Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
Barker-Adair family papers, 1762-1967
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Barker-Adair family
- Title
- Barker-Adair family papers
- Dates
- 1762-1967 (inclusive)17621967
1847-1933 (bulk)18471933 - Quantity
- 4.5 cubic feet (10 document cases, 1 oversize folder, 1 reel microfilm)
- Collection Number
- Mss 1131
- Summary
- Papers of the families of William Morris Barker (1854-1901), Episcopal bishop of Olympia, Washington; his wife, Laura Adair Barker (1854-1935), who lived in Portland, Oregon, in her later years; George R. and Anna Morris Barker, parents of William M. Barker who lived in Germantown, Pennsylvania; and other family members. Includes extensive diaries of Laura Adair Barker; correspondence of William Morris Barker; correspondence of George R. Barker, mostly related to the Collegiate Institute of Germantown, Pennsylvania; notebooks; and scrapbooks.
- Repository
-
Oregon Historical Society Research Library
1200 SW Park Avenue
Portland, OR
97205
Telephone: 503-306-5240
Fax: 503-219-2040
libreference@ohs.org - Access Restrictions
-
The collection is open to the public.
- Languages
- English
- Sponsor
- Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Historical NoteReturn to Top
William Morris Barker served as the Episcopal Bishop of Olympia, Washington, from 1894 to until his death in 1901. Born in Pennsylvania in 1854, he was the nephew of Benjamin Wistar Morris (1819-1906), pioneer Oregon churchman and founder of Portland's Bishop Scott Academy and Good Samaritan Hospital. Barker's parents were George R. Barker (1823-1880), principal of the Collegiate Institute of Germantown, Pennsylvania, and Anna Ellis Morris Barker (1827-1909). William Morris Barker was educated at Berkeley Divinity School in Middletown, Connecticut (now part of Yale University), served as the rector of St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Duluth, Minnesota, and in 1893 was appointed Bishop of Western Colorado. The following year he became Missionary Bishop of Olympia, Washington. He suffered from heart disease most of his life and died suddenly in 1901 at the age of 46.
In 1892 William Morris Barker married Laura Pindell Adair (1854-1935). She was a native of Astoria, Oregon and the daughter of pioneers John Adair (1808-1888) and Mary Ann Dickinson Adair (1816-1893). John Adair came to Oregon with his family in 1849 and served as the first U.S. inspector of customs at Astoria. His daughter Laura Pindell Adair Barker moved to Portland after her husband's death in 1901, and there she raised her two daughters in a house at 3407 NW Thurman Street. Her daughter Anna Ellis Barker (1894-1967) married Alfred F. Parker, an insurance agent in Portland, and they lived in the Thurman Street house until 1944.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
Most of the materials in the collection relate to William Morris Barker, his parents George R. Barker and Anna Ellis Morris Barker, and his wife Laura Adair Barker. The George R. Barker materials include correspondence and other papers relating to the Collegiate Institute of Germantown, Pennsylvania; and papers regarding his invention of a heating duct system. George's wife, Anna Barker, is represented by a substantial file of correspondence, including many letters written to her husband from Pennsylvania, with local news and family events.
The William Morris Barker materials include letters sent to him, relating primarily to church affairs, and letters to his wife and family. There is a small file of correspondence of Barker's father-in-law, John Adair, including a letter of 1854 from John Withers, written from Yoncalla and describing local and regional conditions. Two diaries of John's wife, Mary Ann Dickinson Adair, date from 1872 and 1883-1884 and provide details of her daily life in Astoria, Oregon. Also included is her short diary, written 1848-1849, describing her voyage from New Orleans to California via Panama. Letters written by Edward Wistar Barker, brother of William Morris Barker, 1880-1893, give a lively narrative of his life and adventures in Duluth, Minnesota. Of particular interest is a large collection of diaries of Laura Adair Barker, dating from 1868 to 1907, and containing well-written entries about her activities and thoughts, some written while she was a student at St. Helen's Hall in Portland. A diary of 1915-1916 contains entries of both Laura Barker and her daughter Anna.
The collection also includes biographical and genealogical information on the Barker, Adair, Morris, Dickinson, and related families, as well a small amounts of material relating to Ellen M. Booth, Samuel Booth, Charles Breck, Mary L. Ferguson, John Guernsey, S. M. Guernsey, Abel Gunn, Anna Holstein, Daniel Hoyt, Mary W. Lourey, Mary Palmer, Sophie G. Putnam, and Mary Rodney.
The microfilm contains Adair family reminiscences, genealogy and letters compiled by Lorna P. Adair Barker.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Alternative Forms Available
A typescript transcription of the short diary of Mary Ann Dickinson Adair, 1848-1849, is available on Microfilm Mss1131, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
Restrictions on Use
The Oregon Historical Society is the owner of the materials in the Research Library and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. Written permission must be obtained from the Research Library before any publication use. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all of the materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from the copyright owners.
Preferred Citation
Barker-Adair family papers, Mss1131, Oregon Historical Society Research Library
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Arrangement
The collection is arranged in the following series:
- Series A: Barker and Morris family papers, 1762-1906
- Series B: Adair and related family papers, 1848-1967
Acquisition Information
The collection was probably a gift of Anna Ellis Barker Parker.
Related Materials
Photographs of members of the Barker family can be found in file 0085 in the Subject Photo Files, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
Location of Originals
Originals of microfilmed materials in private possession.
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
Series A: Barker and Morris family papers, 1762-1901Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
George R. Barker
papers |
||
Correspondence to his
family |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/1 | 1855-1859 | |
| 1/2 | 1860-1865 | |
| 1/3 | 1866-1869 | |
| 1/4 | 1870-1876 | |
| 1/5 | 1877-1880 | |
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/6 | Correspondence
received |
1860-1879 |
Collegiate Institute
(Germantown, Philadelphia, Pa.) |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/7 | General
papers |
1858-1881 |
| 1/8 | Correspondence,
primarily regarding teaching |
1847-1880 |
Correspondence from
pupil and parents |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/9 | 1853-1864 | |
| 1/10 | 1865-1871 | |
| 1/11 | 1872-1879; undated | |
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/12 | Scrapbook of printed
material concerning schools, primarily in the Philadelphia area |
1849-1880 |
| Box/Folder | ||
| 2/1 | Correspondence regarding
St. Luke's Church, Germantown, Pennsylvania |
1865-1880 |
| Oversize folder | Floor plan of St. Luke's
Church, Germantown, Pa., with names of pew holders |
undated |
| 2/2 | Correspondence regarding
Branchtown, Pennsylvania church |
1862-1866; undated |
Heating apparatus
materials |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 2/3 | Patent
information |
1873-1882; undated |
Correspondence |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 2/4 | 1870-1873 | |
| 2/5 | 1874 | |
| 2/6 | 1876 | |
| 2/7 | 1876-1877 | |
| 2/8 | 1878 | |
| 2/9 | 1879-1880 | |
| 2/10 | 1881-1882; undated | |
| Box/Folder | ||
| 2/11 | Receipts and
bills |
1874-1880 |
| 2/12 | International
Exhibition, Philadelphia |
1876 |
| 2/13 | General
papers |
1875-1878 |
| Box/Folder | ||
| Oversize folder | Certificate from Franklin
Institute |
1874 |
| 2/14 | Court case
documents |
1877-1879 |
| 2/15 | Printed
materials |
1862-1871 |
| 2/16 | Family records and
reminiscences |
1854-1911; undated |
| Oversize folder | Portrait and obituary of
Samuel Morris |
circa 1812 |
Annie E. Morris Barker
papers |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 2/17 | School mementos and
drawings |
circa 1845 |
| 2/18 | Correspondence
received |
1854-1871 |
| 2/19 | Correspondence
received |
1872-1884 |
| 2/20 | Letters sent to her
husband, George Barker |
1862-1874 |
Letters sent to
others |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 2/21 | 1876 | |
| 2/22 | 1877-1884 | |
| 2/23 | 1890-1893 | |
| 2/24 | 1894; undated | |
| Box/Folder | ||
| 3/1 | Book of poems from her
mother, and list of quilts |
1904; 1906 |
Papers of various family members |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 3/2 | Anna ("Nannie") Morris
Barker (possibly the daughter of George and Anna Ellis Morris Barker), letters
sent |
1875-1880 |
| 3/3 | Abel Barker (brother of
George R.), letters sent |
1841-1881 |
| 3/4 | Belle Barker (niece of
George R.), letters sent |
1856-1871 |
Edward Wistar Barker
(possibly son of George R.), letters sent |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 3/5 | 1880-1884 April | |
| 3/6 | 1884 May-June | |
| 3/7 | 1884 July-December | |
| 3/8 | 1885-1886 July | |
| 3/9 | 1886 August-1893; undated | |
| Oversize folder | Map of Duluth, drawn
by E. W. Barker |
circa 1884 |
| Box/Folder | ||
| 3/10 | G. B. Barker, letters
sent |
1857 |
| 3/11 | M. B. Barker, letters
sent |
1858 |
| 3/12 | Phebe A. Barker, letters
sent |
undated |
| 3/13 | Samuel E. and Susan
Barker, letters sent |
1858-1881 |
| 3/14 | Samuel Morris Barker,
letters sent |
1863-1884; undated |
| 3/15 | Thomas B. Barker
(possibly brother of George R.), Letters sent |
1857-1892; undated |
William Morris Barker
papers |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 3/16 | Notebook on doctrinal
theology |
undated |
| 4/1 | Notebook on
Ecclesiastical history by Rev. J.
Williams |
|
| 4/2 |
Clergyman's private register (ledger of parish
activities) |
circa 1879-1890 |
Letters
sent |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 4/3 | 1862-1874 | |
| 4/4 | 1875 | |
| 4/5 | 1876 | |
| 4/6 | 1877 | |
| 4/7 | 1878 | |
| 4/8 | 1879 January-June | |
| 4/9 | 1879 July-December | |
| 4/10 | 1880 | |
| 4/11 | 1881 | |
| 5/1 | 1886-1887 | |
| 5/2 | 1890-1899 July; undated | |
| 5/3 | 1899 August-December; undated | |
| 5/4 | 1900; undated | |
| Box/Folder | ||
| 5/5 | Letters regarding
Barker's illness from his friends at Berkeley Divinity School, Middletown,
Connecticut |
1876 |
| 5/6 | Letters
received |
1867-1900; undated |
| 5/7 | Marriage license,
eulogy, photograph of house in Portland |
1892; 1901; undated |
| 10/1-2 | Scrapbook |
1893-1897 |
| 10/3-4 | Ephemera |
circa 1867-1900 |
| Oversize folder | Diploma, certificate,
newspapers |
1880-1897 |
Papers of friends and
others |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 5/8 | Booth, Ellen M. and
Samuel |
1857-1875 |
| 5/9 | Breck,
Charles |
1864-1881 |
| 5/10 | Ferguson, Mary
L. |
1876 |
| 5/11 | Guernsey,
John |
1859-1877; undated |
| 5/12 | Guernsey, S.M. (Mrs.
John), and Sophie Anna |
1864-1881 |
| 5/13 | Gunn, Abel |
1864-1872 |
| 5/14 | Hill, Henry, letter to
his sister |
1762 June 1 |
| 5/15 | Holstein,
Anna |
1867-1868 |
| 5/16 | Hoyt, Daniel |
1861-1869 |
| 5/17 | Lovrey, Mary
W. |
1858-1876; undated |
| 5/18 | Norton, Frank
L.--Notebook on Ecclesiastical history
|
undated |
| 5/19 | Palmer, Mary, letters
sent |
1857-1858 |
| 5/20 | Putnam, Sophie G.,
letters sent |
1864-1881; undated |
| 5/21 | Rodney, Mary B., letters
sent |
1870-1874 |
Morris family
papers |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 5/22 | Anna
Morris--Will |
1858; 1866 |
| 6/1 | Annie Morris, letters
sent |
1859-1875; undated |
| 6/2 | Benjamin Wistar Morris
and Benjamin Wistar Morris Jr., letters sent and received |
1853-1901; undated |
| 6/3 | Charles and Lizzie
Morris, letters sent |
1868-1872; undated |
| 6/4 | Hannah R. Morris, letters
sent |
1876-1883; undated |
| 6/5 | Henry Rodney Morris,
letters sent |
1869-1871; undated |
| 6/6 | Louisa Morris, letters
sent |
1876-1877; undated |
| 6/7 | Mary R. Morris, letters
sent |
1870-1875 |
| 6/8-9 | Rachel W. Morris, letters
sent |
1858-1879; undated |
| 6/10 | Samuel W. Morris, will
(typescript copy) |
1833 |
| 6/11 | Samuel W. Morris, letters
sent |
1848-1857 |
| 6/12 | Sarah E. Morris, letters
sent |
1858-1893 |
| 6/13 | William E. Morris,
letters sent |
1871-1873 |
Series B: Adair and related family papers, 1848-1967Return to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Box/Folder | ||
| 6/14 | Adair family
history |
1896; undated |
| 6/15 | Adair family
journal |
undated |
| Microfilm Reel | ||
Adair and Dickinson family
reminiscences, genealogy and letters (typescript copies) compiled by Lorna P.
Adair Barker
Includes genealogy of the Dickinson family, biography of
General George Cockburn, biography of John Adair, recollections of John Adair
and his wife Mary Ann, transcript of Mary Ann Adair's short diary of 1848-1849,
and transcripts of family letters.
|
circa 1849-1933 | |
| Box/Folder | ||
| 6/16 | Henry Buford Adair
diary |
1868 |
| 6/17 | John Adair, biographical
sketch by Mary Adair Parker Lawrence |
1967 |
| 6/18 | John Adair--Correspondence as
Collector of Customs, Astoria
Includes letter from John Withers regarding conditions in
the region, 1854 October 29
|
1849-1853 |
| 6/19 | Mary Ann Dickinson Adair
diaries (3 items) |
1848-1849; 1872; 1883-1884 |
| 6/20 | W. M. Adair, history of
Cannon Beach (typescript) |
1963 |
Laura P. Adair Barker
papers |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 7/1 | Composition
books |
1871; 1873 |
Diaries |
||
| Box/Folder | ||
| 7/2 | 2 volumes |
1868; 1870-1871 |
| 7/3 | 1873 February 23-1874 May 31 | |
| 7/4 | 1874 June 25-November 30 | |
| 7/5 | 2 volumes |
1883 |
| 7/6 | 1884 January 1-1885 August 31 | |
| 7/7 | 2 volumes |
1885 September 29-1886 April 11; 1887 |
| 8/1 | 2 volumes |
1890; January 1-June 2; 1890 July 1-1891 July 12 |
| 8/2 | 1893 February 22-1896 December 25 | |
| 8/3 | 2 volumes |
1897 October 31-1899 March 29; 1900 |
| 8/4 | 2 volumes |
1902 January 1-1903 January 21; 1903 January 22-October 20 |
| 8/5 | 1903 October 13-1905 May 20 | |
| 8/6 | 2 volumes |
1905 August 23-1907 April 28; 1910 July 10-September 15 |
| 9/1 | Diary with her
daughter Anna |
1915 May 15-1916 June 14 |
| Box/Folder | ||
| 9/2 | Expense book |
1899-1901 |
| 9/3 | Autograph
book |
1877-1892 |
| 9/4 | Letters sent (mostly to
her daughter) |
1890-1929 |
| 9/5 | Letters sent (mostly to
her daughter) |
1930-1933 |
| 9/6 | Letters received
regarding her marriage |
1890; undated |
| 9/7 | Letters
received |
1892-1916; undated |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Bishops--Washington (State)--Biography.
- Clergy--Washington (State)--Biography.
- Education--Pennsylvania--Philadelphia--History.
- Episcopal Church--United States--History.
- Voyages to the Pacific coast--Personal narratives.
- Women--Oregon--Diaries.
Personal Names
- Adair, John, General, 1808-1888.
- Adair, Mary Dickinson, 1816-1893.
- Barker, Anna Morris, 1827-1909--Correspondence. (creator)
- Barker, Edward Wistar--Correspondence. (creator)
- Barker, George R., 1823-1880--Correspondence. (creator)
- Barker, Laura Adair. (creator)
- Barker, William Morris. (creator)
- Morris, Benjamin Wistar, 1819-1906.
- Parker, Anna Barker, 1894-1967. (creator)
Corporate Names
- Collegiate Institute (Germantown, Philadephia, Pa.)--History.
- St. Helen's Hall (Portland, Or.)--History.
Family Names
- Adair family.
- Barker family.
- Barker-Adair family.
- Dickinson family.
- Morris family.
Geographical Names
- Astoria (Or.)--History.
- Duluth (Minn.)--History.
- Germantown (Philadelphia, Pa.)--History.
- Olympia (Wash.)--History.
- Portland (Or.)--History.
Form or Genre Terms
- Diaries
- Letters (correspondence)
- Scrapbooks
