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Collection

Brill-Kelsoe correspondence, 1878-1889 (majority within 1885-1886)

0.25 linear feet

The Brill-Kelsoe correspondence consists primarily of letters written by James A. Brill to his future wife, Ida C. Kelsoe, while he lived in the Dakota Territory in the mid-1880s. He described his various odd jobs, discussed his active religious life, and expressed his hope that Ida would join him.

The Brill-Kelsoe correspondence (56 items) consists primarily of letters written by James A. Brill to his future wife, Ida C. Kelsoe, while he lived in the Dakota Territory in the mid-1880s. In his love letters, often 5-6 pages long, he described his life in Watertown, in what is now South Dakota, and frequently requested that Ida join him as he sought to build his life and fortune. He occasionally described his various jobs, including constructing a house and assisting in a shop, and discussed his finances. On June 14, 1885, he told Ida of his plans to construct a house and possibly to rent it to others for around $12 a month, and he attached a floor plan; though he did build the dwelling, he continued to live in boarding houses. Brill, a religious man, frequently commented about his neighbors and about local religious debates, often argued by several competing denominations. In addition to Brill's letters, the collection holds other correspondence addressed to Ida, including a letter from a suitor named Bruce from Bealeton, Virginia (October 23, 1882), and several others from male friends, who often discussed her relationship prospects. A newspaper clipping printing local news items under the heading "Sheridan Sayings" is also included.

Collection

Fisk-Chalker family collection, 1849-1898 (majority within 1859-1890)

91 items

The Fisk-Chalker family collection is made up of letters, land indentures, tax receipts, tintype photographs, and a tavern keeper's license, related to the Fisk and Chalker families of Junius, New York; Livingston County, Michigan; and (briefly) Chamberlain, South Dakota. The collection includes five Civil War letters, with content on the Michigan First Regiment of Engineers and Mechanics; and three letters by Sarah J. Fisk Chalker following her arrival on Bailey's Ranch near Chamberlain, South Dakota, January 1890.

The Fisk-Chalker family collection is made up of 36 letters, 10 land indentures, 42 tax receipts, 2 tintype photographs, and 1 tavern keeper's license, related to the Fisk and Chalker families of Junius, New York; Livingston County, Michigan; and (briefly) Chamberlain, South Dakota.

The Correspondence is largely incoming and outgoing letters of John Fisk, his brother Sumner Fisk, his wife Judith "Judah" Fisk, and his daughter Sarah J. Fisk Chalker. Five Civil War date letters include two letters by Sumner Fisk (August 4, 1862, and June 20, 1864), in which he offers news on Seneca County, New York, soldiers Charley Bush and Capt. Ira Munson (probably of the 126th New York Infantry). John Fisk received two letters from Private George Turk of the First Regiment Michigan Engineers and Mechanics, Company A (June 18, 1864, and July 23, 1864), with content on soldiers' pay, camp life, and augmenting his military wages by chopping cord wood for the railroad in Calhoun, Georgia, and Bridgeport, Alabama.

In the early days of January 1890, Sarah J. and John Chalker moved to the newly organized state of South Dakota and settled on the Bailey Ranch on the Missouri River, near Chamberlain. In three letters to her mother, Sarah described their arrival, their house, the terrible "gumbo" mud, and other aspects of the "disagreeable country." She wrote of a visit with "an old squaw and Indian" for meat and coffee in their teepee near the Bailey Ranch stable--"the old squaw smoked while we was in there. She carried her pipe on her back." After a month, they received fewer visits from Native Americans. In summation, she wrote "Mother, I would not live here and make it my home for all the land in Dakota." John and Sarah returned to live in Putnam, Michigan.

The Documents series includes 10 land indentures dating between 1849 and 1884 (bulk 1849-1851) largely for property in Seneca and Ontario County, New York. Forty-two receipts for John and Judith Fisk's property taxes in Putnam, Michigan, 1865-1892, and John Fisk's Junius, New York, tavern keeper's license (May 1, 1854) complete the series.

The collection's photographs depict the parents of Sarah J. Fisk and of John G. Chalker. One tintype portrait shows John S. and Judith "Judah" Fisk and another tintype shows Abner and Deliah Patterson Chalker.

Collection

Lavinia Butler letters, 1896-1903 (majority within 1896-1899)

10 items

This collection contains ten letters written to Lavinia Butler in Woonsocket, South Dakota, and Sanford, Maine, during the 1890s and early 1900s. Her nephew, Nathaniel Butler, wrote nine letters, and a friend, Linda Beacham, wrote one letter. Nathaniel Butler described his life as a cattle rancher near Midland, South Dakota, paying particular attention to the hard winters and their effects on his animals and neighbors.

This collection contains ten letters written to Lavinia Butler in Woonsocket, South Dakota, and Sanford, Maine, during the 1890s and early 1900s. Her nephew, Nathaniel Butler, wrote nine letters, and a friend, Linda Beacham, wrote one letter. Nathaniel Butler described his life as a cattle rancher near Midland, South Dakota, paying particular attention to the hard winters and their effects on his animals and neighbors.

In two letters (December 19, 1896 and February 19, 1897), Butler mentioned Mr. Lewis, a nearby rancher who had disappeared while driving sheep during a severe storm. His other letters concern his efforts to raise cattle and turn a profit as a rancher. Linda Beacham, a friend of Lavinia's, wrote the final letter about mutual acquaintances in Stanford, Maine. She also inquired about Lavinia's plans to return to Maine.