Special Collections Department
403 Parks Library
Iowa State University
Ames, IA 50011-2140
MS 417
William H. Mills
Papers, 1869-1952, undated
Descriptive summary
| creator: | Mills, William H. |
| title: | Papers |
| dates: | 1869-1952, undated |
| extent: | 2.25 linear feet (2 document boxes, 1 oversize box) |
| collection number: | MS 417 |
| repository: | Special Collections Department, Iowa State University. |
Administrative information
| access: | Open for research |
| publication rights: | Consult Head, Special Collections Department |
| preferred citation: | William H. Mills Papers, MS 417, Special Collections Department, Iowa State University Library. |
Biographical note
William H. Mills was born in Ohio in 1865 and was the only child of Irish immigrants Joseph and Isabelle Mills. He was raised on a farm in Story County, Iowa and continued farming land in Nevada and Ames. He married Adda in 1891 and they raised three children: Harry, born in 1892; Sadie, born in 1896; and Marie, born in 1899. In addition to farming, Mills was a subscription agent for Wallace's Farmer and occasionally sold furs. |
Collection description
This collection (1869-1952, undated) contains certificates, correspondence, directories, ephemera, ledgers, receipts, and subscriptions. Researchers will find information concerning Wallace's Farmer, farming in Iowa, and taxes in Story County, Iowa. Other individuals include family members Joseph, Harry, Marie, and Sadie Mills and the circulation manager for Wallace's Farmer, H. H. Johnston. Groups include the Story County Farm Bureau, Ames Business Firms Co-operative, Northwestern Hide and Fur Company (Minneapolis, MN), and West Milford Farmer's Telephone Company (Ames, IA). |
Organization
The collection is arranged into four series: |
Description of series
| Series 1 | Wallace's Farmer | 1917-1933 |
| extent: | 8 folders and 2 oversize items | |
| description: | This series contains lists of subscribers, correspondence with circulation and general management at Wallace's Farmer, ephemera, and a book about Henry Wallace. | |
Container list
Box |
Folder |
Title |
Dates |
1 |
1 |
Correspondence: Wallace's Farmer |
1925-1931 |
1 |
2 |
Generic Wallace's Farmer correspondence |
1927-1930 |
1 |
3 |
Publication: “Uncle Henry's Own Story” by Henry Wallace |
1917 |
3 |
OVR |
Wallace's Farmer growth brochure |
1926 |
1 |
4 |
Wallace's Farmer service certificate |
1923 |
1 |
5 |
Wallace's Farmer subscription card orders |
1928-1933 |
1 |
6 |
Wallace's Farmer subscription/expiration memoranda |
1925-1930 |
3 |
OVR |
Wallace's Farmer subscription offer |
undated |
1 |
7 |
Wallace's Farmer subscriptions |
1926-1929 |
1 |
8 |
Wm. H. Mills' account with Wallace's Farmer |
1928 |
Description of series
| Series 2 | Farming-related materials | 1870-1952 |
| extent: | 12 folders and 2 oversize items | |
| description: | This series contains ephemera relating to farm machinery, advice pamphlets, farm business ledgers, Story County Farm Bureau materials, and directories of farms in Story County, Iowa. | |
Container list
Box |
Folder |
Title |
Dates |
3 |
OVR |
Burt Curtis Cornish mating list brochure (Farmersville, TX) |
undated |
1 |
9 |
Cream separators/separation |
1949, undated |
1 |
10 |
Farm business record ledgers |
1918-1925 |
1 |
11 |
Farm leases |
1870-1943 |
1 |
12 |
Farm warehouse certificate |
1934 |
1 |
13 |
Farming advice pamphlets |
1937, undated |
1 |
14 |
Farming correspondence |
1932 |
1 |
15 |
Gravel receipts |
1928 |
1 |
16 |
Products/machinery ephemera |
1932-1952 |
1 |
17 |
Receipts from Boston merchants |
1883-1886 |
1 |
18 |
Story County Farm Bureau |
1932, undated |
1 |
19 |
Story County Farm directory |
1922 |
1 |
20 |
Story County Farm directory |
1942 |
3 |
OVR |
Vega cream separator brochure (Minneapolis, MN) |
undated |
Description of series
| Series 3 | Financial records | 1886-1935 |
| extent: | 7 folders and 1 oversize item | |
| description: | This series contains receipts for taxes paid to the treasurer of Story County by William H. and Joseph Mills. It also contains two of W. H. Mills' federal tax return forms (1919-1920) and various other receipts, including the United War Fund Campaign, the Farm Defense Program (for Harry, Marie, and Sadie Mills), the Second Red Cross Fund, Ames Grain and Coal Company, and receipts for furs sold by Mills to a fur dealer in New York in 1886. | |
Container list
Box |
Folder |
Title |
Dates |
3 |
OVR |
Farm return of income |
1917 |
2 |
1 |
Federal (U.S.) Taxes |
1919-1920 |
2 |
2 |
Other financial papers |
1886-1935 |
2 |
3 |
Story County taxes: W. H. and Joseph Mills |
1892-1899 |
2 |
4 |
Story County taxes: W. H. and Joseph Mills |
1900-1909 |
2 |
5 |
Story County taxes: W. H. and Joseph Mills |
1910-1919 |
2 |
6 |
Story County taxes: W. H. Mills |
1920-1929 |
2 |
7 |
Story County taxes: W. H. Mills |
1930-1935 |
Description of series
| Series 4 | Miscellaneous | 1869-1939 |
| extent: | 5 folders and 4 oversize items | |
| description: | This series contains some materials from Joseph Mills, a complete coupon book for various Ames businesses, receipts and a certificate from an Ames telephone company, generic correspondence from a Minneapolis fur company, and a miscellaneous newspaper clipping. | |
Container list
Box |
Folder |
Title |
Dates |
2 |
8 |
Ames business firms co-operative coupon book |
1939 circa |
3 |
OVR |
Joseph Mills' citizenship document |
1873 |
2 |
9 |
Miscellaneous newspaper clippings |
undated |
2 |
10 |
National Geographic Society |
1928 |
2 |
11 |
Northwestern Hide and Fur generic correspondence |
1927 |
3 |
OVR |
Northwestern Hide and Fur price list, February |
1927 |
3 |
OVR |
Northwestern Hide and Fur submission sheet (completed), March |
1927 |
3 |
OVR |
Warranty deed between Pollards and Joseph Mills |
1869 |
2 |
12 |
West Milford Farmer's Telephone Company |
1922-1924 |
2 |
13 |
Family Tree |
undated |