Comstock House, Moorhead, Minnesota (S5055)

Historical Sketch

This collection of documents is a supplement to the Solomon Comstock Papers (S248), a prominent figure in the early history of Moorhead, Minnesota. For a full biographical sketch of Comstock, see the inventory for S248. The documents in this collection were preserved at the Solomon Comstock House in Moorhead, a property of the Minnesota State Historical Society. In 2003, the documents were transferred to the Northwest Minnesota Historical Center.

Collection Description

This collection contains some correspondence of the Comstock family, including letters written by Solomon Comstock, his wife Sarah, his son George and daughter Ada. It also includes various postcards received by the Comstock family, magazines from the early 19th century that mention the Comstocks, and a set of maps of various towns in North Dakota in which the Comstock family had investments. Lastly, the collection contains cassette tapes of twelve interviews conducted in the 1970s with people who knew one or more of the Comstock family.

Inventory

Box 1

  • Certificates
  • Composition Books and Publications
    • Ada Comstock
    • Jessie Comstock
  • Comstock House Historic Society
    • Annual Reports
    • Financial
    • Membership
    • Minutes. 1974, 79-81
    • Miscellaneous
    • Newspaper Clippings
    • Thank Yous
  • Correspondence
    • Ada Comstock. 1891-1964
    • George Comstock. 1898-1945
    • Greeting Cards
    • Jessie Comstock. 1901-05 (includes diary); 1908-50
    • Greeting Cards
    • Miscellaneous
    • Sarah Comstock. 1890-1947
    • Solomon G. Comstock
      • Business. 1875-1945
      • Personal. 1874-95
  • Events
  • Family Information
  • Maps
  • Miscellaneous
  • Newspaper Clippings
    • Comstock Family. 1900-58
    • Comstock Family Albums
    • Events
    • Fargo/Moorhead. 1882-1936
    • Miscellaneous. 1876-1931
    • Moorhead State Teachers College/State Normal School
    • The Record. 1897-1898

Box 2

  • Publications
    • Art Books
    • The Atlantic Monthly Almanac. 1912-17
    • Hill School
    • Historical Magazine
      • Bangor
      • Maine
    • The Literary Digest. 1922
    • Maine, State of
    • Miscellaneous
    • Passenger Lists
    • Radcliff College
    • Smith College
    • Tourist Guides. 1903-1943
    • University Information
    • Weekly Calendars

Box 3

  • Photographs
    • California Localities
    • Comstock House
    • England Localities
    • Family
    • Florida Localities
    • Jamaica Localities
    • Miscellaneous
      • Identified
      • Unidentified
    • People
      • Identified
      • Unidentified
    • Yellowstone Localities

Box 3A

  • Postcards (local post cards are indexed, see last page of inventory)
    • Ada Comstock
    • Fargo/Moorhead
    • George Comstock
    • Jessie Comstock
    • Miscellaneous
    • Not sent or received

Box 3B

  • Postcards, continued
    • Others
    • Sarah Comstock
    • Solomon G. Comstock
    • Susan Comstock

Box 3C

  • Postcards, continued
    • Folding
  • Stereocards

Box 4

  • Speeches by Ada Comstock
    • Bound
    • Class
    • Miscellaneous
      • Dated
      • Undated
    • Outlines

Box 5

  • Oversized Photographs

Box 6

  • Scrapbooks
  • Slides

Box 7

  • Ada Comstock
    • Drama Certificate. 1899
  • George Comstock
    • Military Certificate. 1917
  • Harvard Football Team Photographs. 1909 and undated
  • Maps
    • Auburn, ND
    • Bathgate, ND
    • Bottineau, ND (Housed in large Map Case)
    • Clare, ND
    • Clay County, MN. 1899
    • Fisher, MN
    • Grandin, ND
    • Halstad, MN
    • Hillsboro, ND
    • Lee, MN
    • Minot, ND
    • Ottenton, Dakota Territory
    • Rugby Junction, Dakota Territory
    • Sabin, MN
    • St. Tomas, MN
    • Towner, ND
    • Unidentified
    • Willow City, ND
  • Newspaper Clippings. 1905, 1925, 1935, 1938, undated

Box 8

  • Inventory of Prints, Postcards, etc.

Outside of Boxes

  • Cassettes Tapes (Housed in Tape Cassette Cabinet)
    • Alstad, Mrs. Lorraine - Caretaker of Sarah Comstock, later 1940s. 1977
    • Brenden, Mrs. Mildred. 1977
    • Cooper, James - Ada Comstock Notestein’s lawyer, New Haven, CT. 1974
    • Dustrud, Jean McConald - On early Moorhead and funeral of Jessie Comstock. 1981
    • Fatland, Alice (Gullickson) - Maid of Sarah Comstock, 1928-29. 1977
    • Greirson, Margaret, Alice Heenan, Eleanor Lincoln, Mary E. Mensel, and Laura Scales – Interviews by Smith College at Nursing Home. 1978
    • Hawkinson, Mabel (Nelson) - Maid, 1918. 1975
    • Horn, Grace (Wallace) - Maid 1936-37. 1977
    • Kreps, Wayne. 1979
    • Lovett, Reverend Sidney - Yale University, Remarks at funeral service for Ada Comstock Notestein. 1974
    • McKay, Ruth - Boston, MA. 1978.
    • Mendenhall, Dr. Thomas C. - Interview with President of Smith College, Northampton, MA at Harvard University. 1978; Interview with Miss Barbara Norton, Radcliffe College. 1989
    • Munn, Andre - On the Comstocks and early Moorhead. 1978
    • Nelson, Edna (Stevanes). 1977; Mrs. Bernard Nelson. 1977
    • Notestein, Ada Comstock - Speech “Inauguration”
    • Raun, Inez (Bergstad) - Maid 1918. 1977
    • Shadrach, Mrs. Jean - Canton, Ohio. 1980
    • Solomon, Barbara - Interview on Radcliffe College. 1978
    • Tausch, Elizabeth - Interview in Wooster, Ohio. 1980
    • Unsworth, Mrs. Stephen - She and her first husband were maid and butler in Greenleaf House when Ada Comstock Notestein died there. Danvers, MA. 1978.

Index for Local Post Cards

  • Baudette, MN
    • Fish. SAC 93
    • Fox Farm. ScC 2
  • Bismarck, ND
    • Street View (Stereo Card). ST PA 67
  • Detroit Lakes, MN
    • Chippewa Twins. J 287
    • Edgewater Beach Hotel. SAC 75
    • Fair Hills Resort. JC 48
    • Fish. SAC 88
    • Indian Papoose. JC 51
    • Lake Sally. JC 154
  • Fargo, ND
    • Northern Pacific Depot. FPO 13
    • Northern Pacific Park & Depot. No number
  • Grand Forks, ND
    • UND President’s Home. JC 301
  • Lake Itasca, MN
    • Others 259
  • Mayville, ND
    • State Normal School. SAC 15
  • Minneapolis, MN
    • Court House. Others 163
  • Moorhead, MN
    • Clay County Wheat Field. Others 23
    • Concordia College. Others 297; No number
    • Fairmont Creamery. Others 301
    • Flower Garden, W. H. Davy. JC 215; Others 24
    • High School. A 38; JC 73; Others 22
    • State Normal School. A 38
    • State Teachers College. Other 296
    • Stodder Park Northern Pacific Depot. Others 26
    • Storage & Transfer Co. Others 21a; Others 21b
    • Tourist Camp on Red River. Others 300
  • Northern Minnesota
    • Downing Timber. JC 202
  • St. Paul, MN
    • Capitol. Others 155; Others 228
    • Cathedral. FPO 2; JC 165; Others 234
    • Northern Pacific. FPO 2
    • Public Library. Others 232
  • Staples, MN
    • Duck Hunting. JC 63
  • Wadena, MN
    • High School. JC 156
  • Wahpeton, ND
    • Red River of the North. JC 184
  • Warroad, MN
    • Summer Camp. ScC 4