Writing History: Stories of a Rare Manuscript Collection

For over a decade beginning in the 1830s, Sarah Luther Howe Holdrege Martial wrote every dispatch and letter from the American consulate in Nantes to the United States government in Washington. However, history remembers only the men who signed Sarah's work, forgetting the woman whose pen actually completed it. Nearly two centuries later, an archive of this woman's letter drafts and associated papers has been found. Spanning over 65 pages, these records of her family and business affairs bring her lived experiences to light. Combining these new insights with official documents unearthed from the U.S. National Archives finally gives Sarah a voice and reclaims her rightful place in American history.

What happens when a powerful statesman dies, leaving behind a financial mess, hostile relatives, and a mistress fighting for her survival? Explore the scandalous 18th-century saga of the 2nd Earl of Halifax and Anna Maria Faulkner, told through the firsthand accounts of the men hired to clean up the wreckage. Step inside a newly surfaced 1771 manuscript diary that documents a bitter estate dispute, Georgian high-society drama, and the literal burning of history.

Discover the month-long research journey to identify the owner of an 1810–1827 accounting ledger. Follow the historical paper trail that revealed George Davis, a mysterious New York shipmaster and merchant connected to Wall Street founders, elite kinship networks, and a massive 1820s bank fraud scandal.

We are excited to share the story of Venecia Taylor's 1904-1908 diary, discovered 10 years after her 1902-1904 diary was purchased and restored by the founder of our business. Both diaries provide important insight into the experience of a Black female immigrant working as a servant in white homes in Pennsylvania at the turn of the century.