Fonds F 4486 - Van Wagner - Hamilton family fonds

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Van Wagner - Hamilton family fonds

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    Fonds

    Reference code

    CA ON00009 F 4486

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    Date(s)

    • ca. 1614, 1826-1970 (Creation)

    Physical description area

    Physical description

    2 metres of textual records 2 daguerr갴ypes 2 ambrotypes 10 tintypes 343 cartes de visite 119 cabinet cards 566 black and white prints 3 drawings : watercolour, gouache, and coloured pencil; charcoal-based pencil crayon on paper 6 maps

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    Archival description area

    Name of creator

    (1818-1906)

    Biographical history

    Peter Spohn Van Wagner (1818-1906), was born and farmed in Stoney Creek, Ontario. Mary Van Wagner (ca. 1850-1923), eldest daughter of Peter Van Wagner, married lawyer Jacob V. Spohn in 1886 and moved to the hamlet of Encinal, Texas, 200 kilometres southwest of San Antonio near the Mexican border, where she lived the life of a ranch owner's wife. She returned to Ontario following her husband's death in 1893. Henry P. Van Wagner, (ca. 1855-1940) son of Peter Van Wagner, became a local businessman, fruit farmer, and horticulturalist in the Stoney Creek area. Anna Van Wagner (ca. 1853-1931) was the second daughter of Peter Van Wagner. George Van Wagner, ((184-?]-1864) son of Peter Van Wagner, joined the Union Army and was killed in action at the battle of Petersburg, Virginia in June 1864. Chester B. Hamilton Senior, ([1853 or 1854]-1949), son of Almira Brown and William Buchanan Hamilton, founder of W.B. Hamilton Shoes, Toronto. Chester Sr. joined his father's firm and worked there until his retirement. Chester B. Hamilton Junior, (1884-1953), son of Chester B. Hamilton Sr. and Anna (Van Wagner) Hamilton. Chester Junior studied engineering at the University of Toronto and became co-founder and president of the Hamilton Gear Machine Company. He was also the inventor of a number of mechanical devices. Myra Hamilton, (1886-?), daughter of Chester B. Hamilton Sr. and Anna (Van Wagner) Hamilton, attended the University of Toronto. As a young woman, Myra had some involvement in education, possibly as a trainee teacher or an educational consultant.

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    (ca. 1850-1923)

    Biographical history

    Name of creator

    (ca. 1855-1940)

    Biographical history

    Name of creator

    (ca. 1853-1931)

    Biographical history

    Name of creator

    Biographical history

    Name of creator

    Name of creator

    (1884-1953)

    Biographical history

    Name of creator

    (b. 1886)

    Biographical history

    Custodial history

    The material was originally held by the Van Wagner family at their home in Stoney Creek on the shores of Lake Ontario. Sometime in the 1920's or 1930's, the material was moved to the Toronto home of Myra Hamilton, granddaughter of Peter Van Wagner, the first member of the family born in Canada. It was later transferred to the home of Myra's niece and the donor's late wife, Diana MacFeeters (nꥠHamilton) at 117 Garfield Avenue, Toronto, where it remained until being transferred to the Archives. In 1980, Ronald MacFeeters, the donor, loaned the Peter Van Wagner diaries to the Archives to be microfilmed as MS 568, Reels 1 to 6. Mr. MacFeeters had intended to donate the originals and keep a copy of the microfilm but, due to the quality of the filming, decided not donate the diaries at that time. He has now contributed the original diaries, along with the remainder of the collection.

    Scope and content

    The fonds consists of materials created and received by the extended Van Wagner and Hamilton families living predominantly in the Hamilton and Toronto areas. The following description is organized according to the broad groups of records received. Peter Van Wagner's diaries cover the basic details of his daily life as a farmer in Wentworth County. Subjects include weather conditions, agricultural activities on the farm, and the care of livestock. Financial information, such as the price of land, sales of crops, and the family's financial situation are also covered. His interest in politics is also apparent, with occasional commentaries on current events, local politics, and opinions on government policies. The diaries also describe his relationships with family members and interactions with friends and neighbours. The Van Wagner Family correspondence consists of business and personal letters of Peter Van Wagner and his children. Peter Van Wagner's general correspondence includes letters to and from various correspondents (family, friends, and business contacts) ranging from the 1830s to 1890s. There are also numerous letters from Peter to his children Anna (Van Wagner) Hamilton (ca. 1885-1901); Mary (Van Wagner) Spohn (ca. 1870-1892); and Henry P. Van Wagner while he was at the School of Gunnery in Kingston (1879). There are also a large number of letters from Mary (Van Wagner) Spohn to her father, Peter (1850s - 1890s) including descriptions of her life in Texas. Finally, Henry P. Van Wagner's business and personal correspondence from the 1860s to the 1890s is also found. The Van Wagner letters include news about family and friends, details of daily life such as weather, health, farming etc. and information on business and financial dealings. The Van Wagner Family subject consists of a variety of textual materials retained by the Van Wagner extended family for their interest. Items include copies of news clippings from the Globe, Hamilton Spectator, and other newspapers (1830s - 1930s) mainly on local history and issues (including articles written by Peter Van Wagner); miscellaneous publications such as plant catalogues (1880s), pamphlets, and handbills (1850s - [190-?]); and machinery patents filed by Peter Van Wagner (1869 - 1873). Also included are legal documents such as wills and mortgages, as well as Henry P. Van Wagner's handwritten history of the Hamilton Field Battery. The Hamilton Family correspondence and subject files consists of personal and business correspondence of the Hamilton extended family as well as subject files relating to their various interests and activities. The correspondence consists of letters to Chester B. Hamilton Sr. (1860s - 1880s) and letters from his sisters to his wife, Anna (Van Wagner) Hamilton (1870s - 1880s). There is also miscellaneous Hamilton family correspondence from the 1870s to 1890s. Later correspondence includes letters to Myra Hamilton from the 1910s to the 1920s. Also found are letters to Montreal-based Champion Brown (an ancestor of Chester B. Hamilton) from his brother and sisters in the States, dating to the 1840s. The subject files include various legal documents (wills, land deeds etc.) from the 1820s to 1930s; news clippings from 1897 to the 1930s; Chester B. Hamilton Jr.'s patents (1915 - 1934); and some notes on family history. The early Van Wagner photographs consist of cartes de visites (ca. 1860s) and cabinet cards (ca. 1870s - 1880s) of various Van Wagner family members and friends. Photographs relating to Mary (Van Wagner) Spohn include photographs which are American in origin. Many but by no means all of the photographs are identified. There are also loose b/w prints including portraits and scenes of country life. Also found are two albums of amateur photography dating from around 1890 - 1910. The photographs are not identified, but depict life at the family farm in Stoney Creek. They include portraits, scenes of family life (at the beach, riding horses etc.), views of the countryside, and a few school scenes. Also included are some shots of women sketching, painting, and visiting with a few scenes relating to fruit farming. A watercolour of Edith Van Wagner as a young child is also included. The Hamilton family photographs include cabinet cards and other b/w prints showing the Hamilton family and their friends and relatives from the 1870s to 1880s. There are also miscellaneous family photographs (mainly portraits) from approximately 1870 to the 1920s. Not all of the photographs are identified. The miscellaneous images consist of a wide range of photographs of the Van Wagner and Hamilton extended families in different formats and sizes. Many of the photographs are unidentified. Most are portraits and country scenes. The daguerr갴ypes and ambrotypes are in somewhat poor condition. A leather-bound legal volume and recipe book, originally written in English chancery hand, dating to the early-17th century. Although highly difficult to read, especially due to the bleed-through of the iron gall ink from the opposite side of the pages, it appears to be of land indentures and conveyances. The later blank pages in the book were used, probably by members of the Hamilton family (the provenance of the volume has been lost to time) to copy a large number of recipes for foodstuff and household products.

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        Availability of other formats

        Series F 4486-1 (Peter Van Wagner diaries) are also available on microfilm.

        Restrictions on access

        Series F 4486-1 (Peter Van Wagner diaries) and F 4468-14 (Land indenture and conveyance book) are closed for conservation reasons. To access the diaries, researchers are requested to use microfilm MS 568, Reel 1 to 6 available in the Reading Room self-serve cabinets. Access to the rest of the collection is not restricted.

        Terms governing use, reproduction, and publication

        Copyright has been transferred to Archives of Ontario by the donor. There are no restrictions on reproduction for research and private study. These materials cannot be published without the permission of the donor. If you wish to use other than for research and private study any of this material, submit a Request for Permission to Publish, Exhibit or Broadcast Form.

        Finding aids

        For a more detailed description, use this link to the Archives of Ontario's descriptive database: http://ao.minisisinc.com/scripts/mwimain.dll/144/ARCH_DESCRIPTIVE/DESCRIPTION_DET_REP/SISN%2022972?SESSIONSEARCH

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        Accruals

        No further accruals are expected.

        General note

        The collection's condition ranges from very good to somewhat poor. The older documents exhibit some foxing and a few documents and volumes showed mild signs of mould. Mouldy items have been remediated or isolated in bags. A few documents show signs of past insect activity. The newspaper clippings and some transitory documents are browned and brittle. The ambrotype and daguerr갴ypes have been stabilized and framed photographs have been unframed.

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