Scope and Contents Handwritten diaries with typescripts in four volumes. Volume 1 concerns Hart's overland journey by ox team from Quincy, Illinois to the Humboldt Valley, Nevada, in 1852. Hart is an insightful and descriptive diarist. He writes about cooking and commerce on the plains, encounters with Indians, and dissatisfaction in his company. Hart mentions a handful of deaths from cholera and includes a moving description of one funeral. He also gives a festive account of his company's celebration of the...