Table of Contents

Biographical Note

Scope and Content Note

Information for Researchers

Separations List

Administrative Information

Collection Inventory

Subject Headings

Inventory of the Jacob A. Handy Papers

In the New Bedford Whaling Museum Research Library

Biographical Note

Jacob Anthony Handy was born on the 6th of September 1882 to Eli (born 1847) and Mary Catherine (Anthony) Handy (born 1857) of Westport, Massachusetts. Handy’s family and ancestors can be traced back to England and the Netherlands. His 8th great grandfather was John White, a bishop of England in 1620, whose son William White traveled by Mayflower and settled in the Plymouth Colony. His family stayed in the area for many decades to later build and settle the Handy House which is still located in Westport, Massachusetts.

Jacob Handy resided in the Dartmouth area for the majority of his life. In Dartmouth, Handy served on the Bliss Corner Improvement Associate, ran for office under the Taxpayer’s Party and for the Water Commission Post. Handy worked for the Water Department for several decades. Jacob Handy had a wife named Jennie Handy. Handy was the second youngest of five children and out lived all of his siblings.

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Scope and Content Note

The Jacob A. Handy Papers largely reflects the genealogy and activities of family members and relatives spanning from 1780-1952. The types of records include but not limited to correspondences, newspaper articles, deeds, bank records, genealogical notes, and estate records. The records are organized into series which reflect the type of record.

The largest collections of records are the legal and financial documents. These documents reflect back to Jacob Handy’s 3rd great grandparents. The legal documents are mainly deeds and estate records that pertain to the exchange of land through purchases or inheritance. The financial documents mainly classify the different purchases and bank statements spanning from the Devol (with spelling variations on several documents) family to the Handy’s. These series also include the estate records from the Devol family in the late 18th and early 19th century through Almy Handy Brown in 1929, Jacob’s sister.

The correspondences of this collection give a look inside the life of Jacob Handy. There are several letters from friends who are serving in World War I but do not continue correspondence after their training. There are also correspondences from various individuals discussing elements of Handy’s job and his performance, including one from the Massachusetts Department of Corrections about Handy’s willingness to hire a previous inmate.

The genealogical notes reflect the lineage of how the Handy’s became a family in the Westport, Dartmouth, and New Bedford areas. The genealogy begins with the Brownell family which branches from the Potter family. Both the Brownell and Potter’s branched from the Cook and White family who both came over on the Mayflower, the White’s from England and the Cook’s from the Netherlands. The combinations of these four families create the Handy Family. Another item included within the Genealogical notes is a handwritten note of a citation for the Mayflower Descendants Magazine found (at the time written) in the New Bedford Public Library.

The collection of print materials reflects Jacob’s grandfather and great-aunt, Hannah, materials including some from his personal years. The materials of his grandfather and aunt are 5 miniature books. These books are from the early 1800’s and mainly reflect Biblical lessons. Two of the books are inscribed, one by Hannah and the other by his grandfather. Another item within the print materials is a Brief history of Pre-Revolutionary Days in Dartmouth, compiled by Harry R. Bennett in 1926. This short compilation reflects back to the Norse who later, according to Bennett, help settle the area. Other items in this collection are newspaper articles from when Jacob was running for a Water Commission Post and one small clipping of daily trivia about Jacob’s 7th great grandmother, Susanna White.

The final series contains two photographs. One is of a dinner of the Bliss Corner Improvement Association containing the names of a majority of the members. The other photograph is a portrait of a woman with dates on the back, 1842-1897. These photographs have been cataloged and stored in the Photo Archive.

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 147, [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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Separations List

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Administrative Information

Provenance

Materials in this collection were donated to the New Bedford Whaling Museum by Fred Gifun in 2014 as part of Accession 2014.20.

Processing Information

Processed by: Tisha Carver, 2015

Encoded by: Tisha Carver, 28 April 2015

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Collection Inventory

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Subject Headings

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