleagues, and readers. Material concerns personal matters, Lockley's columns and publications, rare books and book sales, Western history and reminiscences, and travels. Also included are several letters from Lockley's grandson, Neil Lockley, a sergeant in the Air Force serving in Korea, 1951. A number of items in this subseries are annotated by Lockley.
Letters to Lockley, 1897, 1901-1915
Letters to Lockley, 1917-1922
Letters to Lockley, 1923-1926
Letters to Lockley, 1927-1930
Letters to Lockley, 1931-1933
Letters to Lockley, 1934-1939
Letters to Lockley, 1940-1944
Letters to Lockley, 1945-1949
Letters to Lockley, 1950
Letters to Lockley, 1951
Letters to Lockley, 1952
Letters to Lockley, from Hawaiian school children, 1952 Oct.
Letters to Lockley, 1953
Letters to Lockley, 1954-1955
Letters to Lockley, Undated and Fragments (also Alienated Envelopes), Undated
Subseries 2: Letters from Lockley, 1882-1955
Scope and Contents note
This subseries contains letters, and copies of letters, from Lockley to various friends and family members. Topics include travels, rare books, Western history, and the death of Lockley's daughter, Hope, in 1920. Also included are several letters from France in 1918, written while Lockley served as a war correspondent, and two letters written from Nome, Alaska in 1900.
Letters from Lockley, 1882-1905
Letters from Lockley, 1910-1918, [1918]
Letters from Lockley, 1920-1949
Letters from Lockley, 1950-1952
Letters from Lockley, 1953-1955
Letters from Lockley, Undated
Subseries 3: Letters between Others, 1839-1955
Scope and Contents note
Includes letters to and from various family members, including Lockley's mother, grandmother, and sister. Also included are a few letters to and from Lockley's son, Lawrence, and a set of correspondence between Lockley's father, Frederic E., and mother, Elizabeth Campbell.
Letters between Others, Frederic E. Lockley and Elizabeth Campbell, 1860-1861
Letters between Others, 1839-1955
Subseries 4: Letters between Lockley and R.W.G. Vail, 1944-1958
Scope and Contents note
Letters between Lockley and R.W.G. Vail, director of The New-York Historical Society, many of which concern donations.
Letters between Lockley and Vail, 1944-1951
Letters between Lockley and Vail, 1952
Letters between Lockley and Vail, 1953
Letters between Lockley and Vail, 1954
Letters between Lockley and Vail, 1956-1958
Letters between Lockley and Vail--Undated and Alienated Envelopes, Undated
Series II: Essays and Interviews, 1919, 1951-1955, undated
Scope and Contents note
This series primarily contains copies of Lockley's essays and interviews with Northwest residents, some of which were presumably published in his column in the Oregon Journal. Most are untitled and undated. Also included is a draft of Lockley's "Historic Portland," as well as several essays by others, including his son, Lawrence Lockley.
"Historic Portland" (1 of 2), Undated
"Historic Portland" (2 of 2), Undated
Essays and Interviews, 1951-1953
Essays and Interviews, Undated
Essays and Interviews, Undated
Essays and Interviews, Undated
Essays and Interviews, Undated
Essays and Interviews, Undated
Essays and Interviews, Undated
Essays and Interviews, Undated
Essays and Interviews, Undated
Essays and Interviews, Undated
Essays and Interviews, Undated
Essays and Interviews, Undated
Essays by Others, 1919, 1952-1955, undated
Series III: Diaries and Volumes, 1880-1939
Scope and Contents note
This series contains primarily date books for Fred Lockley and his second wife, Laura Simpson Lockley. Lockley's date books contain lists of books with prices, daily expenses and events. Laura S. Lockley's date books detail daily events. Also included in this series are an autograph book of Lockley's sister, Maude (1880-1883) and a book of telegrams from 1889 congratulating Nathan D. Simon and his wife on their marriage.
Fred Lockley: Date Books, 1927, 1934-1935, 1939
Laura Simpson Lockley: Date Books, 1933, 1935-1939
Maude Lockley: Autograph Book, 1880-1883
Nathan D. Simon: Telegram Book, 1889
Single Folder Series
Series IV. Genealogical and Family Material, 1864-1865, 1891, undated
Scope and Contents note
This series includes genealogies and notes on family members, Frederic E. Lockley's Civil War military records, and locks of hair.
Genealogical and Family Material, 1864-1865, 1891, undated
Series V. Financial Records, 1862-1952
Scope and Contents note
This series includes invoices, statements, and stock information. Also included are price lists for books sold by Lockley.
Financial Records, 1862-1952
Series VI. Photographs, [1892], [1905-1910], undated
Scope and Contents note
This series includes three portraits of Lockley at various ages, as well as several disparate photographs.
Photographs, [1892], [1905-1910], undated
Series VII. Prints, Maps, Artifacts, 1876, 1911, undated
Scope and Contents note
This series includes prints of Oregon sites, a map of South Australia, and a small paper weaving done by Lockley at age five.
Prints, Maps, Artifacts, 1876, 1911, undated
Series VIII. Poetry, undated
Scope and Contents note
This series contains copies of poetry, from various sources.
Poetry, Undated
Series IX. Ephemera, 1919-1954, undated
Scope and Contents note
This series includes circulars, invitations, direct mail, business and calling cards, membership cards, and tickets.
Ephemera, 1919-1954, undated
Series X. Certificates, 1892-1951
Scope and Contents note
This series contains military certificates; club, fraternity, and church membership certificates; and certificates documenting library donations. Most items pertain to Lockley.
Certificates, 1892-1951
Series XI. Clippings, 1901-1954
Scope and Contents note
This series contains newspaper clippings, including copies of Lockley's Oregon Journal column "Lockley's Impressions," and the obituary of Frederic E. Lockley.
Clippings, 1901-1954
Series XII. Notes, Copies, Fragments
Scope and Contents note
This series contains unidentified and undated notes, and copies of various unrelated documents.