Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps Farm Records Finding Aid : Special Collections and University Archives, UMass Amherst Libraries

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Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps established Phelps Farm in 1816, constructing the farmhouse across the road from Forty Acres; a farmstead that his grandparents founded more than 60 years prior. Over time, Phelps Farm became one of the most successful and profitable farms in Hadley. Now a part of the “Forty Acres and its Skirts” National Historic District, both Phelps Farm and Forty Acres represent the rich communal heritage existing among the descendants of Hadley’s first European settlers.

The Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps Farm Collection follows the intertwining lines of many families, but primarily traces the line that managed Forty Acres and Phelps Farm: the Porters, the Phelps, the Bulfinches, the Huntingtons, the Sessions, the Hacketts, and the Pierces. The collection as a whole provides numerous first-hand accounts of what life was like on Forty Acres and Phelps Farm over the generations. Materials include diaries, in particular the diaries of Elizabeth (Porter) Phelps, which span 54 years; financial records; photographs; genealogies; family items; and documents related to the farm.

Background on Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps family

Moses and Elizabeth Pitkin Porter, Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps’s grandparents, were among the first Europeans to settle in the newly-founded Hadley. "Forty Acres and its Skirts" began as a collective farming meadow for the town, but the Porters eventually acquired the property and in 1752, built a farmstead they named "Forty Acres." Upon Moses Porter’s death in 1755, Elizabeth Pitkin Porter began seeking out farm managers to assist with the farm’s operations. This decision introduced Charles Phelps Jr to Forty Acres in 1770, and he soon married Elizabeth’s daughter (also named Elizabeth). Under Charles and Elizabeth Porter Phelps, the farm’s focus shifted more towards livestock and dairy production. Elizabeth Porter Phelps ensured that Forty Acres remained an integral part of the community, both through her physical labor and her hospitality.

Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps was born to Charles Phelps Jr. and Elizabeth Porter Phelps in 1772, and his birth marked the beginning of the third generation to live at Forty Acres. Despite being the eldest, Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps did not inherit the farmhouse. Instead, he established Phelps Farm across the road in 1816. (His sister, Elizabeth Whiting Phelps, returned with her husband Dan Huntington to take over Forty Acres in 1817.) The wealth to build Phelps Farm came from Charles’s heavy investment in the transatlantic trade of plantation goods and enslaved people. Records of his commercial involvement in this trade can be found in this collection, and they are the only documents of their kind from a Hadley property. Charles had initially intended for Phelps Farm to be a merino sheep farm. These farms were generally extremely lucrative during the War of 1812, but had started to grow out of fashion by 1817. As the merino sheep venture proved to be less profitable than initially anticipated, Charles shifted his priorities towards crop cultivation, and this proved a much greater success. By 1850, Phelps Farm was recognized as the most valuable farm in Hadley, with its key exports including beef, pork, and corn.

Upon Charles’s death in 1857, his sons Charles IV and Arthur Phelps jointly managed Phelps Farm. Eventually, Charles IV took over managing the entire property. The farm saw a significant decline in value around this time, and ownership of the farm eventually went to Ellen Bullfinch, Charles IV’s niece and Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps’s granddaughter. Ellen owned the farm until 1893, likely living there in the summers, before she sold it to Frederic Dan Huntington who was both the current owner of Forty Acres as well as her first cousin once-removed. Frederic then handed the property off to his daughter Ruth Huntington Sessions to use as a summer estate.

Though she only lived there in the summers, Ruth transformed the property into a thriving dairy farm, which is what it would remain until 1978. This commercial venture proved quite successful thanks to Ruth’s work in garnering its reputation among locals: since she was also in charge of a dormitory for Smith College students, she regularly supplied residents with fresh products from the farm. Around 1925, Ruth convinced her son, John Archibald Sessions, to move back onto Phelps Farm and take over. He did so, returning to the property with his wife, Doheny (Hackett) Sessions. The couple lived there year-round, expanding and improving on the farm. They renovated the dairy barn, built several new structures including three new silos, and by 1930 they had expanded the dairy herd from five cows to 55. In the 1930s, Phelps Farm became one of only 12 “fluid milk companies” in Massachusetts authorized to feed its herd irradiated yeast. The addition of this yeast to the cows’ feed resulted in milk that was substantially higher in vitamin D. This was one of several ways in which John and Doheny Sessions sought to improve the safety, quality, and nutritional value of Phelps Farm milk. In addition, John served as president of both the Hampshire County Dairyman’s Association and the Federated Dairy Associations of Massachusetts before his death in 1948.

Upon John’s death, Doheny continued to manage the farm alongside the Pierce family, whom her and John had initially brought in to assist with labor on the growing farm. In the coming decades, Doheny and the Pierces would obtain additional labor from local workers. Among these farmhands were agriculture students from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. After a number of dramatic changes to the local dairy industry that led to the decline of small-scale dairy farming, Doheny decided to sell the dairy herd in 1978. The next year, the nearby Parsons Farms began renting Phelps Farm’s agricultural land for additional cultivation space, and the Phelps house eventually became a part of the “Forty Acres and Its Skirts” National Historic District alongside the Forty Acres farmstead.

Scope of collection

The Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps Farm Collection is extensive and varied, including works originally written as early as 1763 and as late as 2007. It follows the intertwining lines of many families, but primarily traces the line that managed Forty Acres and Phelps Farm: the Porters, the Phelps, the Bulfinches, the Huntingtons, the Sessions, the Hacketts, and the Pierces. The collection as a whole provides numerous first-hand accounts of what life was like on Forty Acres and Phelps Farm over the generations.

Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps’s materials are the most plentiful in the collection, though they focus more on finances, commerce, and farming operations at Phelps Farm as opposed to Charles’s life. However, the collection does also contain a handful of his diaries well as some of his personal correspondences with family members. Together, these materials hint at Charles’s experiences in establishing and managing Phelps Farm, and they highlight his heavy investments into overseas plantation trade. Hundreds of checks from Ruth Huntington Sessions and her son John A. Sessions provide a glimpse into the numerous business interactions that the family at Phelps Farm participated in throughout the 1940s.

At its heart, the Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps Farm Collection does not belong to any one person, or even to any one family. It contains detailed genealogical information for at least a dozen families, including family trees and note cards providing names of various family members, alongside many photographs that depict both family members and scenes around the farm. The collection is organized into six categories: diaries; family materials including artwork, published works, notes, and personal items; photographs, genealogical notes, and scrapbooks; business and personal correspondence; farm materials such as logs and almanacs; and financial and legal documents.

The majority of this collection’s diaries detail the lives of Elizabeth (Porter) Phelps and Constant Huntington. Transcripts of Elizabeth’s 54 years worth of weekly entries paint a picture of Hadley in the latter half of the 18th century and into the 19th century. Four generations later, her descendant Constant Huntington also kept diaries spanning from 1901 to 1962 that provide similar insight for the 20th century, though he did not remain at Forty Acres for long.

This collection contains a diverse range of items once owned by family members. These include books, artwork, calendars, passports, periodicals, personal effects, and even the hair of Sarah Davenport Parson’s Phelps–Charles’s first wife. The items in this category speak to what kinds of belongings the family held dear, and provide some information about day to day life in Hadley.

The collection’s photographs and scrapbooks supplement the family materials well, capturing more intimate moments primarily from the Sessions family. The meticulous documentation is a testament to the deep love the family held for their farm, their home, and for the animals they raised.

Letter correspondences between family members indicate that even while individual family members often moved away from Hadley, they remained closely connected with their relatives. The fact that these letters remain so well-preserved is also a sign that these people valued familial ties. Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps even seemed to store a number of his family correspondences with the same care in which he stored his many years of business correspondence, indicated by how both kinds of letters were folded and labelled in the exact same way.

The collection also includes materials pertaining to managing Phelps Farm itself. Farm logs spanning throughout most of the 19th century detail exact planting information and other agricultural records. These are supplemented with farmer’s almanacs that include astronomical tables and notes on weather and farm products sold.

The largest category in the Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps Farm Collection includes hundreds of financial documents pertaining to the Phelps family’s business ventures. This includes business correspondence from as early as 1785 and as late as the 20th century, addressed to numerous business partners and clients. Alongside these correspondences are more than 30 account books belonging primarily to the Phelps family, as well as shipping documents that record Charles’s involvement in overseas commerce before his establishment of Phelps Farm. The financial and legal category also includes family bank records and checks from Ruth Huntington Sessions, John A. Sessions, and Doheny Hackett Sessions, who ran Phelps Farm in the 20th century. Also notable in this category are the many documents related to property, including legal agreements, deeds, inventories, and wills.

Series descriptions

Series 1. Diaries

1763-1962

This series consists mainly of diary entries from Elizabeth (Porter) Phelps and Constant Huntington. Elizabeth’s weekly writings over 54 years provide insight into what life was like for a rural woman in the 18th century, including her involvement in both management and manual labor at Forty Acres. Constant Huntington’s roughly 62 years of entries relate much less to farm life, since the vast majority of his writings are from after he moved to London in 1905. This series also contains a handful of diaries from Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps and one from his wife, Sarah Phelps.

Series 2. Family

1769-2007

This series is the most varied of the collection: it contains artwork, calendars, books, periodicals, maps, and passports–alongside many other items. Some stand-out materials in this series include a memoir written by Sarah Davenport (Parsons) Phelps, a written 1960 tour through the Porter-Phelps-Huntington Museum and additional writings on the history of Forty Acres by Dr. James Lincoln Huntington, a paper on child psychology written by Doheny H. Sessions, Ruth Huntington Sessions’s The Ups and Downs of Emily, and first-hand accounts of the floods that devastated Franklin County in the 1930s.

Series 3. Photographs and genealogies

ca. 1775-1991

This series is primarily made up of photographs including posed portraits, candids, family members, animals, and farm building interior and exteriors. Some of these photographs have been placed into folders while others remain in their original cases and frames. Additional photographs appear in scrapbooks made by the Sessions family, and still more appear alongside several of the collection’s genealogical note cards. More genealogical information comes in the form of family trees that stretch back at least as far as the 17th century.

Series 4. Correspondence

ca. 1810-2012

This series contains letters sent to and from the collection’s family members, mainly in regards to personal matters. Most of these personal correspondences come from the Phelps family, including Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps himself, while several others come from the Sessions family. The majority of these letters are addressed to relatives.

Series 5. Farm

1767-2000

This series largely consists of farm logs and almanacs from Phelps Farm. Most of these likely belonged to Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps and his sons, though some log fragments date back to before Phelps Farm’s inception. The almanacs in this collection are a combination of farmer’s and Boston almanacs. Other notable materials in this series include construction plans for Phelps buildings, awards that were granted to both Sessions Farm and Phelps Farm, and a statement on discontinuation of the farm in 1934 (this is likely in reference to Sessions Farm and not Phelps Farm.)

Series 6. Financial and legal

1785-1952

This series is the largest, containing hundreds of financial and legal documents from the Phelps and Sessions families. Miscellaneous financial documents from Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps’s business dealings make up the bulk of this series. Nearly all of the 31 account books in this collection are also the property of Charles. The Sessions family is also represented through bank items like checks, checkbooks, charge slips, duplicating deposit slips, and account statements. Documents related to property are present as well, including agreements, deeds, inventories, mortgages, trusts, and wills. Shipping information details Charles’s involvement in overseas trade. Other notable sub-categories in this series include insurance, taxes, and miscellaneous legal documents.

Inventory

Series 1. Diaries

1763-1962

Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript

1763-1768

Box 1

Includes introduction to life and family (written by somebody else?); seemingly the beginning of this transcript; includes handwritten annotations

Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript

1768-1771

Box 1

Includes annotated notes

Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript

1771-1775

Box 1

Includes annotated notes

Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript

1775-1777

Box 1

Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript

1777-1781

Box 1

Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript

1781-1784

Box 1

Numbering goes up to 547 then jumps back to 1, but the entries themselves remain consistent

Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: published transcript

1763-1785

Box 1

Later publication of diary, real date is 1700s, publish date is 1964-1965; because this was published in a periodical, page numbers are inconsistent; includs handwritten note on "Loyalist Troubles" (1775-1778)

Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript

1784-1786

Box 1

Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript

1786-1790

Box 1

Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript

1790-1794

Box 1

Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript

1794-1799

Box 1

Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript

1799-1805

Box 1

Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript

1805-1810

Box 1

Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: published transcript

1785-1816

Box 1

Later publication of diary, real date is 1700s, publish date is 1965-1969; because this was published in a periodical, page numbers are inconsistent; diary ends in 1805, Hadley birth & death list included, extending from 1794-1816

Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript

1810-1817

Box 1

Numbering goes up to 587 then jumps back to 1, but the entries themselves remain consistent; interspersed with pages adding handwritten notes to certain dates; includes Hadley birth & death list 1794-1816; 1817: Elizabeth's death year, specific day unknown

Phelps, Charles (Moses) Porter

1841-1843

Box 1

Phelps, Charles (Moses) Porter

1847

Box 1

Phelps, Charles (Moses) Porter

1848

Box 1

Phelps, Charles (Moses) Porter

1849

Box 1

Phelps, Sarah

1856-1859, 1871-1888

Box 1

Front page says 1856-1859, 1871-1873, and 1878-1888, but the latest writing seems to be from 1886

Huntington, Constant

1901 Jan.

Box 1

Attributed to Huntington, Constant but not written in his hand(?)

Huntington, Constant

1901 Feb.

Box 1

Attributed to Huntington, Constant but not written in his hand(?)

Huntington, Constant

1906-1908

Box 1

Huntington, Constant

1909-1910

Box 1

Huntington, Constant

1910

Box 1

Huntington, Constant

1911

Box 1

Huntington, Constant

1912-1913

Box 1

Huntington, Constant

1913-1914

Box 1

Huntington, Constant

1914

Box 2

Huntington, Constant

1915-1917

Box 2

Huntington, Constant

1917 May-Sep.

Box 2

Huntington, Constant

1917-1918

Box 2

Huntington, Constant

1918

Box 2

Huntington, Constant

1919-1920

Box 2

Huntington, Constant

1920

Box 2

Huntington, Constant

1921

Box 2

Huntington, Constant

1922

Box 2

Huntington, Constant

1923

Box 2

Huntington, Constant

1924 Jun.-Aug.

Box 2

June 10-28 copied over into separate diary (note the crossing out)

Huntington, Constant

1924-1925

Box 2

January = 1925, June 10th onwards = 1924; 1925 continued in another diary; June 10th-June 28th copied over from other diary (1924)

Huntington, Constant

1925

Box 2

Huntington, Constant

1926

Box 2

Huntington, Constant

1927

Box 2

Huntington, Constant

1928

Box 2

Huntington, Constant

1929

Box 2

Huntington, Constant

1930

Box 2

Huntington, Constant

1931

Box 2

Huntington, Constant

1932

Box 3

Huntington, Constant

1933

Box 3

Huntington, Constant

1934

Box 3

Huntington, Constant

1935

Box 3

Huntington, Constant

1936

Box 3

Huntington, Constant

1937

Box 3

Huntington, Constant

1938

Box 3

Huntington, Constant

1939

Box 3

Huntington, Constant

1940

Box 3

Huntington, Constant

1941

Box 3

Huntington, Constant

1942

Box 3

Huntington, Constant

1943

Box 3

Huntington, Constant

1944

Box 3

Huntington, Constant

1945

Box 3

Huntington, Constant

1946-1947

Box 3

Huntington, Constant

1947-1948

Box 4

Huntington, Constant

1948-1949

Box 4

Huntington, Constant

1949

Box 4

Huntington, Constant

1950

Box 4

Huntington, Constant

1951

Box 4

Huntington, Constant

1952

Box 4

Huntington, Constant

1953

Box 4

Huntington, Constant

1954

Box 4

Huntington, Constant

1955

Box 4

Huntington, Constant

1956

Box 4

Huntington, Constant

1957

Box 4

Huntington, Constant

1958

Box 4

Huntington, Constant

1959

Box 4

Huntington, Constant

1960

Box 4

Huntington, Constant

1961

Box 4

Huntington, Constant

1962

Box 4

Records the last year of his life, up until days before his death; final entry seemingly on November 24, is practically incoherent.

Series 2. Family

1769-2007

Artwork

ca. 1850

Box 5

Painted by the Bulfinch sisters (Annie & Ellen Bulfinch)

Artwork

ca. 1950

Box 5

Artwork

1992-1994

Box 5

Artwork

ca. 1800s-ca. 1900s

Box 5

Various artwork and miscellaneous materials

"Calendar of Hadley, Mass.: Documents in Mass. Archives

ca. 1900s

Box 5

Includes information from 17th and 18th century Hadley records

Calendar: Huntington, Constant

1902

Box 5

Calendar: Huntington, Constant

1903-1906

Box 5

Calendar: Huntington, Constant

1956

Box 5

Calendar: Huntington, Constant

1958-1959

Box 5

Calendar: Huntington, Constant

1959-1960

Box 5

Calendar: Huntington, Constant

1960

Box 5

Calendar: Huntington, Constant

1961

Box 5

Calendar: Huntington, Constant

1962

Box 5

Certificate of membership to Bunker Hill Monument Association: Phelps, Charles P.

ca. 1823

Box 14

Phelps, Charles: memorial programs

1882

Box 5

Commemorative Card, fragment

1988

Box 5

"Companionable Clock-Strikes," pages 1-3

1769-1779

Box 5

Includes drawing attributed to Benjamin Lamb

Contact book

ca. 1900s

Box 5

Contact book

ca. 1900s

Box 5

Contact book

ca. 1800s

Box 13

Document descriptions: Phelps, Charles Porter, documents

ca. 1900s

Box 5

Includes descriptions of 18th and 19th century documents

"Dr. James Lincoln Huntington's 1960 tour through the Porter-Phelps-Huntington Museum"

1960

Box 5

Altered 1971

"Exceptional Children in Nursery School": paper

1952

Box 5

Written by Doheny H. Sessions

Family reunion documents: Porter-Phelps-Huntington

2002

Box 5

"Flood Views: Franklin County and Vicinity"

1936 Mar.

Box 5

Contains images from the Great Flood of 1936

Fortnightly Paper: notes and materials

1946-1973

Box 5

Contains meeting notes and records from the Fortnightly Paper/Fortnightly Club, drafts of papers submitted for publish

"Forty Acres: The Story of the Bishop Huntington House"

1949

Box 5

Written by James Lincoln Huntington, photographs by Samuel Chamberlain

Hadley flood plain notes

1976, 1991

Box 5

Hair: Miss Phelps

ca. 1824

Box 5

Hair: Phelps, Sarah D.

1817

Box 5

"The Harvard Album"

1899

Box 5

Historic Deerfield: pamphlets

1987-1988

Box 5

"Horatian Echoes: Translations of the Odes of Horace": front matter

1893

Box 5

Written by John Osborne Sargent; 21st century copy

"The Huntingtons: Simon and What He Started"

2007

Box 5

Identity card: Constant Huntington

1943-1949

Box 5

Maps: road from Hadley to Sunderland

1816

Box 5

Maps: Sunderland

1900s

Box 5

Materials regarding family crests

ca. 1888

Box 5

Materials regarding Hackett family deaths

1834-1836, 1868

Box 5

"Memoir of Mrs. Sarah Davenport (Parsons) Phelps": copy

ca. 1857

Box 5

"Memoir of Mrs. Sarah Davenport (Parsons) Phelps": copy

ca. 1857

Box 5

"Memoir of Mrs. Sarah Davenport (Parsons) Phelps": fragment

1857

Box 5

Miscellaneous materials

ca. 1800s-ca. 1900s

Box 12

Contains framed photographs, notes, and other delicate items

Northampton School for Girls: Sarah Sessions: grade report

1945

Box 5

Notebook: Huntington, Constant

1909-1910

Box 5

Notebook: Huntington, Constant

ca. 1950

Box 6

Likely to be Constant Huntington based on handwriting, but no direct attribution

Notes: contact information

ca. 1900

Box 6

Notes: Margaret Hackett

ca. 1900s

Box 6

Notes: miscellaneous

ca. 1800s-ca. 1900s

Box 6

Passports: Huntington, Constant

1938-1943

Box 6

Passports: Huntington, Constant

1941-1943

Box 6

Passports: Huntington, Constant

1946-1947

Box 6

Passports: Huntington, Constant

1950-1955

Box 6

Passports: Huntington, Constant

1955-1959

Box 6

Passports: Huntington, Constant

1959-1961

Box 6

Passports: Huntington, Gladys Parrish

1955-1959

Box 6

Periodicals: Boston Semi-Weekly Journal

1868 Oct.

Box 6

Periodicals: Christian Science Monitor

1975 Nov.

Box 6

Contains "Suddenly ... Music!" by Ruth Huntington, a letter originally written in 1883

Periodicals: Harvard Musical Review

1914 Jun.-Jul.

Box 6

Two volumes; June 1914 contains "Fifty Years of Richard Strauss-II" by Roger H. Sessions

Periodicals: Massachusetts Founding Farms

1988 Sep.

Box 6

Contains entry on Phelps Farm

Periodicals: miscellaneous newspaper clippings

ca. 1950, 1996

Box 6

Contains "Summer Day 50 Years Ago Recalled At North Hadley" by Hannah Sessions Andrews and other entries relating to the family

Periodicals: Month at Goodspeed's

1967-05-01

Box 6

Contains "Morning" by William Hogarth, originally published in 1738

Periodicals: New England Magazine

1898 May

Box 6

Contains "The Doctor's Front Yard" by Ruth Huntington Sessions

Periodicals: New York Times

1993 Jan.

Box 6

Contains "Hope Chests Designed to Outlast the Marriage" by Rita Reif

Periodicals: Sherrill House News

1984 Fall

Box 6

Periodicals: Sunday Republican

1993 Jun.

Box 6

Contains articles about Thomas Jefferson's homes

Pocket bible of Matilda Hackett

undated

Box 6

"Recipients of NETC 1979 Annual Awards"

1979

Box 6

"Rules and Orders to Be Observed in the House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts"

1839

Box 6

Charles Phelps's copy

Sheet music: Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphonie IX

ca. 1827

Box 6

Property of Sessions family

"Sketches of Family and Life in Hadley"

1881

Box 6

Written by Theodore G. Huntington

"The Tin Box Collection," fragments

ca. 1921

Box 6

Contains pages 182-308

"Traditions and Reminiscences of Concord Massachusetts," pages 1-145

ca. 1878

Box 6

Written by Edward Jarvis M.D., edited by Sarah Chapin with a foreward by Robert Gross; alternate title: "A Contribution to the Social and Domestic History of the Town: 1779 to 1878," with addenda to Lemuel Shattuck's History of Concord--1835; copy sent to "JA"; originally a manuscript, but this is a printed copy

"Traditions and Reminiscences of Concord Massachusetts," pages 146-283

ca. 1878

Box 6

"Traditions and Reminiscences of Concord Massachusetts," pages 284-379

ca. 1878

Box 6

University Ensemble Theater: Fashion or, Life in New York: programs

1980 Oct.-Nov.

Box 6

A comedy by Anna Cora Mowatt

"The Ups and Downs of Emily, chapters I-VIII"

ca. 1940

Box 6

Written by Ruth Huntington Sessions

"The Ups and Downs of Emily," chapters IX-XV

ca. 1940

Box 6

Written by Ruth Huntington Sessions

Wallet: Huntington, Constant

ca. 1950

Box 6

Includes photographs of Gladys Huntington, membership card, bank note, business cards, postage stamps

Writings regarding Emily Dickinson: transcripts

ca. 1850s

Box 6

Original text from 1800s, transcripts from 20th-21st centuries

Series 3. Photographs and genealogies

ca. 1775-1991

Catalogue of Pictures on Exhibition

ca. 1900

Box 6

Genealogical notes

ca. 1900s

Box 6

Genealogical notes

ca. 2000

Box 6

Genealogical notes: Butler

ca. 1800-ca. 1890

Box 6

Genealogical notes: Donahoe

ca. 1825

Box 6

Genealogical notes: Donegan

ca. 1855-ca. 1935

Box 6

Genealogical notes: Donovan

ca. 1795-ca. 1900

Box 6

Genealogical notes: Hackett

ca. 1635-ca. 1940

Box 6

Genealogical notes: Mathew

ca. 1775-ca. 1910

Box 6

Genealogical notes: Murphy

ca. 1860-ca. 1935

Box 6

Genealogical notes: O'Sullivan

ca. 1875

Box 6

Genealogical notes: Sullivan

ca. 1820

Box 6

Genealogical notes: Tobin

ca. 1900

Box 6

Photographs: advertising

ca. 1900s

Box 6

Photographs: animals

ca. 1980

Box 6

Photographs: Benoit, Harry

1960

Box 6

Photographs: buildings

ca. 1900-ca. 2001

Box 7

Photographs: Chapin, Charles & Dolly

1954

Box 7

Wedding portrait

Photographs: charges

ca. 1816

Box 7

Photographs: Doheny, Honoria

ca. 1880

Box 7

Photographs: Donegan, James

1875

Box 7

Photographs: Donegan, Jim

1864

Box 7

Photographs: Donegan, Margaret

ca. 1880

Box 7

Photographs: Donegan, Mary James

ca. 1800s

Box 7

Photographs: Donovan, Henry

ca. 1825

Box 7

Photographs: Donovan, John

ca. 1825

Box 7

Photographs: Donovan, Simon

ca. 1800s

Box 7

Photographs: framed and cased

ca. 1850

Box 13

Photographs: Hackett, Edward A.

ca. 1900s

Box 7

Photographs: Hackett, Isabel LaMonte

1965

Box 7

Photographs: Hackett, James

ca. 1800s

Box 7

Photographs: Hackett, Mary

ca. 1840

Box 7

Photographs: Hackett, Theobald

ca. 1875

Box 7

Photographs: Hackett, William James

ca. 1870

Box 7

Photographs: Huntington, Elsie

1940

Box 7

Also photographed: Dominoe, Dick, Jane Ann

Photographs: Huntington, Genevieve

1945

Box 7

Photographs: interior

ca. 1950

Box 7

Photographs: Mathew, Charles

ca. 1850

Box 7

Photographs: Mathew, James

ca. 1875

Box 7

Photographs: Mathew, May

ca. 1850

Box 7

Photographs: Mathew, Robert

ca. 1890

Box 7

Photographs: Mathew, Theobald

ca. 1850

Box 7

Photographs: Murphy, John

ca. 1850

Box 7

Photographs: outdoor

ca. 1940-ca. 1980

Box 7

Photographs: Paine, Frederic W. & Mary Welles

1912

Box 7

Photographs: people

ca. 1850-ca. 1950

Box 7

Photographs: Pierce, Sandra

ca. 1938

Box 7

Photographs: Rupp, Sheron

1979

Box 7

Photographs: Sessions, Jane-Ann

1939-1945

Box 7

Photographs: Thomastown Castle

1911

Box 7

Photographs: Tobin, Cassie

ca. 1900

Box 7

Photographs: Tobin, Stephen

ca. 1900

Box 7

Photographs: wedding portraits

ca. 1900s

Box 7

Photographs: Williams, Kerri-Lynn

1991

Box 7

Wedding portrait; also photographed: Kelly Willians, Kevin Williams, Kerry Ann Williams

Scrapbook

ca. 1850

Box 15

Scrapbook

1932-1934

Box 14

Made by Sessions family

Scrapbook

1926-1936

Box 14

Made by Sessions family

Scrapbook

1936-1939

Box 14

Contains Ellen Bulfinch sketch from 1861; contains account from 1838 hurricane in Hadley

Scrapbook

1936-1939

Box 14

Made by Sessions family

Scrapbook

1934-1945

Box 14

Made by sessions family

Series 4. Correspondence

ca. 1810-2012

Academic

1992 Aug.

Box 7

Polly Longsworth with Ralph Franklin and Jane; discusses Longsworth's hypothesis regarding the recipient of one of Emily Dickinson's letters, thanks Jane for supplying research materials; includes a copy of Dickinson's letter

Business

ca. 1937

Box 7

John Sessions(?) with Mrs. Clark regarding dairy quality

Business

1933 Aug.-1938 Oct.

Box 7

John A. Sessions with Hugh P. Baker, Mrs. Baxter, Mrs. Beeker, Mrs. Douglas, H.U. Faulkner, J.H. Frandsen, Helen S, Withington, Herbert Young; discussion of Phelps Farms dairy production

Business

1938 Jun.-1939 Jul.

Box 7

John A. Sessions, Doheny Sessions with Massachusetts State College Agricultural Experiment Station regarding an agricultural pest inquiry, International Cellucotton Products Co., E.F. Mahady Company regarding furniture, Camp Marbury, McCarthy & Simon Inc. regarding a clothing order

Correspondence

1814 Apr.-1814 Nov.

Box 7

(Moses) Charles P. Phelps with Cotton Brooks D. Huntington(?), William Campbell; a Daniel M. also named

Personal

ca. 1810-ca. 1817

Box 7

Sarah Parsons Phelps(?) with cousin Charlotte Parsons(?)

Personal

1820 Jan.-1821 Dec.

Box 7

Charles P. Phelps to his son Charles Phelps; includes note by Charles Phelps cataloging his collection of letters; includes additional undated note, presumably from Charles' collection

Personal

1819 Sep.-1824 Dec.

Box 7

Charlotte Phelps with cousin Sarah Phelps, Theophilus Parsons, Francis Phelps, William P. Phelps; includes undated correspondence from 'Uncle Billy' (Phelps?) to Elly?

Personal

1828 May

Box 7

Frederick Huntington with Mary Huntington

Personal

1837

Box 7

(Moses) Charles P. Phelps with daughter Francis Phelps, son Arthur D. Phelps, daughter Elizabeth (Eliza Maria)

Personal

1838

Box 7

(Moses) Charles P. Phelps with daughter Caroline Phelps (Bulfinch), wife Elizabeth C. Phelps, son Arthur D. Phelps, daughter Marianne Phelps, daughter Elizabeth (Eliza Maria), daughter Amelia(?), son Theophilus

Personal

1839

Box 7

(Moses) Charles P. Phelps with daughter Francis Phelps, daughter Caroline Phelps (Bulfinch), daughter Caroline Judkins (also Caroline Phelps (Bulfinch)?), daughter Amelia Judkins, son Charles Phelps, wife Elizabeth C. Phelps, daughter Marianne Phelps, son Arthur D. Phelps, daughter Sarah Phelps

Personal

1841

Box 7

(Moses) Charles P. Phelps with wife Elizabeth C. Phelps, Arthur D. Phelps, Mary Amelia Judkins, Francis Phelps, Theophilus

Personal

1842

Box 7

(Moses) Charles P. Phelps with daughter Francis Phelps, future son-in-law Stephen Bulfinch, daughter Caroline Phelps (Bulfinch), son Arthur D. Phelps; includes drafts of letters that Charles P. Phelps sent, as well as arrangements for engagement between Caroline Phelps and Stephen Bulfinch

Personal

ca. 1857-ca. 1886

Box 7

Sarah Phelps with sister Caroline Phelps (Bulfinch), niece Ellen S. Bullfinch; contains record of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps' death

Personal

1896 Jan.

Box 7

George Hunting Fisher with his aunt Elizabeth

Personal

1904 Jul.

Box 7

Mary Huntington with "Friend"

Personal

1938 Jan.

Box 7

Ann Sessions, Kathleen (Sessions?) (Ann's aunt); contains labeled photographs and a sample of sand from Kathleen's trip to Egypt

Personal

ca. 1938

Box 7

John Sessions with Dick

Personal

1939 Mar.

Box 7

Kathleen (Sessions?) with Peggy

Personal

1931 Nov.-1940 Jul.

Box 7

Doheny Sessions with her grandmother (name unknown), her cousin (name unknown), Byrne, Bunny, Charles W. Cobb, Annie Glover, Paul, Paula; includes some pictures, choregrography

Personal

ca. 1942

Box 7

Thacher Washburn Worthen and wife; wedding invite from Elizabeth Sargent William Nelson Runyon

Personal

1975 Feb.

Box 7

Lester (?) with a cousin

Personal

1996 Jun.-2012 Jun.

Box 7

David M.G. Huntington with Jane Ann; contains photograph, prints of digital photos, and excerpts of biographical (and auto-biographical) material with notes from Huntington attached

Personal

undated

Box 7

JWL(?) to Mr. Huntington, Charles P. Wells(?); discusses sending written copies of a religious service, but these copies are not with this letter

Series 5. Farm

1767-2000

Acknowledgement of donation of farm accounts

ca. 1900s

Box 7

Donated account books and ledgers from 1800-1881

Awards

1988, 2000

Box 16

Contains Certificate of Recognition (1988) for Sessions Farm presented by the Massachusetts House of Representatives, & Massachusetts Family Farm award (1988) and Certificate of Recognition (2000) for Phelps Farm presented by the Massachusetts Department of Food and Agriculture; oversized

Boston almanac

1837

Box 7

Boston almanac

1838

Box 7

Boston almanac

1840

Box 7

Boston almanac

1845

Box 7

Boston almanac

1846

Box 7

Boston almanac

1846

Box 7

Boston almanac

1849

Box 7

Dairy notes and advertisements

Undated

Box 7

Farm account

1818-1841

Box 17

Farmer's almanac

1851

Box 7

Farmer's almanac

1858

Box 7

Farmer's almanac

1859

Box 7

Farmer's almanac

1860

Box 7

Farmer's almanac

1861

Box 7

Farmer's almanac

1864

Box 7

Farmer's almanac

1866

Box 7

Farmer's almanac

1867

Box 7

Farmer's almanac

1868

Box 7

Farmer's almanac

1869

Box 7

Farmer's almanac

1880

Box 7

Farmer's almanac

1884

Box 7

Farmer's almanac

1885

Box 7

Farmer's almanac

1885

Box 7

Farmer's almanac

1886

Box 7

Contains two copies

Farm log

1810, 1822-1829

Box 8

Farm log

1824-1827

Box 8

Farm log

1834-1835

Box 8

Farm log

1845

Box 8

Farm log

1846-1849

Box 8

Farm log

1846-1853

Box 8

Farm log, fragments

1767-1805

Box 8

Farm log, fragments

1830-1839

Box 8

Farm log, fragments

1842-1846

Box 8

Farm log, fragments

1850-1854

Box 8

Farm log, fragments

1855-1859

Box 8

Farm log, fragments

1860-1864

Box 8

Farm log, fragments

1865-1869

Box 8

Farm log, fragments

1870-1874

Box 8

Farm log, fragments

1875-1879

Box 8

Farm plans

1817, 1941-1975

Box 8

Includes plans for Phelps houses, farm buildings, gardens, and land surveys

Statement on discontinuing farm

1934

Box 8

Series 6. Financial and legal

1785-1952

Account book

1794-1798

Box 8

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1800

Box 13

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps; oversized

Account book

1801 May-1801 Aug.

Box 8

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1801-1802

Box 8

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1803 Dec.

Box 8

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1804-1806

Box 13

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps; oversized

Account book

1802-1803, 1807

Box 8

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1800-1809

Box 8

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1807-1810

Box 8

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1810-1811

Box 8

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1811-1813

Box 8

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1815-1816

Box 8

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1815-1816

Box 8

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1814-1823

Box 8

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1800-1824

Box 8

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1822-1824

Box 8

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1827-1829

Box 8

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1822-1833

Box 8

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1827-1836

Box 9

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1839-1840

Box 9

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1827-1842

Box 9

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1827-1845

Box 9

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1838-1850

Box 9

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

ca. 1800-ca. 1850

Box 9

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1847-1851

Box 9

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1845-1856

Box 9

Property of (Moses) Charles P. Phelps

Account book

1860-1862

Box 9

Property of the Phelps Family

Account book

1904

Box 9

Property of Edmond Byrne Hackett; includes a few diary entries

Account book

1917-1921

Box 9

Property of the Sessions Family

Account book

1917-1927

Box 9

Property of Sessions Family; note from 1980 (written by A.H.R.) states that the majority of the handwriting is Constant Huntington's with occasional contributions from Gladys Huntington

Account book

1926-1937

Box 9

Banking: charge slips

1942-1946

Box 9

Banking: checkbook, used

1943 Feb.-1943 Sep.

Box 9

Account of (?) Sessions

Banking: checkbook, used

1943 Sep.-1944 Mar.

Box 9

Account of (?) Sessions

Banking: checkbook, used

1944 Mar.-1944 Aug.

Box 9

Account of (?) Sessions

Banking: checkbook, used

1944 Aug.-1945 Mar.

Box 9

Account of (?) Sessions

Banking: checkbook, used

1945 Mar.-1945 Jun.

Box 9

Account of Ruth H. Sessions

Banking: checkbook, used

1945 Jul.-1945 Aug.

Box 9

Account of Ruth H. Sessions

Banking: checkbook, used

1945 Mar.-1945 Sep.

Box 9

Account of (?) Sessions

Banking: checkbook, used

1945 Sep.-1945 Dec.

Box 9

Account of (?) Sessions

Banking: checkbook, used

1945 Sep.-1946 May

Box 9

Account of John A. Sessions

Banking: checkbook, used

1946 Jan.-1946 Jul.

Box 9

Account of Ruth H. Sessions

Banking: checkbook, used

1946 Jul.-1947 Aug.

Box 9

Account of (?) Sessions

Banking: checkbook, used

1946 Aug.-1947 Sep.

Box 9

Account of Ruth H. Sessions & Estate of Ruth H. Sessions

Banking: checkbook, used

1948 Feb.-1949 May

Box 9

Account of (?) Sessions

Banking: checks, used (Estate of Ruth H. Sessions)

1947-1948

Box 9

Banking: checks, used (John A. Sessions - Special Account)

1945

Box 9

Banking: checks, used (John A. Sessions - Special Account)

1946

Box 9

Banking: checks, used (Ruth H. Sessions)

1939

Box 9

Banking: checks, used (Ruth H. Sessions)

1940 Jan.-1940 Mar.

Box 9

Banking: checks, used (Ruth H. Sessions)

1940 Apr.-1940 Jun.

Box 10

Banking: checks, used (Ruth H. Sessions)

1940 Jul.-1940 Sep.

Box 10

Banking: checks, used (Ruth H. Sessions)

1940 Oct.-1940 Dec.

Box 10

Banking: checks, used (Ruth H. Sessions)

1942

Box 10

Banking: checks, used (Ruth H. Sessions)

1944

Box 10

Banking: checks, used (Ruth H. Sessions)

1945

Box 10

Banking: checks, used (Ruth H. Sessions by John A. Sessions)

1944-1945

Box 10

Banking: checks, used (Ruth H. Sessions by John A. Sessions)

1946

Box 10

Banking: counter receipts

1926, 1940-1947

Box 10

Sessions accounts

Banking: dulicating deposit slips, blank

ca. 1940

Box 10

Banking: duplicating deposit slips, used

1942-1946

Box 10

Slips are separate

Banking: duplicating deposit slips, used

1946-1948

Box 10

Slips still bound together

Banking: envelopes, empty

ca. 1900s

Box 10

Envelopes that have been written on

Banking: miscellaneous

ca. 1940s

Box 10

Includes pamphlets advertising loans/bonds, announcements from Northampton National Bank, mail deposit reciepts, appreciation cards

Banking: statements (Estate of Ruth H. Sessions)

1947-1948

Box 10

Banking: statements (John A. Sessions - Special Account)

1945-1946

Box 10

Banking: statements (Ruth H. Sessions)

1940-1942

Box 10

Banking: statements (Ruth H. Sessions c/o John A. Sessions)

1944-1946

Box 10

Financial documents: Amherst College

1838-1841

Box 10

Financial documents: hay scales

1862

Box 10