Manuscript Division Horace Capron Papers

Horace Capron Papers

Collection

Identifier: MSS15024

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.

Dates

Creation: 1834-1961
Creation: Majority of material found within 1871-1875

Language of Materials

Collection material in English and Japanese

Access and Restrictions

The papers of Horace Capron are open to research. Researchers are advised to contact the Manuscript Reading Room prior to visiting. Many collections are stored off-site and advance notice is needed to retrieve these items for research use. Access to digital content is available on-site only in the Manuscript Reading Room and requires advanced notice.

Copyright Status

The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Horace Capron is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.).

Biographical Note

1804, Aug. 31: Born, Attleboro, Mass.
1834: Married Louisa V. Snowden (died 1849)
1836 - 1851: Owner and superintendent of a cotton factory, Laurel, Md.; Became nationally known for progressive farming techniques
1854: Married Margaret Baker
1863: Commander and lieutenant colonel, 14th Illinois Cavalry
1865: Commander and brigadier general, United States Volunteers
1866: Served in United States Army
1867 - 1871: Commissioner of agriculture
1871 - 1875: On staff of Agriculture Commission; adviser to the Japanese government
1885, Feb. 22: Died, Washington, D.C.

Extent

1,800 items
6 containers
2.5 linear feet
1 digital file (16.47 MB)

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Additional Description

Abstract

United States army officer and commissioner of agriculture. Correspondence, journals, biographical material, financial records, orders for agricultural equipment and supplies, printed matter, and photographs in physical format as well as a map in both digital and physical format. Relating chiefly to Capron's role as agricultural adviser to the Japanese government in the agricultural development of Hokkaido.

Arrangement of the Collection

This collection is arranged by type of material.

Technical Requirements

The papers of Horace Capron contain a scanned map in JPEG format. The file was created by the Library of Congress using Adobe Photoshop in a Windows operating system, version unknown. The file can be accessed using standard image viewers.

Acquisition Information

The papers of Horace Capron, United States army officer and commissioner of agriculture, were given to the Library of Congress by his great-grandson, Banfield Capron, in 1964 and in 1980.

Processing History

The collection was processed in 1964 and an addition to the collection was processed in 1980. The finding aid was revised in 2010.

In 2022, a digital scan of a map of Tennessee was added to the collection and the finding aid was updated. The scan was created by the Library of Congress digital scan center and received on one optical disk. The optical disk was assigned a unique digital ID number. Use the digital ID number to request access copies of the file associated with the storage media. A description of the standard processes taken on all born digital records can be found in the Processing History Note: Born Digital Collection Material at https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.digital.