Radical Equality Primary Source List

Additional details about images used in the online exhibits and throughout the Emerging America site are available on the Image Credits page. Links to the letters and other primary sources appear throughout the site, especially under “Story of the Steamboat Barnet.”. Or you may browse an annotated the list of all our primary sources grouped by type. Through the rich set of primary and secondary resources on this site, visitors can follow the voyage of the Steamboat Barnet, the first steam-powered boat to pass the Enfield Rapids of the Connecticut River in 1826 and open up western New England to water-based transport of goods and people. Students and teachers will learn about this significant event in the Transportation Revolution through an examination of a variety of primary sources, including letters, published memoirs, speeches, drawings, paintings and newspaper advertisements. The Cast of Characters, an interactive timeline and interactive map will place these sources and events in the context of this dynamic time in U.S. History.

Images

• Advertisement for Nonotuck Silk Co.
• Image of the Stetson Family’s Silk Box
• Image of Silk Worm Life Cycle
• Image of Dolly Witter Stetson, 1860s
• Model of Silk Reeler - From Eight Years Experience…, by Samuel Whitmarsh, Northampton, 1839.
• Image of Cocoonery
• Blue-black Northampton silk dress. - c.1840-43. Photograph by Historic Northampton.
• The Fugitive’s Song. - Songsheet. Frederick Douglass.
• Image of a Portable Writing Desk - Shows several artifacts typical of schools in the mid-1800s.

 

Maps

• Maps of Northampton – 1831, 1853 and 1873
  • In the 1831 Map of Northampton, look for “Broughton’s Meadow” in the Northeast quadrant of the map, along the Mill River. The adjacent “Oil and Saw Mills” became the silk factory and main dormitory of the NAEI in 1842. Map of Northampton – 1831.
  • The 1853 Map of Northampton hows downtown Northampton a few years after the NAEI. The Hampshire & Hampden Canal in the 1831 map has been replaced by a railroad along Market Street. Smith College would not appear until 1871. The map is oriented with North on the left. Map of Northampton – 1853.
  • 1873 Map of Northampton, Florence, and North Leeds, the NAEI mill has grown into the Nonotuck Silk Mill complex. Map of Northampton, Florence, and South Leeds – 1873. 

 

School Records

• Gothic Seminary Examination
• Gothic Seminary Tuition Rates
• Round Hill School Excerpt from Prospectus
• Rail Hill School District Financial Accounts, 1842

 

Northampton Association of Education and Industry Records

• Constitution and By-Laws, 1842 (page 1) - Northampton Association of Education and Industry. The original constitution of the Northampton Association, written in 1842, emphasizes the reasons why members chose to separate themselves from society. This founding document lists the various principles the members agree upon, including the productive qualities of labor and the importance of self-improvement, and concludes with a few regulations about the process for membership.
• Constitution and By-Laws, 1842 (page 2) - See above. 
• Constitution and By-Laws, 1843 - Northampton Association of Education and Industry. In 1843, the members of the Association modified the preamble and articles of the NAEI constitution. The new document included passionate language about the need for equality among all members of society. The updated version was also more specific about the requirements for new members and about the general governance of the Association.

 

Book Excerpts

• Excerpts, J.H.Cobb, A.M., “A Manual containing information respecting the growth of the Mulberry Tree with suitable directions for the Culture of Silk,” Boston, 1831 - A Manual containing information respecting the growth of the Mulberry Tree with suitable directions for the Culture of Silk,” Boston, 1831.
• "What I found at the Northampton Association" by Frederick Douglass in The History of Florence, Massachusetts, edited by Charles A. Sheffeld, 1895.

 

Hampshire Gazette Newspaper Articles

 

Liberator Articles

 

Stetson Letters

• Letter, Dolly W. Stetson to James A. Stetson, Dec. 5, 1844 - Dolly relates more to James about the conflict over management at the Association.
• Letter, Sarah Stetson to James A. Stetson, Feb. 17, 1845 - Sarah tells her father about her life, mentioning a paper the children are writing together.
• Letter, Almira Stetson to James A. Stetson, Mar. 4, 1845 - Almira shares her ambitions and goals for the future.
• Letter, Dolly W. Stetson to James A. Stetson, Mar. 18, 1845 - Dolly recounts a debate over dancing in the new dining hall.
• Letter, Dolly W. Stetson to James A. Stetson, Apr. 13, 1845 - Dolly attempts to convince James to remain at the Association.
• Letter, Dolly W. Stetson to James A. Stetson, May 3, 1845 - Dolly writes about the transition from life at the Association to living in Northampton.
• Letter, Dolly W. Stetson and Almira Stetson to James A. Stetson, April 21, 1844 - Dolly expresses her concerns about money owed the family from the silk department, and whether the family should move to a different house on the property. She also celebrates her lack of housekeeping worries.
• Letter, Almira Stetson and Mary Stetson to James A. Stetson, June 3, 1844 - Almira writes about her work in the cocoonery, and Mary relates Sojourner Truth’s reaction to an event at the factory.
• Letter, Dolly W. Stetson to James A. Stetson, July 26, 1844 - Dolly shares the events of daily life at the Association, including her confidence in the Association despite its mounting debt. She also mentions David Ruggles.
• Letter, Giles B. Stebbins to James A. Stetson, Aug. 7, 1844 - Stebbins gives his opinion on the proposed recruitment of new members. 
• Letter, Dolly W. Stetson to James A. Stetson, Sept. 1, 1844 - Dolly recounts the details of a convention on utopian communities held at the Association.
• Letter, Dolly W. Stetson to James A. Stetson, Oct. 6, 1844 - Dolly writes about a new plan for adult education at the Association. She also disagrees with Sojourner Truth about the dangers of card games.
• Letter, Mary Stetson to James A. Stetson, Oct. 13, 1844 - Mary shares the details of her day at school.
• Letter, Dolly W. Stetson to James A. Stetson, Oct. 26, 1844 - Dolly writes about the Lyceum program for adults. She also mentions Sojourner Truth’s return, and her subsequent discharge from laundry duties.
• Letter, Dolly W. Stetson to James A. Stetson, Nov. 19, 1844 - Dolly shares with James the conflict over management at the Association. A prominent member decided to leave because of conflict with Sojourner Truth over moralistic restrictions.