Skip to main content

Howard-Ridgely-Maynard Family papers

 Collection
Identifier: MS-0076

Scope and Contents

The papers have not been processed. The series have been identified, but the material has not been completely sorted into this arrangement. The three series are the Maynard-Owen-Eastman Papers, the Ridgely Papers, and the Howard Papers.

The papers consist of land records, legal documents, family correspondence, family bibles, diaries, scrapbooks, and photographs.

Louisa Hope Eastman Maynard is the focal point of this collection. The majority of the papers were written by Maynard or her immediate family. The Maynard-Owen-Eastman series is the largest. The smaller Howard and Ridgely series contain materials belonging to the family of William Ross Howard, Jr, the husband of Louisa Margatetta Thomson Howard, Louisa Maynard's granddaughter.

Dates

  • Creation: 1684-1972

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is housed off-site and requires 48-hours' notice for retrieval. Please contact Special Collections for more information.

This collection is not fully processed and therefore has not been prepared for research use. Please contact Special Collections for more information.

Conditions Governing Use

Single copies may be made for research purposes. Researchers are responsible for determining any copyright questions. It is not necessary to seek our permission as the owner of the physical work to publish or otherwise use public domain materials that we have made available for use, unless Johns Hopkins University holds the copyright.

Biographical Note

Louisa Hope Eastman Maynard (1822-1908) lived most of her life in Illinois. She was the daughter of David and Salinda Eastman. In 1840 she married Owen Maynard, and they moved to Plinlimmon in Sangamon County near Auburn, Illinois. Louisa and Owen had three children, Richard David (1841-1928), Julia Maynard Thompson (Mrs. I. Davis Thomson) (1843-1929) and James Herbert (1846-1907).

Biographical / Historical

Juliana Owen Maynard (1774-1846) was Louisa Maynard's mother-in-law. She was the daughter of Richard Owen (1745-1822). Juliana Owen married James Pelham Maynard (1747-1817), and they had 4 children Elizabeth (Mrs. James Horton) (1791-1881), James (1809- 1861), Richard F. (1815-1897), and Owen.

Biographical / Historical

Greenbury William Ridgely (1798-1883) was the son of Elizabeth A. Short (1766-1822) and Dr. Frederick Ridgely (1757- 1824). Ridgely was born in Lexington, Kentucky and graduated from Transylvania College. He studied law in Litchfield, Connecticut. For a few years Ridgely practiced law in Baltimore and then in Lexington with Henry Clay. Giving up the law, Ridgely attended the Princeton Theological School and was ordained in Philadelphia in 1830. Ridgely had charge of parishes in Bristol and Newton, Pa. before retiring to the Eastern Shore of Maryland in 1853. He married Elizabeth Worth (d. 1841), and they had three children James W. (1835-1898), William Short (1838-1903), and Elizabeth Mary (1839-1906). She married William Ross Howard and was the mother of William Ross Howard, Jr. who married Louisa H. Eastman Maynard's granddaughter Louisa Thomson.

Extent

10.97 Cubic Feet (1 record center carton, 5 letter size document boxes, 11 legal size document boxes, 4 legal half-size document boxes, 1 flat box (21 x 17 x 3.5 inches), 2 oversized boxes, 1 map case folder)

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

The papers consist of land records, legal documents, family correspondence, family bibles, diaries, scrapbooks, and photographs of multiple families dating from 1684 to 1972. The families represented include the Maynard-Owen-Eastman families, the Ridgely family, and the Howard family.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The papers in this collection were purchased by The Johns Hopkins University in 1978. They had descended through the family of William Ross Howard III whose great-grandmother Louisa H. E. Maynard is the focal point of these papers.

Related Materials

Related material, especially of Richard Owen, Greenbury Ridgely and the Howard family, can be found at the Maryland Historical Society, Baltimore, Maryland.

An account book (1810-1817) of Richard Owen and a collection of Maynard family papers is owned by the Maryland Historical Society.

Processing Information

The papers have not been fully processed. Finding aid prepared by Cynthia H. Requardt.

The description of some oversized items, such as land deeds and letters, is known to be inaccurate for this collection.

This finding aid will be updated to align with Johns Hopkins guidelines for inclusive and conscientious description (2023). In particular, the Maynard, Ridgely, and Howard families' histories with slavery and the Confederacy will be adressed in an updated finding aid. Contact Archives staff for additional information.

Title
Howard-Ridgely-Maynard Family papers
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid written in English

Repository Details

Part of the Special Collections Repository

Contact:
The Sheridan Libraries
Special Collections
3400 N Charles St
Baltimore MD 21218 USA