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This collection contains correspondence and other materials related to the family of Samuel Prioleau Ravenel and his wife, Margaretta Fleming Parker Ravenel. Many of the letters concern life in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Charleston, South Carolina, before, during, and after the Civil War (particularly during Reconstruction). Other items pertain to family news, European travel, and other subjects.

This collection is made up of correspondence, photographs, and other materials related to the family of Samuel Prioleau Ravenel and his wife Margaretta Fleming Parker Ravenel. Many of the letters concern life in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Charleston, South Carolina, before, during, and after the Civil War.

The Correspondence series (215 items) comprises the bulk of the collection. Many of the earliest items are incoming personal letters to Clarissa Walton and Thomas Fleming from friends, their son. These and other early items largely pertain to everyday life and social activities in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Charleston, South Carolina. The series includes a group of letters that Thomas and Margaretta Fleming Parker wrote to the Flemings, his in-laws and her parents, about life in Charleston in 1861; Margaretta occasionally referred to the war. James McCarter wrote two letters from Charleston in June 1862 about the flight of civilians from the city and other effects of the war.

Ravenel family correspondence begins in the late 1850s with letters that Samuel Prioleau Ravenel received from a correspondent in Philadelphia; at the time, he lived in Pendleton, South Carolina. Ravenel began to correspond with Margaretta Parker in 1862, and they discussed their courtship, plans to marry, and daily lives until 1865. In letters to Margaretta and, in the late 1860s, to his father, Daniel, Samuel Prioleau Ravenel often wrote about Reconstruction policies, freedmen, and other political topics. Daniel Ravenel wrote to his son and his daughter-in-law about life in Charleston.

Samuel Prioleau and Margaretta Ravenel spent much of the late 1860s in Switzerland and in Paris, France, which Margaretta described in letters to her mother Clarissa Walton Fleming. Fleming responded with news from home, including comments about the 1868 presidential election and her life in Philadelphia. Throughout the 1870s, Samuel and Margaretta corresponded with their families about Charleston socialites and family news from South Carolina and their home in Highlands, North Carolina. They often discussed the births and growth of their children. A group of letters written in 1902 concerns the death of Samuel Prioleau Ravenel. Additional items from the early 20th century concern the Ravenel family's interest in a sugar mill and other topics.

The Photographs series (5 items) contains carte-de-visite portraits of S. Prioleau Ravenel in a military overcoat (1 item), Arthur Parker (1 item), and a woman, tentatively identified as Margaretta Ravenel or "Annie" (2 items), as well as a cabinet card photograph of three men around a table, taken in Mexico.

The Printed Items series (7 items) includes copies of a Supplement to Charleston Mercury (November 30, 1867), the Charleston Daily Courier-Extra (December 3, 1867), and The Charleston Mercury (May 2, 1868). Also included are a page from The Tri-Weekly Courier (December 9, 1867), a playbill for a production of Ten Nights in a Barroom at the Wardman Park theatre (April 23, 1929), a newspaper clipping containing a copy of "Mother Shipton's Prophecy" (undated), a calling card for "Miss Loat" of Balham Hill (undated); and a single book: Mason Smith Family Letters, 1860-1868, edited by Daniel E. Huger Smith, Alice R. Huger Smith, and Arney R. Childs (Columbia, S.C.: University of South Carolina Press, 1950).

The Sarah Logan Fisher Wister collection is made up of 2 volumes that belonged to Wister in the mid-19th century: a recipe book and an account book that Wister also used as a diary. The recipe book contains instructions for preparing a variety of foods and household cleaners, and the account book/diary contains entries about family news, Pennsylvania travel, and the Civil War.

The Sarah Logan Fisher Wister collection is made up of 2 volumes that belonged to Wister in the mid-19th century: a recipe book and an account book that Wister also used as a diary.

The Recipe Book (begun on June 18, [1843]) contains around 190 pages of notes about food preparation and household cleaners. Wister copied instructions for preparing foods such as baked goods, beef, chicken, potatoes, pickled foods, and soups. A few recipes are attributed to other authors, and some appear on newspaper clippings pasted into the volume.

The Account Book and Diary (around 100 pages, not all of which are used) contains about 10 pages of accounts related to wages paid to Anne [Sherman] from 1860-1862, and to costs associated with Margaret Rodgers, who lived with the Wister family from 1860-1863. The Rodgers accounts mainly concern clothing, and some notes pertain to the Wakefield School. The remainder of the volume contains non-chronological entries written between 1860 and 1872. The majority of the entries are dated from the early 1860s, though some concern events that occurred in the 1840s and 1850s. Most entries relate to news of the Wisters' family and acquaintances, and travel to Duncannon and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Wister also wrote about Native Americans living on land belonging to her brother in 1848 and 1853, a trip to Boston in March 1868, the flooding of the Susquehanna River in mid-March 1865, her sons' Civil War service, and the Union Army's capture of Richmond, Virginia, in April 1865. A newspaper obituary for Mrs. George B. Emerson and a recipe for "Dr. William Stoy's Infallible Cure for Hydrophobia" are laid and pinned into the volume, respectively.

This volume (112 pages) contains Sarah Welles Hunt's reminiscences about her life, as well as occasional journal entries that Hunt composed from July 1, 1851-May 23, 1893. She wrote about her travels in New York, Massachusetts, Ohio, Michigan, and Québec; her encounters with famous individuals; her family; and current events.

This volume (112 pages) contains Sarah Welles Hunt's reminiscences about her life, as well as occasional journal entries that Hunt composed from July 1, 1851-April 9, 1891. She wrote about her travels in New York, Massachusetts, Ohio, Michigan, and Québec; her encounters with notable individuals; her family; and current events.

Hunt began her diary on July 1, 1851, with her recollections about her life from her birth in 1810 to around 1851, including information about her family, travels, and notable individuals she had seen or met. She mentioned attending the Clinton Female Seminary in 1826 and noted the cholera outbreak of 1832 in Utica, New York. Some pages have been cut out of the volume.

From 1851-1891, Hunt occasionally wrote journal entries about her life in New York, Massachusetts, and Michigan. While living in the east, she recounted her visits to family members in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and Ashtabula, Ohio; on one occasion, she traveled through New York to Montréal, Québec (1860, pp. 77-78). After moving to Michigan, Hunt sometimes traveled to Ohio and New York. Hunt periodically recorded news about her siblings, parents, in-laws, and children, including dates of births, marriages, and deaths. She also commented on current events, such as European politics in the early 1850s, a railroad accident in Norwalk, Connecticut (May 6, 1853, pp. 46-47), and the Civil War (1864-1865, pp. 80-83). In 1876, Hunt visited the Centennial Exhibition at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Genealogical notes and 2 newspaper obituaries for John Alfred Davenport are laid into the volume.

This volume records the names and nativity of guests of the Shirley House (later the Missouri Hotel) in Fayette, Missouri, from June 1856-October 1858. Guests included members of at least three traveling circuses. Newspaper clippings are pasted into the first 10 pages, apparently over register entries.

This volume (around 280 pages) records the names and residence of guests of the Shirley House Hotel (later the Missouri Hotel) in Fayette, Missouri, from June 20, 1856-October 9, 1858. Many of the guests, whose names appear on approximately 270 pages of register entries, came from elsewhere in Missouri, though some traveled from other states and, on at least one occasion, from foreign countries such as Ireland. One note reports that a guest later went to jail (June 28, 1856), and another lists a guest's nativity as "no particular place" (July 6, 1857). Members of traveling circuses stayed at the hotel on three occasions: Herr Driesbach & Co. Menagerie & Circus of Brownsville, Ohio, visited on April 30, 1857; an unidentified group of performers visited on July 27, 1857; and the Spalding & Rogers North American Circus visited on May 6, 1858. The lengthy entry for Spalding & Rogers includes the names of performers, organized by profession, and ink illustrations of various types of performances, including a tightrope walker, monkeys, and men and women riding horses. Other visual material includes sketches of men and unidentified animals, and stylized lettering.

The volume's first 10 pages consist of pasted-in newspaper clippings (dated between 1866 as 1886) containing fiction stories, poetry, obituaries, and other articles of interest. A story about a "beautiful killer" is illustrated by an engraving of a woman about to stab a man, and a story about Grover Cleveland's marriage to Frances Folsom includes the couple's portraits. At least one poem commemorates Civil War soldiers.

This collection is made up of correspondence, documents, photographs, printed items, and ephemera related to the ancestors, descendants, and extended family of Merwin P. Snell and his first wife, Minnie Gilbert Andrews Sprague. The bulk of the materials pertain to the Snell, Andrews, Hallock, McLaughlin, and Barney families.

This collection is made up of correspondence, documents, photographs, printed items, and ephemera related to the ancestors, descendants, and extended family of Merwin P. Snell and his first wife, Minnie Gilbert Andrews Sprague.

The Correspondence series (106 items) contains personal letters addressed to members of the Snell family. The earliest materials pertain to Merwin Porter Snell and his first wife, Minnie Sprague Snell. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries Merwin P. Snell exchanged letters with his cousins. He sent a lengthy letter about comparative religion to Reverend O'Connell of the Catholic University of America on May 25, 1903. Additional family letters are scattered throughout the series.

The bulk of the correspondence relates to Merwin P. Snell; his second wife, Minnie Louise Snell; and their daughters Margaret and Priscilla. From around 1910 to the early 1920s, Merwin and Minnie exchanged letters with their daughters, who sometimes commented on their studies at St. Joseph's Academy in Adrian, Michigan. Some of the family's letters contain illustrations, including drawings that Margaret and Priscilla made as young children. On May 31, 1929, Priscilla Snell wrote to Charles E. Stimming of Loyola University Chicago about women's personal engagement with religion and the necessity of educating women.

In the summer of 1937, Minnie L. Snell visited San Francisco, California. While there, she frequently exchanged letters with her daughters, who lived with Margaret's husband, Leslie Drew Barney, in Detroit, Michigan. Margaret and Priscilla Snell shared news of their life in Detroit, while their mother described her experiences in California (often related to social outings). The series includes several picture postcards depicting San Francisco scenery. In 1947 and 1948, Priscilla Snell, who had taken holy orders under the name Sister Marie Virginia, described her life in Puerto Rico, where she joined a convent. She wrote about her fellow nuns, religious life, travels within Puerto Rico, and leisure activities. Priscilla enclosed a newsletter titled The Barry Bulletin in her letter of August 4, 1957.

The correspondence also includes a few later letters to Margaret Snell Barney from a cousin regarding their shared genealogy, picture postcards of Detroit scenes, and personal letters from friends and family members.

The Documents series consists of two subseries. Legal and Financial Documents (10 items, 1910-1980) include birth, death, and marriage certificates, a will, and other items related to Merwin P. Snell, Minnie L. Snell, and Margaret Snell; some of these items are later or replacement copies. Two receipts concern expenses related to Merwin P. Snell's funeral in September 1921. A subseries of 6 St. Joseph's Academy Report Cards pertains to the academic progress of Priscilla and Margaret Snell in the 1920s.

The Writings, Notes, and Drawings series contains a narrative essay, three groups of poems, drawings of children and a moose, a watercolor painting of a castle tower, a cutout of a bird pasted onto a black, and plot notes for a one-act play.

The first item is a typed copy of "Thrilling Adventures of a Sailor Boy," an essay about E. Watson Andrews (7 pages, January 12, 1859). On April 2, 1858, Andrews boarded the ship Courser for a voyage from China to the United States. The ship was destroyed soon after its departure. Andrews and others boarded a lifeboat, which soon met with a fleet of Chinese pirates. After a violent encounter with the pirates and their subsequent rescue, Andrews and other survivors safely made it to Hong Kong, where Andrews complained of harsh treatment by the United States consul.

The poetry includes manuscript and published verses by Marie LeBaron (15 items), Minnie Sprague Snell (10 items), and various members of the Snell, Long, and Andrews families (13 items). The poems concern topics such as nature, religion, the Civil War, and family. Some items are printed on newspaper clippings.

The Photographs series (approximately 230 items) documents multiple generations of the Snell, Andrews, Hallock, McLaughlin, Wellington, Barney, Snetsinger, and Hames families from around 1861 to 1978. The images, some of which are framed, include black-and-white and color prints, cartes-de-visite, cabinet cards and other card photographs, tintypes, photographic postcards, newspaper clippings, and photo-illustrated Christmas cards. The pictures include formal individual and group portraits, schoolchildren, and a wedding party. Several items depict Priscilla Snell in a nun's habit, and a few show Spanish-American War-era and early 20th century soldiers in uniform. A small number show the interior of an office or residence. Many of the photographs were taken in cities in Connecticut, Michigan, and Ohio.

The Scrapbook is a repurposed account book, with newspaper clippings pasted in over most of the original financial records. Pages 1-35 contain scrapbook material, and pages 36-66 contain financial records dated 1875-1877. Most of the clippings are poems and articles written by Marie LeBaron (or Le Baron) in the 1870s, including articles about Washington, D.C., and Congressional politics. Visual materials include a painting of a flower against a colored background resembling stained glass, a painting of a pear, an illustrated poem, and a group of faces (drawn into the back cover). One article concerns LeBaron's interest in theosophy. Two articles concern the 1980 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, awarded to George D. Snell.

The Printed Items and Ephemera series (53 items) is made up of newspaper clippings, published volumes, and other items. Twenty-seven newspaper clippings and obituaries relate to relatives and friends of the Snell family. Some articles concern marriages and other social news. Two articles concern the longevity and early recollections of Diana McLaughlin and Minnie L. Snell; the article about Snell largely concerns her father's work as a lumberman in northern Michigan.

Additional items include memorial cards for Merwin P. Snell, Minnie L. Snell, Leslie Drew Barney, and Marie L. Wellington; a reward of merit; a photographic postcard of Detroit and a painting of "Mrs. Andrews"; a musical score for "Brotherhood Song" by Joseph Mansfield Long, signed by the composer; and invitations for commencements at St. Joseph's Academy (1931) and the Catholic University of America ([1947?]). Personal ephemera items include a silk pouch made by Eliza Allen's mother in 1805, containing small paintings by Eliza's friend, Caroline Mayhew (1818), and a carte-de-visite portrait of Eliza Hallock (née Allen) taken in 1864; a baby book with notes about the first months of Margaret LeBaron Snell (1911); Marie LeBaron Barney's diploma from Saint Theresa High School in Detroit, Michigan, with a tassel and 3 photographs (June 7, 1953); and two pieces of embroidery with floral designs, done with thin yarn (undated).

• Le Baron, Marie. The Villa Bohemia (1882, housed in the Book Division)
• The New Testament of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ: Translated Out of the Original Greek and with the Former Translations Diligently Compared and Revised (New York: American Bible Society, 1889)
• The New Testament of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ (Combination Self-Pronouncing Edition, 1897)
• Hallock, Charles. Hallock Ancestry, 1640-1906 (1906)
• The Guide to Nature magazine (July 1910 and October 1921)

The Genealogy series (11 items) is made up of notes and a family tree related to the Snell, Long, LeBaron, and McLaughlin families, as well as a memorandum printed in memory of Gerard Hallock Snell.

The Society of Friends Rules of Discipline and commonplace book contains extracts from the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting's disciplinary code (1834) and religious poetry and extracts later compiled by Edith Collins (ca. 1860s-1890s).

The Society of Friends Rules of Discipline and commonplace book contains extracts from the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting's disciplinary code (8 pages, 1834) and religious poetry and extracts later compiled by Edith Collins (ca. 1860s-1890s).

In the first 8 pages, comprised of 7 pages written directly into the volume and 1 sheet pinned on top of the seventh page, Mark Collins copied sections of the "Rules of Discipline for the Yearly Meeting of the Society of Friends Held in Philadelphia..." from April 21-26, 1834. The text outlines procedures for reinstating disowned Quakers and appealing judgments made at monthly meetings. The rules are followed by 2 notes: an anonymous note dated 1860 and a note written by Collins's wife Edith in 1897, concerning Collins's desire for the disciplinary code to be made available to all members of the Society of Friends.

Edith Collins used the remainder of the volume (around 90 pages) as a commonplace book during the late 19th century. Many of the copied poems are dated in the 1870s and 1880s; some are dated as late as 1896. The first section (14 pages) contains extracts from journals, letters, and other sources about religious experiences and Quaker families, including content from the autobiography of Quaker missionary Stephen Grellet. The extracts are followed by poems about religious topics. Some entries are attributed to particular authors, often women; some were copied from Quaker weekly The Friend. The poetry section of the commonplace book also contains some additional extracts and quotations. Some entries are based on items that Edith found in her husband's pocketbook. Eight poems are laid into the volume.

Eleven newspaper clippings are laid into the volume. Some contain poems; others concern religious associations, Quaker opposition to the Spanish-American War, and the presidency of Swarthmore College. The volume also contains an advertisement for stationer George C. Easton with a printed view of lower Manhattan.

The Stiles family papers are made up of 3,480 letters, one diary, several financial documents, a photograph, a poem, and printed items related to sisters Ellen E. and Alice M. Stiles of Southbury, Connecticut, in the later 19th and early 20th century. The correspondence is primarily the incoming and outgoing correspondence of the Stiles sisters, their family, and friends. The largest groups of letters are communications with Sarah J. Whiting ("Jennie") of New Haven; educator Mary J. Robinson ("Robie") of Minnesota, California, and elsewhere; and teacher Rose M. Kinney of Oberlin, Ohio, the Tillotson Institute in Austin, Texas, and other locations.

The Stiles family papers are made up of 3,480 letters, one diary, several financial documents, a photograph, a poem, and printed items revolving around sisters Ellen E. and Alice M. Stiles of Southbury, Connecticut, in the later 19th and early 20th century.

The correspondence is primarily incoming and outgoing correspondence of the Stiles sisters, their family, and friends. In the early 1850s, Ellen ("Nellie") E. Stiles, received letters her from friend Emma Gilbert ("Emmie" or "Em," daughter of a Methodist Minister), Lottie R. Pierce, cousins, and others while Ellen attended school at Southbury, Connecticut, and lived in New Haven. In 1856, Emmie began her schooling at Music Vale Seminary in Salem, Massachusetts, and by 1857, lived in Ridgefield where her family kept boarders and had a class of five music scholars.

Alice ("Allie") Stiles sent her father letters while she attended E. A. Roberti's school in New Haven. Nellie and Allie corresponded regularly throughout their lives, whenever apart. In the 1860s, Ellen wrote lengthy letters, with remarks on boys, flirtation, peers' relationships, copperheads, dresses, clothing, fashion, everyday life, household activities, family, interpersonal relationships, church attendance, sicknesses, deaths, and news on health and medical conditions of family and friends. When Ellen became ill in 1874, she traveled to Castile, New York, and remained at the Castile Sanitarium/Castile Water-Cure from 1875 to 1876. Letters from this period include several from Dr. Cordelia Greene, director of the institution.

Their most regular and prolific correspondent was Sarah J. Whiting "Jennie," who spent her life in New Haven, Connecticut. Alice received letters from her friend Mary J. Robinson ("Robie" or "Robbie"), a teacher with ties to the American Missionary Association. Robie spent much of her time in Lake City and Marshall, Minnesota. She worked as a teacher and private tutor. From 1882 to 1884, she taught at Coe College, Cedar Rapids, Iowa; in 1886 she wrote from the Daytona Institute for Young Women in Daytona, Florida; from 1888 to 1889 she lived in Ormand, Florida; and in the 1890s she lived in Monrovia, California, and taught at the Occidental College in Los Angeles.

Beginning in the mid 1870s, Alice and Ellen received letters from educator Rose M. Kinney of Oberlin, Ohio. Rose's letters include correspondence from the later 1880s, when she taught at the Tillotson Institute, Austin, Texas.

The sisters received letters from their cousin H. S. Osborne in San Francisco, 1863-69 and 1884-87, and cousin Annie of East Oakland, California. H. S. Osborne's April 23, 1865, letter includes a description of San Francisco's response to news of the death of Abraham Lincoln. Other correspondents included Cordelia Sterling of Stratford, Connecticut; Mary A. Babbitt of Ansonia, Connecticut; cousin A. E. Wright; Emily A. Mitchell of Brooklyn, New York; Annie E. Stockwell at South Britain, Connecticut; Walter J. Webb; Annie M. Upton of Salem, Massachusetts; members of the Gilbert family at Nichols Farms; and William H. Sage of New Haven.

The papers include a pre-printed pocket diary of Ellen E. Stiles, covering the year of 1856, in which she recorded visits of family and friends, church attendance, letters sent and received, parties, and other aspects of her daily life. A book or reading list is tucked into the back of the volume.

S. J. "Jennie" Whiting kept a memory album between 1848 and 1858, containing autographs, poetry, sentiments, pre-printed illustrations, and original watercolor illustrations of flowers by F. L. Norton.

The collection concludes with a poem by Harriet Lavina Wheeler, beginning "Within a house not far from town..." (undated); two folders of receipts and other financial miscellany of Alice and Ellen Stiles; three newspaper clippings; one oval photograph portrait of Jennie Whiting, and three printed items.

The Stringfellow family papers include correspondence, diaries, financial documents, legal documents, and photographs related to the family of pro-slavery Baptist minister Thornton Stringfellow of Culpeper County, Virginia. Some of the material pertains to legal disputes over slaves and property from Stringfellow's estate. The collection contains testimonies by former slaves.

The Stringfellow family papers contain 82 items related to the family of pro-slavery Baptist minister Thornton Stringfellow of Culpeper County, Virginia, including letters, diaries, financial records, and legal documents. Some of the material pertains to legal disputes over slaves and property from Stringfellow's estate.

The Correspondence series (13 items) contains several letters later used as evidence in legal proceedings between James M. Spindle and James L. Stringfellow over Reverend Thornton Stringfellow's estate. James L. Stringfellow wrote his uncle, Reverend Thornton Stringfellow, about the Summerduck property. His letters provide information about agricultural production, slaves' health, and his personal finances. Other items include incoming business letters to James L. Stringfellow.

Two Diaries belonged to Reverend Thornton Stringfellow and Susie Stringfellow. Thornton Stringfellow composed sporadic entries in his diary between 1845 and 1863. The earlier entries pertain to the founding meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention, held in Augusta, Georgia, in 1845, and the later entries concern his retirement and farm life. During the Civil War, Stringfellow wrote briefly about military actions, and disparaged the "Yankee Army." On May 30, 1863, he distributed pro-slavery pamphlets to Union soldiers passing his Bel Air estate. In October 1863, he wrote about his slaves' disappearance, which he blamed on the Union Army for promising them food, property, education, and social equality, and for threatening them. After his slaves ran away, Stringfellow noted the ways in which his wife and granddaughter managed the household (October 6, 1863).

Susie Stringfellow's diary concerns her experiences teaching school in the fall of 1931. She recorded students' arrivals and commented on her work in a school infirmary. The volume has a set of unattributed notes about soldiers from the French and Indian War and about the American Revolution, as well as a family tree connecting Susie Stringfellow to the family of James Gaines.

The Documents series is divided into two subseries: Financial Documents and Legal Documents. Financial documents include receipts and checks (26 items) regarding the financial affairs of Reverend Thornton Stringfellow and James L. Stringfellow, with bank records, inheritance documents, accounts, and purchase receipts, and R. S. Stringfellow Estate Documents (10 items) that pertain to Stringfellow's estate and to his trustees.

The Legal Documents subseries (12 items) concerns property ownership, real estate, and estate administration. Six items (approximately 140 pages) are depositions made in a legal case between James M. Spindle and James L. Stringfellow regarding Reverend Thornton Stringfellow's estate. Spindle, the plaintiff, acted on behalf of Elizabeth Taliaferro Spindle, his deceased wife and a granddaughter of Thornton Stringfellow, and James L. Stringfellow was the Stringfellow estate's executor. Spindle claimed that he was owed money earned from land sales in Kentucky, and that he did not owe "bond" money for two slaves bought of James L. Stringfellow. He disputed an agreement between Thornton Stringfellow and James L. Stringfellow over the latter's use of the slaves and property at Summerduck and questioned the distribution of Summerduck's profits.

• E. D. Gibson (neighbor)
• P. P. Nalle (neighbor)
• George F. Stringfellow
• Martin S. Stringfellow
• Thornton Stringfellow
• George Timpson (former slave)
• Elizabeth Walker (neighbor)
• Lewis Williams (former slave)
• Sally Williams (former slave)

Additional items are legal statements from James M. Spindle and James L. Stringfellow, and documents that pertain to the disposition of the Summerduck estate in 1833 and 1853, to Thornton Stringfellow's estate, and to Mary Stringfellow's sale of a slave named "Susannah" (May 18, 1836).

• 8 cartes-de-visite of members of the Stringfellow family (undated)
• 3 cabinet card photographs of members of the Stringfellow family (undated)
• 2 silver gelatin prints depicting Petie Stringfellow's mother (20th century)

The Newspaper Clippings concern the deaths of Susie Stringfellow (ca. 1953) and Carrie Payne (July 14, 1960).

The collection focuses primarily on John Tailyour, a Scottish merchant who traveled to North America and Jamaica in the 1770s and 1780s to conduct business, before finally returning to his home in Scotland in 1792. His correspondence is heavily business related, centering especially on his trading of slaves, foodstuffs, and sundry goods. It also chronicles the current events in both Jamaica and the Empire. Many of Tailyour's correspondents debate the meaning and merit of the cessation of the slave trade in the late 18th century, as well as the military events of the American and Haitian revolutions, and of the Maroon rebellion of 1795. The papers also include letters between John and his family in Scotland regarding John's mixed-race Jamaican children. He sent three of his children to Britain to be educated, which caused much family concern. Tailyour's account books and financial papers relate both to his Jamaican estate and business, and to his Scottish estate, from which he received added income from rents. The accounts for this estate continue for several decades after Tailyour’s death in 1815. A number of disparate and miscellaneous letters, war records, photographs, and realia that belonged to various members of the extended Tailyour family date mainly from the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries.

The collection has three substantial parts. The most comprehensive and cohesive section is the one concerning John Tailyour, until his death in 1815. The second part contains business papers and accounts related to the Tailyour estate. The third part is the least integrated, and consists of a variety of family papers, photographs, military memorabilia, and other miscellanea.

The Tailyour papers date from 1743 to 2003, with the majority of the collection concentrating in the period from 1780 to 1840. Within these bulk dates, are the two largest portions of the collection: the correspondence and accounts of John Tailyour until his death in 1815, and the account records of the Tailyour estate after 1815.

Seven boxes contain John Tailyour's personal and business correspondence of 3757 letters. The letters focus on Tailyour's mercantile activities in the Atlantic market, especially on the slave trade, its profitability, and the threat posed by abolitionists. Tailyour's correspondence also chronicles personal and family matters, including the education and provision for his mixed-race children from Jamaica. In addition, the collection contains four of Tailyour's letter books of 1116 copies of retained letters that cover the period from 1780 to 1810, with the exception of the years 1786-7 and 1793-1803. In these letters, Tailyour's focus is business, particularly as it relates to the slave trade, but he also includes personal messages to his friends and family.

Tailyour's business papers contain 32 loose account records, as well as five account books documenting the years between 1789-90 and 1798-1816. These primarily concern his Kingston and Scottish estates, including the expense accounts and balance sheets for each, as well as the finances of his merchant activities during the period. Finally, 38 documents of probate records for John Tailyour mainly relate to his landed estate.

The latter portion of collection within these bulk years (1815-1840) also contains correspondence and accounts, although the 228 letters are almost entirely concerned with business accounts. These focus on Tailyour's estate after his death, with John's brother Robert as the main correspondent. Additional materials include 1761 business papers that chronicle the finances of the estate, 11 account books, and 6 hunting books. The business letters and account books detail the estate's expense accounts and receipts, as well as the balances for their annual crops, salmon fishing business, and profits derived from the rents collected on their land. The hunting books contain descriptive accounts of the family's hunts and inventories of their hunting dogs.

The third, and final, part of the collection consists of Tailyour family records (bulk post-1815), including 49 letters from various family members in the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries and five letterbooks, kept by Alexander Renny Tailyour and Thomas Renny Tailyour. 4 account books are also present kept by Alexander Renny Tailyour and others. Some of the records concern the First World War, including a group of prisoner-of-war records sent from Germany, and journals kept at home that detail news of the war, and daily domestic activities.

The family history documents include 64 genealogical records and 58 probate records. Many of the genealogical items are brief notes on family history, and sketches of the family tree, including a large family tree that spans several hundred years to the present day. The probate records contain one will from the late-nineteenth century, but are otherwise entirely concerned with John Tailyour's estate in the years immediately after his death.

Of the printed records, Memoirs of my Ancestors (1884), by Hardy McCall is a genealogy of the McCall family, and Tailyour's Marykirk and Kirktonhill's estates are described in two printed booklets, one of which is an advertisement for Kirktonhill's sale in the early-twentieth century. Other printed material includes 14 various newspaper clippings concerning the family over the years, and 12 miscellaneous items.

The illustrations, artwork, and poetry comprise 14 fashion engravings, 12 sailing illustrations, a picture of a hunting cabin, two silhouettes, and a royal sketch, all of which date from the early- to mid-nineteenth century. Kenneth R. H. Tailyour's sketches are represented in two sketch books created in his younger years (1917 and 1920). Loose records of poetry, as well as a book of poems from George Taylor, are in this section.

The 221 photographs are of the Tailyour family from the late-nineteenth to the twentieth century, with the majority falling in the early decades of the twentieth century. Most are portraits of the Tailyour family from the early twentieth century, particularly Kenneth R. H. Tailyour.

The 138 pieces of ephemera are, for the most part, postcards of foxhunts during the nineteenth century. These announce the almost-weekly family foxhunts during the middle years of the nineteenth century. The 19 items of realia, include Robert Taylor's quill pen from 1826.

The audio-visual portion of the collection contains three items: a compact disc with an audio interview of John Dann, Director of the Clements Library, on National Public Radio's "The Todd Mundt Show;" a compact disc with photos of the West Indies; and a collection of photographs of the Tailyour papers in their uncatalogued state, and of the festivities surrounding the acquisition of the collection.

Finally, miscellaneous material of 18 pieces includes Robert Taylor's commonplace book of short stories, letters, and poems; the catalogue of Robert Taylor's books; James Tailyour's 1771 style and form book; and a communion book.

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.

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.