Scope and Content Note
The papers of Horace Capron (1804-1885) span the years 1834-1961, with the bulk of the material, dating from 1871 to 1875, relating to his experiences as an agricultural adviser to the Japanese government. Capron was given authority to develop the island of Hokkaido, on the northern perimeter of the Japanese Empire, at the time an economic and agricultural frontier. The collection contains journals, correspondence, financial records, maps, and orders for agricultural equipment, livestock, and plants that reflect an early experiment in government planning in agriculture and international cooperation. The papers are in English and Japanese.
Some material relates to Capron's service with the Union army during the Civil War and his work in the 1870s as commissioner of agriculture. The correspondence includes a few letters of Ulysses S. Grant, William T. Sherman, and Horace Greeley.
Also in the collection is correspondence of other members of the Capron family, a handwritten autobiography by Horace Capron, and biographical information.