Smith-Mendenhall Family papers

Smith-Mendenhall Family papers, 1858-1954

Overview of the Collection

Title: Smith-Mendenhall Family papers
Dates: 1858-1954 (inclusive)
18581954
Quantity: 0.8 linear feet, (2 boxes)
Collection Number: 0785
Summary: The Smith-Mendenhall Family Papers consist of the pre-Civil War business papers of Robert Henry Smith; Civil War letters written by Smith to his wife from 1861-1863; correspondence of the Mendenhall family including letters written by Mary Susan to her husband and son; deeds and legal documents pertaining to the Mendenhall and Lamme families; and a positive photocopy of a scrapbook kept by Mary Susan Mendenhall.
Repository: Montana State University Library, Merrill G. Burlingame Special Collections
Montana State University-Bozeman Library
Merrill G Burlingame Special Collections
P.O. Box 173320
Bozeman, MT
59717-3320
Telephone: 4069944242
Fax: 4069942851
Access Restrictions: This collection is open for research.
Languages
Sponsor: Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities

Historical NoteReturn to Top

Robert Henry Smith was a Missouri resident who served in the Confederate States Army. He participated in the early settlement of Kansas during the 1850s before finally moving to St. Joseph, Missouri around 1858. On June 9 of that year he married Mary Susan Oliver (1838-1933) and the couple had a son, Harry L. Smith on January 13, 1861. Smith enlisted later that year and served with Missouri troops under the command of Major General Sterling Price. He participated in the battle of Lexington, Missouri, and accompanied the southern army on their withdrawal to the southwestern portion of the state that winter. He may have left the army during the spring of 1862 but by August he was a prisoner of the Union forces in St. Louis. By December he had rejoined the Confederate army in Arkansas and was appointed quartermaster under Brigadier General John Sappington Marmaduke with the rank of major. He participated in the battles of Cane Hill, Prairie Grove, and Helena, Arkansas while serving with Marmaduke. While manning a gun at the battle of Helena, Robert Henry Smith was killed by enemy fire. Mary Susan Smith remained in St. Joseph with her son until 1869 when she moved to Montana Territory to join her sister and brother-in-law, Dr. and Mrs. Achilles Lamme. All eventually settled in Bozeman where, in 1870, Mary Susan married John S. Mendenhall, Dr. Lamme's business partner in a Bozeman general mercantile establishment. The couple later had one son, Samuel A. Mendenhall, before John Mendenhall's death in 1896. Mary Susan Mendenhall died in 1933 at the age of 95.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The Smith-Mendenhall family papers consist of correspondence, deeds, scrapbooks, and photographs created by the Smith, Mendenhall, and Lamme families. Correspondence includes the pre-Civil War business papers of Robert Henry Smith; Civil War letters written by Smith to his wife from 1861-1863; correspondence of the Mendenhall family including letters written by Mary Susan to her husband and son; deeds and legal documents pertaining to the Mendenhall and Lamme families; positive photocopy of a scrapbook kept by Mary Susan Mendenhall. The letters contained in the collection have been calendared.

The original copy of Mary Susan Mendenhall's scrapbook is contained in box 2 of the collection along with a 1937 photo album of a summer trip to Yellowstone National Park created by Adelae Hanson and a reminiscence written by Leah Morris Mendenhall. Also included with these materials is a portarit of Ah Tie and his wife Dou Luay Tie taken in 1903, who both immigrated from China and worked for the Morris family.

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Preferred Citation

[Creator Name], [Date of Creation], [Brief Description of Object], Folder [#], Box [#], [Collection Name], [Collection #], Montana State University (MSU) Library, Bozeman, MT

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Acquisition Information

Letters, business papers, and legal documents collected or created by members of the Smith-Mendenhall families were deposited with Special Collections by Robert Orton and Mary Ellen Smith of Bozeman, Montana in November, 1969 and donated on October 6, 1997. Letters and business papers of Robert Henry Smith were saved by his widow, Mary Susan, following his death in 1863. To these papers were added letters and legal documents pertaining to her second husband, John S. Mendenhall. The papers were passed on to Henry Smith, Mary Susan's first son, and finally to Robert Orton Smith who placed them with Special Collections. These materials are all in box one.

Scrapbooks, reminiscence, and portrait in box two were donated by Sue Smith as executor of the Mary Ellen Smith Estate along with her brother, Gregory Orton Smith, May 17, 2023.

Processing Note

Items in box one were processed 2009 February 12. Items in box 2 were incorporated into the collection in 2024.

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

Pre-Civil War business papers, 1857-1859Return to Top

Container(s): Box 1, Folder 1

Container(s)		Description	Dates
		1: Deed for a slave from Joseph B. Smith (father)	1857 July
		2: Deed to land in Kansas Territory	1857 August
		3: Statement about a preemption claim to land in Kansas Territory	1857 November
		4: Statement about a preemption claim to land in Kansas Territory	1857 November
		5: Account statements for sister Mary F. Smith--collegiate course expenses	1857 November - 1859
		6: Account statements for sister Mary F. Smith--collegiate course expenses	1857 November - 1859
		7: Promissory note	1857 August
		8: County signer on a promissory note	1857 March
		9: Receipt for payment for boots	1857 January

Pre-Civil War business papers, 1858-1859Return to Top

Container(s): Box 1, Folder 2

Container(s)		Description	Dates
		1: Open Deed for a lot in St. Joseph, MO	1858 February
		2: List of household goods sent by Wm. N. Oliver to his newly married daughter	1858 November
		3: Receipt for school expenses paid for Mary F. Smith	1858 January
		4: Receipt for clothing	1858 March
		5: Open Receipt for J.H. Crane	1859 January - 1859 February
		6: Bill for clothing	1859 January
		7: Receipt for groceries	1859 February - 1859 November
		8: Promissory note	1859 May 31
		9: Receipt for clothing	1859 June
		10: Lease on a house in St. Joseph, MO	1859 July
		11: Indenture on a cemetery location near St. Joseph, MO	1859 August
		12: Receipt for payment to F. Clark	1859 August
		13: Rent paid	1859 January
		14: Rent receipt	1859 February
		15: Rent receipt	1859 April
		16: Promissory note held by Mr. Smith	1859 April
		17: Rent receipt	1859 June 20

Pre-Civil War business papers, 1860-1861Return to Top

Container(s): Box 1, Folder 3

Container(s)		Description	Dates
		1: Promissory note to Smith	1860 January
		2: Deed for a house and lot in Roanoke Co.	1860 March
		3: Promissory note to Smith from Wm. N. Oliver	1860 June 5
		4: Lease on a house in St. Joseph, MO.	1860 July
		5: Receipt of payment for boots	1860 February
		6: Promissory note signed by Smith	1860 May 31
		7: Receipt for collars purchase	1860 May
		8: Promissory note signed by RHS	1860 June 2
		9: Payment to Blackeman	1860 June
		10: Promissory note due	1860 July
		11: Receipt for purchase of a saddle horse	1860 November
		13: Open List of accounts to collect	1861 January
		14: Letter explaining the transaction above	1861 January
		15: Accounts collected	1861 February
		16: Promissory note due to	1861 January
		17: Notice to pay promissory note	1861 January
		18: Notice to pay promissory note	1861 February

Civil War letters, RHS to MSS at St. Joseph, 1861-1862Return to Top

Container(s): Box 1, Folder 4

Container(s)		Description	Dates
		1: [author unknown to MSS] De Kalb, MO	March 23, 1855
		2: [Southwest Missouri]	1861 October 12
		3: [Southwest Missouri]	circa 1861 October
		4: St. Claire County, MO, "Camp on Salk River"	1861 November 26
		5: Springfield, MO	1862 January 4
		6: Springfield, MO	1862 January 27
		7: McDowell College Prison, St. Louis, MO	1862 August 3
		8: Camp Dripping Springs, AR	1862 December 3

Civil War letters, RHS to MSS at St. Joseph, 1863Return to Top

Container(s): Box 1, Folder 5

Container(s)		Description	Dates
		1: Wright County, MO	1863 January 12
		2: Batesville, AR	1863 January 24
		3: Batesville, AR	1863 February 22
		4: Up. Black River, AR	1863 February 23
		5: Head Quarters, Quarter Master	1863 March 11
		6: Jacksonport, AR	1863 May 30
		7: Jacksonport, AR	1863 May 31
		8: [undated fragment, possibly continuation of above]
		9: Little Rock, AR	1863 June 15
		10: Jacksonport, AR	1863 June 20
		11: Near Helena, AR	1863 July 3
		12: [undated fragment, written from Arkansas]

Civil War letters from others to SHS at St. Joseph, 1863Return to Top

Container(s): Box 1, Folder 6

Container(s)		Description	Dates
		1: Letter, General John S. Marmaduke, camp near Helena, AR, to Mary Susan Smith, St. Joseph, MO	1863 July 6
		2: Letter, A.W. Slayback, near Helena, AR, to Mary Susan Smith, St. Joseph, MO	1863 July 6
		3: Letter, Charlie F., St. Joseph, MO, to Mary Susan Smith, St. Joseph, MO	1863 July 14
		4: Receipt from O.C. Raimiaten for money, and articles sold for R.H. Smith's estate	1863 September 21
		5: Receipt for $1200 in C.S. and Missouri State Bonds and a title bond from D.M. McDonald	1863 June 8
		6: Newspaper clipping, Marmaduke and Slayback letters

Robert Henry Smith's Civil War account book with added notations from Col. A. W. Slayback explaining the settlement of his military estate and the circumstances of his death after he was killed on, 1863 July 4Return to Top

Container(s): Box 1, Folder 7

Six envelopes, one with lock of RHS's hair; Typed transcripts of selected letters, the account book, and a description of the death of Robert H. Smith published as part of a larger article in "The Inland Monthly" of St. Louis, MO., v. 5, n. 1, pp. 1-14Return to Top

Container(s): Box 1, Folder 8

Mendenhall family letters, 1858-1873Return to Top

Container(s): Box 1, Folder 9

Container(s)		Description	Dates
		1: John Mendenhall to Jack, Ft. Larami[e], N.T.	1858 September 30
		2: Achilles Lamme to Mary Susan Oliver, [St. Joseph, MO]	circa 1858
		3: Hervey Oliver to Mary Susan Smith, North Garden, Virginia	1869 April 13
		4: Harvey Oliver to "Dear Nephew", North Garden, Virginia	1869 May 12
		5: Fannie [Oliver?] to Mary Susan Smith, [St. Joseph, MO]	1869 May 23
		6: "Friend Lizzie" to Mary Susan Smith, [St. Joseph, MO]	1869 November 3
		7: Harvey Oliver to Mary Susan Mendenhall, Bozeman, MT, North Garden, Virginia	1873 January 6

Mendenhall family lettersReturn to Top

Container(s): Box 1, Folder 10

Container(s)		Description	Dates
		1: Mary Susan Mendenhall to John Mendenhall, Custer County, MT, Bozeman, MT	1878 May 23
		2: Mary Susan Mendenhall to John Mendenhall, Custer County, MT, Bozeman, MT	1878 June 6
		3: Mary Susan Mendenhall, Bozeman to John Mendenhall, Custer County, MT, MT	1878 June 13
		4: Mary Susan Mendenhall to John Mendenhall, Yellowstone Freight depot, Camp Bertie, MT, Bozeman, MT	1878 July 11
		5: Mary Susan Mendenhall to Harry L. Smith, with Belknap Cattle Herd at Benson's Landing and at Crow Agency, Bozeman, MT	1880 August 6
		6: Mary Susan Mendenhall to Harry L. Smith, with Belknap Cattle Herd at Benson's Landing and at Crow Agency, Bozeman, MT	1880 August 9

Other Mendenhall family papersReturn to Top

Container(s): Box 1, Folder 11

Container(s)		Description	Dates
		1: Eight envelopes
		2: A. Lamme and Co. letterhead paper with J.S. Mendenhall and J.L. Harlowe, Bozeman	1880 August 21
		3: Receipt signed by A. Lamme to Charles Pierce for money to buy a wagon to be shipped via Ft. Benton

Abstract of title for lots 16, 17 and 18 in Bozeman, owned by Mendenhall and SmithReturn to Top

Container(s): Box 1, Folder 12

Deeds, 1865-1902Return to Top

Container(s): Box 1, Folder 13

Container(s)		Description	Dates
		1: Deed, James E. Burch to John S. Mendenhall	1865
		2: R.S. Crowford to John H. Mendenhall	1870
		3: John S. Noble to Wm. H. Tracy	1870
		4: Wm. H. Tracy and Sarah Jane Tracy to A. Lamme	1871
		5: Nelson Story and Ellen Story to A. Lamme	1871
		6: John S. Noble to Samuel W. Langhorne	1871
		7: S.W. Langhorne to A. Lamme	1877
		8: Wm. H. Tracy to James Flemmings	1880
		9: Achilles Lamme to John S. Mendenhall	1888
		10: O.P. Moore to John S. Mendenhall	1888
		11: Joseph M. Wells and Martha A. Wells to Mary Susan Mendenhall, S.A. Mendenhall, and Harry L. Smith	1898
		12: Mary Susan Mendenhall to Robert M. Esgar	1900
		13: Northern Pacific Railroad to John Y. Ferguson	1898
		14: Mary Susan Mendenhall to John Y. Ferguson	1902
		15: Merrit Connell and Nannie D. Connell to John Y. Ferguson

Notebooks, 1872-1902Return to Top

Container(s): Box 1, Folder 14

Container(s)		Description	Dates
		1: Small notebook labeled "abstract of voucher, agency" with prices of commodities	1872
		2: Pocket ledger with accounts which could have been used to keep records on the building of a home	1901-1902

Xerox copies of biographical clippings in the Smith-Mendenhall family scrapbook kept by Mary Susan MendenhallReturn to Top

Container(s): Box 1, Folder 15

Mary Ellen "Dolly" Smith Correspondence with MSU Library and Museum of the Rockies, 1971-2005Return to Top

Container(s): Box 1, Folder 16

Adelae Hansen and Eli Doyra Yellowstone Park Summer scrapbook, 1937-1938Return to Top

Container(s): Box 2, Volume 1

Leah Morris Mendenhall reminiscence, 1958 April 12Return to Top

Container(s): Box 2, Folder 1

The Leah Morris Mendenhall reminiscence describes her childhood growing up in Pony, Montana. In her reminiscence she describes her memories of the family's cook, Ah Tie, who immigrated to Montana from China and worked for the Morris family for over thirty years.

Leah Morris Mendenhall was born in Virginia City, Montana in 1876. She was the daughter of prominient buisnessman William Warder Morris. She married Samuel A. Mendenhall in 1908. The couple resided in Pony where Samuel worked in mining and later moved to Bozeman. She died in Bozeman in 1962 at the age of 86.

Newspaper Clipping in Medford Daily Tribune regarding the Sale of the Hopkins OrchardReturn to Top

Container(s): Box 2, Folder 2

Portrait of Ah Tie and Wife Dou Luay Tie, 1903Return to Top

Container(s): Box 2, Folder 3

Ah Tie (circa 1850 - 1909) immigrated to the United States from China around 1876. He worked as a cook and servant for the family of W.W. Morris of Virginia City, Montana for nearly 27 years and also engaged in independent buisness ventures. At the time of his death in 1909, he owned several properties in Virginia City and Pony.

Ah Tie married Dou Luay Tie in San Francisco in 1897. The couple had no children. Ah Tie died of pneumonia in 1909 at the age of 59.

His name has been alternately spelled Chong Ah Tie and Ting Ah Tigh in various sources, although it has been most frequently spelled Ah Tie in regional Montana newspapers.

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