Olcott family papers, 1819-1915 (majority within 1870-1898)
Using These Materials
- Restrictions:
- The collection is open for research.
Summary
- Creator:
- Olcott, George H., 1818-1897 and Olcott, S. Adelaide
- Abstract:
- The Olcott family papers consist of incoming correspondence, receipts and advertising flyers to George H. Olcott or his daughter Adelaide Olcott. While much of the correspondence entails discussions of current and local news and family matters, "the Olcott House," the family's hotel business in Wurtsboro, New York, is central to the correspondence.
- Extent:
- 91 items (0.25 linear feet)
- Language:
- English
- Authors:
- Collection processed and finding aid created by Bethany Anderson, 2008
Background
- Scope and Content:
-
The correspondence encompasses both business and personal matters. The main recipients were George H. and his daughter Adelaide Olcott, the former having received 20 and the latter 32. Most business correspondence includes receipts for the purchase of large quantities of grocery items, advertising flyers for canned goods, asbestos building materials, an offer for a subscription to the "Library of Wit and Humor," and employment agencies supplying references for people of various trades. Another item that George received was a letter from Charles L. Webster & Co., publishers of the book, The Table: how to buy food, how to cook it, and how to serve it (1889), by Alessandro Filippini, who retired as the chef of Delmonico's Restaurant in New York City in 1888. The letter was accompanied by two advertisements for Filippini's book, one of which contains several of his recipes.
Other business correspondence was from patrons, who were arranging a stay at the Olcott House or discussing financial matters. Adelaide, on the other hand, received more personal correspondence from friends and relatives. She did, however, also receive some business correspondence related to the hotel. Like her father, she ordered supplies for the hotel and collected payment from patrons.
As the Olcott family received advertisements from various businesses, so they too made an effort to make their hotel known to the public. In particular, George advertised in New York City. He utilized such services as "J.W. Gray's Agency of Country Resorts," which advertised "Summer Homes for 1886 within a radius of 500 miles of New York" (April 1, 1886). On George's own business letterhead, he advertises, "Families Taken in at Moderate Rates," and "Good Fishing and Hunting in the Vicinity" (July 25, 1889). The Olcotts also kept in touch with and befriended many of their patrons.
Letters from friends and acquaintances are filled with local and family news. One such letter to Adelaide from her niece of the same namesake, mentions experiencing electric lighting for the first time (January 17, 1892). Some discuss illnesses and deaths, while others relate recent travel plans, or news in their own lives. The letters also reveal details about the Olcott's lives. For instance, the fire that destroyed part of the hotel in September of 1903 and the hardships Adelaide endured as a result are alluded to in a letter that she received from her friends Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Rayner (October 11, 1903).
The collection also includes several letters written to or from members of the Helm family. Although it is possible they are relatives, their connection to the Olcott family is not clear. A deed for a land sale in Sullivan County from Jacob and Laura Helm to George Olcott (September 6, 1837 and May 7-10, 1839) is evidence of a business tie. One other letter written by a woman named Olive Newman to her niece is dated January 8, 1915. Their relationship to the Olcott family is also uncertain.
This collection contains a great deal of information on the interpersonal interactions between members of the Olcott family and their acquaintances. The many advertisements also give insight into the services and products that were available to the Olcotts, and especially how supplies were marketed to hotels in the 19th century.
- Biographical / Historical:
-
The Olcott family lived in Wurtsboro, Sullivan County, New York, where they managed a hotel/summer boarding house. The Olcott House -- the name of their family-owned hotel -- was built in 1843 by George H. Olcott (1818-1897), and consisted of 50 rooms (with capacity for up to 60), a general store, a saloon, a carriage house, and a livery. Located on the corner of Old Milne Road and Newburgh-Cochecton Turnpike in Wurtsboro, the Olcott House was well known as one of the oldest hotels in Eastern Sullivan County. It was renowned for its "museum" on the third floor, which displayed local Native American objects. In the hotel's saloon, there was also a glass tank filled with live poisonous rattlesnakes.
Known for its close proximity to the Catskill Mountains, and hiking and camping grounds, visitors to Wurtsboro were attracted by the rural charm of the area. Many of the hotel's patrons came from New York City, and were either vacationing during the summer or on their way to a camp site. Near the train station, the hotel was in close proximity to five lakes, and thus was advertised as "near one of the finest sporting regions in the country" (Wakefield 1970: 56). Circa 1900, the Olcotts charged $6.00-$7.00/week, and $1.50 for children, although they gave discounts to season guests.
George and his wife Julia had five children: George W., Charles F., S. Adelaide (Adalaide), John, and Sally. Adelaide (born c.1850) was the child who helped George manage the hotel. As a family, the Olcotts had their share of tribulations, some of which were only hinted at in the letters. For instance, in 1885 John and Adelaide became involved in a legal dispute over a portion of land they owned.
George died in 1897, after which Adelaide assumed full responsibility for the management of the hotel. In 1903, the museum and the adjoining carriage house caught fire, substantially damaging the third floor and other parts of the hotel. The hotel was eventually rebuilt, though only able to accommodate up to 30 guests. The museum, however, was never replaced.
The Olcott family managed the hotel for several decades before selling it to Jack Butler in 1920. It was then renamed the Butler House. Butler's management of the hotel would prove to be short-lived, however, as it was destroyed by a second fire on March 8, 1923. The hotel was never rebuilt.
- Acquisition Information:
- 2006. M-4513.2 .
- Rules or Conventions:
- Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS)
Related
- Additional Descriptive Data:
-
Bibliography
Port Jervis, Monticello and New York Railroad. If Thou Seekest Beautiful Country Behold, It is on the Port Jervis, Monticello and New York Railroad. Sear and White: New York, 1900 (p.60).
Roosa, Monika A. Mamakating: Images of America. Arcadia Publishers: Charleston, 2007 (p. 34).
Sickels, H.E. Reports of Cases decided in the Court of Appeals of the State of New York. Albany: Weed, Parsons & Co. (1886), pp. 152-161.
Wakefield, Manville B. To the Mountains by Rail: People, Events and Tragedies...the New York, Ontario and Western Railway and the famous Sullivan County Resorts. Wakefair Press: Grahamsville, New York, 1970 (p. 56 & 59).
Geographic Index- Brooklyn (N. Y.)
- Centerville (N. Y.)
- Chicago (Ill.)
- Hartford (N. Y.)
- Hempstead (N. Y.)
- Highland (N. Y.)
- Hillsdale (N. Y.)
- Jermyn (Pa.)
- Madison (N. Y.)
- Mamakating (N. Y.)
- Middleton (N. Y.)
- Monticello (N. Y.)
- Montrose (Pa.)
- Moosie (Pa.)
- New York (N. Y.)
- Nichols (N. Y.)
- Otisville (N. Y.)
- Phillipsport (N. Y.)
- Rockland County (N. Y.)
- Rondout (N. Y.)
- Scranton (Pa.)
- South Fallsburg (N. Y.)
- Spring Brook (N. Y.)
- Stephenville (N. Y.)
- Westbrookville (N. Y.)
- Wurtsboro (N. Y.)
Corporate Name Index
Armour & Company - May 22, 1891
CC & E Childs - August 25, 1842
M.W. Decker Spring Brook Distillery - January 5, 1900
Goldschmidt, Bachrach, & Co. Importers - March 24, 1870
J.W. Gray's Agency of Country Resorts - April 1, 1886
Delmonico's Restaurant - July 23, 1890
Hotel Wellington - October 4, 1893
E.S. Jaffray & Co. - June 30, 1883
H.W. Johns MFG. Co. - September 28, 1893
G.H. Lewis General Commission Merchant - February 15, 1893
The Manhattan Agency - May 28, 1883
Moosie Powder Co. - August 18, 1898
Albert Palmer Company - June 24, 1883
The People's Bank of the City of New York - January 17, 1894
The Review of Reviews Co. - undated
Charles L. Webster & Co. - July 23, 1890
Partial Subject Index
Advertising--Books - Undated
Advertising--Hotels - passim
Advertising--Female Physicians - undated
Deeds--New York--Sullivan County - September 6, 1837; May 7/10, 1839
Employment--Agencies - May 28, 1883
Hotels--New York--Sullivan County--19th Century - passsim
Lighting--Electric Lighting - January 17, 1892
New York--History--19th Century - passim
Prescriptions--Drugs and Herbal Remedies - September-November, 1894
Publishers--Charles L. Webster & Co.--19th Century - July 23, 1890
Restaurants--menus - April 8, 1890
Taxidermy--1880-1890 - May 26, 1883
Train Crashes--New York - October 4, 1893
Personal Name Index
Butler, Rebecca - February 27, 1825
Champlain, H.M. - April 8, 1890
Cleaveland, Maria - April 8, 1835
Damon, William - March 22, 1872
Decker, M.W. - January 5, 1900
Evans, Edgar - December 31, 1891
Filippini, Alessandro - July 23, 1890
Gray, J.W. - April 1, 1886
Helm, Daniel - February 26, 1841; August 25, 1842
Helm, Jacob, b.c. 1784 - September 6, 1837; May 7, 1839
Helm, Laura, b.c. 1791 - September 6, 1837; May 7, 1839
Helm, Russel - February 26, 1841
Helm, Wesley B. - June 8, 1857
Horton, A.M. - August 11, 1896
Howell, E.P. - June 30, 1883
Hunn, Maria T. - October 29, 1863
Johnson, Minerva - January 27 & 29, 1874; June 19, 1874
Ketcham, John - December 21, 1889
Knickerbocker, E.H. - July 27, 1882
Low, Phebe - undated
Martin, Darius - May 7, 1839
Masten, Theodore - January 17, 1894
Newman, Olive, b.c. 1837 - January 8, 1915
Niven, Thornton A. - October 16, 1880
Olcott, Adelaide J., b.c. 1856 - passim
Olcott Charles F. - passim
Olcott, George H., 1818-1897 - passim
Olcott, George W., 1845 - passim
Olcott, John, b.c. 1854 - passim
Olcott, Julia, b.c. 1819 - passim
Olcott, S. Adelaide (Adalaide), b.c. 1850 - passim
Olcott, Sally - April 8, 1835
Ostrander, M.W. - January 17, 1894
Pronk, F.M. - Sept.-Nov., 1894
Rayner, Edward J. - passim
Rayner, Mr. and Mrs. J.H. - October 11, 1903
Read, T.A. - July 25, 1889
Sherman, T. - June 10, 1868
Sinsabough, Jacob - undated
Sletes, Eliza A. - October 26, 1892
Smith, James H. - February 15, 1893
Snyder, Mary - January 28, 1872
Sockwood, Angela - undated
Stern, S. - 189?
Taylor, Mattie - May 14, 1887
Turner, Annie A. - July 4, 1859
Van Wyck, T.C. - May 7 & 10, 1839
Wallace, John - May 26, 1883; May 28, 1883
Williams, J.B. - March 22, 1883
Wiltse, Gilbert - January 17, 1894
Subjects
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Contents
Using These Materials
- RESTRICTIONS:
-
The collection is open for research.
- USE & PERMISSIONS:
-
Copyright status is unknown.
- PREFERRED CITATION:
-
Olcott Family Papers, William L. Clements Library, The University of Michigan.