Halsey-Seymour Family Papers
Scope and Contents
The collection is organized into two series:
Series I: Halsey and Seymour Papers, 1765 - c. 1919.
Series I contains a scrapbook of forty-six business, professional and personal documents of Isaac Halsey, Ichabod Benton Halsey, and Lewis Seymour including correspondence, an invitation, accounts and receipts, agreements, contracts, deeds of sale, a teaching certificate, and newspaper clippings. Three deeds of sale do not have an obvious connection with the families in the collection.
Series II: Halsey-Seymour Genealogies, Family Histories and Family Documents, 1795 - c. 1991.
Series II contains documents related to the ancestors and descendants of Anna Rebecca Garthwaite Halsey and William North Seymour including handwritten genealogies, family histories, and a genealogical ledger. Family documents include correspondence, a travel journal, a marriage certificate, a will, a poem, a war pension document, a calling card, a financial agreement, family organization documents, envelopes, and newspaper clippings. Family names include Garthwaite, Crane, North, Carter, Whitney, Hyde, Belknap and Jackson, among others.
Dates
- 1765 – c. 1991
- Majority of material found within 1765 – 1800; c. 1880 – c. 1919
Conditions Governing Use
Researchers wishing to publish, reproduce, or reprint materials from this collection must obtain permission.
Biographical / Historical
The Halsey and Seymour families have ancestral roots dating to the mid-17th century in Colonial North America: The Halseys in Elizabethtown, Province of New Jersey and the Seymours in the Norwalk settlement, Connecticut Colony. The families came together with the marriage of William North Seymour and Anna Rebecca Garthwaite Halsey in 1824.
The Halsey and Seymour papers include the business, professional and personal documents of Isaac Halsey, Ichabod Benton Halsey, and Lewis Seymour. The Halsey-Seymour genealogies, family histories, and family documents relate to the ancestors and descendants of William North Seymour and Anna Rebecca Garthwaite Halsey.
Biographies of the individuals in the collection are listed below. Family trees and research documents are available for access upon request.
Isaac Halsey (1741-1788). Father to Ichabod Benton Halsey and grandfather to Anna Rebecca Garthwaite Halsey. Also, father to William Halsey, the first mayor of Newark. Born in Elizabethtown and died in Scotch Plains. He was a merchant, Essex paymaster during the American Revolution and a delegate to the Continental Congress.
Ichabod Benton Halsey (1766-1818). Father to Anna Rebecca Garthwaite Halsey and son to Isaac Halsey. Also, brother to William Halsey, the first mayor of Newark. Born in Elizabethtown and died in New York City. He was a physician and merchant.
Lewis Seymour (1774-1857). Father to William North Seymour. Born in New Canaan, Connecticut, he lived in Walton, New York, and died in Yonkers, New York. He was a teacher and hardware merchant.
William North Seymour (1802-1881). Husband to Anna Rebecca Garthwaite Halsey and son to Lewis Seymour. Born in Walton, New York, lived in Yonkers, New York, and died in Brooklyn, New York. He was a hardware merchant with a business at Chatham Square, New York City.
Anna Rebecca Garthwaite Halsey (1800-1871). Wife to William North Seymour, daughter to Ichabod Benton Halsey and granddaughter to Isaac Halsey. Born in Staten Island, New York, lived in Yonkers, New York, and died in Brooklyn, New York.
Extent
3.50 Linear Feet (4 Boxes) : 2 Medium Oversized Flat Boxes, 1 Large Oversized Flat Box, 1 Hollinger Document Box
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
The collection documents the genealogy and history of the Halsey-Seymour families and their business, personal and professional activities.
Arrangement
The collection was preliminarily arranged upon donation by Erika Gottfried in the absence of a usable original order. Contents were sorted by family names, complied on a container list, and scrapbook items were inventoried.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Received as a donation from Karen Jackson in 2025. Erika Gottfried was the liaison with the donor and facilitated the donation.
Processing Information
The collection was preliminarily processed upon donation by Erika Gottfried. Loose documents were in polyester enclosures. Oversized documents and bound volumes were in boxes. During final processing, the enclosed loose documents were rehoused into archival folders. A ledger and a scrapbook were rehoused in separate boxes. The individual pages of the scrapbook were enclosed in mylar sleeves to preserve original order and to protect fragile documents from handling.
- Title
- Halsey-Seymour Family Papers
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Rosemary Killeen
- Date
- April 2026
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Charles F. Cummings New Jersey Information Center, Newark Public Library Repository
3rd Floor
Newark Public Library
5 Washington St.
Newark NJ 07102 United States
973-733-7775
njreference@npl.org