Nauts-Ryan family papers

The bulk of the Nauts-Ryan family papers concern Charles H. Nauts (1868-1930), an influential Toledo Republican. This material includes a strong set of correspondence between Charles Nauts and various people including his wife, Mary Ellen Ryan, and many prominent Republicans in Toledo, and Washington, D.C. The correspondence traces his courtship with Mary Ryan and his campaign to be appointed Tax Collector of northwest Ohio. There also is a large amount of material (telegrams, newspaper articles, etc.) concerning his drowning death in Lake Erie.

Of secondary interest are two smaller series of correspondence. One by John C. Nauts, the father of Charles, details his struggles from 1849-1879 to raise a family despite various financial problems that included bankruptcy. The other small group is a set of letters written by Alfred Nauts, John's brother. This set was written to his family while he was serving as a sailor on various ocean-going ships. The period, covered from 1851-1857, shows Alfred changing from a homesick young man to a seasoned sailor. The correspondence ends with his death in 1857.

Another small section of interest is a collection of cures and recipes from the late 1800's including cures for cholera and whooping cough and a recipe for ketchup.