Hagaman Connection to the Brevoort House Solved

       

The 1898 Year Book of the Chamber of Commerce of New Haven, as seen below, provides the answer to the Hagaman brothers' connection to Brevoort House. The excerpts are from page 35 and page 36:

The "young Hagaman" referred to in the first part of the above text refer to Theodore, Isaac Hagaman's brother. I have typed out the text below:

Young Hagaman then obtained a position in Judson's 

hotel  61 Broadway, New York City, the proprietor of

which was Curtiss Judson, who was afterwards proprietor 

of the Brevoort House on Eighth Street. In 1854, Mr. Judson

gave Theodore, who was then fifteen years of age, a clerkship

in the Brevoort Cafe. Henry Hagaman, his brother was at the 

time head clerk of the hotel. For thirteen years he remained 

at the Brevoort, when in 1867 he and his brother Henry, 

together with Isaac Hagaman, another brother, as silent 

partner, leased the Albermarle House, corner of Broad Street

and 14th street, for a term of ten years.  On February 26, 1876,

Henry died. From this time, and until the expiration of the 

lease in 1877, a little more than a year, Theodore and Isaac

conducted the business, after which the two brothers came

to East Haven to live.

     

A Clue to the Isaac and Theodore Hagaman connection to the Brevoort House Hotel

 

Though I had not known of a connection between the Hagaman brothers and the Brevoort House Hotel, other than that in the Library inventory mentioned in the Thursday, March 10th post on this blog, I found something today on the Internet. A simple search of Hagaman and Brevoort in Google, turned up the following from Google Books,

The Englishman's Illustrated Guidebook to the United States and Canada. Longmans, Green, Reader and Dyer, 1876.

 

 

Below on the left is the title page of this book, and on the right is a drawing of the Albemarle Hotel with information.  I placed the blue arrow on the page to point out where it states:

 Proprietors, Henry Hagaman and Theodore Hagaman (formerly of the Brevoort Hotel).

 

 

The Albemarle Hotel was built in 1860 and taken down sometime in the mid 1910s was located at the junction of Broadway, Fifth Avenue and 24th Street. 

The text above states: 

This select and fashionable Hotel is the most central and delightfully situated of any in the city, being on the corner of FIFTH Avenue and 24th Streets, opposite Madison Park; Cars and Omnibuses to all parts of the city pass the door at all hours, pass the door at all hours, the rooms are all light and airy; the parlours and suites of rooms are unsurpassed by those of any other hotel, being richly furnished and having all the conveniences of hot and cold water, baths, and waterclosets; the cuisine is unexceptionable, and wines the best that can be procured. For gentlemen and families who desire quiet and comfort, and at the same time to be in the most beautiful part of the city, this hotel offers superior attractions. The Hotel is furnished with one of Otis Tufts patent Safety Passenger Elevators.                                                                 ______________

The mention in conjunction with the Hagaman brothers as proprietors led me to think they may have been at one time proprietors of the Brevoort House Hotel. Today I discovered -or rediscovered some information that will shed light on this mystery which I will write about in the next post.             

The Winfield Scott letter and Brevoort House

                                    

In going through a box of papers, I found yet another inventory list for the library's historical archives and artifacts. This inventory refered to the  letter in the Library's collection from General Winfield Scott. The inventory stated that the location to which the letter was sent, Brevoort House, was at one time associated with the Library's benefactor, Isaac Hagaman and his brother, Theodore.

Above: Inventory stating-
Letter signed by Winfield Scott from West Point,
Sept. 10, 1864  Envelope included  Mailed to Brevoort House
(associated with Hagaman brothers at one time)


The  letter from General Scott, can be seen below.

Letter Above: West Point Sept. 10, 1864 
 Dear Sir,
I thank you for your note.
I believe I have engaged apartment higher up town. 
Yours with esteem, Winfield Scott 

Envelope: To A. Clark Esq. Brevoort House, N.Y. 

The Brevoort House Hotel was located in New York City, where the Hagaman brothers owned and operated their own hotel, the Albermarle at 1101 Broadway.  I had seen no reference in any documentation linking Isaac or Theodore Hagaman to Brevoort House.  And the question arises was Isaac Hagaman somehow involved in the management of the Brevoort House Hotel or was he perhaps staying there?

I have not yet found a connection between the Hagaman brothers and the Brevoort House. Nonetheless, I found that the Brevoort House Hotel was the location for General Scott to be honorably addressed by a committee appointed by the Chamber of Commerce. 

According to the Richmond Time's Dispatch of November 18th, 1861, accessed through Tufts University's Perseus electronic resource, (referenced at the end of this post), the Brevoort House Hotel was the site of an honorable address to General Scott by a committee appointed by the Chamber of Commerce, on the occasion of his retirement from the Union Army. 

            The committee appointed by the Chamber of Commerce to present their resolutions
            of respect to General Scott met yesterday at 9 1/2 o'clock, at the Brevoort, and paid
            their respects to the General.  

General Scott's retirement took place following a major defeat at the First Battle of Bull Run, and excerpts from his poignant speech at that time can be seen below:       

            Mr. President, and Gentlemen of the Chamber of Commerce: Sweet is the language of praise, when it comes from a high source of intelligence and moral worth; and sweet is the consciousness of having labored through a long life to deserve such praise. The measure is full and overflowing. This great calamity which has come upon our country — this great rebellion — found me far advanced in life, and by the labor and anxieties which it threw upon me has broken the down. I stand before you quite a wreck. Had this calamity occurred some three or four years earlier, it would have found me yet in a state of vigor, in a condition to render some service to my country, to meet that rebellion; and I think and flatter myself that I should have met it with considerable success.

Although it has thrown me hors du comdat myself, I have the happiness of saying to you — and my opinion may be of some little value upon that subject — that I have left in the field a large, noble, and patriotic army, for it is filled with many of our best citizens, officers, and men, commanded by Generals of very great merit — Generals capable of commanding and enchaining victory to their cars. I have left in the field young and vigorous men competent to do all the duties which their country can require of them--a Major-General McClennan,full of science and genius, and already of respectable experience. I have left Major-General Halleck,  another officer of genius and science, and judgment and discretion, who cannot fail to meet all the wishes of his Government and his country. Besides those Major-Generals, we have many Brigadiers and Colonels of high worth. I do not, therefore, despair of the cause of the Union Nay, I am confident of the triumph of that within some reasonable time. I should hope by the following spring that the rebellion would be suppressed; I should hope in a short time more that our Union might be re-established in fraternity and made beautiful, and I trust made so firm as to endure forever. That Union has commanded all my affections; the Union is my country; I have known no country but the Union; I owe my allegiance to nothing but the United States of America, and I mean to die in that allegiance.

  http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2006.05.0325%3Aarticle%3D4  

 

Pearl Harbor News Clipping Scrapbook of Beverly Gordon Witten

The Pearl Harbor News Clipping Scrapbook of Beverly Gordon Witten was losing the information from the news clippings due to flaking of the acidic paper. I used Japanese Rice paper to reinforce pages and hopefully keep the news clippings intact.  The library has used pages from this scrapbook in two displays on Pearl Harbor. 

Above: Beverly Gordon Witten's Pearl Harbor news clippings scrapbook 

Head line clippings on Pearl Harbor- information was being lost due to flaking of the acidic paper

Rice paper reinforcement can be seen in the white line at the bottom of the clippings page.

A clipping from the scrapbook states: "Ironically symbolic of things to come in this spectacular photo of a flight of bombers over Hawaii's jagged Diamond Head..."

"Japanese planes disgorge parachute troops, such as were reported to have been dropped during the sudden strike on Hawaii. Photo above shows Japanese paratroops practicing over Tokyo." 

The pages were reinforced with wheat paste and rice paper as seen above.

Also worked on, was a map showing a WWII attack in Africa by the Allies. The map was in sections and pieced together by using wheat paste and Japanese rice paper. 

Military Record of Captain Robert D. Schirmer

I have been working on the papers of Captain Robert D. Schirmer and include some examples from his military record below:

Dedication of papers by Nick Pelegrino

The Above March 7th, 1944 Stars snd Strips has a notation from Captain Schirmer - that he was in the raid on Berlin.

Award of Oak Leaf Cluster April, 1944

Award of Distinguished Flying Cross- May, 1944

Awards of Captain Schirmer

Papers of John Joseph Miles

I have just finished reviewing and cleaning the John J. Miles collection that was given to the Library in 2014. Due to the Covid 19, I am temporarily working at home and this has given me an opportunity to turn my attention to projects that I normally would find it difficult to accomplish at the library with other responsibilities. This is not a complete set of documents, but I hope to have highlighted some of John Miles' accomplishements.

 Below is  John Miles, appointment as Ensign on April 14th 1941:

The documents are quite extensive - here, for instance, is an assignment to the submarine base at New London:

By or before 1942, he was promoted to Lieutenant:

Also in 1942 he was assigned to Adak Island in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska.

In 1943 he was assigned to the San Diego Submarine Base

In April of 1944, it appears he was back in New London

In May of 1944, he was sent to Casco Bay Maine for temporary additional duty in DesLant's Torpedo School - on an interesting note the class convened on 5 June 1944.

Here is a report of his service on the U.S.S. Portunus

A report from Okinawa

Above is a release from active duty from the U.S.S. Missoula 

Congratulatory letter from James Forrestal Secretary of the Navy

Traveling Archivist Grant

Kathy Foulke contacted me today and we are going to discuss the project for the possible grant tomorrow!