Sampson, Francis Asbury (1842-1918), Collection, 1796-1958 (C3813)

12.9 linear feet

INTRODUCTION

This collection, compiled by Sampson, includes Democratic and Republican party campaign literature for national and Missouri elections, 1838-1958; speeches and pamphlets concerning national and state political issues; materials concerning the history of Boone, Schuyler, Pettis, and Ste. Genevieve counties and Sedalia; papers of Garland C. Broadhead and William Switzler; and speeches, notes, bibliographies, and personal papers of Sampson.

DONOR INFORMATION

The State Historical Society of Missouri received three accessions of the Sampson collection by unknown donor(s) on 1 September 1970 (SHS Accession No. 711), 9 August 1971 (SHS Accession No. 861) and undated (SHS Accession No. 566). Two accessions were transferred to the manuscript collection on 1 May 1980 (SHS Accession No. 2313) and 14 May 1981 (SHS Accession No. 2371).

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

Widely known for his accomplishments as a bibliographer and paleontologist, Francis Asbury Sampson was born February 6, 1842, in Harrison County, Ohio. His father Francis Sampson, a native of Ireland, came to the United States in 1823 and died in 1867. His mother was a native of Wales.

Sampson graduated from the City College of New York in 1865 and later received the degree of master of arts. He read law two years at Cadiz, Ohio, and was admitted to the bar. He attended the law school of the University of New York, from which he graduated in 1868 as valedictorian of his class.

Relocating to Sedalia, Missouri, he formed a law partnership with his brother, Archibald J. Sampson. He held the office of United States Commissioner from 1869 to 1873, and in the latter year was commissioned by Governor Silas B. Woodson as representative from Missouri to the World's Exposition in Vienna, Austria. From 1870 to 1872 he was associate editor of the Sedalia Times. In 1885 he became a member of the Sedalia Board of Education and was one of the founders of the Sedalia Natural History Society, the Sedalia Public Library, and the Nehemgar Club of Sedalia.

In 1901 Mr. Sampson was elected secretary and librarian of the State Historical society of Missouri. He held those offices until his resignation in 1915 when he became bibliographer of the society. He was editor of the Missouri Historical Review from 1906 to 1915.

Although not professionally trained, Sampson was well-known to scholars and scientists in the field of paleontology. He specialized in geology and conchology and created valuable collections of specimens throughout America and Europe, including sixty original specimens of fossils and shells in Missouri. Twenty-two of those received his name in recognition of his discoveries. One of his rarest collections was sold to the University of Chicago.

As a bibliographer, he was the preeminent writer of the period specializing in the field of Missouri history. His work covered such subjects as Missouri authors, slavery and the Civil War in Missouri, official Missouri publications, Missouri geological and horticultural publications, Missouri newspapers, accounts of early travelers in the region, Missouri railroads, and publishing in the state before 1850. His chief collaborator in those fields was William Clark Breckenridge of St. Louis.

Sampson was also an avid collector of books and pamphlets relating to the state of Missouri. His collections included official state reports, minutes of religious organizations, publications of the state bar and press organizations, and advertising and descriptive literature of commercial clubs and real estate companies. Sampson began collecting upon his arrival in Missouri in 1868, and by 1901 he had amassed the largest library on Missouri then in existence. He donated his library to the State Historical Society of Missouri in 1901, where it formed the nucleus of the society's collections.

Sampson was married to Mrs. Harriet Lacey of Cincinnati in 1869 and had a daughter, Maybelle, and two sons, Lacey and Leroy. He died in 1918.

SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE

The majority of the collection consists of a wide variety of materials compiled by F. A. Sampson, reflecting his scope of interest in Missouri history. Sampson's speeches, bibliographies, research notes, and personal papers make up the rest of the collection.

The collection is divided into three series:

The Political series concerns national and state elections and political issues. The Missouri History, and Francis Sampson's personal papers series contain information on varied topics and individuals.

Republican and Democratic party campaign literature make up the largest portion of the collected Political material. National and state elections from the 1880s to the 1930s are best represented. This sections includes campaign books, party platforms, proceedings of conventions, speeches, posters, broadsides, political cartoons, newspaper articles, pamphlets, political handbooks, and press releases concerning presidential, state of Missouri, and local elections. The material is divided by party, then arranged chronologically, with national material preceding state in any given year. A great deal of biographical information on candidates for state and local offices is found in this series.

Speeches of United States senators and representatives from Missouri dating from 1827 through 1844 on a wide variety of national issues are in this series. This section is arranged alphabetically. A section on national issues, especially the tariff and monetary questions of the 1890s, contains pamphlets, newspaper articles, speeches, and reports. There is also information, arranged chronologically, pertaining to the national economy, the civil service, politics, and elections.

Material on Missouri constitutional amendments includes pamphlets, broadsides, campaign buttons, articles, ballots, and other campaign and promotional literature regarding proposed amendments to the Missouri Constitution. Amendment topics include prohibition, taxation, and bond issues to increase funding for road construction, the University of Missouri, and other state institutions. The material is arranged chronologically. Biographical sketches of delegates to the 1875 Missouri Constitutional Convention can be found in this series. The sketches include ancestry, education, occupation, war record, marriages, political party, fraternal organizations, and place and date of death. The Missouri Constitutional Convention of 1941-1943 is represented in this series by pamphlets, articles, delegate lists, manuals, ballots, and campaign and promotional literature.

There are also small sections of this series pertaining to: Missouri legislation dating from 1855 through 1917 and consisting of speeches, bills, analyses of bills, and reports relating to state insurance laws, workman's compensation, and marriage and divorce laws; a correspondence course on government from the Missouri League of Women Voters; and annual banquet programs and yearbooks of the Young Republicans of Missouri. Material was added to this series after Sampson's death in 1918.

The remainder of the collected material is an eclectic compilation concerning aspects of Missouri History from the early nineteenth century to the early twentieth. This series contains early court records, including a substantial amount of Boone County court records from the 1820s and 1830s, marriage records, and sections on the history of Sedalia and Pettis and Schuyler counties. The series is completed by small collections of personal papers of prominent individuals of central Missouri, the most notable being a small body of correspondence and research notes of geologist Garland C. Broadhead and correspondence of newspaper publisher William F. Switzler.

The majority of Broadhead's correspondence, dating from 1875 to 1905, concerns his professional activities, which includes exchanges with the Geological Survey of Missouri and his advice on the formation of a Geology Department at the University of Missouri. The research material includes notes on Missouri geology and mineralogy and extracts from scientific periodicals on geological topics. Historical research notes concern the Broadhead family, history of Boone County, the history of mining, a short bibliography of articles on anthropology and archeology, and an article pertaining to the history of the region called "Old Louisiana."

The final series consists of some of Francis Sampson's notes and research materials used in compiling bibliographies on Missouri history, copies of speeches he gave on various topics concerning the history of the state and westward expansion, and a portion of his personal papers, primarily correspondence, scattered throughout the period 1866 to 1914.

FOLDER LIST

Political Series

f. 1-147Campaign Literature, 1838-1956
f. 1-88Democratic, 1838-1958, n.d.
f. 11838
f. 21848
f. 31852
f. 41856
f. 51860
f. 5a1866
f. 61868
f. 71872
f. 81874, 1878
f. 91876, 1880
f. 101882
f. 111884, 1888
f. 121886, 1890
f. 131890
f. 14-151892
f. 161894
f. 17-181896
f. 191896, 1897
f. 20-211898
f. 22-231900
f. 241900, 1902
f. 251903
f. 26-291904
f. 30-341908
f. 35-361909
f. 37-381910
f. 39-411912
f. 421914, 1915
f. 43-441916
f. 45-461918
f. 471919
f. 48-561920
f. 571923
f. 58-621924
f. 63-641926
f. 65-671928
f. 68-701932
f. 711934
f. 721936
f. 731938
f. 74-801940
f. 811942
f. 82-851944
f. 861948, c. 1954
f. 871956, 1958
f. 88n.d.

f. 89-147Republican, 1855-1948, n.d.
f. 891855, 1876
f. 901880
f. 911881, 1882, 1884
f. 921888, 1889, 1892
f. 93-941894
f. 95-981896
f. 99-1001898
f. 101-1031900
f. 1041901
f. 1051902
f. 1061902, 1903
f. 107-1081904
f. 109-1101906
f. 111-1151908
f. 116-1171910
f. 1181912
f. 1191912, 1914
f. 120-1231916
f. 1241918
f. 1251919
f. 126-1281920
f. 1291922
f. 130-1321924
f. 1331926
f. 134-1361928
f. 137-1391932
f. 140-1411936
f. 1421940
f. 1431940, 1942
f. 144-1451944
f. 1461948
f. 147n.d.

f. 148-181National Legislation, 1884-1913
f. 148-151Committee on the Merchant Marine and Fisheries, shipping combine, 1913
f. 152-153Philippine Islands. 1913
f. 154-159Silver Issue, 1878-1895
f. 160-167Silver Issue, 1896
f. 168-170Silver Issue, foreign language pamphlets, 1896
f. 171Silver Issue, 1897-1898
f. 172-181Tariff, 1884-1910

f. 182-260Speeches--Missouri Congressmen, 1827-1944
f. 182Alexander, Joshua, 1910, 1912
f. 183Asper, Joel F., 1871
f. 184Bartholdt, Richard, 1909, 1912, 1916, n.d.
f. 185Barton, David, 1827, 1830
f. 186Benton, Maecenas E., 1899, 1900, 1902
f. 187-193Benton, Thomas Hart, 1827-1854
f. 194Blair, Francis P., 1855, 1858, 1862
f. 195-196Bland Richard P., 1880, 1890-1894, 1898
f. 197Booher, Charles F., 1910, 1911, 1914
f. 198Borland, William P., 1912
f. 199Bowlin, James B., 1844, 1845, 1848
f. 200Brown, B. Gratz, 1855, 1864
f. 201Clark, Champ, 1906, 1909, 1910
f. 202Clark, Bennett Champ, 1939, 1940, 1943
f. 203Clark, John B., 1880
f. 204Cockrell, Francis M., 1877, c. 1895
f. 205Crittenden, Thomas T., 1874
f. 206Empty due to error in numbering
f. 207Decker, Perl D., 1914
f. 208Dockery, Alexander M., 1898, n.d.
f. 209Dougherty, John, 1900
f. 210-211Drake, Charles D., 1851, 1857-1859, 1862, 1866-1868
f. 212Dyer, David P., 1870
f. 212Edwards, John C., 1842
f. 213Geyer, Henry S., 1852, 1856
f. 214Green, James S., 1848, 1850, 1860
f. 215Hall, Uriel S., 1893, 1894, 1896
f. 215Hall, Willard P., 1852
f. 216Hamlin, Courtney W., 1904, 1908, 1913, 1918
f. 217Harrison, Albert G., 1838
f. 217Havens, Harrison E., 1872
f. 218Hawes, Harry B., 1927-1930, n.d.
f. 219Heard, John T., 1886, 1888, 1890, 1893
f. 220Henderson, John B., 1862, 1863, 1866
f. 221Hensley, Walter T., 1911-1913
f. 222Hogan, John, 1866, n.d.
f. 223Hopkins, David, 1929-1932
f. 224Hubbard, Joel D., 1897
f. 225Jameson, John, 1840, 1844, 1848
f. 226Jost, Henry L., 1924
f. 227Kennett, Luther M., 1856, 1857
f. 228King, Andrew, 1872
f. 229Kinsey, William M., 1890
f. 229Klepper, Frank B., 1906
f. 229Lindley, James J., 1856
f. 230Lozier, Ralph F., 1928
f. 231Manlove, Joe J., 1930
f. 231McClurg, Joseph W., 1864
f. 232Meeker, Jacob E., 1916, 1917
f. 232Morgan, Charles H., 1884
f. 233Nelson, William L, 1920, 1926, 1929, 1930, 1940, 1941
f. 234Noell, John W., 1862
f. 234Norton, Elijah H., 1862, 1863
f. 235Parker, Isaac C., 1874
f. 235Pearce, Charles F., 1898
f. 236Price, Thomas L., 1862, 1863
f. 237-242Reed, James A., 1910, 1913-1929
f. 243Rubey, Thomas L., 1916, 1917
f. 244Rucker, William W., 1899, 1904, 1906, 1910
f. 245Schurz, Carl, 1971, 1896
f. 246Shackleford, Dorsey W., 1899, 1905, 1906, 1908, 1914, 1917
f. 247Shannon, Joseph B., 1940, 1942
f. 247Short, Dewey J., 1943, 1944
f. 247Spencer, Selden P., 1919, 1920
f. 248Stone, William J., 1890, 1917
f. 249Truman, Harry S, 1937, 1940
f. 250Vandiver, Willard D., 1899, 1902, 1905, 1906
f. 251-256Vest, George G., 1880, 1882-1896, 1898, 1900, 1901
f. 257Williams, George H., 1926
f. 258Wilson, Robert P.C., 1890, 1892
f. 259-260Speeches given in the Senate and House of Representatives on national monetary policies and other financial and economic issues
f. 261-266Miscellaneous National Issues, 1838-1918
f. 2611838-1883
f. 2621887-1900
f. 2631902-1912
f. 2641912-1918
f. 265-266n.d.
f. 267-284Missouri Constitutional Amendments, 1882-1957
f. 2671882, c. 1904
f. 2681908, 1910, Prohibition
f. 2691910, State Capitol Building
f. 270-2711910, University Funding
f. 272-2731912, Anti-Single Tax League
f. 274-2751912, 1920, Pro-Single Tax League
f. 2761914, 1916
f. 2771920, 1921, Road Improvement Bond
f. 2781924, Road Improvement Bond
f. 2791926, 1928, 1930
f. 2801934-1940, State Institution Bond
f. 2811942
f. 2821948, Fuel Tax
f. 2831950, 1957
f. 284n.d.
f. 285-291Missouri Constitutional Convention, 1875. Biographical sketches of delegates
f. 292-293Missouri Constitutional Convention, 1941-1943
f. 294-298Missouri Legislation, 1855-1917
f. 299-301Missouri League of Women Voters, n.d.
f. 302-304Young Republicans of Missouri, 1900-1903, 1908, 1916-1918, 1920, 1926, 1928

Missouri History Series

f. 305-326Boone County
f. 305Accounts of monies received, 1826-1828
f. 306Bills of sale, 1830, 1831, 1837, 1845
f. 307Bonds, 1825, 1828, 1832, 1843, 1845
f. 308-309Deed and indentures, 1818-1872
f. 310Dockets, 1821-1824, 1891-1892, n.d.
f. 311Inquisitions, 1824-1838
f. 312-315List of hands, for roadwork in county, 1833-1835
f. 316-317Miscellaneous documents, receipts, and bills, 1819-1864
f. 318Promissory notes, 1821-1830, 1845, 1864
f. 319Recognizances, 1824-1828, 1845
f. 320Stray notices, 1821-1822
f. 321-322Summonses, 1823-1845
f. 323Writs of execution, 1823-1839, 1859
f. 324Boone County Agricultural and Mechanical Society, stock certificates, 1856, 1898
f. 325-326Boone County Miscellany, financial materials of Boone County businesses and promotional literature concerning farmland in the county, 1840-1909
f. 327-339Broadhead, Garland C. Papers, 1875-1905
f. 340Bogy, John L. Speeches on Ste. Genevieve County, n.d.
f. 340aCamden County. History of boundaries, 1899
f. 341Carral, Edward B. Correspondence concerning business matters, 1843, 1847, 1849
f. 342Cross, William T., Speech. "Social Reform in Missouri" given to the graduating class of the St. Louis School of Economy, 1914
f. 343Grant, Ulysses S. Emancipation document freeing his slave William, photocopy, 1859
f. 344Grebe, M.R. William. Copies of letters by Abraham Lincoln, U.S. Grant, William Sherman, Philip Sheridan, O.O. Howard, and others concerning promotions and military honors of Grebe, 1864-1899
f. 345-346Lant, John A. Personal correspondence, poems, and miscellaneous materials, 1844, 1846, 1897-1912, n.d.
f. 347Lawson, John D. Correspondence regarding professional matters as dean of the Law School of the University of Missouri and political topics, 1907-1909
f. 348Marriage Records, Carroll County, typescript copy, 1851-1859
f. 349Marriage Records, Lafayette County, typescript copy, 1821-1841
f. 350Marriage Records, Lincoln County, typescript, 1833-1849
f. 350aMissouri Association for Mexican War Veterans. Reunion materials, 1900-1904
f. 351Missouri Folklore Society Minutes, December 1916
f. 352Old Auxvasse Cemetery, Callaway County, Headstone Inscriptions, 1914
f. 352a-352bSnyder, John F. Biographical sketches written by Snyder, "My Recollections of Colonel James Nelson Burnes," 1912, and "Robert L. McGuire," 1915
f. 353Wills and Guardian Papers, Mexico, Missouri, Probate Court Office, 1857-1860
f. 354-358Ste. Genevieve Court Records, 1796-1833
f. 354Bridges, 1810, 1813-1819
f. 355Court calendars, 1806, 1809, 1810
f. 356Magistrate's docket, 1833
f. 357Miscellaneous court documents, 1796-1827
f. 358Province of Louisiana Transfer Document. Transferring region from Spain to France, 1803. Typescript copy, translated into English, 1904
f. 359-383Sedalia Collection, 1868-1909
f. 359Capitol removal to Sedalia. Petition and map, 1887
f. 360Central Missouri Agricultural and Mechanical Association. Charter, constitution and bylaws, and programs of annual fair, 1870-1872, 1876
f. 361First Cumberland Presbyterian Church, 1888; First Baptist Church, 1895; Central Presbyterian Church, 1901, 1902. Directories
f. 362Missouri Chautauqua assembly programs, 1887, 1893-1896
f. 363Pettis County Circuit Court dockets, 1879, 1896, 1899
f. 364Political. Campaign literature and party tickets for Sedalia, Pettis County, and Missouri elections, 1885-1900
f. 365-367Scrapbooks. Contain articles from the Daily Bazoo and Daily Democrat concerning Sedalia and Pettis county history, commerce, elections, organizations, and prominent citizens, 1869-1880
f. 368Sedalia Board of Trade. Correspondence and membership list, 1895, 1898
f. 369Sedalia Exposition Association programs, 1880, 1881, 1885
f. 370-371Sedalia High School, Sedalia University, George R. Smith College, and Lincoln High School. Commencement programs, 1870-1909
f. 372Sedalia Historical Society. Address of Dr. Trader, 1904
f. 373-374Sedalia Library Association. Correspondence, 1871-1873, and organizational papers, 1870-1872, 1893, 1895, 1900
f. 375Sedalia Natural History Society subscription list, c. 1889
f. 376Sedalia Poultry and Pet Stock Association programs, 1894, 1902, 1905
f. 377-381Woods Opera House. Programs for plays, concerts, and other performances, 1868, 1870, 1890, 1893, 1895-1898
f. 382Miscellaneous programs and broadsides for plays, recitals, concerts, and other events held in Sedalia, 1868-1870
f. 383Miscellany. Includes information on schools and institutes in Sedalia, prospectuses on Sedalia companies, and promotional literature
f. 384-395 Smith, T. K. Research notes and draft for a history of Schuyler County, n.d.
f. 384General
f. 385-390Courts
f. 391Northern boundary dispute
f. 392Religion and schools
f. 393Civil War period in Missouri, Bibliography
f. 394-395Folders empty due to error in numbering
f. 396-399Switzler, William F., Papers, 1880-1904
f. 400Todd, Levi. Division of lands in Kentucky among his heirs, 1815.
f. 401Scrapbook, c. 1875. Newspaper clippings on a wide variety of subjects including American and European politics, history, natural history, and social customs. Also includes a copy of the 1821 St. Louis city directory.
f. 402-403Miscellaneous correspondence by various individuals concerning Missouri history, the Civil War, and national politics.

Francis Sampson Personal Papers Series

f. 404-423Speeches and notes
f. 404Events and Objects of Local Interest in Sedalia, n.d.
f. 405Glimpses of Old Missouri, early history of the region to 1820, 1897
f. 406History of Public Education in Missouri, n.d.
f. 407John D. Leland, n.d.
f. 408Empty due to error in numbering
f. 409Literature of Missouri, 1899
f. 410Mark Twain, n.d.
f. 411Missouri in the War--The Battle of Carthage, July 5, 1861, n.d.
f. 412-415Missouri Struggle for Statehood, Constitutional Convention, 1820, c. 1915
f. 416-419Missouri Struggle for Statehood, Origins of the Constitution, 1820, c. 1915
f. 420-422Missouri Struggle for Statehood, Public Opinion, 1819-1821, c. 1915
f. 423Mormon History, n.d.
f. 424-439Bibliographies--Notes and resource materials
f. 424History and Publications of the State Horticultural Society, c. 1902
f. 424aMissouri Authors, 1914-1917. Compilation of book reviews and notices of publication, n.d.
f. 425-428Missouri State Publications, 1820-1905. Listed by state departments and institutions, also other publications concerning Missouri, n.d.
f. 429-434Slavery and the Civil War in Missouri. With William Clark Breckenridge, arranged alphabetically by author or subject, 1915
f. 435-436St. Louis Mercantile Library. Publications in the library and other repositories, concerning Missouri subjects and authors, arranged by topic, n.d.
f. 437-438aTravel and Description. Publications concerning travel through, and exploration of, Missouri and the western United States in the nineteenth century, arranged alphabetically by author, n.d.
f. 439Western Journal and Civilian. Articles in volumes 1-11 and 13-14, 1848-1855, of the periodical regarding the history and commerce of the west, arranged chronologically, n.d.
f. 440-447Correspondence, 1866-1907
f. 448-454Financial and Legal Records, 1866-1900, 1914

INDEX TERMS