| Creator | Simmons family |
| Title | Simmons family papers |
| Dates | 1847-1970 |
| Identification | MS 150 |
| Quantity | 0.5 linear feet (1 manuscript container) |
| Collection Abstract | Collection contains genealogical and biographical materials related to the Simmons family of Massachusetts. |
| Historical Abstract | The Simmons family moved to Massachusetts from England in 1621. John Simmons, 1796-1870, founded Simmons College. |
| Language | Material in English. |
| Location | Collection may be stored offsite. Please contact Archives staff for more information. |
Collection is open.
Copyright for materials resides with the creators of the items in question, unless otherwise designated.
Please contact the College Archivist with requests to publish any material from the collection.
[Identification of item: description and date], Simmons family papers, MS 150, Simmons College Archives, Boston, MA, USA.
This collection has been created from various biographical vertical files of material collected by the Office of Public Information and the College Archives, as well as from materials purchased by the Archives in 2008 from Swann Auction Galleries.
Accession number: 94.029
Processed by Sheri Kelly and Amy Leimkuhler, October 1994
Supervised by Peter Carini and Megan Sniffin-Marinoff, October 1994
This collection guide was encoded as part of the LEADS project by Sarah Galligan, February 2013
The genealogical history of the Simmons family in the United States began with Moses Simmons. Moses traveled from England via Leyden, Holland to North America on the ship Fortune in 1621. Moses landed in Plymouth and settled in Duxbury, Massachusetts. His third child, John Simmons, ca. 1642-1715, moved from Duxbury to Little Compton, Rhode Island in 1684. Through William Simmons, 1672-?, Joseph Simmons, 1702-?, and John Simmons, 1727-? came Bennoni Simmons, 1755-1835. Bennoni was the father of Cornelius Simmons and John Simmons, 1796-1870 (founder of Simmons College). Cornelius Simmons came to Boston in 1810 to learn the tailor trade, and opened a small shop on what is now North Street. His brother John came to join him four years later in 1814.
For further information on individuals represented in this collection see the family trees. For further information on John Simmons and the Simmons family see The Simmons family at Boston University and Tufts College and Genealogy of the Simmons family of Maine and Massachusetts.
The records of the Simmons family (relatives of John Simmons, founder of Simmons College), are divided into three series: genealogical material, biographical material, and other family members. Materials in the collection include genealogies, photographs, newspaper clippings, obituaries, correspondence regarding genealogical information, a photocopy of an Oak Hall pictorial (Oak Hall was a clothing store owned by George Simmons), and a wedding invitation.
Individual family members mentioned in this collection include William Arnold Buffum, Marion Poole, David Simmons, Henry S. Rowe, George Simmons, Anne Small Simmons, Cornelius Simmons, Eleanor Livingston Rowe, E. Prescott Rowe, Phillip Manchester, Cora M. Drowne, Joseph Simmons, William Simmons, Thornton Simmons, Edward Henshaw, Mary Hamilton Simmons, Rolfe Rea Taylor, Marion Francis Simmons Zelenko. Also in this collection are materials related to Hope T. Brownell, Constance Sturtevant, and Samuel Simmons Binegar, whose relation to the Simmons family has not been determined.
These and related materials may be found under the following headings in online catalogs.
Collection is arranged into 3 series:
Box 1
Box 1
Box 1
