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Gerrit Smith Miller Papers

An inventory of his papers at Syracuse University

Overview of the Collection

Creator: Miller, Gerrit Smith, 1845-1937.
Title: Gerrit Smith Miller Papers
Inclusive Dates: 1869-1913
Quantity: 21 linear ft.
Abstract: New York politician and dairy farmer; grandson of New York reformer, philanthropist and abolitionist Gerrit Smith. Collection contains correspondence, financial material, dairy business and herd records, miscellany.
Language: English
Repository: Special Collections Research Center,
Syracuse University Libraries
222 Waverly Avenue
Syracuse, NY 13244-2010
https://library.syracuse.edu/special-collections-research-center

Biographical History

Gerrit Smith Miller (1845-1937) was a New York politician and dairy farmer. His father was Charles D. Miller (1818-1896); through his mother Elizabeth Smith (1822-1911) he was the grandson of New York reformer, philanthropist and abolitionist Gerrit Smith.

Gerrit Smith Miller was one of the early importers of Holsteins from Holland (following the example of a neighbor, Winthrop W. Chenery) and maintained the oldest purebred Holstein herd in the United States from 1869 to 1937. Many of the 1.8 million animals registered in the Holstein-Freisian book today descend from Miller's Kriemhild herd. He was also one of the first to approach dairy farming scientifically, keep daily year-round records of milk production in his effort to increase yields. Miller was also a member of the New York State legislature, and was involved with the George Junior Republic, a boys' school founded by American philanthropist William Reuben George in 1909.

He and his wife, Susan Hunt Dixwell, had three sons: Gerrit Smith Jr. (1869- ?), Basil Dixwell (1873- ?) and William Fitzhugh (1878-1890).

A genealogy of the Smith family is available in PDF (if online) or at the end of this finding aid (if in hard copy).

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Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Gerrit Smith Miller Papers contains correspondence, financial material, dairy business and herd records, and miscellany.

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Arrangement of the Collection

Correspondence is arranged chronologically. Financial material is subdivided by type and within that arranged chronologically. The remaining series are arranged alphabetically by topic or type.

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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.

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Related Material

Special Collections Research Center has the papers of several members of the Smith family. See also the following:

Gerrit Smith Papers
Greene Smith Papers
Peter Smith Papers

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Subject Headings

Persons

Dixwell family.
Fitzhugh family.
Miller family.
Miller, Elizabeth Smith, 1822-1911.
Miller, Gerrit S. (Gerrit Smith), 1869-1956.
Smith family.
Smith, Gerrit, 1797-1874.
Smith, Greene, 1841-1880.
Smith, Peter, 1768-1837.

Subjects

Dairy farmers -- New York (State)
Dairy farming -- New York (State)
Legislators -- New York (State)

Genres and Forms

Correspondence.
Receipts (financial records)

Occupations

Dairy farmers.
Legislators.

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

Gerrit Smith Miller Papers,
Special Collections Research Center,
Syracuse University Libraries

Finding Aid Information

Created by: -
Date: Jun 1993
Revision history: 29 Sep 2015 - Memorabilia updated (MRC)

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Inventory

Biographical material
Box 1 General
Correspondence
Box 1 General 1869-1878 (Jul) (32 folders)
Box 2 General 1878 (Aug)-1881 (Dec) (37 folders)
Box 3 General 1882-1883 (24 folders)
Box 4 General 1884-1885 (Jun) (13 folders)
Box 5 General 1886 (Jul)-1887 (Mar) (17 folders)
Box 6 General 1887 (Apr)-1888 (Jun)\ (15 folders)
Box 7 General 1888 (Jul)-1889 (Jun) (12 folders)
Box 8 General 1889 (Jul)-1890 (Jun) (13 folders)
Box 9 General 1890 (Jul)-1891 (Jun) (12 folders)
Box 10 General 1892 (Jul)-1893 (Dec) (12 folders)
Box 11 General 1894-1909 (8 folders)
Box 11 General undated (2 folders)
Family correspondence
Box 11 Alerdice, Winslow
Box 11 Andrews
Box 11 Andrews, Ann
Box 11 Berry
Box 11 Biddle
Box 11 Bowditch
Box 11 Bowditch, Charles P.
Box 11 Bowditch, Edward ("Ned")
Box 11 Brent
Box 11 Burns
Box 11 Cochrane
Box 11 Cochrane, John
Box 11 Cochrane, Walter
Box 11 Dixwell
Box 11 Dixwell, S.
Box 11 Dixwell, John ("John D.")
Box 11 Dixwell, Mary T. B.
Box 11 Fitzhugh
Box 11 Fitzhugh, Bess V.
Box 11 Forbes, Gerrit
Box 12 Haines, W. K. (Basil's teacher, to GSM)
Box 12 Haines, W. K. (Basil's teacher, to Basil)
Box 12 Holmes, Fanny
Box 12 Holmes, Oliver Wendell Jr. 1913
Box 12 Howe, Archibald
Box 12 Howe, Arria S. D.
Box 12 Kemeys
Box 12 Kennedy
Box 12 Locke, C. S. (Basil's teacher)
Box 12 Lovett, James DeWolf
Box 12 Miller
Box 12 Miller, Mrs. (either Elizabeth Smith Miller or Susan Dixwell Miller)
Box 12 Miller, Anne F. ("Nan") 1882-1901, undated (3 folders)
Box 12 Miller, Basil D.
Box 12 Miller, Blandrina D.
Box 12 Miller, Charles Dudley 1876-1894 (3 folders)
Box 12 Miller, Charles Dudley 1875-1895 - papers
Box 12 Miller, Dudley 1875-1890 (6 folders)
Box 12 Miller, Dudley - papers
Box 13 Miller, Elizabeth Smith 1875-1893, undated (8 folders)
Box 13 Miller, Elizabeth Smith 1878-1910, undated - papers (8 folders)
Box 13 Miller, Esther
Box 13 Miller, Gerrit Smith Jr. 1888-1889 (3 folders)
Box 13 Miller, Louise
Box 13 Miller, Mary S.
Box 14 Miller, Susan Dixwell ("Susansy" 1876-1889, undated (4 folders)
Box 14 Miller, Susan Dixwell ("Mother Miller" and "Sister Bee") 1880-1912, undated - papers (4 folders)
Box 14 Miller, Susan Dixwell - letters from her mother-in-law, Elizabeth S. Miller
Box 14 Miller, Susan Dixwell - letters from her brother-in-law, Dudley Miller
Box 14 Miller, William Fitzhugh
Box 14 Miller, William Fitzhugh and others
Box 14 Owen
Box 14 Owen, Arria D.
Box 14 Price
Box 14 Savage
Box 14 Smith, Ann C.
Box 14 Smith, Elizabeth ("Bessie" or "Betsey") 1875-1901, undated - wife of Greene Smith (4 folders)
Box 14 Smith, Gerrit
Box 14 Smith, Gerrit H.
Box 14 Smith, Greene 1875-1876 (4 folders)
Box 15 Smith, Greene 1877-1880 (3 folders)
Box 15 T—, Rebecca F.
Box 15 Walter, Ellen
Box 15 Watson
Box 15 Watson, C. 1881-1896 (7 folders)
Box 15 —, Katy
Box 15 —, Mary (sister)
Box 15 Miscellaneous and unidentified family letters and fragments (2 folders)
Business correspondence
Box 15 1861-1876 (8 folders)
Box 16 1877-1889, undated (15 folders)
Box 17 1875-1911, undated (6 folders)
Financial material
Box 18 Unsorted financial records
Box 19 Cancelled checks
Business records
Box 20 Unsorted business records
Box 21 Unsorted dairy herd materials
Box 22 Unsorted business records
Memorabilia
Box 23 Business card
Box 23 Photographs

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