Table of Contents

Historical Note

Scope and Content Note

Information for Researchers

Related Materials

Separations List

Administrative Information

Description

Subject Headings

Inventory of the Rotch Family Papers

In the New Bedford Whaling Museum Research Library

Historical Note

Between ca. 1760-1900, members of the Rotch family of Nantucket and New Bedford, Mass., played a vital role in the development of their communities as centers of the whaling industry. The family's close association with New Bedford began in 1787 with the emigration of William Rotch Jr. from Nantucket, where he had been trained in the counting house of William Rotch Sr. & Sons. Young Rotch established his own business which, in turn, launched the careers of three of his sons, William Rodman, Joseph, and Thomas, as merchants involved in different aspects of the whaling industry. Business ventures directed or financially supported by the Rotches between 1787-1896 included William Rotch Jr. & Sons, William R. Rotch & Company, Rotch Wharf Company, Rotch Candle House, and New Bedford Cordage Company. Members of the family also held a vital interest in numerous local banks and textile mills. While most Rotches were merchants and businessmen, the family also included a notable inventor and other individuals not involved in commercial pursuits.

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Scope and Content Note

Papers in this collection reflect the activities of Rotch family members between 1764-1947. In particular, these materials focus on the business affairs of William Rotch Sr. (1734-1828), William Rotch Jr. (1759-1850), three of the younger William's sons, William Rodman (1788-1860), Joseph (1790-1839), and Thomas (1791-1840), and Joseph's son, William James Rotch (1819-1893). Dominating the collection are correspondence, directors' minutes, ships' papers, legal documents, financial accounts, and other records of William Rotch Jr. & Sons, 1789-1863, William R. Rotch & Company, 1813-1859, Rotch Wharf Company, 1831-1896, and Rotch Candle House, 1839-1849, as well as similar documents reflecting other Rotch family commercial interests. A related group of materials, dating from 1768-1870, consists of the business, personal, and estate records of James Arnold (1781-1868), partner and son-in-law of William Rotch Jr.

This collection also encompasses papers concerning noncommercial activities of various Rotches. Notable among these items are specifications and patents, ca. 1797-1822, for improvements in whaling and fishing equipment and domestic devices invented by Francis Rotch (1750-1822), and correspondence, journals, and memoirs written by various Rotch women. The latter documents, dating from about 1821-1910, concern family life, religious attitudes, travel experiences, and social activities of Mary Rotch (1777-1848), Anne Waln Morgan Rotch (1800-1884), Eliza Rotch Farrar (1791-1870), and Anne Hudson Morgan (1850-1947).

Materials in the Rotch Collection have been organized into sub-groups representing business records and personal papers of family members. These sub-groups are listed in the inventory in rough chronological order according to the birthdate of each person. Business and personal papers remain intermingled within each sub-group, thus reflecting the arrangement scheme used by the Rotches themselves. Whenever possible, correspondence has been chronologically divided by year, then alphabetically arranged within each year by name of writer. Other papers, organized into series by type of document, are arranged in chronological order except for ship's papers, which are grouped according to name of vessel. Researchers should note that most of the correspondence of William Rotch Sr. consists of transcripts. The locations of the originals of these documents is described in the Collection File for Mss 2. Published works which may serve as guides to persons and businesses represented in this collection include The Rotches, by John M. Bullard (1947) and Joseph L. McDevit Jr.'s The House of Rotch (1978).

Arrangement of Collection

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Information for Researchers

Access to Collections

Unrestricted. Consult librarian for an appointment.

Preferred Citation

New Bedford Whaling Museum Research Library Mss 2, [sub-group, series, sub-series, folder/volume as appropriate], [item]

Copyright Notice

The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted materials. The Privacy Act of 1974 (5 United States Code 552a) governs the use of materials that document private individuals, groups, and corporations.

Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to furnish a reproduction if the document does not infringe the privacy rights of an individual, group, or corporation. These specified conditions of authorized use include:

If the researcher later uses a copy or reproduction for purposes in excess of "fair use," the researcher is personally liable for copyright. privacy, or publicity infringement and agrees to indemnify the New Bedford Whaling Museum from any legal action as a result of the error. Permission to obtain a photographic, xerographic, digital, or other copy of a document does not indicate permission to publish, exhibit, perform, reproduce, sell, distribute, or prepare derivative works from the document without permission from the copyright holder and from any private individual, group, or corporation shown or otherwise recorded.

Permission to publish, exhibit, perform, reproduce, prepare derivative works from, sell, or otherwise distribute the item must be obtained separately in writing from the holder of the original copyright (or if the creator is dead, from his/her heirs) as well as from any individual(s), groups, or corporations whose name, image, recorded words, or private information (e.g. employment information) may be reproduced in the source material. The holder of the original copyright is not necessarily the New Bedford Whaling Museum. The New Bedford Whaling Museum is not legally liable for copyright, privacy, or publicity infringement when materials are wrongfully used after being provided to researchers for "fair use."

This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if fulfillment of the order is judged in violation of copyright or federal or state privacy law. This institution also places restrictions on the use of cameras, photocopiers, and scanners in the research room.

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Related Materials

Related Manuscript Collections

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Separations List

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Administrative Information

Provenance

The major portion of papers in this collection were given to the Old Dartmouth Historical Society on 17 May 1946 as a bequest from the estate of Francis Rotch. Other materials were either purchased by or donated to the Society between ca. 1928-1981.

Processing Information

Processed by: Ellen Hassig Ressmeyer, with assistance from Patricia J. Albright and Helen Frasier., ca. 1982

Encoded by: Kermit Dewey, 29 April 2011; box list amended by Mark Procknik, 23 June 2011

Funds for processing this collection were provided by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

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Description

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Subject Headings

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Vessel Names

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