]> 1000-217 Guide to the Eldon Benjamin Birdsey Notebook, 1917 Processed by: Jeffrey Coutts; machine-readable finding aid created by: Jeffrey Coutts &hdrsca;

© 2015 [institution name]. All Rights Reserved.

 Machine-readable finding aid derived from XML authoring program. Date of source: June 2015 Description is in English Finding aid was prepared using DACS Guide to the Eldon Benjamin Birdsey Notebook, 1917 Special Collections & ArchivesWesleyan University Middletown, CT, USA

© 2015 [institution name]. All Rights Reserved.

 Descriptive Summary Special Collections & Archives, Wesleyan University Eldon Benjamin Birdsey Eldon Benjamin Birdsey Notebook1917 1000-217 Material in English .1 1 For current information on the location of these materials, please consult Special Collections & Archives staff. Eldon Benjamin Birdsey was born in Lyme, CT, on July 26, 1848. A member of Wesleyan Class of 1871, Birdsey became the first prosecuting attorney of the Middletown city court in 1879 serving until 1883 when he was elected as the probate judge for the Probate District of Middletown. After leaving public office, Birdsey continued to practice law and served the citizens of Middlesex County. In 1885, he was elected as a trustee of Middletown Savings Bank, of which he served as the attorney for the bank and later a director of the bank. Birdsey was married to Caroline E. Chase with whom he had one daughter, Laura Chase, born March 23, 1878. Birdsey died on December 6, 1917. This collection consists of a notebook created by Eldon Benjamin Birdsey. The notebook was made for J.W. Hewitt, a classics professor at Wesleyan and friend of Birdsey. The notebook includes various entries dealing with Birdsey's philosophy on life, observances of nature, his own poetry, quoted poetry, and Middletown. The notebook also includes transcribed correspondence from Birdsey to friends of Birdsey. The correspondence ranges in date from 1898 to 1913. The document also includes materials added after the death of Birdsey including his obituary and a chronology of important events in his life. Administrative Information Access Restrictions

No restrictions.

 Copyright Notice

Copyright for official University records is held by Wesleyan University; all other copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.

 Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Eldon Benjamin Birdsey Notebook, Special Collections & Archives, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT, USA.

 Processing Information

Processed by Jeffrey Coutts, June 2015

Encoded by Jeffrey Coutts, June 2015

 Biographical Note

Eldon Benjamin Birdsey was born in Lyme, CT, on July 26, 1848. He subsequently resided in Middletown, CT, where he attended Wesleyan. Following his graduation from Wesleyan in 1871, Birdsey attended the University of Albany Law School where he graduated in 1872. Birsey was then admitted to the Middlesex county bar. Birdsey became the first prosecuting attorney of the Middletown city court in 1879. Birdsey continued in this position until 1883 when he was elected to serve as the probate judge for the Probate District of Middletown. Birdsey served as district probate judge until 1893. After leaving public office, Birdsey continued to practice law and served the citizens of Middlesex County. In 1885, he was elected as a trustee of Middletown Savings Bank. He also served as the attorney for the bank and became a director of the bank. Birdsey was married to Caroline E. Chase with whom he had one daughter, Laura Chase, born March 23, 1878. Birdsey died on December 6, 1917.

Collection Overview

This collection consists of a notebook created by Eldon Benjamin Birdsey in 1917. The notebook was made for J.W. Hewitt, a classics professor at Wesleyan and friend of Birdsey. The notebook includes various entries dealing with Birdsey's philosophy on life, observances of nature, his own poetry, quoted poetry, and Middletown. The notebook also includes transcribed correspondence from Birdsey to friends of Birdsey. The correspondence ranges in date from 1898 to 1913. The document also includes materials added after the death of Birdsey including his obituary and a chronology of important events in his life.

Collection Arrangement

This collection consists of a single notebook.

Online Catalog Headings

These and related materials may be found under the following headings in online catalogs.

Birdsey, Eldon Benjamin Diaries. Commonplace book. Middletown (Conn)--History. Wesleyan University (Middletown, Conn.) Wesleyan University (Middletown, Conn.)--Alumni and alumnae. Detailed Description of the Collection Eldon Benjamin Birdsey Notebook, 1917