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- James F. Brown Papers, 1827-1866
- James F. Brown (1793-1868) was the ex-slave gardener of the Verplanck family at Mount Gulian, Fishkill, New York. Brown was a runaway slave from Maryland, and the Verplancks purchased his time after he was found by his master. The collection consists of 8 diaries, 1829-1866, during which time Brown was gardener for the Verplanck family; 1 receipt book, 1832-1857, recording some personal and household expenses, although most entries are unspecified; and 1 memorandum book, 1827-1843. Entries in the diaries are brief, with little elaboration, and pertain to such matters as the weather, local deaths, his gardening activities, the passage of boats on the Hudson, etc. The diaries are not entirely chronological, as in several instances the entries for a year have been copied into a later volume.
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- New-York Manumission Society records, 1785-1849
- New-York Society for Promoting the Manumission of Slaves (1785-1849), commonly known as the New-York Manumission Society, was established to publicly promote the abolition of slavery and manumission of slaves in New York State. The society provided legal and financial assistance to manumitted slaves in need of protection, slaves seeking manumission and supported legislation and efforts to enforce laws banning the sale of slaves in New York State. The records include meeting minutes, commission reports, financial records, indentures, and registers from the year of its organization to its dissolution in 1849. Subjects covered include appointments, elections, political activities, finances, reports on individual cases, the sponsorship and operation of the African Free School and African American houses of refuge. Among its active members were: Robert C. Cornell, W. W. Woolsey, Nehemiah Allen, Melancton Smith, William T. Slocum, Samuel Bowne, Adrian Hegeman, Willet Seaman, Thomas Burling, John Jay, Alexander Hamilton, James Duane, John Murray, Jr., William Dunlap, Alexander McDougall, Noah Webster, and Egbert Benson.