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This group of approximately 1,000 letters from the papers of Hamilton Fish, Sr. relates to the business, functioning, and activities of Columbia College in the 19th century. The letters include those addressed to Fish and those written by him. The earliest material bears on Fish's activities and interests at about the time he graduated from Columbia, but the majority of the letters fall into the latter part of his life, many being written by and to Fish as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Columbia College. The collection includes correspondence with presidents Charles King, F.A.P. Barnard, and Seth Low of Columbia College, also with Edmund Bailey, Charles Davies, Charles W. Harper, William M. Sloan, William C. Schermerhorn, and others. The majority of the letters are original manuscripts and typescripts, but many of the letters from Fish are photostatic and typed copies. Most of the letters are tipped onto manila sheets. Included are two diaries of Mr. Fish's European travels, 1856-1857. There is also a box of printed materials relating primarily to the settlement of the Alabama Claims.

Letters from Agustin Ruiz de Santayana have typescript carbon English translations. The translations are not on microfilm.

Materials related to the Maine-Canada boundary controvery: over 400 letters, documents, reports, map, manuscript corrected proof of the Secretary of State's printed report to Congress, manuscript history of the controversy (published), lengthy analysis of the King of the Netherland's Decision as arbiter, as well as supporting material showing the life of a diplomat of the period in Europe.

Box 1 (original acquisition) includes letters, manuscripts, and memorabilia, including four letters from Columbia professors relating to Bancroft's participation in General Studies Day, May 1977. The manuscripts consist of two diaries, one from 1926-1929, which includes her account of a European trip and a second for 1969; a typescript she prepared for the use of her students in General Studies History 5 in 1941, entitled "The Old Stone Age" (357 p.) with several pen-and-ink sketches of early man; and four notebooks on ancient art taken at a course taught by Professor Richard Brilliant in 1974.

This collection is primarily concerned with Prof. James Renwick and his professional correspondence and papers, both as Professor of Natural Philosophy (Physics) at Columbia College and as a leading engineer. Many certificates of membership in honorary societies are included. There are letters from Washington Irving (1783-1859) to Prof. Renwick and to his mother, Jane Jeffrey Renwick, pertaining to contemporary events and Irving's own activities. The letters to Mrs. Renwick are about the travels and experiences of Irving and Renwick abroad. The collection also covers the affairs of the Prof. Renwick's grandfather, including documents concerning his land grants in New York State, and those of James Armstrong Renwick, including his valedictory address at Columbia College in 1876 and his class reunion in 1916. There are many legal documents, letters, and manuscripts of various members of the Renwick and Brevoort families; among these are Prof. Renwick's notes on his family genealogy and a memoir of Jane Jeffrey Renwick. Correspondents include Clement Clarke Moore, John A. Dix, Martin Van Buren, Secretary of State John Forsyth, and Secretary of the Navy James K. Paulding. There is one letter from Sir Edward Sabine (1788-1883), President of the Royal Society, giving his views on the American Civil War.