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  • Creator Names Bronson, Arthur.
  • Title Arthur Bronson papers [manuscript], 1829-1871, bulk 1833-1844.
  • Physical description
    • 3 linear ft. (5 boxes)
    • 1 microfilm reel : neg. ; 35 mm. (Camera neg. of Frederic Bronson land book).
  • Collection summary
    • Correspondence, land conveyances, accounts, receipts, abstracts of title, deeds, mortgages, leases, foreclosure papers, indentures, and other legal documents, mostly relating to Bronson's real estate business and transactions in Chicago, elsewhere in Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, and Michigan. Correspondents include agents, land speculators, and many businessmen especially in Chicago and in Milwaukee. Topics include land speculation, sales of lands after effects of the Panic of 1837 reached Chicago, canal lands, surveys, preemption claims, and day to day operation of Bronson's business.
    • Bronson's association with Chicago politician Hiram Pearson, ca. 1835-1844, is represented by over 100 items. The collection also includes information about land holdings of Beaubien family members and of Billy Caldwell, some early Native American residents of the Chicago area; a few items relate to the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad Company; and papers, ca. 1839-1844, detail the financing, construction, and furnishing of the elegant Chicago hotel known as the Lake House.
    • The collection is arranged in two parts: part one is miscellaneous papers in chronological order, and part two is composed of papers involving well-known businessmen, divided into folders by name and the folders filed alphabetically.
  • Biographical or Historical Note Bronson (1801-1844), a New York City financier, came to Chicago for the first time in the winter of 1832-1833 with the intention of speculating in western land.
  • Finding Aids Note Descriptive inventory available online.
  • Acquisition information Most of the collection has been at Chicago Historical Society for a long time. Some items were acquired in a purchase from Dicke in 1949.
  • Names
    • Bronson, Arthur Archives.
    • Butler, Charles, 1802-1897.
    • Caldwell, Billy, 1780-1841.
    • Egan, William B. (William Bradshaw), 1808-1860.
    • Fullerton, Alexander N.
    • Hubbard, Gurdon Saltonstall, 1802-1886.
    • Kinzie, John Harris, 1803-1865.
    • Newberry, Walter Loomis, 1804-1868.
    • Ogden, William B. (William Butler), 1805-1877.
    • Owen, Thomas Jefferson Vance, 1801-1835.
    • Pearson, Hiram, 1811-
    • Sedgwick, Robert.
    • Temple, John C.
    • Galena and Chicago Union Railroad Company.
    • Lake House (Hotel : Chicago, Ill.)
    • Bronson, Frederic, 1802-1868.
    • Butler, Charles, 1802-1897.
    • Caldwell, Billy, 1780-1841.
    • Pearson, Hiram, 1811-
    • Temple, John C.
    • Kinzie, John Harris, 1803-1865.
    • Wright, John S. (John Stephen), 1815-1874.
  • Subjects
    • Capitalists and financiers New York (State) 19th century.
    • Fur trade Illinois.
    • Real estate business Illinois Chicago 19th century.
    • Real estate investment Illinois Chicago 19th century.
    • Real estate investment Illinois 19th century.
    • Real estate investment Wisconsin Milwaukee 19th century.
    • Real estate investment Wisconsin 19th century.
    • Real estate investment Indiana 19th century.
    • Real estate investment Michigan 19th century.
    • Land subdivision Illinois Chicago 19th century.
    • Land titles Registration and transfer Illinois Cook County 19th century.
    • Indian land transfers Illinois 19th century.
  • Geographic coverage
    • Chicago (Ill.) Commerce 19th century.
    • Milwaukee (Wis.) Commerce 19th century.
    • Prairie du Chien (Wis.) Treaties.
  • Genre
    • Abstracts of title.
    • Contracts. aat
    • Deeds. aat
    • Indentures. aat
    • Leases. aat
    • Legal documents. aat
    • Maps. aat
    • Microfilm. aat
    • Receipts (financial records) aat
    • Surveys. aat
    • Tax records. aat
  • Geographic name United States Illinois Cook County Chicago.
  • Finding aid URL Finding aid available online http://chsmedia.org/media/fa/fa/M-B/BronsonA-inv.htm