This collection (76 items) is made up of correspondence between Charles Ellery Washburn and his wife, Mariana Reed Washburn, as well as a small number of letters that they received from acquaintances and family members. Charles and Mariana Washburn wrote around 70 letters to one another between June 1847 and July 1855; much of the collection consists of undated letters written around the same period. Mariana provided news about their daughter Lucy, including her frustration with "Lulu's" constant crying as a young baby and Lucy's illnesses and other health issues as she aged. Charles wrote to Mariana while practicing medicine in Binghamton and Fredonia, New York, occasionally referring to his patients and to his travel plans. Both Charles and Mariana Washburn commented on their separation, and their letters consistently affirm their commitment to and love for one another.
The Washburns also received letters from family members, including their daughter Lucy, who wrote to her father about visits with an aunt and uncle, In one letter, Whiting Griswold, who had attended college with Charles Washburn, discussed his busy teaching career and his resulting inability to contribute articles to a publication (October 5, 1831). The final item is a will written by Charles Washburn on December 9, 1852. Washburn wished for Mariana and Lucy to inherit his belongings but stated his desire that his inheritance be transferred entirely to Lucy should Mariana remarry.
Charles Ellery Washburn was born in Homer, New York, on March 29, 1816, the son of Reuben Washburn and Lucy Graves. He attended the Cortland Academy and entered Amherst College in 1835. He briefly taught school and tutored Amherst students after earning his bachelor's degree in 1835. In 1845 he received his medical degree from the College of Physicians and Surgeons (now part of Columbia University). He practiced medicine in New York, Binghamton, and Fredonia, New York. During the Civil War, he served as a surgeon for the 112th New York Infantry Regiment; he contracted typhoid fever while caring for wounded soldiers in Wilmington, North Carolina, and died there on April 10, 1865. Charles E. Washburn married Mariana Amanda Reed (1821-1883), the daughter of Edward Cambridge Reed (1793-1883) and Amanda Minerva Weller, on June 10, 1847. Their children included Lucy M., Charles E., and Arthur H.
