Lorenzo James Hatch and Hatch family papers, bulk 1902-1914, circa 1890-1950

Scope and Contents

The Lorenzo James Hatch and Hatch family papers measure 1.7 linear feet and date from circa 1890-1950, with the bulk of the materials dating from 1902-1914. The papers consist of family correspondence, printed material, three scrapbooks of printed materials and photographs, and a travel account. Letters are from Lorenzo Hatch, his wife Grace Harrison Hatch, and other family members. Most of the collection concerns the family's time in Peking (Beijing), China from 1908-1914 while Hatch was assisting the Chinese government create a Bureau of Printing and Engraving. The papers reveal impressions of the social and economic conditions of the Chinese, the revolutionary events of 1911 and 1912, the Pneumonic Plague epidemic in China from 1910-1911, and sight-seeing trips. An unprocessed addition of 0.4 linear feet includes biographical material; photographs of Hatch, his family and works of art; personal correspondence; artwork; printed material, and legal and financial records relating to the estate of Lorenzo Hatch. Also included is a horseshoe from Harrison Hatch's pony "Moses" (in China).

Letters trace the family's journey from California to Peking, China, and their life in China. Lorenzo's correspondence includes information concerning Chinese politics and the revolution, the roles of Sun Yat-Sen and Yuan Shih K'ai between 1911-1912 and the fall of the Qing Dynasty. Effie Harrison's and Grace Hatch's letters discuss day-to-day life in China, sight-seeing trips and their reactions to the social and political unrest in the country. Additional correspondence includes condolence letters sent to the family after Lorenzo's death. There is a also a written account by Effie Harrison describing her travel to China on a steamer ship.

Printed materials consist of clippings and a Macbeth Gallery exhibition catalog from a 1937 show of Hatch's paintings.

There are three photographs of Peking. Three disbound scrapbooks include photographs of the Chinese landscape and monuments, interior shots, and of the family traveling through China. Photographs are of the Ming Tombs, the Great Wall of China, as well as temples and city buildings. Some later photographs are of family members that were taken around 1920, after their return to the United States. The scrapbooks also contain examples of Chinese currency designed by Lorenzo James Hatch.

An unprocessed addition of 0.4 linear feet includes biographical material; photographs of Hatch, his family and works of art; personal correspondence; artwork; printed material, and legal and financial records relating to the estate of Lorenzo Hatch. Also included is a horseshoe from Harrison Hatch's pony "Moses" (in China).

Provenance

The papers of Lorenzo James Hatch and the Hatch family were donated in 1989 by Hatch's great-grandniece, Janet Young Brockmoller. Additional materials were donated in 2015 by John and Janet Fesler, who acquired the material from a neighbor who received the papers from Gail Harrison, executor for her sister Grace Harrison Hatch and Hatch's sister-n-law.

Sponsor

Processing Information

The papers were processed by Jayna Hanson in September of 2008. In 2010, the collection was arranged for digitization by Jayna Hanson with funding provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art. Additional materials acquired in 2015 remain mostly unprocessed.