Archives West Finding Aid
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Frances Fuller Victor papers, 1874-1899
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Victor, Frances Fuller, 1826-1902
- Title
- Frances Fuller Victor papers
- Dates
- 1874-1899 (inclusive)18741899
- Quantity
- 0.23 cubic feet, (1 slim legal document case and 1 reel microfilm)
- Collection Number
- Mss 1199
- Summary
- A small collection of papers of the Oregon historian and author Frances Fuller Victor, including: correspondence with early emigrants to Oregon Jesse Applegate and Jessy Q. Thornton; typescript of a poem; a copy of her work "The Women's War with Whisky"; and a scrapbook of reviews of Victor's works.
- Repository
-
Oregon Historical Society Research Library
1200 SW Park Avenue
Portland, OR
97205
Telephone: 503-306-5240
Fax: 503-219-2040
libreference@ohs.org - Access Restrictions
-
Collection is open for research.
- Languages
- English
Biographical NoteReturn to Top
Oregon historian and author Frances Fuller Victor was born in 1826 in Rome, New York. Her family moved to Ohio when she was a teenager, but she and her sister Metta returned to the East to pursue literary careers. In New York City, they published poetry and became associated with the writer Rufus Wilmot Griswold. After a return to Ohio and her first marriage to Jackson Barritt, she married naval engineer Henry Clay Victor in 1862. The couple moved to San Francisco the following year, and Victor returned to her literary endeavors. After moving to Oregon in 1865, she focused her energies on the history of the Pacific Northwest and published several books, including "River of the West" (1870). After her husband was killed in a shipwreck in 1875, she relied on writing to earn a living, and she soon became one of the principal authors of Hubert Howe Bancroft's multi-volume history of California and the American West. She is best known for the "History of Oregon" (1886-1888), published under Bancroft's name. She experienced economic hardship in her later years, but she continued to write history, fiction, and poetry. She died in Portland in 1902.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
The collection consists of papers of writer and historian Frances Fuller Victor, including correspondence; a typescript of her poem "The Poppies of Wa-ii-lat-pu"; Victor's book, "The Women's War with Whisky: Or Crusading in Portland"; a scrapbook of newspaper reviews of Bancroft histories that Victor authored; and J. S. Meek's description of the beaver as told to Victor.
The collection's correspondence consists of letters from J. Quinn Thornton and Jesse Applegate discussing the history of the Oregon Territory, including about Thornton's mission to Washington, D.C. and about John McLoughlin; a letter from Walter Crowninshield about the history of the Pony Express; and letters from Victor to William G. Steel providing advice on historical research. The collection also includes Victor's handwritten copies of Thornton's letters with her commentary, produced in 1899. In her commentaries, Victor discusses the validity of Thornton's claims, and expresses regret at having earlier accepted all of what Thornton wrote at face value.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Alternative Forms Available
Letters from J. Quinn Thornton to Frances Fuller Victor, and Victor's annotated copies of Thornton's letters, also available on Mss 1199 Microfilm, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
Additional copies of Victor's book "The Women's War with Whisky" are held in book collections, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
Preferred Citation
Frances Fuller Victor papers, Mss 1199, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
Restrictions on Use
The Oregon Historical Society owns the materials in the Research Library and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from copyright owners.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 1 | 1 | Letter from Jesse Applegate, describing John McLoughlin's appearance and character, his relationships with employees, Indigenous people, and emigrants, and his stance in favor of temperance | 1865 October 15 |
| 1 | 1 | Letter from Jesse Applegate, discussing conflict between Britain and the United States concerning ownership of the Pacific Northwest, John McLoughlin's land claim at Oregon City, and the mistreatment of McLoughlin by Methodist missionaries | 1865 October 29 |
| 1 | 1 | Letter from Jesse Applegate about McLoughlin's land claim, the character of William Green T'Vault and Samuel R. Thurston and their treatment of McLoughlin, and Applegate's opposition to the idea of Portland and San Francisco being linked by rail | 1865 November 12 |
| 1 | 1 | Letter from Walter Crowninshield about the history of the Pony Express (two photostatic reproductions) | 1885 March 8 |
| 1 | 1 | Letter from J. Quinn Thornton about his mission to Washington, D.C. in 1848, and his role in framing the Donation Land Law | 1865 September 4 |
| 1 | 1 | Letter from J. Quinn Thornton promising to write additional letters about his recollections on Oregon history | 1865 September 7 |
| 1 | 2 | Victor's handwritten copy of J. Quinn Thornton's September 4, 1865 and September 7, 1865 letters, with her commentary | 1899 |
| 1 | 1 | Letter from J. Quinn Thornton about his mission to Washington, D.C., including George N. Saunders' attempt to bribe Thornton to promote the Hudson's Bay Company's proposal to sell its lands to the United States for $3 million | 1865 September 5 |
| 1 | 2 | Victor's handwritten copy of J. Quinn Thornton's September 5, 1865 letter, with her commentary | 1899 |
| 1 | 1 | Letter from J. Quinn Thornton about John McLoughlin, how he aided American emigrants to the Oregon Territory, and backlash he received from other Hudson's Bay Company officials | 1865 September 8 |
| 1 | 2 | Victor's handwritten copy of J. Quinn Thornton's September 8, 1865 letter, with her commentary | 1899 |
| 1 | 1 | Letter from J. Quinn Thornton discussing specific contract law | 1865 November 25 |
| 1 | 2 | Victor's handwritten copy of J. Quinn Thornton's November 25, 1865 letter, with her commentary | 1899 |
| 1 | 1 | Letter from Victor to William G. Steel providing advice about editing a history magazine, and advice on conducting historical research | 1899 February 9 |
| 1 | 1 | Letter from Victor to William G. Steel, giving advice on how to obtain a photograph of a "Dr. White," the planned disposition of her notes, and her unsuccessful efforts to photograph historic sites in Oregon | 1899 February 20 |
| 1 | 3 | Typescript copy of Victor's poem, "The Poppies of Wa-ii-lat-pu" (note: contains derogatory language about Indigenous people) | circa 1893 |
| 1 | 4 | Book by Victor, "The Women's War with Whisky: Or Crusading in Portland" | 1874 |
| 1 | 5 | Scrapbook of newspaper reviews of Bancroft volumes authored by Victor | 1886-1889 |
| 1 | 6 | Description of the beaver and its general habits by J. S. Meek, as told to Victor (one handwritten and two typescript copies) | undated |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Temperance--Oregon--Portland--History
- Women authors--Oregon
Personal Names
- McLoughlin, John, 1784-1857
- Thornton, J. Quinn (Jessy Quinn), 1810-1888
- Victor, Frances Fuller, 1826-1902 -- Correspondence
Geographical Names
- Oregon Territory--History
Form or Genre Terms
- correspondence
Other Creators
-
Personal Names
- Applegate, Jesse A., 1811-1888
- Thornton, J. Quinn (Jessy Quinn), 1810-1888
Geoffrey B. Wexler; revised by Jeffrey A. Hayes
2006; revised 2021
