James Riker papers

Description data TOP

unitid

{"value"=>"MssCol 2581", "type"=>"local_call"}

{"value"=>"2581", "type"=>"local_mss"}

unitdate

{"value"=>"1660-1989", "type"=>"inclusive", "normal"=>"1660/1989"}

date_inclusive_start

1660

date_inclusive_end

1989

keydate

1660

unittitle

{"value"=>"James Riker papers"}

physdesc

{"format"=>"simple", "value"=>"16 linear ft. (24 boxes, 39 volumes"}

repository

{"value"=>"The <span class=\"corpname\">New York Public Library. Manuscripts and Archives Division.</span> <div class=\"address\"> <span class=\"addressline\">5th Avenue and 42nd Street, New York, New York 10018-2788</span></div>"}

abstract

{"value"=>"The James Riker Papers document the literary activity and family background of the New York historian and genealogist. The collection consists of original documents from colonial-era New York in Dutch and English, extracts and transcripts from New York and New Jersey historical records, genealogical notes, correspondence, writings, notebooks, printed matter and photographs. Also included are Civil War correspondence and military records of James Riker's brother, Colonel John Lafayette Riker of the New York 62nd Regiment Volunteer Infantry."}

langmaterial

{"value"=>"Colonial papers in Dutch, French and English"}

{"value"=>"English"}

prefercite

{"value"=>"<p>James Riker Papers, Manuscripts and Archives Division, The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations.</p>"}

origination

{"value"=>"Riker, James, 1822-1889", "type"=>"persname"}

bioghist

{"value"=>"<p>The historian James Riker was born on May 11, 1822 in New York City. His father was a merchant and landowner descended from early Dutch settlers. Riker left school at the age of sixteen to work in his father's business. During the late 1830s and early 1840s he lived intermittently in Goshen, New York, where he ran a store. By the mid-1840s he had settled at the family home on Delancey Street in Manhattan. There Riker studied informally for the Presbyterian ministry and began the genealogical and historical research that would occupy him for much of his life. He collected original documents from the colonial era, copied extracts from documents in state and local archives and corresponded extensively with historians, relatives and old family friends. In 1848 Riker moved with his father to Harlem. Two years later, having given up his plans for a religious career, he began work as a teacher in New York's Ward School 24. James Riker's first publication, a pamphlet genealogy that traced the Riker family to their early Dutch origins, appeared in 1851. He followed it with a substantial volume of local history, <span class=\"title\">The Annals of Newtown</span> (1852). Riker married Vashti Wood Horton in 1853, and the couple had several children. Vashti died in 1864, and Riker was re-married in 1867 to Anna C. Clute. Several years later Riker moved to Waverly, New York where he established the Waverly Library and Museum, and wrote two additional historical works, <span class=\"title\">Harlem (city of New York): its origin and early annals</span> (1881) and <span class=\"title\">Evacuation Day, 1783, with Recollections of Capt. John Van Arsdale, of the Veteran Corps of Artillery</span> (1883). In his later years Riker struggled financially and was forced to auction off a substantial portion of his library. James Riker died in 1889.</p>"}

scopecontent

{"value"=>"<p>The <span class=\"persname\">James Riker</span> Papers are a valuable source of information on colonial New York, the early settlement of Harlem and the history of the Riker family and their ancestors. The collection also provides insights on historical scholarship and family life during the nineteenth century. The papers consist of original documents from colonial New York, transcripts and translations of documents, genealogical notes, research notes and memoranda, personal and financial records, correspondence, writings by <span class=\"persname\">James Riker</span> and printed matter pertaining to his writings. Highlights include Dutch manuscript records of the town of Harlem (New York City), 1662-1674, in Dutch; Kingston, N.Y., church accounts, 1681-1684, in Dutch; original papers relating to the Harlem Commons; transcripts and extracts of early records concerning Harlem, Newtown, Long Island, Brooklyn and other early communities in New York; maps of Holland and New York; Civil War correspondence and military records of James Riker's brother <span class=\"persname\">John Lafayette Riker</span>, who was Colonel of the <span class=\"corpname\">United States Army New York Volunteer Infantry 62nd Regiment</span> (\"Anderson Zouaves\"); and photographs of the Riker family and their descendants.</p>"}

{"value"=>"<p class='list-head'>The James Riker papers are arranged in eight series:</p>\n<ul class='arrangement series-descriptions'>\n<li><div class='series-title'><a href='/mss/2581#c722953'>Series I. Correspondence</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1864-1894, n.d.</div>\n<div class='series-extent'>.5 linear feet</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>James Riker's correspondence files contain incoming and outgoing letters regarding his historical and genealogical research, the publication of his books and pamphlets and, to a lesser extent, his personal affairs. Several items that postdate Riker's death in 1889 are addressed to his widow, Anna. The chronologically arranged letters in Series I are complemented by additional correspondence filed in Subseries VIIIA, described below.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/mss/2581#c722961'>Series II. Colonial Papers</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1660-[1880s]</div>\n<div class='series-extent'>5 linear feet</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>The bulk of this series is comprised of Dutch manuscript records of Harlem pertaining to real estate transactions, wills, surveyor's reports, auditor's accounts and lawsuits. Of particular interest are several volumes of the Council Minutes of New Harlem from 1602-1760. Also included are extracts from church records and other documents from several New York-area towns including Bergen, N.J., Brooklyn, Kingston and Newtown. The material is arranged by town name.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/mss/2581#c723051'>Series III. Genealogical Papers</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1840s-1880s</div>\n<div class='series-extent'>1 linear foot</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>These files contain miscellaneous genealogical and demographic notes regarding New York families of the colonial era and their descendants. Interspersed among Riker's notes are extracts from church and town records.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/mss/2581#c723071'>Series IV. Notebooks</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1840s-1880s</div>\n<div class='series-extent'>.5 linear feet</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>These pocket notebooks contain diary entries, appointments, accounts, memoranda, genealogical references and research notes on Harlem and Newtown. The sixteen volumes were numbered by James Riker; a volume numbered 18 is included in the 1997 additions to the collection and is filed in Subseries VIIID, described below. Notebook number 17 is missing.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/mss/2581#c723088'>Series V. Miscellaneous Papers</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1790-1873, n.d.</div>\n<div class='series-extent'>1 linear foot</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>These files and volumes contain extracts from French and Dutch historical works, indexes to historical records and publications, notes of conversations with various persons regarding local history and genealogy, personal memoranda and maps.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/mss/2581#c723117'>Series VI. Writings by James Riker</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1880-1881</div>\n<div class='series-extent'>1 linear foot</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>Filed here are a draft manuscript of Riker's <span class=\"title\">History of Harlem</span> (1881) and related research notes, and a few pages of personal reminiscences.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/mss/2581#c723131'>Series VII. Memoria</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1840s-1880s</div>\n<div class='series-extent'>2 linear feet</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>These volumes contain extracts, clippings and research memoranda drawn largely from New York state and town records. There is abundant information regarding New York-area marriages, births and wills during the colonial era, with a particular emphasis on Newtown. Also included is information regarding the participation of New Yorkers in the French-Indian War and the American Revolution.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/mss/2581#c723149'>Series VIII. 1997 Additions</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1754-1989</div>\n<div class='series-extent'>4 linear feet</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>Additions to the James Riker Collection received by The New York Public Library in 1997 have been arranged into eight subseries which mirror the organization of the previously accessioned Riker materials described above. The eight subseries and their contents are described below.</p></div></li></ul>\n", "type"=>"arrangement"}

acqinfo

{"value"=>"<p>Donated by Title Guarantee and Trust Company, 1918; Nancy Hillegas, via Kroch Library, Cornell University, March 5, 1997.</p>"}

accessrestrict

{"value"=>"<p>Volumes 9-17, Volumes 23-39 and Box 5, Folder 1 are fragile and have been microfilmed. Readers are required to use the microfilm versions of these materials.</p>"}

processinfo

{"value"=>"<p>Compiled by Richard Salvato, Revised by Jim Moske; machine-readable finding aid created by Jim Moske.</p>"}

arrangement

{"value"=>"Eight series: I. Correspondence; II. Colonial Papers; III. Genealogical Papers; IV. Notebooks; V. Miscellaneous Papers; VI. Writings by James Riker; VII. Memoria; VIII. 1997 Additions", "supress_display"=>true}

altformavail

{"value"=>"<p>New Harlem (v. 9-17), Kingstown (b. 5, f. 1), Memoria (v. 23-29) available on ten microfilm reels; New York Public Library</p>"}

{"value"=>"<p>Van Arsdale book (from box 17) available on microfilm. *ZZ-38515</p>"}

langmaterial_code

dut

fre

eng

date_start

1660

date_end

1989

Update Collection TOP

Update from EAD XML File

Child components TOP

1. Series I. Correspondence [7/1]
2. Series II. Colonial Papers [89/1]
3. Series III. Genealogical Papers [19/1]
4. Series IV. Notebooks [16/1]
5. Series V. Miscellaneous Papers [28/1]
6. Series VI. Writings by James Riker [13/1]
7. Series VII. Memoria [17/1]
8. Series VIII. 1997 Additions [8/1]