Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
Horlacher-McCoy-Smith Family Papers, 1876-1989
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Horlacher-McCoy-Smith
- Title
- Horlacher-McCoy-Smith Family Papers
- Dates
- 1876-1989 (inclusive)18761989
- Quantity
- 3 containers., (2.5 linear feet of shelf space.), (750 items.)
- Collection Number
- Cage 575
- Summary
- Correspondence, business papers, farming papers and photographs of tthe Horlacher, McCoy and Smith families mostly about the running of the family farm near Rosalia, Washington.
- Repository
-
Washington State University Libraries' Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections (MASC)
Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections
Terrell Library Suite 12
Pullman, WA
99164-5610
Telephone: 509-335-6691
mascref@wsu.edu - Access Restrictions
-
This collection is open for research use.
- Languages
- English
- Sponsor
- Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Biographical NoteReturn to Top
Johan Georg Horlacher was born on November 21, 1848, in Wurtemberg, German. After emigrating to America, he married Maria Margerethe Jung, born November 20, 1860, in Colsville, Wisconsin. After a trip west on May 1, 1882, the Horlachers purchased their first parcel of land, amounting to 160 acres from the Northern Pacific Railroad. The land is located approximately four miles south of Rosalia, Washington, on Olson Road. Georg and Maria farmed the land until about 1918, when their daughter, Serena, and her husband, Ray Meyers, took over farming, operations. The Meyers farmed the land until Georg's death in 1923. Soon after, Serena's sister, Bena, and her husband, Elmer Claude McCoy, took over. In the ensuing years, Elmer acquired possession of the farms previously owned by the Horlachers and James Henry McCoy, his father. Bena and Claude likewise farmed the land until 1964, when their daughter Marjorie Gwendolyn McCoy and her husband, Harry Elmer Smith, assumed farming responsibilities. Upon Claude's death in 1984, possession of the farm went to Marjorie's brother, Clayton McCoy. Marjorie and Harry's son, Clifton, is currently farming the property and owns a portion of land jointly with his uncle.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Preferred Citation
[Item Description]. Cage 575, Horlacher-McCoy-Smith Family Papers. Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections, Washington State University Libraries, Pullman, WA.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Arrangement
The Horlacher-McCoy-Smith papers are arranged into five series. The first series, the Horlacher Papers, 1876-1963, contains the correspondence which pertains to the Horlacher possession of the land. It includes farm titles, mortgages, indentures, deeds, leases, tax information and forms. Also included are documents relating to an 1889 highway lawsuit, personal business documents and correspondence, personal correspondence, John Georg Horlacher's diary, and George Horlacher's will (George Horlacher is Georg and Maria's son).
Series 2, Elmer Claude McCoy Papers, 1917-1979, contains farm business and related documents, crop books, crop statements, weight and grain certificates, farm tax information, produce and livestock receipts, business notes, highway documents and related correspondence, personal business, personal tax information and blank forms, miscellaneous calendars covering 1923-1933, and personal correspondence. Also included in this series are Bena McCoy's papers which cover the Horlacher heirs conflict, 1926-1967.
Series 3 consists of the James Henry McCoy Papers, 1893-1944. Unlike the previous two series, Series 3 contains farm business information. Instead, stock and investment-related business comprise the bulk of this series, including miscellaneous personal business, loose receipts, personal tax information and forms, and several documents relating to James McCoy's participation in the Bannock Indian War of 1878.
The last correspondence-based series is the Smith Papers, 1878-1989. This series, although smaller than the others, contains similar information: farm business documents, tax information and forms, and personal correspondence. Also included in this series is centennial farms information, centennial farms information photographs, and Horlacher heirs information.
Series 5 consists of two photo albums, the Serena Meyers photo album and the Marjorie Smith photo album. The first album contains photographs of Serena's married years with Ray, emphasizing their trip east. The Marjorie Smith album is a photostatic copy of the original album, which remain in the possession of the owner.
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the collection.
Series 1: Horlacher PapersReturn to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 1 | 1 | Farm - Titles, Mortgages,
Indentures, Deeds, and Leases |
1897-1921 |
| 1 | 2 | Farm - Tax Information and
Forms |
1910-1921 |
| 1 | 3 | Highway Lawsuit
Documents |
1883-1925 |
| 1 | 4 | Personal Business, Loose
Receipts, and Cancelled Checks |
1903-1921 |
| 1 | 5 | Personal Correspondence and Georg
Horlacher Diary |
1876-1928 |
| 1 | 6 | George Horlacher Will |
1963 |
Series 2: Elmer Claude McCoy PapersReturn to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 1 | 7 | Farm Business and Related
Documents |
1917-1935 |
| 1 | 8 | Farm Business and Related
Documents |
1936-1940 |
| 1 | 9 | Farm Business and Related
Documents |
1941-1945 |
| 1 | 10 | Farm Business and Related
Documents |
1946-1958 |
| 1 | 11 | Farm Business and Related
Documents |
1959-1975 |
| 1 | 12 | Farm Business - Crop
Book |
1928-1941 |
| 1 | 13 | Farm Business - Big Ten Pencil
Tablet |
1950-1958 |
| 1 | 14 | Farm Business - Crop Statements
to Carolyn Bruce |
1965-1970 |
| 1 | 15 | Highway Documents and Related
Correspondence |
1958-1964 |
| 1 | 16 | Loose Cancelled Checks, Receipts,
and Deposit Slips |
1912-1979 |
| 1 | 17 | Rosalia Producers Weight and
Grain Inspection Certificates |
1949-1952 |
| 1 | 18 | Stoneham Grain Weight
Certificates |
1937-1939 |
| 1 | 19 | Farm Tax Information and
Forms |
1923-1964 |
| 1 | 20 | Farm Tax Information and
Forms |
1965-1976 |
| 1 | 21 | Produce and Livestock, Receipts
and Business Notes |
1934-1956 |
| 1 | 22 | Personal Business |
1919-1968 |
| 1 | 23 | Personal Tax Information and
Forms |
1921-1958 |
| 1 | 24 | Personal
Correspondence |
undated |
| 1 | 25 | Bena McCoy - Horlacher Heirs'
Conflict |
1926-1967 |
| 1 | 26 | Calendars |
1923-1927; 1930-1933 |
Series 3: James Henry McCoy PapersReturn to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 1 | 27 | Farm Business |
1893-1923 |
| 1 | 28 | Stock and Investment Related
Business |
1914-1929 |
| 1 | 29 | Stock and Investment Related
Business |
1930-1932 |
| 1 | 30 | Stock and Investment Related
Business |
1933-1935 |
| 2 | 31 | Stock and Investment Related
Business |
1936-1937 |
| 2 | 32 | Stock and Investment Related
Business |
1938-1944 |
| 2 | 33 | Personal Business - Loose
Receipts |
1928-1932 |
| 2 | 34 | Personal Tax Information and
Forms |
1915-1940 |
| 2 | 35 | Bannock Indian War
Documents |
Series 4: Smith PapersReturn to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 2 | 36 | Farm Business |
1971-1980 |
| 2 | 37 | Tax Information and
Forms |
1964 |
| 2 | 38 | Personal
Correspondence |
1974-1977 |
| 2 | 39 | Centennial Farms
Information |
1989 |
| 2 | 40 | Centennial Farms
Information |
1989 |
| 2 | 41 | Centennial Farms Information -
Photographs |
|
| 2 | 42 | Horlacher Heirs
Information |
1878-1962 |
| 2 | 43 | Items Given to Historical
Society |
Series 5: Photograph AlbumsReturn to Top
| Container(s) | Description |
|---|---|
| Box | |
| 3 | Serena Meyers |
| 3 | Marjorie Smith |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Agriculture -- Washington (State)--Rosalia
Family Names
- Horlacher family --Archives (creator)
- McCoy family
- Smith family
Geographical Names
- Rosalia (Wash.)--History
Finding aid prepared by Douglas J.
Blake
2012
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
