Guide to Documents Relating to French and British North America in ...

3. BIBLIOTECA CASANATENSE
The Biblioteca Casanatense (Casanatense Library) was originally the personal library of cardinal
Girolamo Casanate (1620-1700), sometime Secretary of Propaganda (1666-1668). A preliminary survey
shows, for example, that the library contains five letters from Agostino Favoriti, a high official of the
Roman curia, to Fran~is de Laval, vicar apostolic in Canada, dated 1671-1675 (ms 367); an undated
manuscript map of North America, the work of Giovanni Battista Nicolosi (ms 675); a manuscript
history of the Jesuits in America by Vincenzo Maria Coronelli, General of the Franciscan Conventuals
in 1701-1707 (ms 648); and a printed dossier on the Seven Years' War, with specific reference to
North America (ms 5,556).12
4. BIBLIOTECA VALLICELLIANA
The Biblioteca Vallicelliana (Vallicelliana Library), established in the second half of the sixteenth
century by S1. Filippo Neri, is considered of particular relevance for ecclesiastical history. The library
seems to be very rich in general reports on world affairs, particularly on France and England. A
number of documents seem likely to contain information on North America (mss G 47, K 13, K 102,
K 104, M 13-14, R 55, S 38-45).13
s. BIBLIOTECA DELL' ACCADEMIA DEI LINCEI E CORSINIANA
The Biblioteca dell' Accademia dei Lincei e Corsiniana was intitially the private library of the
Corsini family and in particular of Lorenzo Corsini, then Pope Clement XII (1730-1740). In 1883 it
was donated to the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, which merged its own library with the former
Biblioteca Corsiniana. The library is known to contain a dossier of the Holy Office dealing with the
state of the Catholic Church in Canada after the Conquest (ms 2555/1), a good number of documents
dealing with the French Nunciature in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, a dossier on Propaganda
missionaries in England (ms 244), and documents on the French Recollets in the eighteenth century
(mss 713, 912), about whom little is available elsewhere. 14
6. ARCHIVIO DI STATO DI ROMA
The Archivio di Stato di Roma is the general repository for the Papal States prior to their
merging with Italy in 1870. Even though it is Italian in scope, it contains many documents of interest
for the history of the missions and their administrative problems. A document, for example, was found
that deals with the Sulpician Seminary of Montreal (Archivio Paesi Stranieri, secc. XVII-XVIII, b. 28,
Inghilterra, anni 1510-1830).15
7. BIBLIOTECA NAZIONALE VITTORIO EMANUELE II
The Biblioteca Nazionale Vittorio Emanuele II is the national library of Italy. It was established
by incorporating the series preserved in the suppressed Roman congregations at the time of the Italian
unification. Of the five series into which the manuscript division is divided, only one does not seem
to have any material pertaining to North America (Fondo Orientale). The four of interest are Fondo
Vittorio Emanuele, Fondo Gesuiti, Fondo Sessoriano and Fondi Minori. The Fondo Gesuiti has many
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