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George Wellington Wilson Papers

An inventory of his papers at Syracuse University


Finding aid created by: RT
Date: Jul 1969

Biographical History

George W. Wilson (1870-1946) was a New York businessman and a member of Butler Lodge 504 of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, South Butler, New York.

Wilson was born in Savannah in Wayne County, New York, to George Riley and Mary Ann (Gorham) Wilson. He attended Crusoe School in Savannah and later the South Butler Village School.

He married Florence Adella Niles on January 4, 1893 and the couple had two daughters, Addie Augusta (15 Oct 1893) and Valeria Ann (23 Sep 1895). Valeria later (24 Oct 1921) married George Parsons. Florence died August 8, 1821, and Wilson subsequently married Nettie May (Chapman) Johnson (died June 12, 1955).

In 1898 Wilson joined his brother, Gorham J. Wilson, in the Wilson Store in South Butler, and continued in this business until 1937. He was librarian and deacon of the Church of Christ, Disciples for many years, as well as president of the local fire company and the Sunday School Association. For fifty years he was a member of Butler Lodge 504 of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and was manager of the Lodge's fund-raising events for many years.

Scope and Contents of the Collection

The George W. Wilson Papers contain correspondence, financial records, notes, photographs, and published material. Most of the collection represents Mr. Wilson's management fund-raising events for Butler Lodge 504, including fairs, plays, minstrel shows, and various other entertainments.

Correspondence contains mostly incoming letters about future performances, ticket sales and business arrangements with theatrical agencies in Syracuse, New York, including Eastern Lyceum Bureau (1916-1918), Eastern-Empire Lyceum Bureau (1912-1914), and Royal Lyceum Bureau (1919-1923). There is also significant correspondence with the Clyde (New York) Opera House (1919-1922), Independent Order of Odd Fellows (1910-1916), New York State Department of Agriculture (1916), and the New York State Department of Farms and Markets, Division of Agriculture (1917-1918).

Financial records include a series of cashbooks, contracts with theatrical agencies, receipts, reports of the manager, tickets, and subscription forms.

Notes contain miscellaneous handwritten items about the Odd Fellows' fund-raising events, and there are a few Photographs.

Published material consists of advertisements, broadside playbills and programs for events in South Butler, New York.

Arrangement of the Collection

Correspondence is arranged chronologically. Financial records are arranged alphabetically by type. Published material is arranged alphabetically by type.

Restrictions

Access Restrictions:

The majority of our archival and manuscript collections are housed offsite and require advanced notice for retrieval. Researchers are encouraged to contact us in advance concerning the collection material they wish to access for their research.

Use Restrictions:

Written permission must be obtained from SCRC and all relevant rights holders before publishing quotations, excerpts or images from any materials in this collection.

Related Material

See also the Central New York Cultural Ephemera Collection and Dave Salmon, Inc. Collection of Syracuse Cultural Ephemera.

Subject Headings

Persons

Wilson, George Wellington, 1870-1946.

Corporate Bodies

Independent Order of Odd Fellows.

Subjects

Amusements -- Posters.
Businessmen -- New York (State) -- Wayne County.
Fraternal organizations -- New York (State)
Printed ephemera.
Theatrical agencies -- New York (State)

Places

Wayne County (N.Y.) -- Social life and customs.

Genres and Forms

Advertisements.
Broadsides (notices)
Correspondence.
Photographs.
Playbills.
Programs (documents)

Occupations

Businessmen.

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

George Wellington Wilson Papers,
Special Collections Research Center,
Syracuse University Libraries

Acquisition Information

Gift of Gerald J. Parsons, 1969.

Table of Contents

Correspondence

Financial records

Notes

Photographs

Published material

Inventory