HISTORY NEBRASKA MANUSCRIPT FINDING AID
RG1238.AM: Edwin O. Miller, 1847-1913
Papers: 1904-1905
Lincoln, Lancaster County, Nebraska: Commercial Agent for Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway
Size: Two items
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
Edwin O. Miller, a native of Ohio, arrived in Lincoln, Nebraska in 1874 and secured a clerking position with Parker and Lansing, hardware merchants. Accompanied by other new arrivals to Nebraska, Miller made a trip by wagon over the Nebraska prairie, intending to purchase homestead land in the Republican Valley. Although he was impressed with the land and its potential for farming and pasturing of livestock, Miller decided not to homestead and returned to Lincoln. Eventually he secured employment with the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway, serving as Commercial Agent for that company in 1905.
SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE
This collection consists of two items. The first item is a letter written by Edwin O. Miller in which he provides a transcription of the diary he kept during an 1874 journey across the Nebraska prairie to the Republican Valley. Miller’s diary entries record his evaluations of the agricultural potential of the land, the appearance of wild game during the trip, and “curiosities” for the prairie, which consisted of wild flowers and plants not found in his native Ohio. Including also are descriptions of towns along the way, including Fairmont, Sutton, Riverton, and Lowell. The letter was written in 1905. The second item is a Way Bill, 1904, for the first load of home grown peaches shipped from Lincoln, Nebraska. A statement by E. O. Miller verifying this and providing additional information is included.
INVENTORY
Item
- 1905 letter containing transcription of Edwin O. Miller’s 1874 diary
- Way Bill, 1904, and attachment providing statement of E. O. Miller, 1905
Subject headings:
Clay County (Nebraska) — History
Fairmont (Nebraska) — History
Franklin County (Nebraska) — History
Fruit-culture — Nebraska
Kearney County (Nebraska) — History
Lowell (Nebraska) — History
Miller, Edwin O., 1847-1913
Overland journeys
Republican River Valley (Nebraska) — History
Riverton (Nebraska) — History
Sutton (Nebraska) — History
AIP/ksa 10-01-1990
Revised TMM 04-07-2017
