Scope and Content Note
The papers of Henry Ware Lawton (1843-1899) span the years 1849-1930, with the bulk of the material dating from 1886 to 1902. The collection includes correspondence, military papers, a map, photographs, a copy of a journal of Esther Voorhees Hasson, 1899, a copy of a diary of Leonard Wood, 1886, printed matter, and miscellaneous material.
The correspondence relates primarily to Lawton’s army career and contains many letters from Lawton to his wife, Mary Lawton, describing his campaign against the Chiricahua band of Apache that resulted in the capture of Geronimo and Naiche (also known as Natchez) in 1886. Other topics include Lawton's life in the field in Cuba during the Spanish-American War, and the campaign on Luzon in the Philippines that led to his death. There is little correspondence reflecting his Civil War service or his many Indian campaigns before 1886. Included is a group of letters written to his wife after 1900 by Dean C. Worcester describing the Philippine Commission’s struggle and adjustment in governing the Philippine Islands. Also of interest is a copy of Esther Voorhees Hasson's journal from 1899 describing her experiences aboard the United States Army Hospital Ship Relief. The diary of Leonard Wood, who was selected by General Nelson A. Miles to be the medical officer on Captain Lawton’s command, describes the expedition against the Apaches in the Southwest.
The remainder of the collection is biographical in nature and enlarges on those aspects of Lawton’s life covered by the correspondence.