Personal and Family Papers

Collections of personal and family papers include letters, photographs, diaries, daybooks, and ledgers that shed light on the lives and businesses of several local families and individuals during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

  • A. P. Hill Jr. Collection: The bulk of the Andrew P. Hill, Jr. Collection chronicles the training and career of a professional educator and architect over the course of sixty years (1910-1975), including correspondence, photographs, architectural renderings, newspaper clippings, and biographical and family memoirs. The collection spans nearly 130 years, including photographs created by Andrew P. Hill, Sr.
  • Carrie Stevens Walters Family Collection: Family photographs, books, and ephemera relating to Ms. Walters, a Semper Virens and women’s suffrage activist.
  • Ellington Family Photographs and Ephemera: The Ellington family photos represent the family of Philip and Essie M. Ellington who inherited the house formerly owned by John B. and Annie McCall. Mr. Ellington was the son of N.B. and Bertha Ellington, a well known African American family in San Jose. Photographs of the McCalls provide insight into the lives of early Black families in San José while photos and other materials from the Ellington family document life in mid-century San José.
  • Hayes Mansion Collection: Compiled by Nancy Newlin, this collection relates to the Hayes family who built the Hayes Mansion in Edenvale area of San Jose.
  • Herbert C. Jones Collection: The Jones Papers is made up of the personal files of Senator Herbert C. Jones (1902-1969). The papers relate to Jones’ personal involvement with the local community, including his work with nonprofit groups such as Semper Virens, the First Congregational Church, the YWCA, local history associations, and his agricultural interests.
  • James A. Clayton Family Papers: A collection of correspondence and photographs that document life in the Clayton family of Santa Clara County in the latter half of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. The family correspondence records aspects of life events and personal dynamics among its members; this is especially the case with James Adkin Clayton and his wife Anna.
  • Waterhouse/Mills Family Photos and Letters: One of the Edith C. Smith collections, this collection consists of photographs taken by members of the Waterhouse and Mills family who lived in Saratoga from the late 1890s to the 1950s. The collection includes the Clark B. Waterhouse Photographs, 1916 compiled as part of a landscape architecture project. These images include many of the great estates of California during that period, many of which no longer exist.