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Simeon Gannett Reed papers, 1864-1931

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Reed, Simeon Gannett, 1830-1895
Title
Simeon Gannett Reed papers
Dates
1864-1931 (inclusive)
1864-1896 (bulk)
Quantity
4.5 cubic feet, (9 letter document cases, 1 slim letter document case, 1 reel microfilm)
Collection Number
Mss 1117
Summary
Typescript copies, some on microfilm, of the letters and private papers of a businessman, entrepreneur, railroad magnate, and land developer of Portland, Oregon, active in the late 19th century. Subjects include mining, railroad ventures, land development, livestock breeding, shipping and steamships. Prominent correspondents include John C. Ainsworth, William S. Ladd, Ladd & Tilton Bank, and Martin Winch. Also included are letters from Victor M. Clement of the Bunker Hill and Sullivan Mining & Concentrating Co., 1889-1891. A small number of original receipts have been added to the collection.
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

Collection is open for research.

Additional Reference Guides

Subject and correspondent indexes are provided at the back of each bound volume of typescript copies.

Languages
English
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Biographical Note

Simeon Gannett Reed was an important figure in the economic development of Portland and Oregon in the late 19th century. He was born in East Abington (now Rockland), Massachusetts, in 1830. After finishing his education at age 15, he worked in a dry goods store in Boston and as a shoe cutter in East Abington. He entered the grain and flour business in Quincy, Massachusetts, and later married Amanda Wood, who was a member of a wealthy and prominent Quincy family. The Reeds came to California in 1852 and soon departed for Oregon. After a number of ventures, Reed became a clerk for the Portland, Oregon, general merchandise firm of W.S. Ladd and Company. He purchased the firm in partnership with William S. Ladd's sons, forming Ladd, Reed and Company in 1859. He invested money in steamship ventures and, in 1860, became a partner with Captain John C. Ainsworth and others in the Oregon Steam and Navigation Company, the principal shipping firm on the Columbia River. In 1879, the company was purchased by railroad magnate Henry Villard and merged with the Oregon Railway and Navigation Company, and Reed became vice president and manager of the new firm. Reed also invested heavily in railroad, mining, land development, and industrial ventures, including the Oregon Iron and Steel Company at Oswego. Among his mining interests was the Bunker Hill and Sullivan Mining & Concentrating Company in Idaho. He took an active interest in livestock breeding and owned the Ladd and Reed Farm Company, along with William S. Ladd. The company possessed large tracts of farm land in the Willamette and Tualatin valleys.

As Reed's health declined, he and Amanda Wood Reed moved from Oregon to Pasadena, California, in 1892. He planned to build a large house there at Carmelita, but died in 1895 before it was completed. Amanda Wood Reed lived in the house until her death in 1904. Reed had wanted the bulk of his estate to be used in establishing a college in Portland; however, after the death of Amanda Wood Reed, the couple's legacy became entangled in litigation. It was only through the efforts of Amanda Wood Reed's nephew, Martin Winch (who had managed the Reeds' finances for many years), that funds were eventually secured for the building of what is now Reed College.

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Content Description

The collection consists primarily of bound typescript copies of letters and personal papers of Simeon Gannett Reed. The typescripts were made in 1940 from original papers in the possession of Reed College, a project funded largely by the U.S. Works Projects Administration, with additional funding from the Library Association of Portland and Reed College. Mimeograph copies of the typescript were distributed to various institutions, including the Oregon Historical Society. Volumes 25, 27, 28, and 34 of the typescripts, as well as miscellaneous papers, are available only on microfilm, and Volume 38 is missing from the set.

Subjects of the collection include mining, railroad ventures, land development, livestock breeding, shipping, and steamships. Prominent correspondents include Amanda Wood Reed, John C. Ainsworth, William S. Ladd, Ladd & Tilton Bank, and Martin Winch. Also included are letters from Victor M. Clement of the Bunker Hill and Sullivan Mining & Concentrating Co., 1889-1891. A small number of original invoices were added to the collection by the Oregon Historical Society, along with a letter from Captain W. R. Thomas regarding the steamer S. G. Reed.

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Use of the Collection

Preferred Citation

Simeon Gannett Reed papers, Mss 1117, Oregon Historical Society Research Library

Restrictions on Use

The Oregon Historical Society owns the materials in the Research Library and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from copyright owners.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

The collection is arranged generally in chronological order, with some overlap in dates from volume to volume, and separate volumes for incoming and outgoing letters.

Location of Originals

Original letters and papers are held at Reed College, Portland, Oregon.

Processing Note

Collection guide revised to conform to current standard in August 2023.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

  • Description: Volume 1: Letters to Reed (two copies of Volume 1)
    Dates: 1864-1872
    Container: Box 1, Folder 1-2
  • Description: Volume 2: Letters from Reed
    Dates: 1864-1872
    Container: Box 1, Folder 3
  • Description: Volume 3: Letters from Reed
    Dates: 1868-1877
    Container: Box 1, Folder 4
  • Description: Volume 4: Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1871-1872
    Container: Box 2, Folder 1
  • Description: Volume 5: Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1866-1875
    Container: Box 2, Folder 2
  • Description: Volume 6 (part 1): Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1873-1876
    Container: Box 2, Folder 3
  • Description: Volume 6 (part 2): Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1873-1876
    Container: Box 2, Folder 4
  • Description: Volume 7: Letters from Reed
    Dates: 1872-1877
    Container: Box 3, Folder 1
  • Description: Volume 8 (part 1): Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1874-1877
    Container: Box 3, Folder 2
  • Description: Volume 8 (part 2): Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1874-1877
    Container: Box 3, Folder 3
  • Description: Volume 9: Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1878-1879
    Container: Box 3, Folder 4
  • Description: Volume 10: Letters from Reed
    Dates: 1877-1880
    Container: Box 4, Folder 1
  • Description: Volume 11: Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1880
    Container: Box 4, Folder 2
  • Description: Volume 12: Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1881-1882
    Container: Box 4, Folder 3
  • Description: Volume 13: Letters from Reed
    Dates: 1880-1883
    Container: Box 4, Folder 4
  • Description: Volume 14: Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1882-1883
    Container: Box 5, Folder 1
  • Description: Volume 15: Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1883
    Container: Box 5, Folder 2
  • Description: Volume 16: Letters from Reed
    Dates: 1883-1886
    Container: Box 5, Folder 3
  • Description: Volume 17: Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1884
    Container: Box 5, Folder 4
  • Description: Volume 18: Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1885
    Container: Box 6, Folder 1
  • Description: Volume 19: Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1886
    Container: Box 6, Folder 2
  • Description: Volume 20: Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1887
    Container: Box 6, Folder 3
  • Description: Volume 21: Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1887
    Container: Box 6, Folder 4
  • Description: Volume 22: Letters from Reed
    Dates: 1887
    Container: Box 7, Folder 1
  • Description: Volume 23: Letters from Reed
    Dates: 1886-1889
    Container: Box 7, Folder 2
  • Description: Volume 24: Letters from Victor M. Clement of Bunker Hill and Sullivan Mining & Concentrating Co.
    Dates: 1889
    Container: Box 7, Folder 3
  • Description: Volume 25: Letters from Victor M. Clement (microfilm)
    Dates: 1887-1888
    Container: Reel 1
  • Description: Volume 26: Letters from Victor M. Clement
    Dates: 1890-1891
    Container: Box 7, Folder 4
  • Description: Volume 27: Letters to Reed (microfilm)
    Dates: 1888
    Container: Reel 1
  • Description: Volume 28: Letters to Reed (microfilm)
    Dates: 1889
    Container: Reel 1
  • Description: Volume 29: Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1889
    Container: Box 8, Folder 1
  • Description: Volume 30: Letters from Reed
    Dates: 1889-1895
    Container: Box 8, Folder 2
  • Description: Volume 31: Letters from Reed
    Dates: 1890-1894
    Container: Box 8, Folder 3
  • Description: Volume 32: Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1890
    Container: Box 8, Folder 4
  • Description: Volume 33: Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1891
    Container: Box 9, Folder 1
  • Description: Volume 34: Letters from Reed (microfilm)
    Dates: 1892
    Container: Reel 1
  • Description: Volume 35: Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1892-1893
    Container: Box 9, Folder 2
  • Description: Volume 36: Letters to Reed
    Dates: 1893
    Container: Box 9, Folder 3
  • Description: Volume 37: Letters from Reed
    Dates: 1893-1895
    Container: Box 9, Folder 4
  • Description: Volume 39 and Volume 40 (combined): Letters from Martin Winch
    Dates: 1895-1896
    Container: Box 10, Folder 1
  • Description: Miscellaneous papers (microfilm)
    Dates: 1871-1876
    Container: Reel 1
  • Description: Original invoices; letter from Captain W. R. Thomas to Mrs. S.G. Reed regarding the steamship S.G. Reed

    Amanda Wood Reed died in 1904; it is possible the date of 1931 on the letter is erroneous.

    Dates: 1882-1883; 1931 October 10
    Container: Box 10, Folder 2

Trudy Williams
2006; revised 2023

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