Jesse L. and Mae Bennett Edgren Papers, 1849-1949 (bulk 1896-1921)

Collection

Identifier: MS 173

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The Jesse L. and Mae Bennett Edgren papers contain correspondence written by Jesse and Mae to their families in Wisconsin during their trip to the Klondike gold fields, 1898-1899. There is one letter to Jesse from his mother, written in 1897. The papers also include certificates admitting Jesse to practice as an attorney in Wisconsin, and clippings and photographs relating to Mae Eldorado, the “first Klondike baby.” Unrelated to the Klondike adventure is a file of newspaper clippings commemorating the Donner Pass Tragedy in 1849 during the California Gold Rush. John Lewis Edgren, a relative of Jesse, was a member of the Donner Party.

The original donor included a poem he wrote about his Uncle Jesse. The remainder of the collection consists of oversize documents including several pages from an 1898 Dyea newspaper and a 1903 birds-eye view map of Dawson, Yukon Territory, by H. Epting. Although the collection includes the 1849 clippings about the Donner Party tragedy, the bulk of the collection centers on the Edgrens’ life from 1896 when they left for the Klondike until 1922 when Mae Eldorado died.

Dates

Majority of material found within 1849-1949

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is unrestricted.

Conditions Governing Use

Request for permission to publish material from the collection must be discussed with the Librarian. Neither photocopying nor making the materials available on the Alaska State Library Web Site constitutes permission to publish.

Biographical

Jesse L. Edgren was a young Madison, Wisconsin, lawyer who, with his wife Mae Bennett, left for the Yukon Territory on the night of their wedding day, March 1898. They went to seek their fortune in the Klondike gold fields. Their route took them to Seattle, where they stayed just long enough to complete the outfit and board the next boat to Alaska. They traveled to Dyea and over the Chilkoot Trail to Lake Bennett which they reached in May of 1898. Next they arrived at Lake Tagish and finally to Dawson City by July of the same year.

Mae quickly became pregnant with her first child, but ten days before the birth of her baby she contracted typhoid fever. She gave birth December 22, 1898, and died January 3, 1899, just a few weeks after the birth. Her daughter, Mae Eldorado, known as the “first Klondike baby,” was cared for by Dr. Mosier, a woman physician and close friend of Jesse and Mae Edgren.

In the spring of 1899 baby Mae Eldorado was sent back to Wisconsin to be raised by her maternal grandparents. She was accompanied by Mrs. John McDonald, a close friend of Mae Bennett. Jesse stayed in the Klondike for a time and eventually, according to his nephew’s poem, died of lockjaw. Mae Eldorado died at age 22 in Wisconsin.

Extent

2 Linear Feet : 1 box ; 1 Extra Oversize folder

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The papers were donated by the State Historical Society of Wisconsin. The Society received the donation in 1989 from the nephew of Jesse L. Edgren, who will be known as the original donor.

Processing Information

The papers include correspondence written by Jesse L. and Mae Bennett Edgren, arranged chronologically, family documents, clippings, photographs, and mementos. File order is as received from donor. Documents were laminated by the original donor before he donated the collection to the Historical Society of Wisconsin. Inventory control is to the folder level with some item listings.

Finding Aid & Administrative Information

Title: Finding aid for the Jesse L. and Mae Bennett Edgren Papers, 1849-1949 (bulk 1896-1921)
Status: In Progress
Author: Processed by: Gladi Kulp, Oct. 1998 ; Revised: May 1999 ; Revised by: Jacki Swearingen, Feb. 2015 ; ArchivesSpace finding aid by: Sandy Johnston
Date: 2019 May
Description rules: Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description: Undetermined
Script of description: Code for undetermined script
Language of description note: English