Henry Edwards Huntington: His Life and Collections: A Docent Guide - Softcover

Spurgeon, Selena A.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0873281373 ISBN 13: 9780873281379

Publisher: Huntington Library Press, 2002

Synopsis

A refreshing view of the lives of Henry Edwards and Arabella Huntington and the institution they created, drawn from original documents and letters in the Huntington archives. Written by a longtime Huntington docent, the book documents Huntington's business enterprises, including the development of the railroads in Southern California. It also records what we know about Arabella Huntington's mysterious background and first marriage to Collis Huntington. The purchase of the ranch in San Marino, the subsequent development of the library and art collections, and the creation of the gardens are also described. A final chapter, "Arrangements for the Future," provides insight into the way the founder's plans shaped the unique educational and cultural institution of today.

About this title

About the Author

Selena Spurgeon is a longtime docent of the Huntington Library.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

The Early Years

"I shall keep [Collis Huntington's] wise life as an example constantly before me." Henry Edwards Huntington, August 30, 1900

The Huntington family traced its ancestry back to colonial days in America and to England in 1273. The member of whom they were most proud was Samuel Huntington (1731-1796), governor and chief justice of Connecticut, president of the Continental Congress, and a signer of the Declaration of Independence. For generations the Huntingtons had been small landowners, merchants, self-reliant men and women who worked hard to make a living and to lay some aside. When Solon Huntington, father of Henry E. Huntington, died in 1890, the estimated value of his estate was $126,180, an important sum then in an isolated country town.

Throughout Henry Huntington's lifetime, he retained a deep love for his boyhood home, Oneonta, on the Susquehanna River in upper New York State. Here Solon had opened a general store, taking his younger brother Collis into partnership. As the farming community grew, the business prospered, and soon Solon was able to invest some of his profits in land. In 1849 he was also able to equip his ambitious brother with merchandise to trade to the fortune hunters lured to the gold fields of California.

By the 1860s, Collis Huntington's California activities had expanded to that of building (along with his partners Charles Crocker, Mark Hopkins, and Leland Stanford, known as the "Big Four") the Central Pacific Railroad across the Sierra. At Promontory Point, Utah Territory, this miracle of engineering and Congressional backing connected with the Union Pacific over Indian lands from Omaha, the last link of the long-awaited transcontinental railroad. Vast tracts of agricultural and grazing land were opened for development.

Edition details

• Publisher: Huntington Library Press
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0873281373
• ISBN 13: 9780873281379
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 143