Manuscript Group 1063, Winser Family Papers, 1808 – 1973
Archives Documents, Manuscripts, Maps, & Photographs
Manuscript Collection
Manuscript Group # 1063
Winser Family Papers, 1808-1973
Prepared
by Veronica M. Murray
Upsala
College, May
16, 1983
Edited
by Stephen M. Sullivan
Biographical
Sketch:
Henry
Jacob Winser, (1833-1896), was a journalist and Civil War
correspondent for the New York Times. He was later
to become U.S. Consul at Sonnenberg, Germany from 1869-1881.
Edith
Mary Cox Winser (1844-1928), second wife of Henry J. Winser,
contributor to the New York Commercial Advertiser. The
collection contains essays, memoirs of Edith Cox Winser’s stay in
Europe and clippings of the pieces she published in 1885-1886.
Beatrice
Winser (1869-1947), eldest daughter of Henry J. Winser and Edith
Cox Winser. In 1915, Beatrice Winser became the first woman
member of the Newark Board of Education. After John Cotton
Dana’s death in 1929, she became director of the Newark Public
Library and directed the Newark Museum from 1929 to 1947. A
great deal of material relating to Beatrice Winser’s career can
be found in her sister’s scrapbooks.
Nathalie
E. Winser (1877-1971), younger daughter of Henry J. Winser and
Edith Cox Winser, deaconess of the Episcopal Church. The
six scrapbooks in the collection appear to have been kept by
Nathalie E. Winser. They contain programs, newspaper
clippings, photographs that pertain to life in Newark between
1890-1920, as well as clippings of news articles written by Henry
J. Winser, pamphlets, and other materials that shed light on
Beatrice Winser’s career. Of particular interest is a
letter from John Cotton Dana (1856-1929) to Beatrice Winser and
material relating to Beatrice Winser’s activities with the Works
Progress Administration.
Provenance:
The
Gift of the Winas Family Papers was a gift to the Society from
William M. Sayre in 1977.
Scope
and Content Notes:
This
collection contains the papers of the Winser family of Newark.
They range from 1806 through 1963. The earliest material is
photographs of early family members. The documents and
manuscripts in the collection are mainly the work of Henry
Winser and. his wife, Edith Cox Winser. Essays, articles, a
journal and memoirs make up this part of the collection, the
remainder of the collection is assorted material, most pertains
to the family, but other things are included, such as a
number of photographs of early Newark clipped from newspapers,
and memorabilia.
The
Winas Family Papers span the years 1808-1973 and contains
information comprised mainly of scrapbook material,
correspondence, newspaper clippings, genealogical information on
the Till, Tuzo, and Cox families, and a travel diary.
The
collection contains a journal begun by H. J. Winser while on a
sea voyage from the United States to Cherbourg, France, in 1867.
Winser gives a detailed description of the trip, comments on the
behavior of the ship’s crew, and provides detailed observations
on the religious deportment, the work habits and way of life of
the French, English and German people that he sees. Winser
visits a French naval yard and describes in detail the armaments.
He also provides analysis of the women agricultural workers in
France. The second part of the journal was begun by Winser after
he became consul at Sonneberg. Winser describes a hunt in
Germany, depicts a German village, in particular, the people of
the Thuringia region, describes German industry as well as his
dinner with the Duke and Duchess of Coburg.
The
Winsers contributing to the collection are Henry J. Winser, his
wife Edith Cox Winser, and their daughters Beatrice and Nathalie
Winser. Henry Jacob Winser was born in Bermuda on November
23, 1833 to Louisa Hannah (Till) and Jacob Winser. He came to the
United States in 1851. Here he married, Edith Cox, and
together they had three children, Gerald Cox, Beatrice, and
Nathalie.
Henry
Winser served during the Civil War as a news paper correspondent
for the New York Times. He witnessed the shooting of
Col. Elmer E. Ellisworth in the early days of the, war.
On
April 16, 1839 he was appointed Consul General at the Court of
the Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. His appointment as Consul
was the first made by President Grant, and he served until 1881.
In 1873 he represented the United States at the Vienna
Exposition.
His
wife, Edith Cox Winser was the daughter of Doctor Henry G. and
Eliza Stowe (Tuzo) Cox. Doctor Cox became a prominent
physician in New York City after emigrating to the United States
from Bermuda. As the wife of a Consul general, Edith acted
as hostess during the family’s stay in Coburg. She died on
November 14, 1928.
The
oldest daughter of Henry and Edith is the most noted member of
the family. Beatrice Winser was born in 1869 and spent the first
twelve years of her life in Coburg. From 1886 to 1869 she
attended the Columbia Library school. After completing this
schooling, Miss. Winser, in 1889, became the French and German
cataloguer for the Newark Library. As her career at the
library continued, she was made Assistant Librarian in 1900.
After further persuit in her librarian career, in 1915 she was
made Assistant to the Director of the Newark museum (John
Cotton Dana). Finally, in 1929 she succeeded Dana as both
Librarian and Director of the Museum at both the museum and the
Library.
Professionally
she was a charter member of the New Jersey Library association,
president of NJLA from 1907-08 and again in 1921-22. Also a
Lemcer of the ALA Council of Fifty from 1909-12, and. elected
second Vice president in 1931. In addition to her other
activities and interests ,Miss Winser served as a trustee
of the university of Newark, which gave her an Honorary Doctor of
Law in 1937 and of Dana College. Miss Winser resigned
from the Library in 1942, and retired from the Museum on May 31,
1947.
Miss Winser was also active in civic
affairs. In 1915 she became the first woman to sit on the
Newark City Board of Education As a Board member she pushed, for
changes such as centralization of authority, although
unsuccessful and regained the post in February lyl? In 1923
she was active in opposing passage of a New Jersey state law that
was to put restrictions on night work for women. She believed
that it was not right for women to seek equal rights while
requesting special privileges. In March 1930 she helped
to petition the United States Congress to eliminate a law that
allowed Customs to censor books being brought in from abroad.
In 1933 and again in 1935 she served as Chairperson of committees
of the WPA. She died on September 15, 1947 at her home in
Newark.
Nathalie
Winser was born to Edith and Henry Winser during their stay in
Coburg, although the exact date of her birth is not readily
available, but is placed between 1869 and 1881. She
attended the New York Training School for Deaconesses and worked
following this training as a Deaconess of the Episcopal Church,
then also served on the Board from those positions. Winser
also developed a long career in the field of journalism. She
began writing articles on the Civil War ministry
Cathedral in Newark and her husbands work in Coburg. She
served as a City Editor for various newspapers and also for
the New York Times. She was also the city
editor for the city edition of the Newark Daily
Advertiser at the time of Henrys death in August of
1896.
Manuscript
Group # 1063
Winas Family Papers
Papers,
1808-1973
Inventory
Box
Folder
Title
Date
1
1 Winser, Henry. Narrative of a
Naval Expedition,
1861 South
Carolina
2
Winser, Henry. Commission
Apr. 6, 1869
3
Winser, Henry. Journal
1867-1871
4
Winser, Henry. Narratives of Coburg
n. d.
5
Winser, Henry. Misc. Papers
n. d.
6
Winser, Edith Cox. Memories of Coburg
n. d.
7
Winser, Edith Cox. Martin Luther and Coburg
n. d.
8
Winser, Edith Cox. Newark in Colonial Days
n. d.
9
Winser, Edith Cox. Jeanne DArc
n. d.
10
Winser, Edith Cox. Castles of Thuringia
n. d.
11.
Winser, Edith Cox. East Jersey
n. d.
12
Winser, Edith Cox. Correspondence/clippings
n. d.
12A. Winser, Nathalie. Misc.
n. d.
13
Willard, Henry. Letter to Thomas Alva Edison
Feb. 24, 1888
14
Winser, Family Papers & Scrapbook 1
n. d.
15
Winser, Nathalie. Loose items from scrapbook (copies of
news paper
clippings)
n. d.
2
1.
Photocopies of clippings form Nathalie Winsers
n. d.
Scrapbook & loose letters
2.
Items/Letters/Calling Cards form scrapbook marked In
Memories
H. J. Winser/Edith C. Winser
3.
Scrapbook 2 (material largely about Beatrice Wilson)
1803-1963 (Ex. Libris Nathalie E. Winser, bookplate)
4.
Scrapbook 3 (genealogical material)
n. d.
5.
Scrapbook 4 (news paper clippings, photos with descriptions)
n. d
6.
Scrapbook 5 (mostly Beatrice Winser material)
n. d.
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