Administrative Information
Acquisition Information
The papers of Henry Clay, congressman, senator, and secretary of state, and those of his family were received by the Library of Congress through numerous purchases and gifts, 1899-2015, with the largest acquisitions being a purchase from Thomas Jacob Clay and George Hudson Clay in 1924 and donations by the estate of Thomas Jacob Clay in 1940 and 1943.
Processing History
The papers of the Henry Clay family were arranged and described in 1981 by Henry Barnard. Additional material was incorporated into the collection in 2000 by Harry G. Heiss. Part II of the collection includes items previously described as the Thomas J. Clay Papers. The finding aid was revised in 2011. An addition was added to the collection in 2019 by Katie Duvall. The finding aid was updated in 2023 by Maria Farmer as part of a division-wide remediation project by the Inclusive Description Working Group.
Transfers
Photographs and other pictorial material have been transferred to the Library's Prints and Photographs Division where they are identified as part of these papers.
Microfilm
A microfilm edition of part of the Henry Clay Family Papers and of selected Henry Clay items from other collections in the Manuscript Division is available on twenty-four reels. Produced by the National Archives and Records Administration, the microfilm edition is described in a separate register. Consult a reference librarian in the Manuscript Division concerning availability for purchase or interlibrary loan.
Published Editions
The Henry Clay Family Papers have also been substantially reproduced in The Works of Henry Clay, 6 vols. (New York, N.Y.: A. S. Barnes & Burr, 1855-1857), Works of Henry Clay, Comprising His Life, Correspondence, and Speeches, edited by Calvin Colton (New York, N.Y.: Henry Clay Publishing Co., 1897), and The Papers of Henry Clay, edited by James F. Hopkins and Mary W. M. Hargreaves (Lexington, Ky.: University of Kentucky Press, circa 1959, circa 1992).
Preferred Citation
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Roman numeral designating the Part followed by a colon and container number, Henry Clay Family Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.