mums1175 Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps Farm Records Finding Aid Finding aid prepared by Yasmin Ne'eman. Robert S. Cox Special Collections and University Archives Research Center, University Libraries, UMass Amherst 2025

Finding aid encoded in oXygen 2025 Finding aid written in English Phelps, Charles (Moses) Porter Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps Farm Records 1763-2012 MS 1175 18 boxes (27 linear feet) Special Collections and University Archives, UMass Amherst Libraries 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. English

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.

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.

The collection is open for research.

Cite as: Charles (Moses) Porter Phelps Farm Records (MS 1175). Robert S. Cox Special Collections and University Archives Research Center, University of Massachusetts Amherst Libraries.

Gift of Porter-Phelps-Huntington House Museum.

Processed by Yasmin Ne'eman, 2025.

Huntington, Constant Phelps family Porter family Family farms--Massachusetts--Hadley Hadley (Mass. : Town)--History Legal correspondence Legal documents Photographs Letters (correspondence) 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.

Series 1. Diaries 1763-1962 Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript 1763-1768 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 1

Includes annotated notes

Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript 1771-1775 1

Includes annotated notes

Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript 1775-1777 1 Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript 1777-1781 1 Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript 1781-1784 1

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

Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: published transcript 1763-1785 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 1 Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript 1786-1790 1 Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript 1790-1794 1 Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript 1794-1799 1 Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript 1799-1805 1 Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: transcript 1805-1810 1 Phelps, Elizabeth Porter: published transcript 1785-1816 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 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 1 Phelps, Charles (Moses) Porter 1847 1 Phelps, Charles (Moses) Porter 1848 1 Phelps, Charles (Moses) Porter 1849 1 Phelps, Sarah 1856-1859, 1871-1888 1

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

Huntington, Constant 1901 Jan. 1

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

Huntington, Constant 1901 Feb. 1

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

Huntington, Constant 1906-1908 1 Huntington, Constant 1909-1910 1 Huntington, Constant 1910 1 Huntington, Constant 1911 1 Huntington, Constant 1912-1913 1 Huntington, Constant 1913-1914 1 Huntington, Constant 1914 2 Huntington, Constant 1915-1917 2 Huntington, Constant 1917 May-Sep. 2 Huntington, Constant 1917-1918 2 Huntington, Constant 1918 2 Huntington, Constant 1919-1920 2 Huntington, Constant 1920 2 Huntington, Constant 1921 2 Huntington, Constant 1922 2 Huntington, Constant 1923 2 Huntington, Constant 1924 Jun.-Aug. 2

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

Huntington, Constant 1924-1925 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 2 Huntington, Constant 1926 2 Huntington, Constant 1927 2 Huntington, Constant 1928 2 Huntington, Constant 1929 2 Huntington, Constant 1930 2 Huntington, Constant 1931 2 Huntington, Constant 1932 3 Huntington, Constant 1933 3 Huntington, Constant 1934 3 Huntington, Constant 1935 3 Huntington, Constant 1936 3 Huntington, Constant 1937 3 Huntington, Constant 1938 3 Huntington, Constant 1939 3 Huntington, Constant 1940 3 Huntington, Constant 1941 3 Huntington, Constant 1942 3 Huntington, Constant 1943 3 Huntington, Constant 1944 3 Huntington, Constant 1945 3 Huntington, Constant 1946-1947 3 Huntington, Constant 1947-1948 4 Huntington, Constant 1948-1949 4 Huntington, Constant 1949 4 Huntington, Constant 1950 4 Huntington, Constant 1951 4 Huntington, Constant 1952 4 Huntington, Constant 1953 4 Huntington, Constant 1954 4 Huntington, Constant 1955 4 Huntington, Constant 1956 4 Huntington, Constant 1957 4 Huntington, Constant 1958 4 Huntington, Constant 1959 4 Huntington, Constant 1960 4 Huntington, Constant 1961 4 Huntington, Constant 1962 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 5

Painted by the Bulfinch sisters (Annie & Ellen Bulfinch)

Artwork ca. 1950 5 Artwork 1992-1994 5 Artwork ca. 1800s-ca. 1900s 5

Various artwork and miscellaneous materials

"Calendar of Hadley, Mass.: Documents in Mass. Archives ca. 1900s 5

Includes information from 17th and 18th century Hadley records

Calendar: Huntington, Constant 1902 5 Calendar: Huntington, Constant 1903-1906 5 Calendar: Huntington, Constant 1956 5 Calendar: Huntington, Constant 1958-1959 5 Calendar: Huntington, Constant 1959-1960 5 Calendar: Huntington, Constant 1960 5 Calendar: Huntington, Constant 1961 5 Calendar: Huntington, Constant 1962 5 Certificate of membership to Bunker Hill Monument Association: Phelps, Charles P. ca. 1823 14 Phelps, Charles: memorial programs 1882 5 Commemorative Card, fragment 1988 5 "Companionable Clock-Strikes," pages 1-3 1769-1779 5

Includes drawing attributed to Benjamin Lamb

Contact book ca. 1900s 5 Contact book ca. 1900s 5 Contact book ca. 1800s 13 Document descriptions: Phelps, Charles Porter, documents ca. 1900s 5

Includes descriptions of 18th and 19th century documents

"Dr. James Lincoln Huntington's 1960 tour through the Porter-Phelps-Huntington Museum" 1960 5

Altered 1971

"Exceptional Children in Nursery School": paper 1952 5

Written by Doheny H. Sessions

Family reunion documents: Porter-Phelps-Huntington 2002 5 "Flood Views: Franklin County and Vicinity" 1936 Mar. 5

Contains images from the Great Flood of 1936

Fortnightly Paper: notes and materials 1946-1973 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 5

Written by James Lincoln Huntington, photographs by Samuel Chamberlain

Hadley flood plain notes 1976, 1991 5 Hair: Miss Phelps ca. 1824 5 Hair: Phelps, Sarah D. 1817 5 "The Harvard Album" 1899 5 Historic Deerfield: pamphlets 1987-1988 5 "Horatian Echoes: Translations of the Odes of Horace": front matter 1893 5

Written by John Osborne Sargent; 21st century copy

"The Huntingtons: Simon and What He Started" 2007 5 Identity card: Constant Huntington 1943-1949 5 Maps: road from Hadley to Sunderland 1816 5 Maps: Sunderland 1900s 5 Materials regarding family crests ca. 1888 5 Materials regarding Hackett family deaths 1834-1836, 1868 5 "Memoir of Mrs. Sarah Davenport (Parsons) Phelps": copy ca. 1857 5 "Memoir of Mrs. Sarah Davenport (Parsons) Phelps": copy ca. 1857 5 "Memoir of Mrs. Sarah Davenport (Parsons) Phelps": fragment 1857 5 Miscellaneous materials ca. 1800s-ca. 1900s 12

Contains framed photographs, notes, and other delicate items

Northampton School for Girls: Sarah Sessions: grade report 1945 5 Notebook: Huntington, Constant 1909-1910 5 Notebook: Huntington, Constant ca. 1950 6

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

Notes: contact information ca. 1900 6 Notes: Margaret Hackett ca. 1900s 6 Notes: miscellaneous ca. 1800s-ca. 1900s 6 Passports: Huntington, Constant 1938-1943 6 Passports: Huntington, Constant 1941-1943 6 Passports: Huntington, Constant 1946-1947 6 Passports: Huntington, Constant 1950-1955 6 Passports: Huntington, Constant 1955-1959 6 Passports: Huntington, Constant 1959-1961 6 Passports: Huntington, Gladys Parrish 1955-1959 6 Periodicals: Boston Semi-Weekly Journal 1868 Oct. 6 Periodicals: Christian Science Monitor 1975 Nov. 6

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

Periodicals: Harvard Musical Review 1914 Jun.-Jul. 6

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

Periodicals: Massachusetts Founding Farms 1988 Sep. 6

Contains entry on Phelps Farm

Periodicals: miscellaneous newspaper clippings ca. 1950, 1996 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 6

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

Periodicals: New England Magazine 1898 May 6

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

Periodicals: New York Times 1993 Jan. 6

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

Periodicals: Sherrill House News 1984 Fall 6 Periodicals: Sunday Republican 1993 Jun. 6

Contains articles about Thomas Jefferson's homes

Pocket bible of Matilda Hackett undated 6 Recipe book: Phelps, Charlotte 1842 6 "Recipients of NETC 1979 Annual Awards" 1979 6 "Rules and Orders to Be Observed in the House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts" 1839 6

Charles Phelps's copy

Sheet music: Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphonie IX ca. 1827 6

Property of Sessions family

"Sketches of Family and Life in Hadley" 1881 6

Written by Theodore G. Huntington

"The Tin Box Collection," fragments ca. 1921 6

Contains pages 182-308

"Traditions and Reminiscences of Concord Massachusetts," pages 1-145 ca. 1878 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 6

"Traditions and Reminiscences of Concord Massachusetts," pages 284-379 ca. 1878 6

University Ensemble Theater: Fashion or, Life in New York: programs 1980 Oct.-Nov. 6

A comedy by Anna Cora Mowatt

"The Ups and Downs of Emily, chapters I-VIII" ca. 1940 6

Written by Ruth Huntington Sessions

"The Ups and Downs of Emily," chapters IX-XV ca. 1940 6

Written by Ruth Huntington Sessions

Wallet: Huntington, Constant ca. 1950 6

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

Writings regarding Emily Dickinson: transcripts ca. 1850s 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 6 Genealogical notes ca. 1900s 6 Genealogical notes ca. 2000 6 Genealogical notes: Butler ca. 1800-ca. 1890 6 Genealogical notes: Donahoe ca. 1825 6 Genealogical notes: Donegan ca. 1855-ca. 1935 6 Genealogical notes: Donovan ca. 1795-ca. 1900 6 Genealogical notes: Hackett ca. 1635-ca. 1940 6 Genealogical notes: Mathew ca. 1775-ca. 1910 6 Genealogical notes: Murphy ca. 1860-ca. 1935 6 Genealogical notes: O'Sullivan ca. 1875 6 Genealogical notes: Sullivan ca. 1820 6 Genealogical notes: Tobin ca. 1900 6 Photographs: advertising ca. 1900s 6 Photographs: animals ca. 1980 6 Photographs: Benoit, Harry 1960 6 Photographs: buildings ca. 1900-ca. 2001 7 Photographs: Chapin, Charles & Dolly 1954 7

Wedding portrait

Photographs: charges ca. 1816 7 Photographs: Doheny, Honoria ca. 1880 7 Photographs: Donegan, James 1875 7 Photographs: Donegan, Jim 1864 7 Photographs: Donegan, Margaret ca. 1880 7 Photographs: Donegan, Mary James ca. 1800s 7 Photographs: Donovan, Henry ca. 1825 7 Photographs: Donovan, John ca. 1825 7 Photographs: Donovan, Simon ca. 1800s 7 Photographs: framed and cased ca. 1850 13 Photographs: Hackett, Edward A. ca. 1900s 7 Photographs: Hackett, Isabel LaMonte 1965 7 Photographs: Hackett, James ca. 1800s 7 Photographs: Hackett, Mary ca. 1840 7 Photographs: Hackett, Theobald ca. 1875 7 Photographs: Hackett, William James ca. 1870 7 Photographs: Huntington, Elsie 1940 7

Also photographed: Dominoe, Dick, Jane Ann

Photographs: Huntington, Genevieve 1945 7 Photographs: interior ca. 1950 7 Photographs: Mathew, Charles ca. 1850 7 Photographs: Mathew, James ca. 1875 7 Photographs: Mathew, May ca. 1850 7 Photographs: Mathew, Robert ca. 1890 7 Photographs: Mathew, Theobald ca. 1850 7 Photographs: Murphy, John ca. 1850 7 Photographs: outdoor ca. 1940-ca. 1980 7 Photographs: Paine, Frederic W. & Mary Welles 1912 7 Photographs: people ca. 1850-ca. 1950 7 Photographs: Pierce, Sandra ca. 1938 7 Photographs: Rupp, Sheron 1979 7 Photographs: Sessions, Jane-Ann 1939-1945 7 Photographs: Thomastown Castle 1911 7 Photographs: Tobin, Cassie ca. 1900 7 Photographs: Tobin, Stephen ca. 1900 7 Photographs: wedding portraits ca. 1900s 7 Photographs: Williams, Kerri-Lynn 1991 7

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

Scrapbook ca. 1850 15 Scrapbook 1932-1934 14

Made by Sessions family

Scrapbook 1926-1936 14

Made by Sessions family

Scrapbook 1936-1939 14

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

Scrapbook 1936-1939 14

Made by Sessions family

Scrapbook 1934-1945 14

Made by sessions family

Series 4. Correspondence ca. 1810-2012 Academic 1992 Aug. 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 7

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

Business 1933 Aug.-1938 Oct. 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. 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. 7

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

Personal ca. 1810-ca. 1817 7

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

Personal 1820 Jan.-1821 Dec. 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. 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 7

Frederick Huntington with Mary Huntington

Personal 1837 7

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

Personal 1838 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 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 7

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

Personal 1842 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 7

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

Personal 1896 Jan. 7

George Hunting Fisher with his aunt Elizabeth

Personal 1904 Jul. 7

Mary Huntington with "Friend"

Personal 1938 Jan. 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 7

John Sessions with Dick

Personal 1939 Mar. 7

Kathleen (Sessions?) with Peggy

Personal 1931 Nov.-1940 Jul. 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 7

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

Personal 1975 Feb. 7

Lester (?) with a cousin

Personal 1996 Jun.-2012 Jun. 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 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 7

Donated account books and ledgers from 1800-1881

Awards 1988, 2000 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 7 Boston almanac 1838 7 Boston almanac 1840 7 Boston almanac 1845 7 Boston almanac 1846 7 Boston almanac 1846 7 Boston almanac 1849 7 Dairy notes and advertisements Undated 7 Farm account 1818-1841 17 Farmer's almanac 1851 7 Farmer's almanac 1858 7 Farmer's almanac 1859 7 Farmer's almanac 1860 7 Farmer's almanac 1861 7 Farmer's almanac 1864 7 Farmer's almanac 1866 7 Farmer's almanac 1867 7 Farmer's almanac 1868 7 Farmer's almanac 1869 7 Farmer's almanac 1880 7 Farmer's almanac 1884 7 Farmer's almanac 1885 7 Farmer's almanac 1885 7 Farmer's almanac 1886 7

Contains two copies

Farm log 1810, 1822-1829 8 Farm log 1824-1827 8 Farm log 1834-1835 8 Farm log 1845 8 Farm log 1846-1849 8 Farm log 1846-1853 8 Farm log, fragments 1767-1805 8 Farm log, fragments 1830-1839 8 Farm log, fragments 1842-1846 8 Farm log, fragments 1850-1854 8 Farm log, fragments 1855-1859 8 Farm log, fragments 1860-1864 8 Farm log, fragments 1865-1869 8 Farm log, fragments 1870-1874 8 Farm log, fragments 1875-1879 8 Farm plans 1817, 1941-1975 8

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

Statement on discontinuing farm 1934 8 Series 6. Financial and legal 1785-1952 Account book 1794-1798 8