Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
Orson N. Newman Papers, 1879-1920
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Newman, Orson N., 1835-1921
- Title
- Orson N. Newman Papers
- Dates
- 1879-192018791920
- Quantity
- .2 linear feet
- Collection Number
- Collection 408, MtBC, us (collection)
- Summary
- The Orson N. Newman Papers consists of positive photocopies and typed transcriptions of two diaries kept by Orson Newman in 1879 and 1884 which discuss daily life and farming operations in Coulson, Montana Territory; positive photocopy of an account book listing garden truck sold to W.A. Perry, purchasing agent for the Northern Pacific during its construction; 27 copy photographs of: the Newman and Scott families and their residences in the Billings area; Scott business buildings in Billings and a Billings street scene, circa 1900-1920.
- 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
- English
- Sponsor
- Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities
Biographical NoteReturn to Top
Orson Nixon Newman (1835-1921) was born in Orleans County, New York. After completing his education he settled in Michigan where he operated a lumbering business. In 1863, he arrived in Bannack, Montana Territory where he worked briefly in mining before taking up farming in the Madison Valley. He and his family left for California in 1869 and then returned to Montana in 1875 where they lived briefly in Gallatin County. The Newman family moved again in 1878 to Coulson in the Yellowstone Valley and again took up farming. The location of their farm was about two and one half miles from the depot at Billings, and during the 1880s they sold garden truck to W.A. Perry, the purchasing agent for the newly constructed Northern Pacific railway. The Newman farm was near a ford on the river and many Indians camped near the area as a result. In this context, Orson met Plenty Coups with whom he maintained a long friendship. In 1858 Newman married Elizabeth Matilda Tripp and the couple had 11 children: Burton Lyon; Asa Dow; Edwin M.; William Marvin; Albert Alonzo; Charles Henry; Abe Benton; Sarah Jane, and Mary A. Newman. Mary married William J. Scott, an early resident of Billings and the owner of several businesses in the city during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Their son, William N. Scott, is the donor of these papers.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
Positive photocopies and typed transcriptions of two diaries kept by Orson Newman in 1879 and 1884 which discuss daily life and farming operations in Coulson, Montana Territory; positive photocopy of an account book listing garden truck sold to W.A. Perry, purchasing agent for the Northern Pacific during its construction; 27 copy photographs of: the Newman and Scott families and their residences in the Billings area; Scott business buildings in Billings and a Billings street scene, circa 1900-1920. Included are images of Scott family friends C.M. Bair and Fred Hawthorn. None of the photographs are dated but all were taken in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
Diary, 1879Return to Top
Container(s): Box-folder 1/1
Diary transcript, 1879Return to Top
Container(s): Box-folder 1/2
Diary, 1884Return to Top
Container(s): Box-folder 1/3
Diary transcript, 1884Return to Top
Container(s): Box-folder 1/4
Account book, 1883Return to Top
Container(s): Box-folder 1/5
Photographs #1-10, Newman familyReturn to Top
Container(s): Box-folder 1/6
Container(s) | Description |
---|---|
#1: Orson N. Newman |
|
#2: Elizabeth Tripp Newman |
|
#3: Asa Dow Newman |
|
#4: Edwin Newman |
|
#5: William Marvin Newman |
|
#6: Albert Alonzo Newman |
|
#7: Charles Henry Newman |
|
#8: Abe Benton Newman |
|
#9: Sarah Jane Newman and Henry Clay McKinsey |
|
#10: Orson, Hiram A., and Albert E. Newman |
Photographs #11-20, Newman and Scott FamilyReturn to Top
Container(s): Box-folder 1/7
Container(s) | Description |
---|---|
#11: Newman family at Coulson farm |
|
#12: Newman family at Yellowstone River ford |
|
#13: Edwin and Amy Newman |
|
#14: Mary McKinsey (Thompson) Newman |
|
#15: William J. Scott |
|
#16: William J. Scott with parents and brothers |
|
#17: Scott home in Canada |
|
#18: Mary Newman Scott posing with horse |
|
#19: William, Mary, Orson, and Elizabeth Newman on
horseback |
|
#20: William J. Scott in front of his storage business,
Billings |
Photographs #21-27, Scott photographsReturn to Top
Container(s): Box-folder 1/8
Container(s) | Description |
---|---|
#21: Hunting elk on rimrock with C.M. Bair and Fred
Hawthorn |
|
#22: C.M. Bair, Fred Hawthorn, and W.J. Scott in
automobile |
|
#23: Orson Newman, Major Pease and others in
automobile |
|
#24: William J. Scott home in Billings |
|
#25: Erikson and Scott steam laundry in Billings; W.J.
Scott posing in front with delivery wagon |
|
#26: Shorey and Scott storage building,
Billings |
|
#27: Billings street scene |
Negatives for photos 1-27Return to Top
Container(s): Box-folder 1/9
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Commercial buildings-Montana-Billings-Photographs
- Dwellings-Montana-Billings-Photographs
- Farm life-Montana-Coulson
- Farm produce-Montana-Coulson
- Farmers-Montana-Coulson
Personal Names
- Blair, C. M-Photographs
- Hawthorn, Fred-Photographs
- Perry, W. A
Corporate Names
- Northern Pacific Railroad Company
Family Names
- Newman family-Photograph collections
- Scott family-Photograph collections
Geographical Names
- Billings (Mont.)-Photographs
- Coulson (Mont.)
Form or Genre Terms
- Account books-Montana-Coulson
- Diaries-Montana-Coulson
- Personal papers-Montana-Coulson
- Photographs-Montana-Billings