Papers concerning Franklin Blake and Augustine Heard & Co.
Scope and Contents
The collection primarily consists of letters Franklin Blake sent to family members while working as an agent of Augustine Heard & Co. in Hong Kong and other Asian ports in the 1860s and 1870s. There are also several documents related to Augustine & Heard Co. that are not directly related to Franklin Blake. Also included is a small ferrotype of Blake taken by L.A. Richardson of Boston, Massachusetts.
More detailed description of the materials can be found at the folder level scope & contents note.
Dates
- Creation: 1806-1873
- Creation: Majority of material found within 1844-1873
Creator
- Blake, Franklin (1837-1871) (Person)
Language of Materials
Materials entirely in English.
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research. Materials stored onsite. For more information on access procedures and reproduction services, please contact specialcollectionsref@hbs.edu.
Conditions Governing Use
In many cases, Baker Library does not hold the copyright to the materials in its collections. Researchers are responsible for determining copyright status and identifying and contacting any copyright holders for permission to reproduce or publish content from collections. Baker Library has included the names of third-party copyright holders at the folder and item level when known.
Extent
.25 linear feet (1 box)Biographical / Historical
Franklin Blake (1837-1871) of Boston, Massachusetts, was the son of James (1799-1876) and Polly Clap (1799-1840). James and Polly had five children, James Barnard (1827-1870), Gorham (1829-1897), Mary Clapp (1831-1901), who married Reverend Edward J. Young, Franklin (1837-1871), and Lowell (1839-1840). After Polly’s death in 1840, James remarried in 1845, this time to Polly’s sister Catharine Barnard Harris (1797-1870).
Blake worked as an Insurance Clerk and then as an agent for Augustine Heard & Company from the late 1850s until his death in 1871. In addition to a salary, Blake had a financial interest in the business and the percentage of the share in profits changed as his responsibilities grew. Up until 1867, he was located in Hong Kong, but he also travelled to and had business in Bangkok, Thailand, and Singapore. Beginning in the latter part of 1867 he lived and worked in Hyōgo, Japan. He died and was buried in Japan in December 1871 and his body was returned to the United States in January 1873.
Details of this historical note are from public records found through Ancestry Library Edition, the NYC Department of Records & Information Services, and from the Heard Family business records, particularly Series II. Augustine Heard & Company China records.
Physical Location
MANU
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The Papers concerning Franklin Blake and Augustine Heard & Co. (M-24-001) were received by Baker Library Special Collections and Archives as a donation from Thomas N. Layton in 2023.
Processing Information
Processed: September 2023 By: Mary Samouelian
- Author
- Baker Library
- Description rules
- dacs
- Language of description
- eng
- EAD ID
- bak01807
Repository Details
Part of the Baker Library Special Collections and Archives, Harvard Business School Repository
Baker Library Special Collections and Archives holds unique resources that focus on the evolution of business and industry, as well as the records of the Harvard Business School, documenting the institution's development over the last century. These rich and varied collections support research in a diverse range of fields such as business, economic, social and cultural history as well as the history of science and technology.
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