The Documents section features digitized copies of documents relating to the history of the school. These documents include correspondence, graduation pamphlets, and other forms of ephemera, and have been digitized by Digital Resource Center staff. Today, these documents are preserved in a number of locations, including the Dickinson College Archives and Special Collections as well as private collections.
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August 23 - October 14, 1879
The Chief Clerk for the Secretary of War forwards a series of documents to the Secretary of the Interior regarding the transfer of the Carlisle Barracks from the War Department to the Interior Department. First, Adjutant General E. D. Townsend…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Topics: Founding of the School
View Document: Special Order to Appraise Property Transferred from Department of War to Interior616.55 KB
August 25, 1879
Acting Secretary of the Interior A. Bell informs the Commissioner of Indian Affairs that he is giving permission to Lieutenant Richard Henry Pratt to proceed to Lee, Massachusetts. Bell notes that Pratt will secure current Hampton Institute…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Format: Letters/Correspondence
View Document: Authority for Pratt to Bring Hampton Students to Carlisle219.68 KB
August 25, 1879 - January 7, 1880
Secretary of War Alex Ramsey transmits to Secretary of the Interior Carl Schurz a report from Lieutenant E. T. C. Richmond indicating that the transfer of the Carlisle Barracks from the War Department to the Interior was completed on January 6,…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Topics: Founding of the School
View Document: Documents Relating to the Transfer of the Carlisle Barracks to the Interior Department834.11 KB
August 25-29, 1879
Captain William G. Mitchell issues Special Orders No. 52 ordering the transfer of the Carlisle Barracks from the War Department to the Interior Department, with the Barracks' commanding officer Lieutenant E. T. C. Richmond overseeing the transfer…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Topics: Founding of the School
View Document: Special Order for the Transfer of Carlisle Barracks to the Interior Department450.12 KB
August 30 - September 9, 1879
Adjutant General E. D. Townsend informs the Commanding General of the Atlantic that the Secretary of War George W. McCrary has ordered that all "movable property" at the Carlisle Barracks be turned over to the Indian Bureau as part of the…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Topics: Founding of the School
Format: Letters/Correspondence
View Document: Order to Transfer all "Movable Property" at Carlisle Barracks to the Bureau of Indian Affairs383.12 KB
September 2, 1879
Richard H. Pratt forwards an estimate of cost for necessary repairs to the buildings at the Carlisle Barracks. These repairs, which are needed to prepare the buildings for use by the Carlisle Indian School, are estimated to cost $1,399.00.
…Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
View Document: Estimate of Cost for Repairing Buildings at Carlisle Barracks for Indian School548.37 KB
September 6, 1879
Acting Secretary of the Interior A. Bell informs the Commissioner of Indian Affairs that the War Department has transferred the buildings at the Carlisle Barracks to the Interior Department and that Special Agent Richard Henry Pratt is authorized…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Format: Letters/Correspondence
View Document: Pratt Authorized to Recruit Students for Carlisle and Take Charge of the Barracks for the School281.95 KB
September 8, 1879
Letter from Richard Henry Pratt to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, transferring his account of travel expenses from Florida. Immediately before this time, Pratt had been sent to Florida to locate, enumerate, and report on the condition of the…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Topics:
View Document: Account for Transit Expenses from Florida1.05 MB
September 9, 1879
List of supplies requested by Richard Henry Pratt for the school he is preparing to establish at Carlisle Barracks. Requested supplies include clothing, fabric, sewing supplies, tableware, cooking supplies, and firefighting equipment.
…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Format: Letters/Correspondence
View Document: Request for Personal and School Supplies for Carlisle Indian School4.88 MB
September 10, 1879
Richard Henry Pratt forwards his Supplementary Property Return forms to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs.
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Topics: Financial Affairs - Management
Format: Letters/Correspondence
View Document: Forwarding Supplementary Property Return Forms1.72 MB
September 10, 1879
Letter from Superintendent Richard Henry Pratt to Commissioner of Indian Affairs Ezra Hayt, forwarding drawings of the Carlisle Barracks and a copy of the transfer order. Those enclosures are not included here.
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Format: Letters/Correspondence
View Document: Letter About Drawings of Carlisle Barracks1.95 MB
September 10, 1879
Correspondence from Superintendent Pratt to Commissioner of Indian Affairs Ezra Hayt noting that any communication regarding supplies will receive immediate attention.
Other documents from this same time period attest to Pratt's desperate…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Format: Letters/Correspondence
View Document: Notice Regarding Need for Supplies1.72 MB
September 10, 1879
Letter from Richard Henry Pratt informing the Commissioner of Indian Affairs that he has received funds for a recruitment trip out West, and will set off that day. Pratt also requests supplies be sent to the barracks in preparation for his…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Format: Letters/Correspondence
View Document: Request for Supplies and Repairs at Carlisle Barracks2.06 MB
September 11, 1879
Letter from Richard Henry Pratt to Acting Commissioner of Indian Affairs Edwin J. Brooks regarding sick students discharged from the Hampton Institute. Pratt insists that too many boys were sent home, against his and the doctor's advice, and…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Format: Letters/Correspondence
View Document: Impact of Sending Sick Students Home from Hampton on Recruitment for Carlisle11.77 MB
September 12, 1879
Acting Secretary of the Interior A. Bell returns an Estimate of Expenditures (not attached) for building repairs at the Carlisle Barracks to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs. As Bell deems these repairs to be necessary to converting the…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Topics: Building Repairs and Expansions
Format: Letters/Correspondence
View Document: Approval of Estimate of Expenditures for Building Repairs200.95 KB
September 15, 1879
Hampton Institute Principal Samuel C. Armstrong informs Commissioner of Indian Affairs E. A. Hayt that he has signed his contract. He states that he's unhappy with the terms of the contract and describes the expense and difficulty of educating…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Topics: Indian School System, Funding Per Student
Format: Letters/Correspondence
View Document: Issues with Contract for Educating Indian Students at Hampton393.78 KB
September 16, 1879
Jonathan Cornman requests to manufacture and repair shoes for Indian women and children that are rumored to be quartering at the Carlisle Barracks in the fall.
Note: This item was copied from U.S. National Archives microfilm reels (M234),…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Format: Letters/Correspondence
View Document: Request to Supply Shoes for New Indian School172.93 KB
September 21, 1879
Haus Eugen Bahn writes to Secretary of the Interior Carl Schurz regarding the news that an Indian school will soon be established in Carlisle. Bahn requests an appointment as teacher at the school.
Note: This item was copied from U.S.…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Format: Letters/Correspondence
View Document: Request for a Teaching Appointment139.7 KB
September 23-24, 1879
Descriptive Statement of young people recruited for the Carlisle Indian School from Pine Ridge Agency, as prepared by the acting Indian Agent for Pine Ridge J. W. Alder. Of the 27 names on this list, only 18 ultimately traveled to Carlisle, the…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Topics: Enrollment Lists
Format: Legal and Government Documents
View Document: Descriptive Statement of Pupils from Pine Ridge Agency, 18795.34 MB
September 24, 1879
Herman Berg writes to Commissioner of Indian Affairs E. A. Hayt regarding the Government's intention to establish an Indian school in Carlisle. Berg requests the opportunity to furnish supplies to the school and states that he will provide ample…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Topics: Local Businesses
Format: Letters/Correspondence
View Document: Request to Furnish Supplies to the Carlisle Indian School88.74 KB
September 26, 1879
Commissioner of Indian Affairs Ezra A. Hayt's reply to a letter from H. E. Behn seeking appointment as a teacher at the Carlisle Indian School wherein Hayt suggests that he directly contact the head of the school, Richard Henry Pratt, to apply.…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Topics: School Employees - Teachers
Format: Letters/Correspondence
View Document: Response to Teacher Wanting to Teach at Carlisle Indian School1.56 MB
September 30, 1879
Descriptive Statement of young people being sent to the Carlisle Indian School from Rosebud Agency, as sent by the Rosebud Indian Agent Cicero Newell.
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Topics: Enrollment Lists
Format: Reports
View Document: Descriptive Statement of Pupils from Rosebud Agency8.16 MB
September 30, 1879
Commissioner of Indian Affairs Ezra A. Hayt's reply to a James E. Rhoades, a man who requested that two Shawnee boys who he is looking after "be sent to school at Hampton, Va." Hayt lets Rhoades know that he can arrange to have the boys be…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Topics: Recruitment of Students
Format: Letters/Correspondence
View Document: Letter Helping Place Two Absentee Shawnee Boys in Schools3.2 MB
October 1, 1879
Acting Secretary of the Interior A. Bell grants authority to purchase a list of articles and supplies, including bedding and clothing, amounting to $2,000, on the open market rather than through regular government contractors. This action was…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Format: Letters/Correspondence
View Document: Approval to Purchase $2,000 of Supplies for New Students363.29 KB
October 1, 1879
Acting Secretary of the Interior A. Bell writes to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, returning and approving lists of articles and supplies required at the Carlisle Indian School to be purchased either under contract or through the open market…
Repository: National Archives and Records Administration
Format: Letters/Correspondence
View Document: List of Supplies and Articles Required at the Carlisle Indian School575.85 KB