Wetmore collection on Rhode Island commerce
Item
Country
US
Name of institution (official language of the state)
Language of name of institution
eng
Contact information: postal address
1154 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02215-3695
Contact information: phone number
01 (617) 536-1608 (general)
01 (617) 646-0532 (library staff)
01 (617) 646-0532 (library staff)
Contact information: web address
Contact information: email
reference@masshist.org
Reference number
P-521
Type of reference number
Archival reference number
Title (official language of the state)
Wetmore collection on Rhode Island commerce
Language of title
eng
Creator / accumulator
George Peabody Wetmore
Date(s)
1706/1851
Language(s)
eng
Extent
12 microfilm reels
Type of material
Textual Material
Scope and content
The Westmore collection on Rhode Island commerce comprises letters, bills of lading, accounts, receipts and shipping records related to Rhode Island merchants and commercial societies from 1706 to 1851. This collection is particularly interesting for researching the 18th-century Sephardic community of Newport, Rhode Island. The most remarkable example is the correspondence of Aaron Lopez, a Portuguese Jewish merchant who settled in Newport in the mid-18th century and became one of the most active businessmen in North Atlantic trade in the period preceding the Revolutionary War. This collection includes copies of several letters addressed to Lopez and even a few written by himself. Since his business network also extended to the Caribbean, it is possible to find documentation related to other Sephardic merchants that were part of Jewish communities in these territories, particularly Jamaica, such as Abraham Lopez or the brothers Isaac and Abraham Pereira Mendes.
Part of the letters in this collection were published in the two-volume Commerce of Rhode Island, published by the Massachusetts Historical Society in 1914-15.
Part of the letters in this collection were published in the two-volume Commerce of Rhode Island, published by the Massachusetts Historical Society in 1914-15.
Archival history
George Peabody Wetmore purchased this collection in 1912.
Administrative / Biographical history
George Peabody Wetmore was governor of Rhode Island for two terms from 1885 to 1887. He also served three terms as a U.S. Senator from 1894 to 1912. The other great interest of his life was genealogy. In his late 20s, Wetmore started his genealogical work by researching his great-grandfather General William Shepard. His research expanded to include all the lines in his family and many in his wife's family. Wetmore traced his ancestry back to English forebears in the 1600s.
Wetmore's ancestors settled in upper New York State and Massachusetts. His father, William S. Wetmore, was a successful businessman in the China trade and built, in 1851, a summer residence in Newport, Rhode Island, which he called Chateau-Sur-Mer. The Wetmore family divided their time between New York City and Newport.
Wetmore's ancestors settled in upper New York State and Massachusetts. His father, William S. Wetmore, was a successful businessman in the China trade and built, in 1851, a summer residence in Newport, Rhode Island, which he called Chateau-Sur-Mer. The Wetmore family divided their time between New York City and Newport.
Access points: locations
Access points: persons, families
Access points: subject terms
Access points: document types
Finding aids
Most items are individually described in the MHS manuscript catalogue.
Links to finding aids
Existence and location of originals
Author of the description
Carla Vieira, 2022
Bibliography
Published primary sources
Linked resources
Filter by property
| Title | Alternate label | Class |
|---|---|---|
| Massachusetts Historical Society | Collections (official language of the state) |