Guide to the Horatio Seymour Papers,
1741-1920

Papers are concerned chiefly with land holdings and business dealings of the Seymour family, and the related Bleecker family and Tibbits family. The early papers relate to the history and disposal of lands, especially in the counties of Albany, Herkimer, and Oneida, acquired during the colonial period by the Bleecker family, and include deeds, leases, surveys, and statements of expenses. Early accounts concern Philip Schuyler, financier and land holder. Papers and documents pertain to John R. Bleecker. Seymour had a great interest in the development of the New York State Canal System, and clearing the Canaseraga Swamp lands in connection with the building of a lateral canal. Other papers detail a suit involving the shipment of wheat on the canal in the 1840s, the development of business in the city of Utica, milling, banking, and iron manufacturing, and the Utica Insurance Company, in which Alexander B. Johnson and Henry Green were involved. Other topics include the Saint Mary's Ship Canal, connecting Lake Superior with the lower Great Lakes, in which Erastus Corning, Charles T. Harvey, and John F. Seymour were involved. The Saint Mary's Canal Mineral Company (of which John Seymour and Benjamin Tibbits were directors) was formed to develop lands deriving from the timber lands offered as payment for the canal. Closely connected with this company was the Fox and Wisconsin Improvement Company.