Palmer Family (Pontiac, Mich.) papers, circa 1814-1940

Summary

Creator:

Palmer family (Pontiac, Mich.)

Abstract:

Upper-class Michigan family in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries with various business interests including lumbering, mining, and land transactions in Montana, Michigan, California, West Virginia, and British Columbia. The family was also active in the development of the Orchard lake area, especially during in the 1920s through the 1940s. The collection contains both business and personal materials including correspondence, subject files, legal records, maps, blueprints, and photographs.

Extent:

2 linear feet
1.9 GB

Language:

English

Call Number:

8978 Aa 2

Authors:

Finding aid created by Amy Fischer Min, 1992 Elena Colon-Marrero, October 2015; Emily Mathay May 2021.

Background

Scope and Content:

The Palmer Family papers document the activities of an upper-class family in nineteenth-century and early twentieth-century Michigan. The strength of the collection is its documentation of the growth of early business in Michigan. The Charles Henry Palmer (Senior) series contains the bulk of this information, with papers documenting his activities as an investor in mining and railroads in Michigan's Upper Peninsula from the 1850s through the 1880s. The balance of the collection contains both business and personal materials documenting the lives of various Palmer family members. Materials include correspondence, legal materials, business records, photographs, diaries and journals, and newspaper clippings.

Biographical / Historical:

Charles Henry Palmer (Senior) was born on June 4, 1814 to Huldah and Stephen Wheeler Palmer in Lenox, New York. He graduated from Union College in 1837. Soon after graduating, Palmer was elected principal of the Fredonia Academy in Fredonia, NY. On April 18, 1839, Palmer married Betsey Ann Cowles.

In 1847, Charles and Betsey moved to Macomb County in Michigan. Charles took a job as principal and math teacher at the Romeo Academy, a branch of the University of Michigan (U-M), until the University decided to close the various branches. In 1851, Charles was elected to U-M's first board of regents. He served from 1852-1858. During this time he was corresponding secretary to the Board in 1853, and chairman of the special committee on the presidency. Charles also advocated for the selection of Henry Philip Tappan as the first president of U-M.

In 1853, Charles and Betsey moved their family to Pontiac, Michigan. In 1854, Charles began developing and investing in copper and iron ore mines in the Upper Peninsula, including the Pewabic Copper Mine, the Franklin Mining Company, and the South Pewabic Mine. He also joined groups of investors to help develop the Marquette, Houghton & Ontonagon Railroad, the American Iron & Manufacturing Company, and the Portage Lake and River Improvement Company Canal connecting Portage Lake with Lake Superior.

In 1869, Charles bought the Palmer-Loring tract that was adjacent to the Calumet and Hecla Minding Company's property. In 1875, he sued Elisa T. Loring and Charles A. Welch claiming he was entitled to a one-third interest in their land as partner. An 1882 trial court sided with Charles, so Loring and Welch appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. Before a decision was made, the property was sold to the Calumet and Hecla Mining Company and one-third of the proceeds were placed in a trust. In January 1886, the Supreme Court affirmed the trial court's decision. Charles was entitled to one-third of the property plus one-third of all mining profits made from the property since 1865.

During the 1870's, Charles was a Trustee of the Eastern Michigan Insane Asylum and served as a Trustee of the Michigan Military Academy in Orchard Lake. He was also a vestryman of the Zion Protestant Episcopal Church of Pontiac from 1861-1877.

In 1860, the Palmer family moved to 223 West Huron Street. The house stayed in the Palmer family for six generations.

Betsey Ann Cowles was born was born on March 4, 1822 to Lydia Dada and Amos Churchill Cowles in Otisco, Onondaga County, New York. The family then moved to Homer in Courtland County, NY. Betsey taught botany and language at the Fredonia Academy where Charles Henry Palmer was the principal. They married on April 18, 1839. After the family moved to Michigan in 1847, Betsey became an instructor at the Romeo Academy where she taught French, Botany, and History. She also served as the principal of the Female Department at the Academy until 1851. Betsey died on November 6, 1898.

Charles and Betsey had five children: Virena Miranda, Henry Charles Jr., Clarence Arvin, Virginia Louise, and Philomela Cowles.

Virena Miranda Palmer was the eldest child born to Betsey and Charles Palmer (Senior). She was born on February 9, 1840 in Fredonia, Chautauqua County, New York. Virena moved to Michigan with her family in 1847. She married George W. Waldron on November 22, 1860. After their marriage, the couple moved to Saginaw, Michigan. Virena died on October 15, 1861. On March 24, 1862, her husband George Waldron enlisted in Company C Michigan 5th Infantry Regiment of the U.S. Army. He died in Pontiac, Michigan on October 26, 1869.

Charles Henry Palmer, Jr. (known as "Henry") was the second eldest child born to Betsey and Charles Palmer, Sr. He was born on June 5, 1841 in Fredonia, New York. In 1859, he began studying science and engineering at the University of Michigan (U-M). Charles Henry enlisted in the Union Army in 1862, but stayed at U-M to complete his studies. He graduated in 1863. After graduating, Charles Henry accompanied Dr. Henry P. Tappan's family to Europe where he studied metallurgy at the University of Berlin. He returned to the United States in 1866, and from 1866-1870 was the engineer of the Atlantic Mine (formerly known as the South Pewabic) in the Upper Peninsula. From 1870-1871 he was engineer of the Silver Islet Mining Company. In 1871 he stopped working in mining and pivoted to railroading. From 1879-1888, Charles Henry was involved with railroads in the Lake Superior region.

In 1888, Charles Henry purchased property near Butte, Montana, where he established the Boston & Butte Mining Company. He also served as president of the Silver Bow Club in Butte from 1890-1895. After Charles Henry left Montana, he moved to Atlantic City, New Jersey.

On December 29, 1874, Charles Henry married Mary Elizabeth Spalding in Port Huron, Michigan. They had one child - Elizabeth Virginia Palmer - on November 5, 1875. He died in Atlantic City on December 27, 1911.

Virginia Louise Palmer was born in Macomb County, Michigan on May 26, 1846 to Betsey Ann Cowles and Charles Henry Palmer Sr. She attended the Auburn Young Ladies Institute in Auburn, New York. She married Hersey Derbey "Derby" Pickman on May 15, 1882. The couple lived in Dillon, Montana.

Hersey was born on September 28, 1843. He served in the Union Army during the Civil War and graduated from Harvard Medical School in 1868. Hersey was a physician for the Bay Furnace Company on Lake Superior from 1870-1876. He opened his own hospital in Dillon after moving there with Virginia. He served as the Surgeon General for Montana and was elected to the Montana legislature in 1888. He died on January 22, 1896. After Hersey died, Virginia moved to Pontiac, Michigan. She died on June 5, 1899.

Philomela Cowles Palmer Hoffman (Phila) was born on January 3, 1851 to Betsey Ann Cowles and Charles Henry Palmer Sr. She studied music, particularly piano, with George Augustus Hoyt and eventually taught music herself. Philomela married Conrad Ambrose Hoffman on August 30, 1900. Hoffman was a childhood friend of the Palmers and a concert violinist. Hoffman died in 1916. Philomela remained in Pontiac, Michigan until her death on November 5, 1930.

Elizabeth Virginia Palmer Bradfield (also known as "Bess") was the only child of Mary Elizabeth Spalding Palmer and Charles Henry Palmer, Jr. She was born on November 5, 1875 in Port Huron, Michigan. Elizabeth attended a dancing school in Boston, as well as the New England Conservatory of Music. She graduated from the Quincy Hall School in Boston around 1893. She then attended the Ogonz School for Young Ladies in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania circa 1893-1894. After graduating, she and her mother traveled to Paris, where Elizabeth studied sculpture at the Julian Academy. Upon their return to the United States, Elizabeth became a sculptor.

On October 24, 1896, Elizabeth married Thomas Parks Bradfield in Port Huron, Michigan. Thomas graduated from U-M in 1894, and from U-M's law school in 1896. Elizabeth and Thomas had their first child, Virginia Palmer Bradfield, on October 27, 1897. On August 18, 1899 they had their second child, Thomas Palmer Bradfield. In 1904, Elizabeth left Thomas, and took the children to live with her mother in Atlantic City, later settling in Pontiac, Michigan. Elizabeth filed a Petition for Divorce, which Thomas contested until 1913, when a divorce decree was entered into the Oakland County Circuit Court. She died May 27, 1954.

Acquisition Information:

The bulk of the collection was donated by Todd Golding (donor no. 7249 ) in September 1991; the student notebooks were the gift of Mrs. Palmer Bradfield (Donor no. 665 ). Additional donations by Suzanne DeVine (donor no. 11259 ) in April 2015 and December 2019.

Processing information:

In preparing digital material for long-term preservation and access, the Bentley Historical Library adheres to professional best practices and standards to ensure that content will retain its authenticity and integrity. For more information on procedures for the ingest and processing of digital materials, please see Bentley Historical Library Digital Processing Note. Access to digital material may be provided either as a direct link to an individual file or as a downloadable package of files bundled in a zip file.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged into 11 series: 1. Betsey Ann Cowles Palmer, 2. Charles Henry Palmer (Senior), 3. Charles Henry Palmer (Junior), 4. Elizabeth Virginia Palmer Bradfield, 5. Mary Elizabeth Spalding Palmer and Spalding Family, 6. Palmer Family History and Astrological Information, 7. Philomela Cowles Palmer Hoffman, 8. Photographs, 9. Thomas Parks Bradfield and Virginia Palmer Bradfield, 10. Virena Miranda Palmer, 11. Virginia Louise Palmer.

Related

Additional Descriptive Data:

Related Material

The Bentley Historical Library holds the Ward Family Papers and the Edmond DeVine Papers.

Subjects

Click on terms below to find any related finding aids on this site.

Subjects:

Astrology.
Capitalists and financiers -- Michigan.
Mines and mineral resources -- Michigan -- Upper Peninsula.
Railroads -- Michigan.
Travelers.
Women capitalists and financiers -- Michigan.

Formats:

Diaries.
Photographs.

Names:

Eastern Railroad Company.
University of Michigan. Board of Regents.
University of Michigan -- Student notebooks.
Palmer, Charles Henry, -1911.
Tappan, Henry Philip, 1805-1881.
White, Andrew Dickson, 1832-1918.
Wood, De Volson, 1832-1897.
Bradfield, Elizabeth Palmer.
Palmer, Charles Henry, 1814-1887.

Places:

Pontiac (Mich.)
Upper Peninsula (Mich.)