The Edmund Hyatt Garrison collection primarily consists of letters that he wrote to his parents and fiancé over the course of a five month trip across the northwestern United States in 1883. This series of correspondence serves as a travelogue of an early overland railroad and stagecoach travel across the U.S. As such, the E. H. Garrison papers capture much of the unique flavor of the close of the 19th century, and the era at the close of the Territorial West. Hyatt’s letters depict several encounters with Native Americans, road agents, and Chinese laborers. The collection also includes several related maps, cabinet card photographs, and tintypes that depict the individuals and locations mentioned throughout the letters.