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The Herndon-Weik Collection of Lincolniana
A Register of the Collection in the Library of Congress
Prepared by Mary M. Wolfskill and David Mathisen
Revised by T. Michael Womack
1997
Manuscript Division
Library of Congress
Washington, D.C.
Finding aid encoded by Library of Congress
Manuscript Division, 2001
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Table of Contents for The Herndon-Weik Collection of Lincolniana
Collection Summary
Selected Search Terms
* Names:
* Subjects:
* Occupations:
Administrative Information
* Provenance:
* Processing History:
* Transfers:
* Copyright Status:
* Microfilm:
* Preferred Citation:
Biographical Notes
* William Henry Herndon
* Jesse William Weik
* Abraham Lincoln
Scope and Content Note
Description of Series
* Group I: Arithmetic Book and Scrapbooks, ca. 1824- 1860, n.d.
* Group II: Correspondence of Abraham Lincoln, 1833- 1865, n.d.
* Group III: Legal Documents, 1834- 1860, n.d.
* Group IV: Papers of William Henry Herndon, 1849- 1891, n.d.
* Group V: Papers of Jesse William Weik, 1830- 1927, n.d.
* Group VI: Miscellany, ca. 1824- 1933, n.d.
Container List
* GROUP I: ARITHMETIC BOOK AND SCRAPBOOKS, ca. 1824- 1860, n.d.
* GROUP II: CORRESPONDENCE OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 1833- 1865, n.d.
* GROUP III: LEGAL DOCUMENTS, 1834- 1860, n.d.
* GROUP IV: PAPERS OF WILLIAM HENRY HERNDON, 1849-91, n.d.
* GROUP V: PAPERS OF JESSE WILLIAM WEIK, 1830- 1927, n.d.
* GROUP VI: MISCELLANY, ca. 1824- 1933, n.d.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Collection Summary
Creator: Herndon, William Henry, 1818-1891
Title: The Herndon-Weik Collection of Lincolniana ca. 1824-1933
Size: 4,600 items; 36 containers; 10 linear feet; 15 microfilm reels (2
sets)
Repository: Manuscript Division, Library of Congress
Abstract: Collection composed of the papers of Abraham Lincoln, U.S.
president, U.S. representative from Illinois, and lawyer; William Henry
Herndon, Lincoln's law partner, collector, and biographer from Springfield,
Illinois; and Jesse William Weik, lawyer of Greencastle, Indiana, and
coauthor of Herndon's Lincoln. Includes records (1933) of the Weik
Manuscript Corporation and miscellaneous material collected chiefly by
Herndon and Weik for use in writing Herndon's Lincoln: The True Story of a
Great Life (1889).
Selected Search Terms
Names:
Bell, John, 1797-1869--Correspondence
Beveridge, Albert Jeremiah, 1862-1927--Correspondence
Conkling, James Cook, 1816-1899--Correspondence
Dana, Richard Henry, 1815-1882--Correspondence
Delahay, Mark W. (Mark William), 1818?-1879--Correspondence
Douglas, Stephen Arnold, 1813-1861
Edwards, Ninian Wirt
Friend, Charles
Gentry, Kate Roby
Giddings, Joshua R. (Joshua Reed), 1795-1864--Correspondence
Graham, Mentor, 1800-1886
Hanks, Dennis
Hay, John, 1838-1905
Hay, John, 1838-1905--Correspondence
Haycraft, Samuel, 1795-1878--Correspondence
Helm, John B.
Johnston, John D., b. 1815--Correspondence
Judd, Norman B. (Norman Buel), 1815-1878--Correspondence
Lincoln, Mary Todd, 1818-1882
Lincoln, Sarah Bush Johnston, 1788-1869
Logan, Stephen T. (Stephen Trigg), 1800-1880
McCallen, Andrew--Correspondence
Nicolay, John G. (John George), 1832-1901--Correspondence
Pierce, Edward Lillie, 1829-1897--Correspondence
Speed, Joshua F. (Joshua Fry), 1814-1882--Correspondence
Stevens, Thaddeus, 1792-1868--Correspondence
Swett, Leonard, 1825-1889
Swett, Leonard, 1825-1889--Correspondence
Thomas, Richard S. (Richard Symmes)--Correspondence
Trumbull, Lyman, 1813-1896--Correspondence
Wallace, Frances, b. 1817
Wentworth, John, 1815-1888--Correspondence
White, Horace, 1834-1916--Correspondence
Whitney, Henry Clay, 1831-1905--Correspondence
Williams, Archibald, 1801-1863--Correspondence
Wilson, R. L. (Robert L.)
Yates, Richard, 1815-1873--Correspondence
Lincoln family
Illinois. General Assembly
Republican Party (U.S. : 1854- )
Whig Party (U.S.)
White House (Washington, D.C.)
Herndon, William Henry, 1818-1891. Papers (1849-1891)
Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865. Papers (1824-1865)
Weik, Jesse William, 1857-1930. Papers (1830-1927)
The Weik Manuscript Corporation. Records (1933)
Subjects:
Lincoln-Douglas debates, 1858
Practice of law--Illinois--Springfield
Presidents--United States--Biography
Presidents--United States--Election--1856
Presidents--United States--Election--1860
Illinois--Politics and government--To 1865
Springfield (Ill.)--History
United States--Politics and government--19th century
United States--Politics and government--1861-1865
Occupations:
Biographers
Collectors
Lawyers
Administrative Information
Provenance:
The Herndon-Weik Collection of Lincolniana was purchased by the Library of
Congress from G. A. Baker and Co. in 1941. Material relating to Abraham
Lincoln acquired by the Library from other sources between 1929 and 1982 is
also included in the collection.
Processing History:
The Herndon-Weik Collection of Lincolniana was first processed in 1974;
additional material received was incorporated into the collection in 1984.
This register was revised in 1997.
Transfers:
Photographs, etchings, and broadsides have been transferred to the
Library's Prints and Photographs Division where they are identified as part
of these papers.
Copyright Status:
The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Abraham Lincoln,
William Henry Herndon, and Jesse William Weik in these papers and in other
collections of papers in the custody of the Library of Congress is governed
by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.).
Microfilm:
A microfilm edition of these papers is available on fifteen reels from the
Library's Photoduplication Service for purchase subject to the Copyright
Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.). This microfilm edition may
also be requested on interlibrary loan through the Library's Loan Division.
No more than ten reels may be requested for each loan period of one month.
Preferred Citation:
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following
information: container number, Herndon-Weik Collection of Lincolniana,
Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Biographical Notes
William Henry Herndon
Date Event
1818 , Dec.
25 Born, Greensburg, Ky.
1820 Moved to Illinois
1821 Moved to Sangamon County, Ill.
1825 Moved to Springfield, Ill.
1836 - 1837 Student, preparatory department, Illinois College,
Jacksonville, Ill.
1840 Married Mary Maxcy (died 1861)
1844 Admitted to bar and formed law partnership with Abraham
Lincoln
1854 Elected mayor of Springfield, Ill.
1862 Married Anna Miles
1889 Coauthored with Jesse W. Weik Herndon's Lincoln: The True
Story of a Great Life (Chicago: Belford, Clarke. 3 vols.)
1891 , Mar.
18 Died, Springfield, Ill.
Jesse William Weik
Date Event
1857 , Aug.
23 Born, Greencastle, Ind.
1875 A.B., Indiana Asbury (now DePauw) University, Greencastle,
Ind.
1883 A.M., Indiana Asbury University, Greencastle, Ind.
1880 Admitted to bar but never practiced
1889 Coauthored with William H. Herndon Herndon's Lincoln: The
True Story of a Great Life (Chicago: Belford, Clarke. 3
vols.)
1892 Published Abraham Lincoln: The True Story of a Great Life
(New York: D. Appleton. 2 vols.), a revised edition of
Herndon's Lincoln: The True Story of a Great Life (Chicago:
Belford, Clarke. 3 vols.)
1930 , Aug.
18 Died
Abraham Lincoln
Date Event
1809 , Feb.
12 Born, Hardin County, Ky.
1816 Moved to Indiana
1830 Moved to Macon County, Ill.
1831 Moved to New Salem, Ill.; employed as storekeeper
1832 Served in Black Hawk War; became partner in Lincoln &
Berry, a general store
1833 - 1836 Postmaster, New Salem, Ill.
1834 - 1836 Deputy county surveyor, Sangamon County, Ill.
1834 - 1841 Member, Illinois state legislature (Whig)
1836 Licensed as attorney
1837 Moved to Springfield and practiced law in partnership with
John T. Stuart and later Stephen T. Logan
1842 Married Mary Todd
1844 Formed law partnership with William H. Herndon
1847 - 1849 Member, U.S. House of Representatives (Whig) from Illinois,
Thirtieth Congress
1849 Resumed law practice
1856 Joined Republican party
1858 Unsuccessful Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in
opposition to Stephen A. Douglas
1860 Elected president
1864 Reelected president
1865 , Apr.
14 Shot by John Wilkes Booth
1865 , Apr.
15 Died, Washington, D.C.
Scope and Content Note
Shortly after the death of Abraham Lincoln, William Henry Herndon began
gathering material for a biography of his former law partner. In 1885,
Jesse William Weik brought new inspiration and assistance to the endeavor,
and in 1888 Herndon's biography was completed through their joint effort.
This collection of Lincolniana is the product of their research. The
material covers the time period ca. 1824-1933 and is divided into six
groups: I: Arithmetic Book and Scrapbooks; II: Correspondence of Lincoln;
III: Legal Documents; IV: Papers of William Henry Herndon; V: Papers of
Jesse William Weik; and VI: Miscellany.
An annotated inventory describing each item in the collection, but in an
order different from the current arrangement, and a negative photostatic
copy of the inventory with fewer annotations may be found in the Manuscript
Division Reading Room reference collection. Special card file indexes for
the collection exist but are housed separately from the items themselves. A
microfilm version of these indexes may be found on reel 15 of this series.
To use the original indexes consult the reference staff in the Manuscript
Division Reading Room.
Group I consists of one leaf (two pages) of an arithmetic book, into which
Lincoln, as a young man, entered tables and exercises in linear measure,
and two scrapbooks of newspaper clippings. One scrapbook contains
editorials, news items, letters, and a number of statistical tables dealing
with such subjects as demographics, slavery, geography, religion,
railroads, agriculture, immigration, and monetary matters. Lincoln is
alleged to have gathered the material for his debates with Stephen Arnold
Douglas during their race for the United States Senate in 1858. The other
scrapbook contains similar clippings and also includes material on the
presidential election of 1860.
Group II, comprised largely of correspondence, is divided into three
sections. Section A consists of twelve letters and a certificate of survey
in Lincoln's hand. These items are listed as Nos. 3-14 and 770 in the
inventory and include six letters from Lincoln to Mark William Delahay.
Section B consists chiefly of reproductions of letters and papers written
by Lincoln. Several letters from Lincoln to Joshua Speed document the
friendship between the two men and their close communication on personal
and public affairs. Other recipients include Joshua R. Giddings, Samuel
Haycraft, John D. Johnston, Andrew McCallen, Leonard Swett, Richard S.
Thomas, Henry Clay Whitney, and Archibald Williams. Letters to Lincoln from
1848 through 1861 and listed as Nos. 774-806 in the inventory constitute
Section C of Group II. The campaign of 1856 is the subject of much of the
correspondence. The candidates, Millard Fillmore, John C. Fremont, and
James Buchanan ; campaign strategy; and the strength of the Democratic,
Republican, and Know-Nothing parties are among the topics discussed. The
correspondents include John Bell, Joshua R. Giddings, Norman B. Judd,
Thaddeus Stevens, John Wentworth, Richard Yates, and others. This section
also contains newspaper clippings and miscellaneous printed material.
Group III comprises documents related to Lincoln's legal cases. It contains
certificates, petitions, affidavits, notices, abstracts, writs, briefs,
depositions, and other papers dealing with such subjects as divorce,
slander, assault and battery, and usury. Most of this material is described
as Nos. 15-773 and 2000-78 in the inventory.
The largest series in the collection, Group IV, consists of correspondence,
interviews, recollections, notes, newspaper clippings, and other material
of William Henry Herndon. Included are an interview with Mary Todd Lincoln
in 1871, two long interviews with Dennis Hanks, letters from Hanks to
Herndon written in 1865 and 1866 mainly on family history, letters to
Herndon from Charles Friend on the Enlow story, and letters and notes from
Herndon to Weik between 1 October 1881 and 27 February 1891 containing
reminiscences of Lincoln's life.
Prominent in this series are Lincoln's family members, schoolmates,
neighbors in New Salem and Springfield, Illinois, law partners, colleagues
at the bar and in the Illinois legislature, political party allies, and
White House associates. Representative names include Ninian Wirt Edwards
(brother-in-law), Kate Roby Gentry (schoolmate), Mentor Graham (teacher),
John Hay , whose letter of 5 September 1866 discusses Lincoln's daily life
in the White House and ends with the statement that he was "the greatest
character since Christ," John B. Helm (store clerk), Sarah Bush Johnston
Lincoln (stepmother), Stephen T. Logan (law partner), Leonard Swett
(lawyer), Frances Wallace (sister-in-law), and Robert L. Wilson (one of the
"Long Nine," a group of tall Whigs, including Lincoln, who served together
in the Illinois legislature). Also in Group IV are manuscripts by Herndon
bearing such titles as "Lincoln's Development," "Lincoln's Courtship with
Miss Owens," "The Lincoln-Douglas Debates," "Miss Rutledge and Lincoln,"
and "Lincoln's Ways."
Group V, the papers of Jesse William Weik, consists of correspondence,
notes, extracts, interviews, typed and handwritten copies of documents, and
other items. Correspondents include Albert Jeremiah Beveridge, James Cook
Conkling, Richard Henry Dana, John Hay, John G. Nicolay, Edward Lillie
Pierce, Lyman Trumbull, and Horace White.
Group VI is an assortment of unbound material which includes photostatic
copies and facsimiles of documents mostly by Lincoln, a printed sermon and
speech by Theodore Parker, newspaper clippings, magazine articles,
pamphlets, one chapter of Albert Jeremiah Beveridge's Abraham Lincoln
(1928), Charles M. Thompson's report on the "Lincoln Way" investigation,
records of the Weik Manuscript Corporation, and negative photographs of
documents collected by Herndon and Weik.
Description of Series
Box Reel Series
BOX 1 Group I: Arithmetic Book and Scrapbooks, ca. 1824 - 1860 , n.d.
REEL 1
One leaf from Lincoln's arithmetic book and two scrapbooks with
clippings of statistical tables, articles, editorials, and
extracts from speeches.
Arranged by type of material.
BOX 2 Group II: Correspondence of Abraham Lincoln, 1833 - 1865 , n.d.
REEL 1
Original correspondence, copies of documents, and other
miscellaneous items.
Arranged chronologically in three sections.
See original index in Manuscript Division Reading Room or
microfilm copy in Group VI, reel no. 15.
BOX
3-13 Group III: Legal Documents, 1834 - 1860 , n.d.
REEL
2-6
Briefs, complaints, petitions, and other legal documents relating
to Lincoln's law cases.
Arranged alphabetically by name of plaintiff with separate papers
for each case file by the date entered with the clerk of court.
See original index in Manuscript Division Reading Room or
microfilm copy in Group VI, reel no. 15.
BOX
14-27 Group IV: Papers of William Henry Herndon, 1849 - 1891 , n.d.
REEL
7-11
Correspondence, notes, interviews, recollections, copies of
documents, and miscellaneous material.
Arranged chronologically.
See original index in Manuscript Division Reading Room or
microfilm copy in Group VI, reel no. 15.
BOX
28-35 Group V: Papers of Jesse William Weik, 1830 - 1927 , n.d.
REEL
12-14
Correspondence, notes, interviews, copies of documents, and
miscellaneous material.
Arranged chronologically.
See original index in Manuscript Division Reading Room or
microfilm copy in Group VI, reel no. 15.
Group VI: Miscellany, ca. 1824 - 1933 , n.d.
REEL 15 Microfilmed material.
Microfilm of indexes not physically housed with
collection; to use original indexes, consult reference
staff in Manuscript Division Reading Room.
BOX 36 (NOT
FILMED) Unfilmed material.
Photocopies and facsimiles, newspaper clippings,
pamphlets, magazine articles, report, sermon, speech, Weik
Manuscript Corp. records, and other items.
See original index in Manuscript Division Reading Room or
microfilm copy in Group VI, reel no. 15.
Container List
Box Reel Contents
GROUP I: ARITHMETIC BOOK AND SCRAPBOOKS, ca. 1824 - 1860 , n.d.
BOX 1 REEL 1 Lincoln's arithmetic book, one leaf (two pages), ca.
1824-1826
Scrapbooks
Newspaper clippings allegedly used by Lincoln in
his debates with Stephen A. Douglas in 1858, ca.
1850-1858, n.d.,
Newspaper clippings, ca. 1854-1860, n.d.
GROUP II: CORRESPONDENCE OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 1833 - 1865 , n.d.
BOX 2 REEL 1 Section A, letters and documents in Lincoln's hand, 14 Jan.
1834-1813 Mar. 1861
Section B, copies of letters and documents mostly by
Lincoln, 19 Oct. 1833-6 Apr. 1865
Section C, original letters to Lincoln, 7 Sept. 1848-11
Mar. 1861
GROUP III: LEGAL DOCUMENTS, 1834 - 1860 , n.d.
BOX 3 REEL 2 A-Bro
BOX 4 Bru-De
BOX 5 REEL
2-3 Do-Gre
BOX 6 REEL 3 Gru-Hi
BOX 7 REEL
3-4 Ho-La
BOX 8 REEL 4 Le-Mal
BOX 9 REEL
4-5 Man-Pad
BOX 10 REEL 5 Par-Rob
BOX 11 Rog-Spi
BOX 12 REEL
5-6 Spr-Van
BOX 13 REEL 6 Vau-You
Miscellany
GROUP IV: PAPERS OF WILLIAM HENRY HERNDON, 1849 -91, n.d.
BOX 14 REEL 7 24 July 1849-21 July 1865
BOX 15 REEL
7-8 30 July 1865-12 Jan. 1866
BOX 16 REEL 8 13 Jan. 1866-10 Aug. 1866
BOX 17 11 Aug. 1866-16 Nov. 1866
BOX 18 18 Nov. 1866-30 Dec. 1866
BOX 19 REEL 9 5 Jan. 1867-10 Jan. 1874
BOX 20 REEL
9-10 9 Feb. 1874-2 Jan. 1887
BOX 21 REEL
10 6 Jan. 1887-4 Jan. 1889
BOX 22 5 Jan. 1889-27 Feb. 1891
BOX 23-24
REEL 11 Undated
BOX 25-27 Drafts of portions of Herndon's Lincoln
GROUP V: PAPERS OF JESSE WILLIAM WEIK, 1830 - 1927 , n.d.
BOX 28 REEL
12 20 Feb. 1830-4 Feb. 1886
BOX 29 15 Mar. 1886-3 Jan. 1889
BOX 30 REEL
12-13 11 Jan. 1889-15 Dec. 1898
BOX 31 REEL
13 27 Dec. 1898-20 Nov. 1913
BOX 32 25 Nov. 1913-15 Feb. 1918
BOX 33 REEL
14 5 Mar. 1918-4 Dec. 1927, n.d.
BOX 34-35 Undated
GROUP VI: MISCELLANY, ca. 1824 - 1933 , n.d.
REEL 15 Special indexes
Not physically housed with collection; to use original
indexes, consult reference staff in Manuscript Division
Reading Room.
BOX 36 (NOT
FILMED) Herndon family genealogy, n.d.
Herndon v. Smith praecipe, 9 June 1837
Lincoln, Abraham, duplicate holograph transcription of
letter to Abraham Jonas, 4 Feb. 1860
Newspaper and magazine clippings, 1856-1921, n.d.
Photocopies and facsimiles, ca. 1824-1888
Proceedings of the first annual meeting and dinner of the
Lincoln Fellowship, 12 Feb. 1908
Weik, Jesse William, photocopy of pages from diary, 4-5
July 1876
Weik, Jesse William and Mary (daughter), photocopies of
photographs, 1910, n.d.
Weik Manuscript Corp.
Certificate of incorporation and minutes, 1933
Stock book, 1933
Stock certificates, 1933
Writings
Barton, William E., "The Lincolns in Their Old
Kentucky Home," 1923
Beveridge, Albert J., Abraham Lincoln, vol. 2,
chapter 7, n.d.
Houser, M. L., "Abraham Lincoln's Message to
Horace Greeley," 1929
Lambert, William H., "Lincoln Literature," 1909
Lamon, Ward H., pamphlet containing letter to
General A. Gridley in answer to attack of Chicago
Tribune, n.d.
Parker, Theodore
"The Effect of Slavery on the American
People," 1858
"The Relation of Slavery to a Republican
Form of Government," 1858
Rugg, Arthur P., "Abraham Lincoln in Worcester,"
1914
Starr, John W., "Lincoln As President," 1910
Thompson, Charles M., report on "Lincoln Way,"
n.d.
Weik, Mary Hays, "My Father and Lincoln," n.d.
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