Guide to the Francis Nighswander Papers
1862-1870

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Overview of the Collection

Creator: Nighswander, Francis Marion, 1884-
Title: Francis Nighswander Papers
Dates: 1862-1870 ( inclusive )
Quantity: 1 folder
Collection Number: A 091
Summary: The Francis Marion Nighswander papers are contained in a single folder. The papers comprise a journal, personal drawings, letters, and documents concerning the currency question of 1885. The materials are focused around Oregon and California life, as that is where Nighswander lived and worked for the majority of his life.
Repository: University of Oregon Libraries
Special Collections & University Archives

1299 University of Oregon
Eugene, OR 97403-1299
URL: http://libweb.uoregon.edu/speccoll/index.html

Languages: Collection materials are in English. 
Sponsor: Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Biographical Note

Francis Marion Nighswander was born in 1844. He left Urbana, Ohio in March 1862 for California by way of Panama. He worked in Suisun City on the dairy ranch of J.M. Jones and on the stock ranch of A. Jackson near Suisun. In 1863 he worked as a sheepherder. In 1864 he left California in company with John McMullen, driving a band of 4,000 sheep to Oregon. In Oregon, he settled in the Siuslaw precinct in southern Lane County.

Content Description

The journal of Francis Nighswander is a composite volume of 104 numbered pages. Parts of it were written at the time of the events described and parts were composed as much as five years after the events. The journal begins with the departure from Ohio, describes the journey to California, adventures while there, the trip to Oregon, and ends with a description of a leisure trip to Yaquina Bay, Oregon in 1867, written in 1870. The journal is punctuated by a series of crude pencil sketches, some colored, of a few California scenes, Oregon scenes, and copies of popular illustrations. Part of the journal consists of copies of thirteen letters form James Nighswander, a brother. The letters date from May 1862 to June 1865 and are written from Florence City and Pioneer Gulch, Idaho, Salt Lake City and Brigham City, Utah, Varina and Nevada City, Montana, and Wild Horse Creek, British Columbia. James Nighswander was a miner. His letters describe his surroundings and experiences. The loose papers consist of two addresses by F. M. Nighswander on the currency question in 1885.

Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Access :  

Collection is open to the public.

Collection must be used in Special Collections & University Archives Reading Room.

Restrictions on Use :  

Property rights reside with Special Collections & University Archives, University of Oregon Libraries. Copyright resides with the creators of the documents or their heirs. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted to the Manuscripts Librarian in Special Collections & University Archives. The reader must also obtain permission of the copyright holder.

Preferred Citation :  

[Identification of item], Francis Nighswander Papers, A 091, Special Collections & University Archives, University of Oregon Libraries, Eugene, Oregon.

Administrative Information

Arrangement :

The Francis Nighswander papers are contained in a single folder.


Detailed Description of the Collection

The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the collection.

Folder
5 Journal and Miscellaneous Papers 1862-1870

Subjects

This collection is indexed under the following headings in the online catalog. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons, or places should search the catalog using these headings.

  • Personal Names :
  • Nighswander, Francis Marion, 1884---Archives
  • Nighswander, James--Correspondence
  • Geographical Names :
  • California--Description and travel
  • Oregon--Description and travel
  • Yaquina Bay (Or.)--Description and travel
  • Subject Terms :
  • Currency question--United States
  • Gold mines and mining--British Columbia
  • Gold mines and mining--Idaho
  • Form or Genre Terms :
  • Diaries
  • Drawings
  • Pencil works

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