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University of Michigan William L. Clements Library

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Tenney-Fitts papers, 1806-1925 (majority within 1821-1831, 1867-1917)

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Summary

Creator:
Tenney family
Abstract:
This collection is made up of correspondence and other items related to Silas and Rebecca Tenney of Chester, New Hampshire, and to their descendants, including Orlando Murray Tenney of Chester and West Hampstead, New Hampshire; his wife, Emmagene Fitts; and their daughter, Alice Lillian Tenney.
Extent:
1.75 linear feet
Language:
English
Authors:
Collection processed and finding aid created by Meg Hixon, January 2013

Background

Scope and Content:

This collection is made up of correspondence and other items related to Silas and Rebecca Tenney of Chester, New Hampshire, and to their descendants, including Orlando Murray Tenney of Chester and West Hampstead, New Hampshire; his wife, Emmagene Fitts; and their daughter, Alice Lillian Tenney.

The Correspondence series contains approximately 320 letters addressed to members of the Tenney and Fitts families, particularly Rebecca (or Rebekah) Tenney, Orlando M. Tenney, Emmagene F. Tenney, and Alice L. Tenney.

A small group of letters, dated from the 1820s-1830s, is comprised of letters to Silas and Rebecca Tenney from their children, including Bailey, Thomas, Sally, and Charles; other family members; and friends. Thomas Tenney discussed his philosophical, moral, and religious beliefs; others shared family and local news. Scattered letters dated in the 1840s, 1850s, and early 1860s concern other members of the Tenney and Fitts families, including religious letters that Orlando M. Tenney received from an acquaintance.

The bulk of the series is made up of incoming letters to Orlando M. and Emmagene F. Tenney and their daughter Alice, dated 1867-1925 (bulk 1867-1917). Orlando Tenney and Emmagene Fitts ("Genie") exchanged love letters during their courtship and marriage; in later years, they discussed their children and family news, particularly while Emmagene visited her family in Candia, New Hampshire. From the mid-1870s to the early 1890s, Emmagene F. Tenney also received personal letters from family members such as her sister, Alice C. Fitts; her mother, Caroline Phelps Fitts; and many cousins and acquaintances. Orlando M. Tenney received condolence letters after Emmagene's death in 1892, and his siblings and other family members wrote to him into the early 20th century.

In the mid-1880s, Alice L. Tenney began to receive letters from family members and friends; her incoming correspondence comprises the bulk of the collection after 1892. Letters from a school friend, May E. Norris, concern Norris's life in Boston, Massachusetts, and later letters pertain to family members' lives in New England and New York. Alice's other correspondents included her sister Bertha, her brothers Walter and Sewall, and several aunts and cousins. One brief series of letters by Ralph Candee of Westwood, Massachusetts, pertains to Alice's recent denial of his marriage proposal (included in his letter of July 14, 1903); most of the 20th-century letters pertain to the Tenney brothers' lives in New York and New Hampshire.

The Diary Fragments, Essays, and Poetry series (13 items) consists of items written by multiple authors. One group of diary entries (20 pages), dated January 1809-June 25, [1813], focuses on the unidentified author's religious beliefs and reflections. A second author wrote similar reflections on their 69th and 70th birthdays (May 13, 1842, and May 13, 1843). The remaining items are poems and essays by Helen M. Tenney (July 9, 1851, and February 9, 1856), O. M. Tenney (undated), and others (undated). These writings concern nature and animals, religion, the Eiffel Tower, and other subjects. One essay, entitled "Exercises of My Mind," is a copy of a work by Augustus Sanborn (d. 1823).

Financial Records (8 items, 1867-1911) consist of receipts, a money order, a dividend notice, and accounts related to Orlando M. Tenney, William Tenney, Sewall F. Tenney, and Alice L. Tenney.

The Photograph is an undated carte-de-visite portrait of an unidentified woman, taken in Norristown, Pennsylvania.

The Ephemera and Invitations series (8 items, 1870-1903) contains items addressed to various members of the Tenney and Fitts families. Most of the invitations pertain to weddings. The series also contains calling cards and a blank application for the "Tribe of Ben-Hur."

Miscellaneous material (12 items) includes a notebook that belonged to Orlando M. Tenney in 1881, a drawing of a man riding a plow attributed to "O. M. T." (July 30, 1907), a recipe for corn salve, a newspaper obituary for Frank E. Fitts, and manuscript notes and fragments.

Biographical / Historical:

Silas Tenney was born in Bradford, Massachusetts, on December 4, 1772, the son of Thomas Tenney (1730-1798) and Hannah Stickney (1734-1790). He and his wife, Rebecca (or Rebekah) Bailey (1777-1877), lived in Bradford and Chester, New Hampshire, with their nine children: Bailey (1797-1852), Thomas (1798-1873), Sewall (1801-1890), Sally (b. 1804), William (1807-1891), Mary (1809-1812), Harriette (b. 1812), Charles (1814-1888), and Daniel (1816-1902). Helen Maria Tenney married William K. Rowell.

William Tenney and his wife, Emeline Johnson Murray (1808-1882) lived in Chester, New Hampshire, with their seven children: Helen Maria (b. 1834), Rebecca Bailey (b. 1835), Mary Atwood (b. 1837), Silas William (1839-1897), Sewall Warren (1841-1882), Orlando Murray (December 23, 1844-September 24, 1916), and Emeline Foster (b. 1847). Rebecca Bailey Tenney married Marcus North Preston; Mary Atwood Tenney married Joseph Dana Bartley and had two children, Helen Preston and William Tenney (b. 1868); and Emeline Foster Tenney married Henry Harrison Lane.

Orlando Murray Tenney married Emmagene Fitts (June 9, 1849-November 6, 1892), the daughter of Jesse Remmington Fitts (b. 1815) and Caroline Phelps, in Candia, New Hampshire, on March 20, 1872. Emmagene's siblings included Nathan Corydon (b. 1844) and Alice Caroline (b. 1852). Orlando Murray and Emmagene Fitts Tenney had four surviving children: Alice Lillian (January 22, 1874-September 1, 1947), Walter Phelps (b. 1878), Bertha Louise (b. 1880), and Sewall Frederic (b. 1886).

Acquisition Information:
2000. M-4081.2 .
Processing information:

Cataloging funded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC). This collection has been processed according to minimal processing procedures and may be revised, expanded, or updated in the future.

Arrangement:
The collection is arranged in the following series:
  • Series I: Correspondence
  • Series II: Diary Fragments, Essays, and Poetry
  • Series III: Financial Records
  • Series IV: Photograph
  • Series V: Ephemera and Invitations
  • Series VI: Miscellaneous

Each series is arranged chronologically, with undated items placed at the end.

Rules or Conventions:
Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS)

Contents

Using These Materials

Info for Visitors

How to Request

Ordering Reproductions

Download PDF Finding Aid
RESTRICTIONS:

The collection is open for research.

USE & PERMISSIONS:

Copyright status is unknown

PREFERRED CITATION:

Tenney-Fitts Papers, William L. Clements Library, The University of Michigan