On my best days, working as an archivist is akin to being a treasure hunter. Recently, I discovered an unexpected treasure in the Mechanics’ Institute archives. In doing some routine work to confirm the accuracy of the Container Listing written by an intern, I found the Mercantile Library’s Visitor's Register (1853-1863). Artifacts such as the register are rare, as so many historical documents were destroyed in the 1906 Earthquake. As I carefully turned the pages, I felt a thrill at finding the signatures of several noteworthy guests, including Ulysses S. Grant and Herman Melville!
How was this possible? The Mercantile Library was established in 1853. Because of its long-running financial troubles, the Mercantile merged with the Mechanics’ Institute in January 1906. Accordingly, the Mechanics' Institute inherited Mercantile's entire collection of books, records, and ephemera. At the time of the merger, the name was changed to the Mechanics’-Mercantile Library.
Despite its financial woes, the Mercantile Library attracted many important personages, especially those who visited the city by ship (both military and civilian) and those guests signed the Mercantile's original Visitor's Register during their visits.
Among the most noteworthy autographs that I discovered in the Visitor’s Register are:
(Capt.) U(lysses) S. Grant, 4th Infantry - visited on July 25, 1853 on his way to take charge of a company based at Humboldt Bay; a Union Army General in the Civil War and 18th President of the U.S. (1869-1877).
Don Jose Noriéga - visited on September 21, 1856; an early settler of California who, at one time, owned approximately ½ million acres of California through land grants and purchases.
John C. Frémont - visited on July 8,1859; a California Senator and the 1856 Republican nominee for President of the United States.
Rev. Thomas Starr King - visited on May 26, 1860; originally from the East Coast, in 1860 he was appointed as pastor of the First Unitarian Church in San Francisco; a noted orator and preacher, he was influential in preserving Yosemite as a reserve and a national park.
Herman Melville - visited on October 17, 1860, two days after he arrived from Boston on the clipper Meteor which was captained by his brother, Thomas; author of Moby Dick and other seafaring novels.
Librarian Diane Lai is the archivist for Mechanics' Institute. She may be reached at [email protected] or 415-393-0101 ext.126.
