Charles Waterton papers, 1830 -- 1837

Summary Information

Abstract

Two manuscript letters written by Charles Waterton, a British naturalist, ornithologist, and nobleman.

At a Glance

Arrangement

Arrangement

This collection is arranged in one series in original order.

• Charles Waterton papers, 1830 -- 1837

Description

Scope and Contents

This collection contains two manuscript letters by Charles Waterton. The first is a letter to his typographer, Richard Nichols, about possible corrections to an unnamed manuscript in progress. The second is an unaddressed "Letter on the Church of England," a manuscript draft of a Catholic pamphlet published later that year by Waterton and Nichols.

• Charles Waterton papers, 1830 -- 1837

  This series contains two manuscript letters by Charles Waterton. The first is a letter to his typographer, Richard Nichols, about possible corrections to an unnamed manuscript in progress. The second is an unaddressed "Letter on the Church of England," a manuscript draft of a Catholic pamphlet published later that year by Waterton and Nichols.

Burke Library record group:

Union Theological Seminary Archives: UTS 1, papers of faculty and students

Using the Collection

Burke Library at Union Theological Seminary

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research.

The following boxes are located offsite: Box 1. Please note that requests for use of boxes held in offsite storage must be made three business days in advance.

Conditions Governing Use

Some material in this collection may be protected by copyright and other rights. Information concerning copyright, fair use, and reproduction requests can be consulted at Columbia's Copyright Advisory Office.

Preferred Citation

Item Description, UTS1: Charles Waterton papers, 1830-1837, box #, folder #, The Burke Library at Union Theological Seminary, Columbia University in the City of New York.

Custodial History

The Charles Waterton papers are part of the Union Theological Seminary Archives, which comprises institutional and administrative records of the Seminary, combined with the papers of many organizations, scholars, pastors, laypersons, and others connected with the school. These papers were partially processed in 2014.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The exact provenance of this collection is unknown.

About the Finding Aid / Processing Information

Columbia University Libraries, Burke Library at Union Theological Seminary

Processing Information

Letters were cataloged by Lynn A. Grove on 1988-07-15. The Waterton papers were among a large group of papers that were organized in 2016-2018 with the support of the Henry Luce Foundation and the E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation; all folded items were flattened and materials were placed in new acid-free folders and boxes. The finding aid was created by Kevin Windhauser and Rebecca Nieto in 2018 and edited by Leah Edelman in 2020.

Subject Headings

The subject headings listed below are found in this collection. Links below allow searches at Columbia University through the Archival Collections Portal and through CLIO, the catalog for Columbia University Libraries, as well as ArchiveGRID, a catalog that allows users to search the holdings of multiple research libraries and archives.

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Subject

History / Biographical Note

Biographical / Historical

Charles Waterton was born on June 3, 1782 in Wakefield, England, to a prominent noble family. In the early 19th century, Waterton traveled throughout South America and the United States, visiting and overseeing his family's plantations there; Waterton's travels throughout the two continents would later influence his work as a naturalist. Upon returning to Europe in 1830, Waterton traveled throughout the continent, surveying flora and fauna throughout England, Belgium, France, and Italy. During these travels, Waterton published a series of influential essays on natural history, mixing both biological and ecological observations with personal autobiography. These travels also coincided with Waterton's entrance into theological debates, in which he vigorously defended Catholicism against attacks or critiques by Anglican writers (the pamphlet draft held in this collection is an example of such writing).

In the mid-1840s, Waterton returned to his familial home, Walton Hall, where he began a series of environmental reforms: preserving local woodlands, improving drainage systems, and advocating against pollution from nearby factories and industrial areas; much of his work at Walton became a model for later 19th century British environmentalists. Charles Waterton passed away May 27, 1865, and was buried near Walton Hall.