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ENGL 431: American Frontiers

Archival Collections

Abby Williams Hill Collections

The Abby Williams Hill Collection is an extensive collection of diaries, letters, photographs and paintings documenting the activities of this early 20th century artist. A small sampling of material from the collection is available online.

Abby Williams Hill and her children with White Bull

Abby Williams Hill and her children with White Bull

Abby Williams Hill Collection Finding Aid

Abby Williams Hill Paintings (digital images)

Abby Williams Hill Journals

Nine of Abby Williams Hill's journals are also digitized, transcribed, and available online. These journals focus on Hill’s travels throughout the United States with her four children between 1895 and 1906 and provide a unique female perspective on significant issues affecting the nation at that time, including education, tourism, and the rights of women, African Americans, Native Americans, and the working class. Her detailed observations of daily events coupled with her unique life experiences create a rich and varied resource for scholars of all ages.

For your independent projects, you will be working with selections from Hill's Northern Pacific Railway Commission journal:

Northern Pacific Railway Commission journal Part 1 (Begin on Page 182, October 5, 1905

Northern Pacific Railway Commission journal Part 2 (End on Page 297, November 19, 1905

Full transcript of Northern Pacific Railway Commission journal

These journals are fully keyword searchable and relevant records will be highlighted in red. Use the "filtered" tab to see the full list of your search results. A full PDF transcript is available to download at the end of each journal and a transcription is also available underneath each individual image.

Find out more about our archival and manuscript collections at Archives West. If you would like to learn more about Abby Williams Hill and other materials from A&SC, please contact Olivia Inglin.

Archives & Special Collections Hours

The Archives & Special Collections is located on the second floor of the Collins Memorial Library.

Set up an appointment: We are open to researchers by appointment Monday through Friday from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. To make an appointment, email archives@pugetsound.edu or book online

We look forward to assisting you!