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This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held in the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available through the World Wide Web. See the Duplication Policy section for more information.
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Collection Overview
| Size | 1.0 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 1,500 items) |
| Abstract | John Young Mason, from Greensville County, Va., graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1816. He was a member of the United States House of Representatives from Virginia, 1831-1837; served as secretary of the Navy, 1844-1845 and 1846-1849; was attorney general of the United States, March 1845-September 1846; and served as United States minister plenipotentiary to France, 1854-1859. Personal and professional correspondence of John Young Mason and of members of his family. Original items are chiefly letters addressed to Mason, secretary of the Navy, 1844-1849, mostly about such matters as gaining government employment and routine naval operations. There are also letters about various political matters, and letters from managers of Virginia plantations that Mason owned, Day's Neck and Fortsville; from Simon Fraser Blunt describing San Francisco and other places in California; and to Mason's daughter Emily and her husband, Robert Jones Barksdale, about finances and family matters. Typed transcriptions on microfilm consist chiefly of family correspondence of Mason, his wife, Mary Ann Fort Mason, their children, members of the families of the spouses of their children, and cousins. These letters relate primarily to family news and activities on Mason's plantations. There also are scattered professional letters to Mason and letters from John Y. Mason Junior, a purser in the Navy, from China, Europe, California, and Hawaii, 1845-1851; from Lewis E. Mason, managing a plantation in Coahoma County, Miss., 1840s; and from St. George Tucker Mason, with the French Army after the Civil War. |
| Creator | Mason, John Y. (John Young), 1799-1859. |
| Language | English |
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Information For Users
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Subject Headings
The following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.
Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's online catalog.
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Biographical Information
John Young Mason, from Greensville County, Va., graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1816. He was a member of the United States House of Representatives from Virginia, 1831-1837; served as secretary of the Navy, 1844-1845 and 1846-1849; was attorney general of the United States, March 1845-September 1846; and served as United States minister plenipotentiary to France, 1854-1859.
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Scope and Content
Personal and professional correspondence of John Young Mason and of members of his family. Original items are chiefly letters addressed to Mason, secretary of the Navy, 1844-1849, mostly about such matters as gaining government employment and routine naval operations. There are also letters about various political matters, and letters from managers of Virginia plantations that Mason owned, Day's Neck and Fortsville; from Simon Fraser Blunt describing San Francisco and other places in California; and to Mason's daughter Emily and her husband, Robert Jones Barksdale, about finances and family matters. Typed transcriptions on microfilm consist chiefly of family correspondence of Mason, his wife, Mary Ann Fort Mason, their children, members of the families of the spouses of their children, and cousins. These letters relate primarily to family news and activities on Mason's plantations. There also are scattered professional letters to Mason and letters from John Y. Mason Junior, a purser in the Navy, from China, Europe, California, and Hawaii, 1845-1851; from Lewis E. Mason, managing a plantation in Coahoma County, Miss., 1840s; and from St. George Tucker Mason, with the French Army after the Civil War. Also included is an undated volume of notes on world geography and English history from 827 to the reign of Elizabeth I, apparently written by Mary Ann Fort before her marriage to John Mason.
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Papers, 1843-1898 and Undated.
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Items Separated
Processed by: SHC Staff
Encoded by: Noah Huffman, December 2007
Updated by: Kathryn Michaelis, February 2010
Diacritics and other special characters have been omitted from this finding aid to facilitate keyword searching in web browsers.
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