Christopher Hughes papers, 1801-1908 (majority within 1814-1884)

Summary

Creator:

Hughes, Christopher, 1786-1849

Abstract:

This collection primarily consists of correspondence of U.S. diplomat Christopher Hughes; his twin sister Peggy Hughes Moore; his in-laws the Moore family; his spouse Laura Smith Hughes (1792-1832); their daughter Margaret Smith Hughes Kennedy (1819-1884); and Anthony Kennedy (1810-1892), his son-in-law. The papers largely date between the War of 1812 and the U.S. War with Mexico. Christopher Hughes corresponded with U.S. Presidents, Secretaries of State, and a large circle of friends and family on both sides of the Atlantic. The papers reflect American diplomatic policy in Europe after the War of 1812, particularly in Sweden, the Netherlands, Denmark, and France. They also present the lives and experiences of the social and personal lives of women and children who traveled as part of the duties of an American diplomat.

Extent:

5.5 linear feet

Language:

English
Swedish
French
Dutch
German
Latin

Authors:

Collection processed and finding aid created by Clements Staff, Robert E. Lewis, Barbara DeWolfe, and Cheney J. Schopieray

Background

Scope and Content:

This collection primarily consists of correspondence of U.S. diplomat Christopher Hughes; his twin sister Peggy Hughes Moore; his in-laws the Moore family; his spouse Laura Smith Hughes (1792-1832); their daughter Margaret Smith Hughes Kennedy (1819-1884); and Anthony Kennedy (1810-1892), his son-in-law. The papers largely date between the War of 1812 and the U.S. War with Mexico. Christopher Hughes corresponded with U.S. Presidents, Secretaries of State, and a large circle of friends and family on both sides of the Atlantic. The papers reflect American diplomatic policy in Europe after the War of 1812, particularly in Sweden, the Netherlands, Denmark, and France. They also present the lives and experiences of the social and personal lives of women and children who traveled as part of the duties of an American chargé d'affaires.

The papers also include financial papers, military documents, property documentation, materials related to the San Pedro Company, writings, poetry, sketches, photographs, ephemera, and other printed items. Among the writings is an 1840 account of a visit by Christopher Hughes to physician Fru Jansen at Catherineberg for health care; 1842 travel writing by Margaret Hughes; and manuscript and printed poetry, including dinner toasts, a valentine poem, an acrostic on Margaret's name, translations, and more.

Other selected items include pencil sketches of four of the five peace commissioners at the Treaty of Ghent negotiations in Belgium, by Dutch artist P. van Huffel, January 1815. The portraits include John Quincy Adams, James A. Bayard, Henry Clay, Albert Gallatin, and Christopher Hughes (as secretary of the delegation). A lithographed portrait of Christopher Hughes, by Jean Baptiste Madou, from 1829 is also present in the collection's oversize materials, with a lithograph image of "le capitole a Washington" below the portrait of Hughes. It features an autograph presentation from Christopher Hughes to Prince Henry of the Netherlands, July 12, 1845. A group of 24 photographs from the early 1930s depict the grave of Laura Smith Hughes (1795-1832) and the church where she was buried, Bromme Church in Akershof, near Stockholm, Sweden, and a variety of other people and places.

Please see the Christopher Hughes Indices and Notes for an index of letter writers and inventories of non-correspondence materials.

Biographical / Historical:

Christopher Hughes was born on February 11, 1786, in Baltimore, Maryland, to Irish Catholic immigrants Margaret Sanderson and Christopher Hughes, Sr. He had a twin sister, Peggy Hughes (1786-1843) and several other siblings. The younger Hughes graduated with law degrees from the College of New Jersey in 1805 and 1809. He entered politics working for his future father-in-law, Maryland Democratic Congressman and Senator Samuel Smith. On December 17, 1811, Laura Smith (1792-1832) and Christopher Hughes married, much to the chagrin of her father, who thought Hughes unfit to join the family. After War of 1812 militia service at Fort McHenry, Hughes applied for federal government employment. In 1814, U.S. President James Madison took notice of Hughes and recommended him as secretary to the American peace commission at Ghent, Belgium. During this assignment Hughes gained the confidence and affection of John Quincy Adams and Henry Clay. After Hughes' successes in the Treaty of Ghent delegation, Smith relented and supported his son-in-law's entry into politics.

Christopher Hughes met, and to some degree befriended, Secretary of State James Monroe, during the Treaty of Ghent negotiations. Hughes used Monroe's influence to secure a second sensitive diplomatic post in February 1816, negotiating the release of hostages held by Don Pedro Morillo at Cartegena, New Granada. As a result, in September 1816 he was offered the chance to join Jonathan Russell (1771-1832) as secretary to the American legation in Sweden, with the implication that when Russell resigned, imminently, Hughes would receive the appointment as chargé d'affaires.

Hughes accepted the Swedish post and, along with his spouse Laura, sailed for Europe in October 1816. He was greeted on arrival with the news that Russell had decided not to return to the United States, leaving Hughes relegated to an inferior position with inferior pay. Christopher Hughes lacked any alternative available post and, with strongly worded advice from John Q. Adams and Henry Clay on his future in the diplomatic corps, he should accept the reduction in rank. In the summer of 1819, Christopher Hughes became chargé d'affaires.

Laura Smith Hughes' first child, Charles John Hughes (1818-1839), was born within a year of their arrival in Sweden, followed closely by the birth of their second child, Margaret Smith Hughes (1819-1884). A third son, George Edward Hughes was born in about 1820. In May 1821, she lost a daughter in stillbirth during her eighth month of pregnancy. Two years later, in 1823, she lost another daughter, Laura Sidney Hughes, to either a miscarriage or death in infancy. In 1825, Christopher Hughes requested a transfer to warmer climate for Laura's health. He received an appointment in the Netherlands, where the family remained until returning to Sweden in 1829. Laura Hughes died on August 7, 1832.

Over the course of his career, Christopher Hughes held diplomatic positions in Sweden (1819-1825, 1829-1842); Netherlands (1825-1828, 1842-1845); and Denmark (1825). Hughes was praised for the accuracy and soundness of his intelligence reports. During his 30 years of diplomatic service, he successfully kept favor with every administration from Madison to Polk, though he never received an assignment as full minister. He retired to his home city of Baltimore in 1845, where he remained until his death on September 19, 1849.

Acquisition Information:

Gift of Jesse S. Reeves family, 1943, and 2020. M-5000, M-7213 .

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged in the following series:

• Correspondence
• Writings, Prose, Poetry, Recipes, and Prescriptions
• Documents
• Financial Papers
• Photographs and Portraits
• Printed Items

Rules or Conventions:

Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS)

Related

Additional Descriptive Data:

Bibliography

Fredriksen, John C. "Hughes, Christopher, Jr." in American National Biography, 1999.

Please see the Christopher Hughes Indices and Notes for an index of letter writers and inventories of non-correspondence materials.

Subjects

Click on terms below to find any related finding aids on this site.

Subjects:

Diplomats--United States--History--19th century.
Father and child.
Legislators--United States.
Mexican War, 1846-1848.
Mother and child.
Parents-in-law.
Women.

Formats:

Account books.
Advertisements.
Clippings (information artifacts)
Documents (object genre)
Drawings (visual works)
Invitations.
Legal documents.
Letters (correspondence)
Lithographs.
Military records.
Pamphlets.
Pencil drawings.
Photographs.
Printed materials (object genre)
Property records.
Visiting cards.
Writings (documents)

Names:

Hughes family.
Kennedy family.
Moore family.
Adams, John Quincy, 1767-1848.
Bayard, James A. (James Asheton), 1767-1815.
Clay, Henry, 1777-1852.
Gallatin, Albert, 1761-1849.
Hughes, Christopher, 1786-1849.
Armstrong, Mary.
Dandridge, Adam Stephen, 1814-1890.
Dandridge, Philip P., 1817-1881.
Henderson, James Pinckney, 1808-1858.
Howell, Benjamin Paschall, 1808-1881.
Hughes, Charles John, 1817-1839.
Hughes, Christopher, 1745-1824.
Hughes, Laura Sophia Smith, 1792-1832.
Ingersoll, Joseph R. (Joseph Reed), 1786-1868.
Kennedy, Andrew Eskridge, 1824-1890.
Kennedy, Anthony, 1810-1892.
Kennedy, Philip Clayton, 1838-1864.
Kennedy, Margaret Smith Hughes, 1819-1884.
Kennedy, Stephen Dandridge, 1834-1914.
Lafayette, Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert Du Motier, marquis de, 1757-1834.
Londonderry, Charles William Vane, Marquis of, 1778-1854.
Mansfield, Margaret, approximately 1818-.
McConkey, William, Jr.
McLane, Louis, 1786-1857.
Monroe, James, 1758-1831.
Moore, Andrew.
Moore, Eliza.
Moore, Peggy Hughes, 1786-1843.
Moore, Samuel, -1845.
Pendleton, Edmund Boyd, 1816-.
Pendleton, Philip Clayton, 1779-1863.
Pontois, Eduard de.
Porterfield, George A.
Ringgold, Cadwalader, 1802-1867.
Roenne, Adelaide de.
Rogers, Samuel, 1763-1855.
Rumigny, H. Marie-Hippolyte Guelly, Marquis de, 1784-1871.
Smith, Edwin Harvie, 1868-1907.
Smith, Samuel, 1752-1839.
Stirum, Louise de.
Tersen, Louise de.
Thruston, Juliana.
Tucker, Beverley, 1820-1890.
Tuylen, Adrienne de.
Tuyll, Charlotte Henrietta de.
Tuyll, Otheline de.
Tuyll, Renee de.
Tyler, John, 1790-1862.
Van Buren, Martin, 1782-1862.
Webster, Daniel, 1782-1852.
Wellesley, Marianne Caton Patterson, -1853.
Wetterstedt, Gustaf de.
Wilcocks, Mary.

Places:

Baltimore (Md.)
Hague (Netherlands)
Stockholm (Sweden)
Sweden--Foreign relations--United States.
United States--Diplomatic and consular service.
United States--Foreign relations--Netherlands.
United States--Foreign relations--Sweden.
United States--Politics and government--1815-1861.