Letter from Stephen Longfellow to Daniel Appleton White, 1799 May 29

Stephen Longfellow wrote this letter in Portland, Maine on May 29, 1799; it was sent to his friend, Daniel Appleton White, in Medford, Massachusetts. In the letter, Longfellow describes the Election Day festivities among the "plebeans" in Portland, which he apparently found both amusing and upsetting. He compares the horses pulling their sleds to Don Quixote's horse, Rocinante. He also writes about mutual friends, including John Henry Tudor and Jabez Kimball, and bemoans the behavior of the current members of Phi Beta Kappa among the Harvard College undergraduates, whom he insists have sunk the society below its former "exalted station."

Quarter bills for Stephen Moody signed by Steward Caleb Gannett, 1786-1789

Four printed quarter bills for Stephen Moody (Harvard AB 1790) with sizing and punishment totals, each signed by Steward Caleb Gannett.

Lectures on Hebrew and Oriental Literature, delivered in Harvard College between the years 1765 and 1782, by Stephen Sewall, AM, AAS Hancock Professor, Volume 1 1765-1767

The volume contains handwritten copies of lectures delivered by Sewall to students, an 1780 letter from Antoine Court de Gébelin written in French and glued into the front inside cover, a preface to the set of lectures, an autobiographical sketch of Sewall, and the statutes governing the Hancock Professorship of Hebrew and other Oriental Languages.

[Power of attorney between Stephen Sewall and Thomas Wigglesworth], 1794 August 21

This one-page printed form appoints Thomas Wigglesworth as the "true and lawful Attorney" for Stephen Sewall. The form is notarized by Samuel Barrett and witnessed by Barrett and his daughter Peggy Barrett.

[Copy of a letter from Mehetabel Preble to her son Stephen Sewall], 1768 January 23

Handwritten copy of a January 23, 1768 letter from Mehetabel Preble to her son Stephen Sewall transcribed by Sewall. The bottom of the page is cut off and some text is missing. In the letter, Preble mentions Sewall's news of the birth of her granddaughter, the death of one of her sons, and discusses her health and approaching death, and the absence of God's "divine light." The item includes the note: "NB. The above letter was rec'd 18th March, 1768. My mother died the 4th day of the same month," and an extract from a February 29, 1768 letter from "Brother Crosby" regarding Preble's illness and anticipation of death.

List of books donated by John Martin, Stephen Sewall, and others, undated

Endorsed: "Books from several gentlemen."

Letter from Stephen Longfellow to Jabez Kimball, 1797 December 10

Stephen Longfellow wrote this letter to his friend Jabez Kimball on December 10, 1797. The letter was addressed to Kimball in London-Derry, where he was studying law. The letter is lighthearted, and Longfellow recounts various happenings at Harvard since Kimball's graduation the year before. Longfellow informs him of developments in Phi Beta Kappa, the Hasty Pudding Club, and his "attention to the ladies."

Student mathematical proofs by Edward Stephen (?) Wigglesworth, 1788

Sheet with two handwritten mathematical proofs signed "Wigglesworth, 1788," likely referring Harvard student Edward Stephen Wigglesworth. The first proof, titled "Problem 1st," examines a prompt beginning, "Given the distance between the Centers of the Sun and Planet, and their quantities of matter; to find a place where a body will be attracted to neither of them." The second proof, titled "Problem 2d," begins "A & B having returned from a journey, had riden [sic] so far that if the square of the number of miles..." and asks "how many miles did each of them travel?"

Valedictory address of Stephen Hooper, 1761

Unattributed and undated handwritten Latin valedictory oration likely composed by graduate Stephen Hooper for the 1761 Harvard College Commencement. In the oration, Hooper praises Massachusetts Governor Francis Bernard, Thomas Hutchinson, Professor Edward Wigglesworth, and Tutor Belcher Hancock. The oration mentions classmate John Chipman (1745-1761) who died of illness on April 15, 1761.