Samuel M. Barclay collection, 1831-1849

Summary

Creator:

Barclay, Samuel M., d. 1852

Abstract:

This collection contains 21 incoming letters to Samuel Barclay, a lawyer in Bedford, Pennsylvania, between 1831 and 1849. The correspondence primarily concerns his legal career, and 2 letters relate to his service as a Pennsylvania state senator.

Extent:

21 items

Language:

English

Authors:

Collection processed and finding aid created by Meg Hixon, November 2011

Background

Scope and Content:

This collection contains 21 incoming letters to Samuel Barclay, a lawyer in Bedford, Pennsylvania, between 1831 and 1849. The correspondence primarily concerns his legal career, and 2 letters relate to his service as a Pennsylvania state senator.

Barclay received these letters between 1831-1839 and 1844-1849, and most pertain to the writers' legal affairs (often financial matters such as debts and inheritance). Many correspondents requested Barclay's legal assistance in drawing bills or collecting money. Though Barclay lived in Bedford, Pennsylvania, several writers lived in Baltimore, Maryland, including John Edgar, a frequent correspondent who was concerned with legal claims and collections and who often complained that Barclay was ignoring him. Two letters pertain to contemporary Pennsylvania politics and to Barclay's term in the Pennsylvania Senate.

Biographical / Historical:

Samuel M. Barclay was born in Bedford, Pennsylvania, on October 17, 1802, to Hugh and Hetty Barclay. Hugh Barclay was an early landowner in Bedford and began working as the town's postmaster in 1789. Samuel’s father died in 1807, leaving his mother to raise him. He studied at the Bedford Academy before his admission to the bar in August 1826. He worked as an attorney in Bedford and served as a state senator in the late 1830s. He married Anna Morrison in 1839, and died in Philadelphia on January 3, 1852.

Acquisition Information:

1972-1993. M-1587, M-2971.4 .

Processing information:

Cataloging funded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC). This collection has been processed according to minimal processing procedures and may be revised, expanded, or updated in the future.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged chronologically.

Rules or Conventions:

Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS)

Related

Additional Descriptive Data:

Bibliography

History of Bedford, Somerset and Fulton Counties, Pennsylvania. Chicago: Waterman, Watkins & Co., 1884.

Subjects

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

Subjects:

Lawyers--Pennsylvania.
Practice of law--Pennsylvania.

Formats:

Letters (correspondence)

Names:

Pennsylvania. General Assembly. Senate.
Brown, James.
Edgar, John.

Places:

Baltimore (Md.)
Bedford (Pa.)
Pennsylvania--Politics and government--1775-1865.