Sayles Jenks Bowen Papers (Library of Congress)

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Outline view: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.ms009108
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Sayles Jenks Bowen Papers

A Finding Aid to the Collection in the Library of Congress

Prepared by Ahmed-Jahmal Johnson

Manuscript Division, Library of Congress

Washington, D.C.

2000

Contact information: http://lcweb.loc.gov/rr/mss/address.html

Finding aid encoded by Library of Congress Manuscript Division, 2009

Finding aid URL: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.ms009108

Title: Sayles Jenks Bowen Papers
Span Dates: 1836-1882
Bulk Dates: (bulk 1876-1882)
ID No.: MSS75887
Creator: Bowen, Sayles Jenks (1813-1896)
Extent: 1,000 items; 5 containers; 1.8 linear feet
Language: Collection material in English
Repository: Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Abstract: Public official and mayor of Washington, D.C. Family and general correspondence and business and legal papers, chiefly 1876-1882. Topics include the elections of 1876 and 1880, the presidential administration of Rutherford Birchard Hayes, and political support for James Gillespie Blaine, James A. Garfield, and Chester A. Arthur.

Selected Search Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the Library's online catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed alphabetically therein.

Personal Names
Arthur, Chester Alan, 1829-1886.
Blaine, James Gillespie, 1830-1893--Correspondence.
Blaine, James Gillespie, 1830-1893.
Bowen, Sayles Jenks, 1813-1896.
Chandler, William E. (William Eaton), 1835-1917--Correspondence.
Douglass, Frederick, 1818-1895--Correspondence.
Fenton, Reuben E. (Reuben Eaton), 1819-1885--Correspondence.
Garfield, James A. (James Abram), 1831-1881.
Grant, Ulysses S. (Ulysses Simpson), 1822-1885.
Hayes, Rutherford Birchard, 1822-1893.
Lincoln, Robert Todd, 1843-1926--Correspondence.
Platt, James H., 1837-1894--Correspondence.
Reid, Whitelaw, 1837-1912--Correspondence.

Subjects
Elections--United States--1876.
Elections--United States--1880.

Locations
United States--Politics and government--19th century.

Occupations
Mayors--Washington (D.C.)
Public officials.

Administrative Information

Provenance:

The papers of Sayles Jenks Bowen, public official and mayor of Washington, D.C., were deposited in the Library of Congress by Charles Barker in 1977. Part of the collection was converted to gift and the rest purchased in 1978.

Copyright Status:

The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Sayles Jenks Bowen is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.).

Access and Restrictions

The Sayles Jenks Bowen papers are open to research. Researchers are advised to contact the Manuscript Reading Room prior to visiting. Many collections are stored off-site and advance notice is needed to retrieve these items for research use.

Preferred Citation:

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Container number, Sayles Jenks Bowen papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.

Biographical Note

Date	Event
1813, Oct. 23	Born, Cayuga County, N.Y.
1835	Married Mary Barker
1844	Moved to Washington, D.C.
1845	Appointed a clerk at the Treasury Department, Washington, D.C.
1856	Claims agent for army veterans of the Mexican War
1861	Named Commissioner of Metropolitan Police, Washington, D.C.
1862	Collector of Internal Revenue
1863	Postmaster, Washington, D.C.
1866	Member, Republican National Committee, District of Columbia
1868-1870	Mayor of Washington, D.C.
1896, Dec. 16	Died, Washington, D.C.

Scope and Content Note

The papers of Sayles Jenks Bowen (1813-1896) span the years 1836-1896, with the bulk of the material dated during the period 1876-1882. The collection consists primarily of family, general, and business correspondence with few items from the period of Bowen’s decade of public service. Family correspondence covers the period 1838-57 as well as the 1860s. Bills, receipts, checks, loan agreements, and a variety of legal papers constitute the remainder of the collection.

Subjects in the Bowen Papers include the presidential campaign and disputed election of 1876, the administration of President Rutherford Birchard Hayes, opposition to Ulysses S. Grant, and political support for James Gillespie Blaine, James A. Garfield, and Chester A. Arthur. Correspondents include James Gillespie Blaine, William E. Chandler, Frederick Douglass, Rueben E. Fenton, Robert Todd Lincoln, James H. Platt, and Whitelaw Reid.

Arrangement of the Papers

This collection is arranged chronologically.

Container List

Container	Contents


BOX 1	1836-1875
		(4 folders)

BOX 1	1876

BOX 1		Jan.-Oct.
			(3 folders)

BOX 2		Nov.-Dec.

BOX 2	1877
		(3 folders)

BOX 2	1878

BOX 2		Jan.-Mar.

BOX 3		Apr-Dec.
			(4 folders)

BOX 3	1879 (4 folders)

BOX 4	1880
		(8 folders)

BOX 5	1882, 1896, undated
		(5 folders)

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