The John Hannibal Sheppard Papers consist of correspondence, diaries, account books, and other papers written or received by John Sheppard (ca. 1767-1807), a Hallowell, Maine, merchant and shipmaster, his wife, their seven children, and the wives and descendants of their oldest son, John Hannibal Sheppard. Dating from 1791-1873, these materials include John Sheppard’s business and personal correspondence concerning his activities in the East Indies, West Indies, and Europe; letters and household accounts of his wife, Sarah Collier Sheppard (d. 1818) and daughters, Harriet Helen (1791-1817), Frances (d. 1814), Ann Augusta (d. 1824), and Sarah Louisa (1806-1833), who jointly operated a school for children at Hallowell, Portland, and Wiscasset, Maine, after Sheppard’s death; and correspondence and travel journals of two other Sheppard children, George Albert (1792-1834) and William Wallace (1807-1833). These papers offer valuable insights into the activities and aspirations of the Sheppards and, in addition, depict the family’s struggles with tuberculosis. The largest group of materials within the collection, however, comprises the papers of John Hannibal Sheppard (1789-1873), a lawyer and writer active at Hallowell and Wiscasset, Maine, and Boston, Massachusetts. These items include letters received or written by Sheppard, chiefly concerning family matters or, between 1834 and1846, the settlement of his father-in-law, Abiel Wood’s estate, his diaries, original essays and poems, and an account book. The collection concludes with correspondence to or from Sheppard’s two wives, Helen Wood (d. 1843) and Orissa B. Willmarth Foster (1811-1864); his three children, Helen Wood Sheppard Sewall (1820-1862), John Hannibal II (1822-1870), and Abiel Wood (1827-1864); two nieces, Louisa S. Page and Helen S. Page Stinson; and his grandchildren, Helen S. Sewall Stone and Frederic Wood Sewall. Particularly notable among these letters are those from young John Hannibal describing his experiences in the California gold mines between 1853 and 1859.

Materials in the Sheppard Collection have been organized into sub-groups representing letters and other papers written or compiled by each family member. These sub-groups have been listed in the inventory in rough chronological order according to the birthdate of each person; thus, the papers of John Sheppard, his wife, and their children are in Sub-groups I-IX, followed by those of John Hannibal Sheppard’s wives and descendants in Sub-groups X-XVIII. Correspondence within the collection is chronologically arranged.