George Henry Hood papers, 1857-1895
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Summary
- Creator:
- Hood, George Henry
- Extent:
- 0.5 Linear Feet
88 Items - Language:
- English.
- Collection ID:
- RL.00572
Background
- Scope and content:
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The papers of George Henry Hood span the years 1857 to 1895, although the bulk of the material falls in the period 1861 to 1863. It consists primarily of correspondence between Hood and his wife "Etta" written while he was travailing on business selling rubber goods for a variety of firms, including the Beverly Rubber Company of Beverly, Mass., and the Rubber Clothing Company of New York and Boston. There are also a few letters from other family members and business associates and some miscellaneous items. The letters indicate that Hood's travels took him to Philadelphia (1861), St. Louis (1862), New York (1862-1863), Washington, D.C. (1861-1863), and other places. Letters from St. Louis and Washington, in particular, contain some observations on Civil War activity in those places.
The correspondence is primarily of a personal nature, dealing with family matters and the mutual concerns of a husband and wife about being separated during his business trips. A few letters relate to Hood's daughter Helen.
- Biographical / historical:
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George Henry Hood was a resident of Chelsea, Essex County, Mass., and a rubber goods salesman and businessman during the latter half of the 19th century. Prior to the Civil War, Hood was employed at Winslow, Hood and Co. of Boston, a firm which wholesaled boots, shoes, and shoemaker's tools.
During at least part of the Civil War (1861) Hood was a travelling sales representative for Rubber Clothing Company, a firm based in Boston and New York that specialized in providing military equipment. He also sold rubber goods for a number of other firms during the war while travelling to St. Louis, New York, Washington, D.C., and other places.
After the war, Hood went into various other business ventures before founding the Boston Rubber Company in 1877, which eventually merged with the United States Rubber Company in 1892.
Hood married Henrietta ("Etta") Janvrin in Sentember 1859. They had several children, including Helen, a musical child prodigy who became a composer. In 1896, two of Hood's sons, Arthur Needham Hood (1868-1950) and F. C. Hood formed the Hood Rubber Company in Boston where Hood retained an office at least until 1912.
- Acquisition information:
- The papers of George Henry Hood, businessman and salesman of Chelsea, Essex County, Mass., were acquired by the Rubenstein Library through three separate purchases, 1974-1986.
- Processing information:
-
Processed by: Janie C. Morris
Completed February 18, 1987
Encoded by Stephen Douglas Miller
- Arrangement:
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The papers of George Henry Hood are organized into a single, chronologically arranged file of correspondence. Miscellaneous items are so few and insignificant that they have been interfiled with the correspondence. Preceding that file is an information folder containing biographical information about several of the correspondents found in the collection, including Helen Hood, and photocopies of pages from several Boston city directories indicating Hood's business interests in that area.
- Physical location:
- For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the Library's online catalog.
- Rules or conventions:
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Subjects
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Contents
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- Restrictions:
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Collection is open for research.
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- Terms of access:
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The status of copyright interests in these papers is unknown. For further information, see the section on copyright in the Regulations and Procedures of the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library.
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- Preferred citation:
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[Identification of item], The Papers of George Henry Hood, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.