HISTORY NEBRASKA MANUSCRIPT FINDING AID
RG1033.AM: William M. DeCoursey French
Reminiscences: 1866-1871
Omaha, Douglas County, Nebraska: Assistant enrolling clerk
Size: One folder
SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE
The collection consists of reminiscences of William M. DeCoursey French of Omaha, Nebraska. The reminiscences describe his life as an assistant enrolling clerk in the State government in Lincoln in 1869; his efforts to have a school for the deaf built in Omaha (1869-1871); and a history of railroads being built in Nebraska in the 1860s as well as rail travel to and from Omaha. As he discusses the deaf school, French mentions various men who were instrumental in getting the school built, including David Butler, James Bonner, and Edward Rosewater. He also writes about a news item concerning the marriage between Charles Cook and Matilda Reed, which was written by James Bonner and Stanley Livingston (all of Omaha). Included in the collection is a drawing of “Linnie Haguewood, the deaf, dumb and blind girl of Iowa. Age 11 years.”
Note: William DeCoursey French’s reminiscences were published in Publications of the Nebraska State Historical Society, Volume 18 [1917], pp. 179-194.
INVENTORY
Reminiscences
Subject headings:
Burlington Railroad (Nebraska)
Deaf — Institutional care — Nebraska
Deaf — Education — Nebraska
French, William M. DeCoursey
Government officials — Nebraska
Haguewood, Linnie, 1879-1967
Lincoln (Nebraska) — History
Nebraska Institute for the Deaf and Dumb (Omaha, Nebraska)
Omaha (Nebraska) — History
Railroads — Nebraska — History
Union Pacific Railroad (Nebraska)
Revised TMM 07-15-2009
