Harry Earl Montgomery collection of Lincoln materials

Collection

Identifier: SC-003

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The Harry Earl Montgomery collection of Lincoln materials, 1831-1913, contains material relating to the life and death of Abraham Lincoln, as well as materials documenting memorials to Lincoln. The collection includes pamphlets, photographs and engravings, autographs, pro-Union and pro-Confederate decorated envelopes, newspaper and magazine articles, and Lincoln centenary postcards. It also includes Montgomery's correspondence pertaining to his work assembling the collection and researching Lincoln's ancestry.

Dates

Creation: 1831-1913

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is located at the Loyola Notre Dame Library. Contact Archives and Special Collections for more information.

This collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

The Harry Earl Montgomery collection of Lincoln materials is the physical property of Archives and Special Collections, Loyola Notre Dame Library. Copyright, except in cases where material has passed into the public domain, belongs to the authors or their legal heirs and assigns.

Biographical / Historical

Harry Earl Montgomery (1873-1915) was a lawyer in Buffalo, New York. He was a collector known for his collections of ancient coins and materials on Abraham Lincoln. He was interested in education and published two books. Vital American Problems (Putnam’s 1908) posited how to solve problems with “trusts, labor, and Negroes.” Christ’s Social Remedies (Putnam’s 1911) sought a solution of social and industrial problems in the life and teachings of Christ. Montgomery married late in life to Jane E. McDonough, and died leaving no children. A brief sketch of his life appeared in The Numismatist 28(1915): 450.

Extent

3.06 Cubic Feet (6 legal document boxes, one half size legal document box, 4 map case folders)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

The Harry Earl Montgomery collection of Lincoln materials, 1831-1913, contains material relating to the life and death of Abraham Lincoln, as well as materials documenting memorials to Lincoln. Harry Earl Montgomery (1873-1915) was a lawyer in Buffalo, New York. He was a collector known for his collections of ancient coins and materials on Abraham Lincoln.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

After Montgomery’s death, his widow retained the Lincoln collection and eventually passed it on to Montgomery’s great-niece, Margaret Steinhagen. Steinhagen was a professor of education at the College of Notre Dame and donated the Montgomery Lincoln Collection to the Notre Dame Library.