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John Burroughs Papers

Primarily writings by and photographs of naturalist and philosopher John Burroughs and his family and friends.
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Archival Collection Overview

Historical Note

John Burroughs was born on April 3, 1837 on his family's farm in Roxbury, New York. As a child he spent much of his time reading, writing, and working on the farm. He attended the Hedding Literary Institute and the Cooperstown Seminary before leaving home to become a teacher. Burroughs began keeping journals in 1854 when he was seventeen. His first published essay was "Fragments from the Table of an Intellectual Epicure" in 1860 and his first significant published piece was "Expression" in th...

Scope and Content Note

The papers are comprised of four series. The Education Related Material series, 1854- 1901 (0.2 cubic ft.) contains a teaching certificate, two school catalogs, a letter of recommendation, and a set of thank you letters. The letters were sent from a class of children for whom Burroughs had led a nature walk. The Writings series, 1856-1907 and undated (0.2 cubic ft.) holds several handwritten manuscripts, a poem, an account book, and three periodicals that have articles written by B...

Collection Details

Object ID

93.205.0

Inclusive Dates

1854-1915

Size

3.6 cubic ft.

Language

English

Item Location

Not on exhibit to the public.

Access Restrictions

The papers are open for research.

Credit

From the Collections of The Henry Ford.

Digitized Artifacts From This Collection