Scope and arrangement
The William Wilson family papers, 1792-1884, comprise professional and personal correspondence of William Wilson and his sons Robert L. Wilson and William H. Wilson; correspondence among family members, including letters from Stephen B. Wilson during his U.S. Navy service; documents recording real property transactions, mostly in Columbia County; notebooks and maps of land surveys conducted in Columbia and Dutchess Counties, some signed by John Wigram; financial and legal documents; and printed ephemera. The papers chiefly pertain to Wilson's management of business affairs for the Livingston family, as well as for himself, and his own engagement in political and civic affairs in Columbia County; roles carried on to some extent by his son William H. Wilson. Also included are professional certificates and printed matter. William Wilson's notable correspondents include Robert R. Livingston (1746-1813), Edward P. Livingston (1779-1843), Nicholas Romayne (1756-1817), and Richard Varick (1753-1831).
Correspondence forms the bulk of the collection and is arranged by a generational listing of immediate family members, in alphabetical order by sender within: William Wilson; his wife Mary Howey Wilson; and their children in alphabetical order by surname, then first name. These are followed by letters and postcards sent or received by William H. Wilson's family members, 1837-1870, along with a small amount of third-party correspondence. There are no letters to or from William Wilson's daughters Mary Ann Wilson Shufeldt or Elizabeth Wilson Diblee.
William Wilson's incoming correspondence, 1792-1826, concerns business transactions conducted on behalf of the Livingstons, or in his own interest, with some sharing of political and local news; there are also letters from family members. His outgoing correspondence is found in a few drafts and copies of letters sent, 1801-1824, and in the incoming correspondence of his son Robert. The tendency of correspondents to address letters to William Wilson as Judge or Postmaster, titles also held by William H. Wilson during his father's lifetime, can lead to some confusion.
There are a number of friendly and informative letters written by Edward P. Livingston, 1802-1824. The earliest is written from Paris, while his father-in-law Robert R. Livingston was serving as U.S. Minister to France, with most of the remaining letters written from Albany, sharing political news. There are also two written by Henry Livingston in 1797, and one by Robert R. Livingston, 1801 January 29, discussing estate business and politics. Other correspondents include Wilson's friend, New York City physician Nicholas Romayne, and lawyer Richard Varick, Mayor of New York City. Varick's letters, 1800-1804, are mainly concerned with settling the estate of Philip L. Hoffman, with mention of enslaved persons. Prominent Columbia County correspondents include Abraham Spencer, Jacob Van Ness, William W. Van Ness, Peter Van Schaack, and Jacob Rutsen Van Rensselaer. Few letters date from the 1790s, and there is generally only passing reference to tenants, showing rather day-to-day business, property and farming transactions.
Letters received by Robert L. Wilson, 1820-1830, concern business and family matters. They are mostly from his brother William H. Wilson, writing of their father's illness and death, and family affairs; there is also a letter from his father. Also present are certificates pertaining to Robert's profession as a lawyer, 1815-1821.
Letters received by William H. Wilson, 1822-1861, are from business, personal and family correspondents. Business matters concern his administration of local properties for others, and the settlement of Brodhead family personal estates. An 1843 invoice with remarks from A. J. Downing & Co. lists extensive plantings purchased by Wilson.
Of interest among the correspondence of the immediate family are letters to William Wilson from his son Alexander and daughter Frances discussing their school arrangements, as well as Alexander's legal training in Albany, and Stephen B. Wilson's letters to his father and his brother William H., pertaining to his service as a U.S. Navy officer prior to the Civil War and personal affairs. There are also letters from relatives in Great Britain, including William Wilson's brother Alexander and sister Isabella Minster, and his wife's Howey and Torrence relatives, some written to his sons after learning of William Wilson's death.
Financial and legal documents, 1799-1870, include invoices, receipts, notes, insurance policies, a sheriff's bond, and other items, largely concerning the Wilson family's personal and professional affairs. A tuition bill from Union College, 1807, for an unnamed son is included.
Land documents, 1793-1823, 1872, consist of indentures, mortgages, deeds, and agreements concerning the leasing or conveyance of Livingston lands, as well as personal transactions of William Wilson and William H. Wilson. Most of the property is located in Columbia County.
Land surveys, 1790s-1842, notably illustrate the breakup of Livingston lands in the 1790s, especially the surveying of Great Lot No. 2 in the Town of Livingston. A set of maps signed by surveyor John Wigram show the laying out of farms for named individuals, and a large key map with an incomplete set of component maps, unsigned, shows the location of farms and other features in the township, dating from approximately 1800. Notebooks of surveys in Dutchess County taken by surveyor Alexander Thompson, 1794-1800, are also present.
Printed ephemera concern a legal case over Livingston land, dating after 1794, the opening and operation of the Claremont Academy, 1834-1844, and electoral politics in Columbia and Dutchess Counties, [1823]-1833.
Printed matter consists of the October 1794 issue of the New-York Magazine, or Literary Repository, and a clipped newspaper obituary for William H. Wilson [1884].