Lyman Copeland Draper served as the director of The State Historical Society of Wisconsin from 1854 to 1886.
The collection reflects his lifelong interest in the history of the trans-Allegheny West from the 1740's to the period of the American Revolution and the War of 1812. Draper also maintained a lifelong interest in the pioneers of the Revolutionary era, especially Daniel Boone. In the words of retired archivist Josephine L. Harper Darling, Draper was "an indefatigable collector who preserved whatever he gathered." (From Press Release)
A GUIDE to the Manuscripts can be purchased from The State Historical Society of Wisconsin.