M91.1 Correspondence, early life, 1833-May 1861   1.5 Linear feet (Boxes 1-2)

Series Description:

This correspondence is largely composed of family letters from Howard's youth and early military career. Included are the years he spent as a student at North Yarmouth Academy, Bowdoin College ( ) and USMA (Class of 1854); as well as his military service in Florida's Seminole Wars (1856-57) and as instructor of mathematics at USMA (1857-61).

Arrangement:

Arranged chronologically.

 M91.2 Correspondence, Civil War, June 1861-April 1865 

Series Description:

Civil War era correspondence with family and friends; also includes letters from other military officers. Letterpress copies ( ) of correspondence sent by Howard starting in 1864 are also available. Covered is his service with the 3rd Maine regiment (Jun-Sep 1861), and the 2nd corps (Sep 1861-Jun 1862); in command of the 2nd division (Aug 1862-Mar 1863), the 11th corps (Mar 1863-Apr 1864), the 4th corps (Apr-Jul 1864) and the Army of the Tennessee (Jul 1864-Apr 1865). Battles and campaigns include Fair Oaks, First and Second Manassas, Gettysburg, Chancellorsville and the Atlanta Campaign

Arrangement:

Arranged chronologically.

 M91.3 Correspondence, Freedmen's Bureau period, May 1865-Spring 1874   12.0 Linear feet

Series Description:

Correspondence, mostly letters received by Howard (letters sent are contained in letterpress volumes or scribes copy-books ( )), dealing with his service as Commissioner of the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen and Abandoned Lands, 1865 to 1874. An incomplete index to these letters and three volumes of abstracts ( ) are available for use in Special Collections. Included are semi-official exchanges with Bureau agents, letters concerning the operation of and investigations into the Bureau, as well as correspondence with freedmen and African-American leaders, including southern black Reconstruction era politicians. This series also covers the founding of Howard University and the First Congregational Church in Washington, D.C., and the 1872 peace mission to Cochise and the Chiricahua Apaches

Arrangement:

Arranged chronologically.

 M91.4 Correspondence, western command period, May 1874-November 1888   10.5 Linear feet

Series Description:

Correspondence, mostly letters received by Howard (letters sent are contained in letterpress volumes ( )), dealing with his service as Commander of the Department of the Columbia (1874-80), the Department of West Point (1880-82), the Department of the Platte (1882-86) and the Division of the Pacific (1886-88). Incomplete indexes ( ) are available for use in Special Collections. During this period he was involved in the Nez Perce and Bannock wars, served as Superintendent of USMA and represented the U.S. Army at the 1884 French Army maneuvers.

Arrangement:

Arranged chronologically.

 M91.5 Correspondence, eastern command period, December 1888-November 1894   9.25 Linear feet

Series Description:

Correspondence, mostly letters received by Howard (letters sent are contained in letterpress volumes ( ), dealing with Howard's service as Commander of the Division of the Atlantic (1888-91) and the Department of the East (1891-94). Incomplete indexes ( ) are available for use in Special Collections. Besides official business correspondence, there are letters concerning Howard's personal appearances and Republican Party politics.

Arrangement:

Arranged chronologically.

 M91.6 Correspondence, retirement, December 1894-1908   8.5 Linear feet

Series Description:

Correspondence, mostly letters received by Howard (letters sent are contained in letterpress volumes ( )), dealing with Howard's life after retiring from the army, 1894 to 1908. Incomplete indexes ( ) are available for use in Special Collections, Much of the material involves his work with education, especially with the founding of the Harrow School and Lincoln Memorial University, and his service on the boards of Bowdoin College and Norwich University. Howard also continued active with military and church organizations and societies.

Arrangement:

Arranged chronologically.

 M91.7 Correspondence (bound), 1866-1905   7.75 Linear feet

Series Description:

Scribe's copy-books and letterpress volumes containing copies of Howard's outgoing correspondence from 1864 through 1905, complementing the collection's other correspondence series ( ). The volumes cover all aspects of his career. Because of the fragile condition of the originals, microfilms of the letterpress correspondence are available. Each volume, including one containing his aide-de-camp's letters, have indexes to the correspondents. There is some overlap between the later copy-books and the early letterpress volumes; errors can be found in the copy-books.

Arrangement:

Arranged chronologically.

Reproduction note:

Microfilm of letterpress volumes are available.

 M91.8 Articles and addresses, bound volumes and scrapbooks   5.25 Linear feet

Series Description:

Articles and addresses by Howard, manuscript, typescript. Most, though once bound, are now loose though their volumes designation is preserved, others (mostly containing clippings and designated "Miscellaneous") are still in their bound state. An incomplete index is available ( ) for use in Special Collections. The indexes and rough subject groupings were prepared by Howard or his staff. Loose: v.1, "Biographical"; v.2, "Wars and Campaigns"; v.3, "Indians" and "Military"; v.4 and 5 (numbered consecutively with v.5 starting at no. 31), "Religion and Miscellaneous"; v.6, "Civil War" and "Children's Stories"; v.7, "Miscellaneous" to v.11 are largely made up of unrelated items covering the Civil War, religion, the military, history, Native Americans, biographical subjects, education, politics, etc. Bound: roughly divided by subject, including the Civil War, Indian campaigns, personal reminiscences and miscellaneous. Volume 11 is followed by unnumbered series. (See the container list for a volume by volume breakdown.)

Arrangement:

Arranged numerically by volume.

 M91.9 Collection indices   2.25 Linear feet

Series Description:

Indexes to the correspondence files ( ), most prepared by Howard's staff for inclusion in the volumes in which the letters were once bound; also included are three volumes of abstracts of the Freedmen's Bureau correspondence received files which overlap with these. These indexes contain many inaccuracies, including omissions, misspellings and mistranscriptions of names, and incorrect pagination.

Arrangement:

Arranged chronologically.

 M91.10 Military career, records, 1854-1909   0.25 Linear feet

Series Description:

Documents, reports, orders, manuscript and printed records, etc., from 1854 to 1909, concerning Howard's military career. Organized into general groupings of Military, Freedmen's Bureau, and Indians. Included are Howard's first army commission (signed by Jefferson Davis) and various military orders; information on freedmen's organizations, including the Freedman's Bank; and records concerning Native Americans, including reports of negotiations with the Apaches.

Arrangement:

Arranged alphabetically.

 M91.11 Religious and educational work, records, 1857-1902   24.0 folders

Series Description:

Documents, reports, pamphlets, handbills,, and other records, from 1857 to 1902, concerning Howard's life-long interests in religious and educational work. He helped found several churches, most notably the First Parish Congregational Church in Washington, and educational institutions, especially Howard University and Lincoln Memorial University. His interests extended to missionary and religious associations like the Congregational Home Mission Society and the Young Men's Christian Association.

Arrangement:

Arranged alphabetically.

 M91.12 Financial records, 1855-1909   11.0 folders

Series Description:

Bills, receipts, documents and business records, from 1855 to 1909, relating to Howard's personal finances, and his business and real estate investments. Included are records relating to his insurance premiums, loans, book royalties, and association dues.

Arrangement:

Arranged alphabetically.

 M91.13 Personal records, 1840-1908   0.5 Linear feet

Series Description:

Printed and manuscript records, from 1840 to 1908, relating to Howard's personal interests. Although there is a little overlap with other non-correspondence series, the personal records include biographical information on Howard and others, contracts and prospectuses relating to Howards writings, and material concerning his interests in temperance and political issues.

Arrangement:

Arranged alphabetically.

 M91.14 Diaries, 1847-1893   0.5 Linear feet

Series Description:

Engagement book (through 1893) and diaries (1847-1861) kept by Howard, together with the diary of Major Thomas Ward Osborn. Maj. Osborn's diary has been published as The Fiery Trail : a Union Officer's Account of Sherman's Last Campaigns.

Arrangement:

Arranged chronologically.

 M91.15 Images, 1900, 1904, n.d   0.5 Linear feet

Series Description:

This series is separated into material type, including block print, engravings, heliotype, photographs and published photographs of Howard. Most of the images are undated portrait views of Howard in uniform, though photographs of Howard with family members are also included. Of note is a photograph of Howard with Chief Joseph taken in 1904. The images are from a variety of sources.

Arrangement:

Arranged alphabetically by image type.