WILDMAN, ZALMAN
Charles E. Frohman Collections
(Description ID: 594210)
Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums
Zalman Wildman
FR-6
Introduction
Biographical Sketch
Scope and Content
Inventory
Introduction
The Zalman Wildman Papers are a part of the Charles E. Frohman Collection. For more information about the early development of Sandusky, Ohio, see the John G. Camp Collection (FR-3) and the John Gardiner Collection (LH-287).
Biographical Sketch
Born in Danbury, Connecticut, February 16, 1775, Zalman (also spelled Zalmon) Wildman became a manufacturer of hats, the occupation of numerous family members. He established the first hat stores in Charleston, South Carolina, and Savannah, Georgia, in 1802. He served as Danbury’s postmaster from 1805 until his death in 1835. In 1818, Wildman became a member of the state house of representatives. Speculating in the undeveloped lands of the Ohio Firelands, Wildman purchased in several thousand acres of Canon Township (later Richmond Township) and Perkins Township in what was to become Erie County, Ohio. At the close of the War of 1812, Wildman platted his land and laid out city lots near the center of his tract. He named the port of entry "Portland." The following year he erected the first building within the "city tract." Sandusky, Ohio, was eventually established on the Wildman lands. In 1824, Wildman became the first president of the Danbury National Bank. In early March of 1835, Wildman was elected to the Twenty-fourth United States Congress and served until his death on December 10, 1835. He is buried in the Wooster Cemetery at Danbury, Connecticut.
Wildman, along with other early land speculators, worked to develop transportation, through efforts to build a turnpike, a shipping canal, and railroads that would encourage business and increase the value of their land investments.
Scope and Content
The collection consists primarily of correspondence of Wildman family members, chiefly incoming letters, dating from 1810 to 1876. The correspondence pertains to the founding and development of Sandusky and Erie County, Ohio, including county organization and politics; churches; schools; social life; newspapers; health conditions (ague, typhus fever, cholera, etc.); banks; land surveys and sales; construction of homes, roads, and routes from the East; establishment of a naval base; a penitentiary; a steamboat wharf at Sandusky; the Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad Co.; the Columbus & Sandusky Turnpike Co.; Canal Bill; and the conduct of the War of 1812. Other letters focus on crops, early mills, commodity prices, and local businesses and trade.
The bulk of the collection, some 200 items, is photocopies of the Wildman Papers held by the Ohio Historical Society, while the remainder consists of approximately forty original letters. The inventory provides a listing of the correspondence by folder. A chronological list of the correspondence gives the date, names of correspondents, and subject matter of each letter.
Inventory
Ac. 1822
½ linear ft.
1. Inventory Sheets
2. Transcriptions of Correspondence
3. Correspondence 1810 - 1839 Originals
4. Correspondence 1839 - 1876 Originals
5. Correspondence Jly. 1805 - Dec. 1812 Photocopies
6. Correspondence Jan. 1813 - Dec. 1820 Photocopies
7. Correspondence Oct. 1821 - Dec. 1828 Photocopies
8. Correspondence Apr. 1829 - Dec. 1832 Photocopies
9. Correspondence Nov. 1834 - Dec. 1836 Photocopies
10. Correspondence Jan. 1838 - Aug. 1846 Photocopies
11. Correspondence Sept. 1846 - Nov. 1848 Photocopies
12. Correspondence Feb. 1849 - Oct. 1861 Photocopies
13. B. Lockwood and Others v. Wildman, Mills, and Others [13 Ohio 430]
Chronological Inventory of Correspondence
July 30, 1805 | Ruggles to Wildman, to speculate in Ohio lands |
June 1, 1806 | Z. Wildman to Seymour Wildman, concerning land purchase in Ohio |
Sept. 4, 1807 | Horatio Wildman to Z. Wildman, loss of handkerchief |
May 31, 1808 | Ruggles to Wildman, to commence survey |
Nov. 15,1808 | Z. Wildman to S. Wildman, drew lands on Lake Erie |
June 7, 1809 | John H. Patch from Huron to Z. Wildman, re counterfeiters |
June 20, 1809 | Z. Wildman from Huron to Mrs. Polly Wildman, drawings at Huron, etc. |
June 21, 1809 | John H. Patch to Z. Wildman, refers to survey of Bay and Peninsula |
Map of Catawba Island | |
Aug. 2, 1809 | Agreement of Thaddeus Lacey witnessed by Apaphias W. Bull to sell land for cattle and hogs and to make butter and cheese |
June 25, 1810 | Eli S. Barnum (Huron) to Z. Wildman, route to Fire Lands |
Nov. 13, 1810 | Chas. P. Barnum to Z. Wildman, Indian information, Put-in-Bay, etc |
Jan. 22, 1811 | Chas. P. Barnum to Z. Wildman, mill at Cold Creek, etc |
Jan. 28, 1811 | Chas. P. Barnum to Z. Wildman, Indian Council at Detroit |
Feb. 7, 1811 | Eli S. Barnum to Z. Wildman (Vermilion), miscellaneous |
Mar. 5, 1811 | Chas. P. Barnum to Z. Wildman (Huron), partition of Sandusky Bay |
Mar. 14, 1811 | Chas. P. Barnum to Z. Wildman (Huron), to buy land |
Mar. 19, 1811 | Chas. P. Barnum to Z. Wildman (Huron), colonization |
Apr. 5, 1811 | Chas. P. Barnum to Z. Wildman (Huron), locate county seat |
May 6, 1811 | Chas. P. Barnum to Z. Wildman (Huron), Bull appointed Collector |
May 5, 1811 | Eli S. Barnum to Z. Wildman, court house at Avery |
May 28, 1811 | Chas. P. Barnum to Z. Wildman, cattle - Avery |
June 18, 1811 | Chas. P. Barnum to Z. Wildman, Bull left; Land |
June 23, 1811 | Eli S. Barnum to Z. Wildman, information on Huron River |
June 26, 1811 | Chas. P. Barnum to Z. Wildman, speculation |
July 2, 1811 | Chas. P. Barnum to Z. Wildman, miscellaneous |
July 10, 1811 | Chas. P. Barnum to Z. Wildman, peninsular land sales, inc. contract |
Sept. 17, 1811 | Chas. P. Barnum to Z. Wildman, local news |
Sept. 30, 1811 | Chas. P. Barnum to Z. Wildman, land division |
Nov.15, 1811 | Eliakim Nash to Z. Wildman, miscellaneous |
Dec. 6, 1811 | Chas. P. Barnum to Z. Wildman, miscellaneous |
Jan. 7, 1812 | Comfort S. Mygatt to Z. Wildman, paying taxes at Warren |
June 27, 1812 | Z. Wildman to Polly Wildman, execution of John Omick, Indian |
Jly. 4, 1812 | Z. Wildman to Horatio Wildman, war declared |
Aug. 25, 1812 | John Patch to Z. Wildman, surrender at Detroit |
Aug. 30, 1812 | Jabez Wright to Z. Wildman, local events |
Sept. 6, 1812 | Samuel S. Baldwin to Z. Wildman, surrender at Detroit |
Oct. 7,1812 | Samuel S. Baldwin to Z. Wildman, miscellaneous |
Dec. 14, 1812 | Chas. P. Barnum to Z. Wildman, views of war |
Jan. 12, 1813 | John Patch to Z. Wildman, conduct of the Army, etc. |
Jan. 16, 1813 | Jabez Wright to Z. Wildman, Army at Sandusky |
Feb. 4, 1813 | Samuel P. Baldwin to Z. Wildman, miscellaneous |
Feb. 10, 1813 | Minutes of meeting held at Norwalk regarding the election of officers |
Mar. 9, 1813 | Whittlesey to Z. Wildman, land division, miscellaneous |
Mar. 18, 1813 | Eli S. Barnum to Z. Wildman, conduct of the war, apology for poetry of Whittelsey |
May 24, 1813 | Eli S. Barnum to Z. Wildman, conduct of the war, condition of county |
June 29, 1813 | Eli S. Barnum to Z. Wildman, conduct of the war |
Aug. 14, 1813 | Eli S. Barnum to Z. Wildman, war conditions, etc. |
Aug. 19, 1813 | Chas. P. Barnum to Z. Wildman (Bridgeport, Ohio), conditions |
Sept. 21, 1813 | Jabez Wright to Z. Wildman, battle of Lake Erie |
Oct. 1813 | Eli S. Barnum to Z. Wildman, battle of Lake Erie |
May 10, 1814 | John H. Patch to Z. Wildman, local events |
June 1, 1814 | Seymour Wildman to Z. Wildman, land deeds |
June 28, 1814 | Z. Wildman to E. M. Starr, troops at Buffalo, New York |
Aug. 2, 1814 | Moses Hatch to Z.Wildman, discussion of Indians, etc |
Aug. 3, 1814 | Z. Wildman to Horatio Wildman |
Dec. 6, 1814 | Eli S. Barnum to Z. Wildman, boat building at Huron and Vermilion, Ohio |
Mar. 6, 1815 | Chas. P. Barnum to Z. Wildman, possibility of Z.W. moving West |
Apr. 24,1815 | Almon Ruggles to Z. Wildman, Huron County, Ohio,. organization |
Apr. 28, 1815 | Eli S. Barnum to Z. Wildman, Huron County, Ohio events |
June 6, 1815 | Jabez Wright to Z. Wildman, "If you don’t move the Bay will take on other aspects." |
Jly. 30, 1815 | Eli S. Barnum to Z. Wildman, local events |
Sept. 15, 1815 | E. Whittelsey to Z. Wildman (Canfield, Ohio), possibility of steamboat |
Oct. 13, 1815 | Z. Wildman to John Lay (Buffalo, New York), shipment of goods for Huron |
Feb. 14, 1816 | Jabez Wright to Z. Wildman, goods arrived at Huron, county overstocked |
Mar. 7, 1816 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, settlement of the Bay |
Aug. 7, 1816 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, trip to the West |
Jan. 7, 1817 | Jabez Wright to Z. Wildman, settlement of the Bay |
Mar. 12, 1817 | Eli S. Barnum to Z. Wildman, settlement, banks, etc. |
Apr. 15, 1817 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, sale of lands at Venice, Ohio |
May 30, 1817 | J. Wright to Z. Wildman, Major Kilbourn and Sandusky plat |
June 3, 1817 | Z. Wildman to Polly Wildman, arrival of Frederick Wildman at Huron |
Aug. 5, 1817 | Moors Farwell to Z. Wildman (Portland), local events |
Aug. 12, 1817 | Moors Farwell to Z. Wildman, dissatisfaction with land sales |
Oct. 3, 1817 | Moors Farwell to Z. Wildman, local events |
Jan. 4, 1818 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, progress on land |
Feb. 2, 1818 | Plan of Sandusky, Engineer A. Doolittle |
Feb. 22, 1818 | Lyman Farwell to Z. Wildman, miscellaneous |
Aug. 25, 1818 | R. & G. Lockwood to Isaac Mills, settlement |
Jan. 11, 1819 | Lyman Farwell to Z. Wildman, miscellaneous |
Feb. 20, 1819 | Deed for Sandusky property, Isaac Mills to Z.Wildman |
Aug. 25, 1819 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, land prices and local events |
Feb. 23, 1820 | Jed Rogers to Z.Wildman, boat between Huron and Sandusky, Ohio |
Mar. 16, 1820 | M. Farwell to Z. Wildman, accounting |
Apr. 29, 1820 | Gideon Tomlinson to Z. Wildman, removal of Collector’s office to Sandusky |
May 25, 1820 | Form of sale of lands in Sandusky, lot sales |
June 1820 | Lyman Farwell to Z. Wildman, miscellaneous |
Jly. 29, 1820 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, Townsend stores, arrivals at the wharf |
Nov. 18, 1820 | Lyman Farwell to Z. Wildman, miscellaneous |
Dec. 19, 1820 | Wm. Townsend to Z. Wildman, illness |
Oct. 17, 1821 | M. Farwell to Z. Wildman, necessity of printing office, lighthouse, etc. |
Nov. 11, 1821 | Hector Kilbourn to Isaac Mills, dwelling for Ferry, Collector of Customs |
Apr. 5, 1822 | Kneeland Townsend to Z. Wildman, condition of land sales in Sandusky |
Apr. 6, 1822 | Kneeland Townsend to Z. Wildman, condition of land sales in Sandusky, Ohio |
May 26, 1822 | Kilbourn & Townsend to Z. Wildman, Columbus Road and Ohio Canal |
Jly. 20, 1822 | Receipt of David Campbell for year’s subscription to Clarion |
Nov. 1, 1822 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, sale of lots for taxes |
Feb. 25, 1823 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, Wm. Kelly lot, canal, etc. |
Mar. 22, 1824 | Wm. B. Smith to Z. Wildman, claim settlement |
Jly. 31, 1824 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, conditions at Sandusky, Ohio |
Oct. 12, 1824 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, title problem |
Feb. 7, 1825 | E. Cooke to Z. Wildman, Canal Bill, real estate valuation in Sandusky |
Feb. 26, 1825 | E. Cooke to Z. Wildman, marsh land for canal |
Apr. 17, 1825 | D. Campbell to Z. Wildman, Milan, Ohio canal |
June 17, 1825 | Frederich Wildman to Z. Wildman, canal matters |
June 21, 1825 | Z. Wildman to Frederich Wildman, instruction on lands |
June 27, 1825 | Z. Wildman to Frederich Wildman, instruction on lands |
July 12, 1825 | Frederich Wildman to Z. Wildman, report on lands |
Oct. 9, 1825 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, report on lands and conditions |
Mar. 12, 1826 | Geo. Anderson to Z. Wildman, improvement of harbor, Chippewa, etc. |
Nov. 1, 1826 | F. D. Parish to Z. Wildman, report on transactions, survey of Bay by U.S. Engineers |
Dec. 1826 | F. D. Parish to Isaac Mills, report on transactions |
Mar. 28, 1827 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, conditions and construction at Sandusky, Ohio |
Sept. 1, 1827 | E. Cooke to Z. Wildman, mercantile business |
Nov. 14, 1827 | E. Cooke to Z. Wildman, mercantile business |
Nov. 17, 1827 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, progress at Sandusky, Ohio |
Jan. 5, 1828 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman from Painesville, Ohio, miscellaneous |
Mar. 6, 1828 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, sale of lots |
Apr. 16, 1828 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, general business conditions |
May 20, 1828 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, sale of lots |
Jly. 13, 1828 | F. S. W. to Z. Wildman, payment for Norwalk, Ohio, church |
Oct. 9, 1828 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, brewery to be established |
Dec. 2, 1828 | Z. Wildman to Burr Higgins, land sales on the peninsula |
Apr. 29, 1829 | E. Cooke to Z. Wildman from Four Corners, house lease at Sandusky, Ohio, farming |
Jly. 28, 1829 | Z. Wildman to Mary Starr (nee Wildman), list of businesses in Sandusky, Ohio |
Oct. 25, 1829 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, operations at Sandusky, Ohio, taxes, etc. |
Nov. 4, 1829 | F. D. Parish to Z. Wildman, C & S Turnpike subscriptions |
Nov. 30, 1829 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, suit against Hoadly et al at Z. Wildman’s request for friendly partition |
Dec. 1, 1829 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, sale of Decatur slip notes to Haywood & Higgins |
Dec. 8, 1829 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, general transactions |
Dec. 16, 1829 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, dry dock and saw mill |
Dec. 17, 1829 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, Catholic site |
Dec. 19, 1829 | E. Cooke to Z. Wildman, farming, lots |
Dec. 19, 1829 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, urging action on 12/17 letter |
Jly. 5, 1830 | Z. Wildman to F. S. W., general business conditions |
Aug. 18, 1830 | printed land contract of Z. Wildman & Isaac Mills to Benjamin Gregg |
Dec. 30, 1830 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, transactions |
Jan. 19, 1831 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, railroad, penitentiary, etc |
Dec. 21, 1831 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, contracts for materials for mill |
Jan. 26, 1831 | E. Cooke to Z. Wildman, railroad charter |
Feb.14, 1831 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, railroad, mills, etc. |
Apr. 4, 1831 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, contracts for mill |
Jun. 4, 1831 | W. C. Starr to Z. Wildman, railroad, tavern by Victor, etc. |
Oct. 10, 1831 | F. D. Parish to Z. Wildman, preparations for Presbyterian church |
Jan. 3, 1832 | H. H. Wilcoxon to Z. Wildman, railroad charter |
Jan. 17, 1832 | F. D. Parish to Z. Wildman, railroad charter |
Aug. 15, 1832 | I. A. Mills to Z. Wildman, railroad subscription, death of Woolcot |
Jan. 18, 1833 | F. D. Parish to Z. Wildman, railroad progress, bank charter |
Apr. 12, 1833 | J. G. Camp to Z. Wildman, transfer of lots, railroad, etc. |
Nov. 2, 1834 | I. A. Mills to Z. Wildman, railroad stockholders meeting at Urbana, Ohio, steamer at Sandusky, Ohio |
Nov. 28, 1834 | E. Cooke to Z. Wildman, Columbus Ave. house, lots |
Dec. 2, 1834 | E. Cooke to Z. Wildman, lots, Huron and Sandusky, Ohio, business conditions |
Dec. 26, 1834 | Eli S. Barnum to Z. Wildman, description of Sandusky |
Feb. 23, 1835 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, railroad matters |
Apr. 10, 1835 | Isaac Mills to Z. Wildman, construction of railroad to Tiffin, Ohio |
Apr. 24, 1835 | Jos. L. Vance to Z. Wildman, stock and railroad matters |
Apr. 29, 1835 | E. Cooke to Z. Wildman, new house. |
Jly. 12, 1835 | J. G. Camp to Z. Wildman, survey of Mad River Rail Road to Tiffin, Ohio |
Jly. 30, 1835 | O. Follett to Z. Wildman, Bell railroad line, Presbyterian Church |
Check of Bank of Sanduksy, Ohio | |
Nov. 3, 1835 | O. Follett to Z. Wildman, opinions as to Mills and Wildman |
Dec. 9, 1835 | Z. Wildman to F. S. W., miscellaneous |
Mar. 8, 1836 | O. Follett to F. S. W., railroad matters |
Mar. 11, 1836 | Samuel Lockwood to F. S. W., railroad bills |
Dec. 12, 1836 | N. Starr to F. S. W., J. H. James president of railroad, finance |
Oct. 12, 1838 | W. M. Caswell to F. S. W., Monroeville & S. C. railroad schedule |
Feb. 21, 1839 | E. Cooke to F. S. W., dark days for Sandusky, Ohio |
Mar. 3, 1839 | J. H. James to F. S. W., settlement of railroad stock claims proposed |
Mar. 11, 1839 | N. Starr to F. S. W., grading Ohio Rail Road to Toledo, Ohio |
Jun. 27, 1840 | Bank of Sandusky (W. W. Wetherell) to F. S. W., check on Urbana Bank |
Oct. 25, 1840 | O. Follett to F. S. W., O. Follett regarding railroad matters, Sandusky Bank |
Dec. 19, 1844 | Geo. Eber to N. Starr, proposed settlement, Sandusky, Ohio difficulties |
May 2, 1844 | N. Starr to F. S. W., Mr. Moss Fulton Street school lot |
Jly. 17, 1845 | P. B. Wilcox to F. S. W., Sandusky, Ohio case and Ruggles survey |
Dec. 19, 1845 | E. M. Morgan to F. S. W., State Naval Base |
Mar. 3, 1846 | Wm. H. Caswell to F. S. Wildman, conditions, railroad, naval depot sale of out lot 101 |
May 15, 1846 | Wildman to Campbells (first page only) |
Jly. 13, 1846 | E. Cooke to F. S. W., railroad extension to Cleveland, Ohio |
Sept 4, 1846 | W.H. Caswell to F. S. W., sidewalks, railroad matters |
Nov. 3, 1846 | Lemuel(?) G. Starr to F. S. W., with Barnum to London |
Jan. 11, 1847 | Lockwood & Graham to F. S. W., lot purchases |
Mar. 11, 1847 | N. Star to F. S. W., P. T. Barnum note |
Apr. 5, 1847 | Pitt Cooke to F. S. W. (on letterhead of P. Cooke & Co.), lot purchase |
June 25, 1847 | L. S. Beecher to F. S. W., lot purchase Washington Square |
Aug. 2, 1847 | L. S. Beecher to F. S. W., lot purchase |
Aug. 17, 1847 | A. M. Porter to F. S. W., construction of buildings |
Oct. 26, 1848 | Circular of J. G. & J. A. Camp, advertisement of law firm (first page only) |
Feb 13, 1848 | Wm. Durbin to Horatio Wildman, lot purchases, reverse: H.W. to F.S.W. - transmittal |
Apr. 10, 1848 | H. W. to F. S. W., Presbyterian Church lot, Camp Street lot, and cholera |
Nov. 19, 1848 | H. W. to F. S. W., sidewalks, Whig victory, Germans influenced to vote Whig, harbor improvements |
Feb. 1, 1849 | H. W. to F. S. W., sale of house and legal matters |
Mar. 19, 1849 | H. W. to F. S. W., law firm of Camp |
Apr. 17, 1849 | George Reber to F. S. W., harbor improvements bonds |
Aug. 6, 1849 | Sandusky Clarion newspaper |
Sept. 5, 1849 | H. W. to F. S. W., cholera |
Nov. 12, 1849 | H. W. to F. S. W., report on peninsular lands |
Mar. 13, 1850 | H. W. to F. S. W., California |
May 2, 1850 | George Reber to F. S. W., Battery defense |
June 26, 1850 | Jno. G. Camp, Jr. to F. S. W., railroad matters |
Sept. 27, 1850 | H. W. to F. S. W., Mansfield Railroad stock |
Feb. 24, 1851 | H. W. to Theodore, social life |
Mar. 25, 1851 | H. W. to F. S. W., railroad to occupy RR Street |
June 20, 1851 | H. W. to F. S. W., report of Mad River & Lake Erie Railroad stockholders meeting |
Dec. 29, 1851 | H. W. to F. S. W., banking |
Apr. 11, 1852 | H. W. to F. S. W., mayoral election and politics. |
Apr. 23, 1853 | H. W. to F. S. W., Chapman & Markness v Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad |
May 11, 1853 | H. W. to F. S. W., injunction of Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad of Urbana |
Jan. 14, 1856 | "Lucy" to Mrs. F. S. W., social life in Sandusky, Ohio |
Dec. 31, 1856? | Lucy to Mrs. F. S. W., church and Christmas decorations |
Oct. 18, 1861 | H. W. to F. S. W., four shipment from Castalia, Ohio, and Pierson mills |