Beschreibung:

Over 150 items in binder with "Miniature Sheet Album" in gilt on front of oblong folder with "leatherette" boards. Binding is screwed together, so, presumably, one could add or subtract groups of sheets. The album contains folded "glassine" sheets, bound on one side, so that two sides of sleeve are open. The ephemera dates from the first quarter of the 19th century to the early 20th century. These do not have an obvious connection. However, most items are associated with several generations of Rosses - William H., George W., Abraham - and Henry Muller. It is not clear what the connection between the Ross and Muller families is, but the two are named together on a Superior Court form for "payment for damages," dated 1848. According to the 1910 census, Henry Muller's household included his wife, Ida (who signed a few of these receipts), Ida G. Muller (presumed daughter, age 19), and Georgiana Ross (age 52). George and Mary Ross in 1880 were living with Georgiana Ross (17), Ida M. Ross (15), and Paul Ross (9), their offspring. Ross is listed as a coal dealer. William Ross was a member of I.O.O.F., Muller was the Financial Secretary of the Grand Central Building Association and a member of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry. I would not be surprised if each man weren't also a member of the other fraternal organization (i.e., Ross, a Mason, and Muller, an Odd Fellow) - not uncommonly, community leaders joined all of these. There are receipts here for needed items: coal, tailors, milliners, shoes, pens, drugs (prescriptions), doctors, stable fees, harnesses, dairy, insurance and more. There are tax receipts, canceled checks, Western Union notices. Many items are associated with the fraternal organizations, dues, certificates of achievement of ranks, notices of meetings (one signed in type "William Taft, 32o "). There are a few Civil War items: two pay vouchers for John C. Kinney from June 1864 and October 1864, each with signed statements from Coates Kinney that John Kinney was acting as assistant paymaster for the period in question. The letter is not from the field, but from Chester, NH, 8 Nov. 1863. The writer does relate war news, however. He notes: "The draft in New England has proved a failure almost especially in Mass. Vt. new Hampshire has raised more concripts [sic] than both of the former states and she has only raised about one third of her quota for the present." It is signed Cyrillus Paige, and we do not find any service records for him. The first page has a statement "Recolections [sic] of the Past" in which the writer, in a very nice hand, and very bad spelling, tells of his or her parents being born in Germany, coming to America in 1849, specifically, Cincinnati, which had a large Germany community. The writer was born on Aug. 15, 1856, and tells of their father not liking the city, and moved the family to the "boondocks" in Indiana, and took up farming. The writer did not like this, having been raised in the city, and left to go to Louisville at the age of 18. The recollection is unsigned, and thus it is unclear how it relates to any of the other items, but "Muller" is certainly a German name (and in one place it is spelled Mueller). Condition: Variable as expected with folds, toning and surface soil.