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Collection

Winnie Ruth Judd papers, 1931-1933

0.25 linear feet

This collection is made up of correspondence, legal documents, and newspaper clippings related to Winnie Ruth Judd and George W. Stephens. Judd was sentenced to death after being found guilty of the murder of her friend and roommate Agnes LeRoi, but avoided capital punishment after being declared insane at a later trial. The focus of the collection is on Judd's mental health and her second trial.

The Correspondence series consists of incoming and outgoing letters of George W. Stephens (24) and Winnie Ruth Judd (5). Stephens, superintendent of the Arizona State Hospital, sent and received 24 letters in the early 1930s. On June 13 and November 4, 1931, he wrote to George S. Adams of Yorkton State Hospital in South Dakota, discussing his salary, hospital funding, and his involvement as a witness in a murder trial. The remaining items are letters that Stephens received from various correspondents about his involvement with the Judd trial and his work at the hospital. Some criticized Stephens for testifying on behalf of Judd at her insanity trial and otherwise discussed the mental health aspects of the case. One correspondent suggested that exposure to aluminum had contributed to Judd's insanity (February 10, 1932), and a longtime acquaintance of the Judd family suggested that Winnie had always been slightly unstable (April 15, 1933). Additional items include a lengthy letter from Juanita Rose Baker, possibly a patient at the Napa State Hospital in Imola, California (January 30, 1932), and an open letter from H. C. Reichenbach of Detroit, Michigan, to the "Supreme Justice" about the religious aspects of capital punishment (April 16-17, 1933).

Winnie Ruth Judd wrote letters to George W. Stephens on October 17 and December 30, 1932. She complained of her poor treatment by "Dr. Stewart," including her imprisonment in a "death cell" where she could hear executions, and thanked Stephens for his assistance in her case. In letters to H. Richardson (October 26, 1932) and her husband, William C. Judd ([December 7, 1932]), she discussed her many health problems and related treatments. Judd received an unsigned letter of support dated December 12, 1932.

The Legal Documents series (13 items) contains materials related to Winnie Ruth Judd's physical and mental health around the time of her murder and insanity trials. Some items mention family members' own mental health issues. Items include a judge's decision regarding Judd's initial appeal of her conviction and sentence (December 12, 1932), and undated transcripts of testimonies by Dr. H. E. Pinkerton and George W. Stephens, both of whom believed that Judd suffered from dementia praecox.

The Newspaper Clippings and Other Printed Items series (37 items) is made up of articles related to the murders of Agnes LeRoi and Hedvig Samuelson and to Winnie Ruth Judd's trials. The materials cover several aspects of the case, including initial reports of the murders, lawyers and other legal personnel involved in Judd's trials, and trial proceedings and judgments. Some materials concern Jack Halloran, a Phoenix businessman and acquaintance of the three women who may have been involved in the murders. Included is Burton McKinnell's printed defense of his sister, entitled "The Truth About Winnie Ruth Judd."

The Photograph is a studio portrait of a young boy.

Collection

Williamson family collection, 1862-1918

0.5 linear feet

The Williamson family collection is made up of 9 bound volumes pertaining to Clara Gurley Williamson, her daughters Ruth and Mary, and other members of the Williamson family of New Brunswick, New Jersey. The items include diaries, financial records, a newspaper clipping scrapbook, and a photograph album.

The Williamson family collection is made up of 9 bound volumes pertaining to Clara Gurley Williamson, her daughters Ruth and Mary, and other members of the Williamson family.

The D. Abeel Williamson Diary, composed in a pre-printed pocket diary, contains David Abeel Williamson's daily entries about his life in New Brunswick, New Jersey, from January 1, 1862-May 25, 1862, and about his experiences with the 7th New York Militia Regiment from May 26, 1862-August 27, 1862. His early entries mainly record the weather and his social activities; he mentioned his admission to the bar in his entries of May 21, 1862, and May 22, 1862. A newspaper clipping about the surrender of Fort Donelson is pasted into the entries for February 16, 1862, and February 17, 1862. During his time in the army, Williamson noted the hot weather near Washington, D.C., and Baltimore, Maryland, and mentioned other aspects of military service, such as guard duty, marching, and reviews. A commuter's ticket for the "New Jersey Rail Road" is laid into the volume's pocket.

The Hattie S. Williamson Memorandum Book contains financial records of collections that the Second Reformed Dutch Church Sunday School of New Brunswick, New Jersey, received from November 26, 1865-June 16, 1867. The amount of each donation is recorded next to the donor's name. Other records pertain to the Sunday school's accounts with the Novelty Rubber Company and the church's efforts to raise money for an organ.

The Clara Gurley Account Book, kept from July 9, [1875]-April 16, 1880, contains accounts for Gurley's purchases of items such as books, ribbon, fabrics, and buttons. A piece of fabric is pinned onto the book's final page.

The first Clara Gurley Williamson Diary, written in a pre-printed Excelsior volume, covers the year 1905. Williamson began writing in Dresden, Germany, where she had lived with her children since late 1903, and recounted her daily activities and news of acquaintances. In April, she and her children took an extended tour of Europe, including Austria, Switzerland, Italy, France, and Holland, where Williamson remarked on visits to museums and other points of interest. The entries from August concern the family's return to the United States on the Holland-American Line steamer Ryndam and their first months back in New Brunswick, New Jersey, and Indianapolis, Indiana. Williamson kept a record of letters written and received and acquaintances' addresses in the volume's memoranda section. She laid newspaper clippings, a letter, calling cards, small photographs, stamps, and other items in the volume. The final page of the diary contains a newspaper clipping about the Williamsons' return to the United States and intention to relocate to Indianapolis.

The Mary Williamson Diary recounts the author's travels through Europe from April 10, 1905-August 11, 1905. Williamson described her daily activities and sightseeing in cities such as Prague, Munich, Venice, Rome, and Paris, as she visited museums and places of historical importance with her mother and sister. The diary includes a list of books Williamson read from 1907-1908 and a list of addresses of European hotels.

The Ruth A. Williamson Diary pertains to the author's experiences and travels in England from June 7, 1909-September 3, 1909. She spent most of her time in London; some later entries mention travels around southern England and to Edinburgh, Scotland. Williamson most frequently wrote about sightseeing and visiting famous landmarks, but also commented on other activities, such as shopping. Ruth A. Williamson's calling card is laid into the volume.

The second Clara Gurley Williamson Diary, also in a pre-printed Excelsior volume, contains daily entries about Williamson's life in Indianapolis, Indiana, from January 1, 1918-April 2, 1918. Williamson commented on her social activities, her health, and news of her friends and family members, especially her children. She occasionally mentioned news of the war, such as the signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (February 22, 1918). Financial records and instructions for knitting a "Kitchener sock" are written in the back of the volume. Items laid in include a calling card for Charles G. Williamson containing his military address, a cloth United States flag mounted on a small wooden dowel, and clippings about the deaths of Henry Janeway Hardenburgh and Douw D. Williamson. A postcard with a painting of Waikite Geyser in New Zealand, addressed to A. Parsons in London, England, is also laid into the diary.

The Scrapbook (1860s-1880s) is comprised of newspaper clippings about numerous topics, including biographies of William Gurley and biographical notices about other members of the Gurley family, such as Clara Gurley Williamson and Esther Gurley Cook. Some clippings feature prominent individuals such as Ulysses S. Grant, Charles Dickens, and Louisa May Alcott. Items report national news, news from Troy, New York, and stories about Emma Willard and the Troy Female Seminary. Additional topics include poetry, international travel, and stamp collecting.

A Photograph Album contains 42 carte-de-visite photographs, 2 lithographs, and 1 tintype print. Most of the photographs are studio portraits of men, women, and children, including many members of the Gurley family and related families. Most of the pictures are dated 1866-1880, though the album includes a 1902 photograph of Charles G. Williamson in a military uniform.

Collection

William R. Antis collection, 1893-1961 (majority within 1917-1919)

29 items

This collection pertains to William Ray Antis (1887-1943) of Detroit, Michigan, who served in the 484th Aero Squadron of the American Expeditionary Forces during World War I. The collection includes eight letters to his mother Jessie Antis Germond, two military documents, a scrapbook of postcards kept during his time in France, photographs, two printed maps, three books, and four cloth/embroidered/painted-cloth items (incl. sergeant's stripes and a handkerchief case). The materials also include items from 1961 related to Sergeant Antis' daughter Dorothy J. Antis and Gerald "Jerry" Dumas, including original artwork from a Beetle Bailey comic strip.

This collection pertains to William Ray Antis (1887-1943) of Detroit, Michigan, who served in the 484th Aero Squadron of the American Expeditionary Forces during World War I. The collection includes eight letters to his mother Jessie Antis Germond, two military documents, a scrapbook of postcards kept during his time in France, photographs, two printed maps, three books, and four cloth/embroidered/painted-cloth items (incl. sergeant's stripes and a handkerchief case). The materials also include items from 1961 related to Sergeant Antis' daughter Dorothy J. Antis and Gerald "Jerry" Dumas, including original artwork from a Beetle Bailey comic strip.

Antis wrote to his mother from San Antonio from December 1917 to January 1918; Aviation Branch, Virginia, in February 1918; and unspecified locations in France from May 1918 to December 1918. He wrote about his training in Texas, inoculation, carpentry, anticipation of leaving for the front, French farming and villages, expectation of getting a YMCA with a separate entertainment space, women's ability to wear service stripes corresponding to sons' and husbands' ranks, and more. He wrote several letters on printed "WITH THE COLORS" YMCA stationery. A final document is William R. Antis' selective service registration certificate, April 24, 1942, Detroit, Michigan.

One World War I era scrapbook contains largely souvenir picture photographs, with a number of greeting postcards, from Arcis-Sur-Aube, Vinets, Ramerupt, Lhuître, Mailly-le-Camp, Longeaux, Villers-Le-Sec, Ligny-en-Barrois, Bar-Le-Duc, Foug, Pagney-derrière-Barine, Bicqueley, Domgermain, Verdun, and Bezonvaux. The volume also includes several photographs and a French Woodrow Wilson postcard bearing a mounted silk portrait of the U.S. President.

The collection's newspaper clippings include recognition for Antis' service stripes and a published excerpt of one of his letters from France. It also includes two large, printed, detailed maps of France. A photographic portrait of William R. Antis is present.

A bundle of three items relate to Gerald "Jerry" Dumas during his visit to see his parents in Detroit in the spring of 1961. It includes a newspaper clipping and a manuscript letter from Jerry to Dorothy June Antis, accompanied by the original artwork for a 1960 Beetle Bailey comic strip.

Collection

William L. Babaian collection, 1969-1976

26 items

The William L. Babaian collection is made up of correspondence, photographs, greeting cards, and newspaper clippings related to Babaian's life, including his service with the United States Army during the Vietnam War.

The William L. Babaian collection is made up of correspondence, photographs, greeting cards, and newspaper clippings related to Babaian's life and army service during the Vietnam War. The 16 items in the Correspondence series document his second term of military service. He wrote to his sister and brother-in-law, Marguerite and George Harms of Ann Arbor, Michigan, about his family. Several letters relate directly to his army experiences, including a lengthy letter in which he described his medical clinic in Vietnam (December 31, 1969) and a letter attaching two reports he composed on soldiers' health and obesity (February 10, 1970). He often attached photographs of his wife, children, and locations in Vietnam. A postcard depicts the Japanese "Aquapolis" from the 1975 World's Exposition.

Four additional Photographs show Babaian in uniform during each of his two terms of military service. The collection's Greeting cards are a humorous birthday card Babaian sent to Marguerite Harms, and a Christmas card he wrote from Korea (long after his military service), in which he described his impressions while revisiting the country. The Newspaper clippings series includes 4 clippings regarding Babaian's educational and military accomplishments.

Collection

William H. Anderson family papers, 1828-1887 (majority within 1852-1875)

0.5 linear feet

The William H. Anderson Family Papers are made up of 177 letters, one manuscript map, 28 printed items, two photographs, and other materials of this Londonderry, New Hampshire, and Lowell, Massachusetts family. William Anderson wrote around 150 letters to his family and friends while at primary school in Londonderry, New Hampshire; Pembroke Academy in Pembroke, New Hampshire; Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts; Kimball Union Academy in Meriden, New Hampshire; and Yale College in New Haven, Connecticut. Anderson's correspondence includes 12 descriptive letters home from the Sligo cotton plantation near Natchez, Mississippi, where he worked as a teacher from 1859 to 1860, with content on plantation life, the enslaved workers, cotton processing, and educational matters. The remainder of the collection is William Anderson's post-Civil War letters, written while a lawyer in Lowell, and letters of Anderson's aunts Annis Nesmith Davidson and Anna B. Davidson Anderson Holmes from Londonderry and Wyoming County, New York.

The William H. Anderson Family Papers are made up of 177 letters, one manuscript map, 27 printed items, two photographs, and other materials of this Londonderry, New Hampshire, and Lowell, Massachusetts family.

The Correspondence Series. William Anderson wrote around 150 letters to his family and friends while at primary school in Londonderry, New Hampshire (5 letters, 1849-1850); Pembroke Academy at Pembroke, New Hampshire (15 letters, 1852-1853); Phillips Academy at Andover, Massachusetts (3 letters, 1853); Kimball Union Academy at Meriden, New Hampshire (19 letters, 1854-1855); and Yale College at New Haven, Connecticut (60 letters). The letters from Londonderry, Pembroke, Andover, and Meriden are filled with details about his curricula, course work, school uniforms, teachers, boarding houses, school uniforms, secret societies, local politics and political events (Whig and Democratic; he ran into Franklin Pierce on October 25, 1852), updates on friends and family, visits to nearby towns, and more. Anderson helped offset the cost of his education by taking on various farm jobs. Detailed letters to his parents, brother, and friend Mary A. Hine from Yale College similarly include content on curricula, course work, professors, societies, examinations, graduation, finances, and other aspects of being a student in higher education.

Upon graduation from Yale, he began work at the Sligo Plantation near Natchez, Mississippi, where he taught a school comprised of students from Sligo and the nearby Retirement Plantation, from 1859 to 1860. During this time, he wrote 12 letters home to his parents and to his future wife Mary A. Hine. He arrived at Bennett's Retirement Plantation in early September 1859, and shortly thereafter settled in at David P. Williams' Sligo Plantation. He described his relative isolation, loneliness, teaching and wages, corporal punishment, thoughts on slavery and the enslaved men and women on the plantation, games he played with his scholars, travel between the Sligo and Retirement plantations, and leisure activities such as hunting and horseback riding. In late December 1859, he provided a lengthy description of a (largely) steamboat trip to New Orleans with his students for Christmas.

Anderson noted that no poor white people lived between Sligo and Natchez; he was uncomfortable with the aristocratic lifestyle of white people living in the south, and expressed this view on multiple occasions in his correspondence (see especially September 30, [1859]). Although his father appears on list of members of the American Anti-Slavery Society, William H. Anderson did not write with disgust at slavery, but rather used racist epithets, accepted the "servants" who assisted him in various ways, and wrote unmoved about abuse doled out to children (see especially June 9, 1860). In one instance, he wrote about enslaved women who gathered near to the house in the evenings before supper to sing and dance (October 25, 1859). One of the highly detailed letters in the collection is William H. Anderson's description of the use of the cotton gin on the Sligo Plantation, which includes remarks on its history, its functioning, the various jobs performed by enslaved laborers, and the rooms in which the jobs took place. He included calls made by enslaved workers between floors of the "gin house" and the roles of elderly men and women in the grueling labor ([October 1859]). In 1860, Anderson planned to take a summer break in Tennessee and then teach another year, but on the death of his oldest scholar Susie (14 years old) by diphtheria, Williams decided against having a school the next year (July 4, 1860).

The remaining letters by William H. Anderson, dated 1861-1887, contain scattered information on family matters, such as visits and health. He wrote little of his law practice or his life in Lowell, Massachusetts. Anderson's correspondence includes a variety of printed letterheads and one inset map: a rough floorplan of the Brother's Society Hall (January 14, 1856); the printed letterhead "INGENIUM LABORE PERFECTUM" "YALE" of Sigma Delta (ca. August/September 1856 and July 10, 1858); a partially printed letter sheet beginning "IN order to secure the regular attendance...", respecting Anderson's discipline (July 20, 1857); and the printed letterhead "STEVENS & ANDERSON, Attorneys and Counsellors at Law" Lowell, Massachusetts (August 16 and September 27, 1872).

The collection includes around 25 letters by William Anderson's aunts Annis Nesmith Davidson (1801-1877) and Anna B. Davidson Anderson Holmes (1798-1875). Anna wrote alternately to her sister Jane Davidson Anderson and her sister-in-law Annis Davidson, from Londonderry, New Hampshire; Pike, New York; and Genesee Falls, New York, between 1828 and 1874. Her letters pertain largely to domestic life, boarders, troubles keeping hired girls (including Irish girls) to help with housework, news of family births, marriages, and deaths, local ministers, and her children's schooling. The few letters by Annis Davidson from Pike and Genesee Falls, New York, regard family updates and visiting.

The collection's Map, Receipt, and Photographs include a partially printed receipt for William Anderson's tuition and fees for the term ending April 14, 1857. The pencil map identifies particular buildings in New Haven, Connecticut, around where College, Temple, Church, Orange, and State streets intersect with Chapel and Crown streets. The photographs are cartes-de-visite of William Henry Anderson and "Annis Davidson Anderson Holmes" [most likely Anna B. Davidson Anderson Holmes].

The Printed Items are made up of materials largely pertaining to William Anderson's time at Yale College. These include:

  • BROTHERS IN UNITY. Prize Debate in the Class of 1859, January 12, 1856. William H. Anderson listed as a participant.
  • JUNIOR EXHIBITION. Class of 1859, April 6, 1858, invitation to Mary Hine, with William H. Anderson listed as a speaker.
  • JUNIOR EXHIBITION. YALE COLLEGE, April 6, 1858 (E. Hayes, printer), program.
  • INITIATION, June 11, 1858, program, with manuscript annotations identifying an oration delivered by W. H. Anderson.
  • James Robinson & Co. (Boston, Mass.) printed letter requesting information about academies, [1858].
  • FIFTY-NINE. 'Oυ δοκέιν αλλ' είναι. Presentation Songs, June 15, 1859 (Morehouse & Taylor, printers).
  • YALE COLLEGE. PRESENTATION OF THE CLASS OF 1859, June 15, 1859 (Morehouse & Taylor, steam printers).
  • "Esto Perpetua." '62. Pow-wow OF THE CLASS OF '62, June 15, 1859 (Morehouse & Taylor, printers).
  • '59. OWLS FROM THE NORTH!, July 17, 1859, flier/advertisement.
  • DE FOREST ORATIONS, June 17, 1859, flier.
  • CATALOGUE OF THE OFFICERS AND STUDENTS IN YALE COLLEGE . . . 1859-60. New Haven: E. Hayes, 1859.
  • JUNIOR EXHIBITION, April 3, 1860, order of exercises. New Haven: E. Hayes, 1860.
  • '61's INITIATION OF '62, pink heavy-stock card with a printed image of two anthropomorphic donkeys boxing.
  • CLASS CIRCULAR, March 20, 1862, seeking feedback from 1859 graduates in anticipation of their triennial meeting.
  • Class '63 Day, June 19, 1863, heavy-stock card invitation.
  • SONGS FOR THE THIRD ANNUAL SUPPER OF THE Yale Alumni Association, January 27, 1868.
  • "INGENIUM LABORE PERFECTUM" Sigma Delta symbol of a wreath surrounding a crown.
  • Annis Davidson visiting card.

The remaining printed items include four copies of an engraved portrait of William H. Anderson by W. T. Bather of N.Y. and published by The Lewis Publishing Co., and five newspaper clippings.

Collection

William Flick collection, [1874]-1958

27 items

This collection contains a diary, a 4-volume manuscript autobiography, 8 newspaper clippings, 2 court documents, and 15 photographs related to William Flick, a manual laborer who lived in Illinois, Oregon, and Idaho in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

This collection (27 items) contains a diary, a 4-volume manuscript autobiography, 8 newspaper clippings, 2 court documents, and 15 photographs related to the life of William Flick, a manual laborer.

Between November 2, 1916, and January 30, 1917, William Flick kept a Diary detailing his travels on an Illinois canal, his hunting expeditions, and his work as a clam digger. He wrote about traveling with his brother, Albert, and working on his boat.

William Flick's Autobiography, composed in 4 spiral-bound notebooks in 1958, begins with his birth in 1872 and documents his work and movements throughout his teenage and adult years. In his narrative, which he claimed to have written "because I don't think any one [sic] around here has made a success of as many ocupations [sic] as I have," Flick reminisced about his family, jobs, and acquaintances in Illinois, Oregon, and Idaho, and shared observations about his life. The final volume of the autobiography contains Flick's reflections on some of the technological and social changes he witnessed during his lifetime.

The Documents and Newspaper Clippings series (10 items) contains a summons and a deposition from Ogle County, Illinois, related to Albert Flick, as well as 8 newspaper clippings related to William Flick and his family. The clippings document family news and deaths, including the accidental death of Flick's daughter Flossie.

Fifteen Photographs depict William Flick and his family, including several taken during Flick's time as a logger in Creswell, Oregon, and as a clam digger in Illinois, as well as one taken in front of a carpenter's shop in Chicago, Illinois. One portrait shows Marlow Flick in his Navy uniform. Four items are photographic postcards.

Collection

William D. Workman collection, 1957

42 items

This collection contains correspondence, newspaper clippings, a typescript, and a photograph related to William D. Workman's appearance on a television program about the integration of schools in the South, originally aired on September 29, 1957. Workman received 23 responses over the following days. Writers most frequently expressed their support of segregated schools, and many also commented on race relations and other political issues concerning the South.

This collection contains correspondence, newspaper clippings, a typescript, and a photograph related to William D. Workman's appearance on a television program about the integration of schools in the South, originally aired on September 29, 1957. Workman received 23 responses over the following days. Writers most frequently expressed their support of segregated schools, and many also commented on race relations and other political issues concerning the South.

Most items in the Correspondence and Newspaper Clippings series are letters of thanks Workman received shortly after his television appearance. Viewers and listeners sent 23 acknowledgments in letters, postcards, and telegrams, most written on September 30, 1957. Though the overwhelming majority of correspondents provided positive feedback, one provided a strongly negative response. Most letters originated from viewers in southern states, who lauded Workman for his comments on the effects of integration policies on the South, and often expressed their own opinions and thoughts on racial issues and on relations between the North and South. Writers overwhelmingly supported segregation. Many referred to the right to self-governance, and a man named Ed. C. Dennis, Jr., jokingly referred to the possibility of South Carolina seceding from the Union. One woman also noted her father's service in the Confederate Army, and many writers commented on recent desegregation attempts in Little Rock, Arkansas. A few correspondents also shared their feelings, usually negative, about Jews and Catholics. Workman received newspaper clippings and pamphlets on similar topics, particularly on religious and political issues; one took exception to the upcoming film Island in the Sun, which featured interracial romances. The series also holds a bundled group of letters between Workman and producers at CBS, who thanked him for his participation in the program.

The Typescript and Photograph series contains a typescript of the "Report on Integration," which aired on CBS television on September 29, 1957, and on CBS radio on September 30, 1957, as well as a black-and-white photograph of the panel participants.

Collection

Weld-Grimké family papers, 1740-1930 (majority within 1825-1899)

14 linear feet

The Weld-Grimké family papers consist of correspondence, diaries, notebooks, autobiographical documents, printed materials, photographs, realia, and newspaper clippings. The collection addresses such subjects as abolition, women's rights, temperance, religion, education, and the lives of members of the Weld-Grimké family, including Sarah and Angelina Grimké and Theodore Weld. In addition to this finding aid, the Clements Library has created a comprehensive writer index, which identifies letters acquired by the Clements Library in 2012 and letters published in Barnes and Dumond: Weld-Grimké Family Papers Writer Index.

The Weld-Grimké family papers contain approximately 3,200 items spanning 1740 to 1930, with the bulk concentrated between 1825 and 1899 (14 linear feet total). They form a record of the lives of abolitionists Sarah Moore Grimké, Angelina Emily Grimké Weld, and Theodore Dwight Weld, and they offer insight into the lives of the Welds' children: Charles Stuart Faucheraud Weld, Theodore Grimké Weld, and Sarah Grimké Weld. The collection includes 2,889 letters, nearly 200 newspaper clippings, 16 diaries, 39 notebooks and other writings, a manuscript biography of Theodore Weld, 37 loose photographs, 2 photograph albums, 17 valentines, and 13 objects and ephemeral items. The papers are a valuable source of information on the major reform and political issues of the 19th century, and they provide extensive documentation on the personal lives and activities of the Weld and Grimké families. Although anti-slavery movements and abolitionism are central themes in the papers, the collection includes material on women's rights, the American Colonization Society, temperance, political philosophy, religious introspection and commentary, education, literature, health and dietary reform efforts, spiritualism, and a wide array of other subjects.

In June 2012, descendants of the Weld family donated 961 hitherto unresearched letters to the Library, which focus on Sarah M. Grimké, Angelina and Theodore Weld, and the Weld children and grandchildren between 1853 and 1900 (these letters are included in the quantities of items listed above). The 2012 acquisition has an emphasis on the legacy of the anti-slavery activists, women's rights activism, temperance, family dynamics and activities, physical and mental health, and education.

The Correspondence series spans 1740-1930 (bulk 1819-1900) and contains 2,985 items (seven linear feet). The correspondence is physically arranged in one chronological sequence, although the following summary is divided into two components: Letters acquired by the Clements Library before 2012 (1) and letters acquired as part of the 2012 addition (2).

1. Weld-Grimké family correspondence acquired by the Clements Library before 2012

Prior to 2012, the Weld-Grimké family papers included 2,024 letters, dating mostly between 1819 and 1900, and relating predominantly to the lives and activities of Theodore Dwight Weld, Angelina E. Grimké, Sarah M. Grimké, and their network of correspondents.

Theodore Weld received letters from an array of prominent anti-slavery activists, including the Grimké sisters, Lewis Tappan, Gerrit Smith, Elizur Wright, Jr., Beriah Green, James Armstrong Thome, Sarah Mapps Douglass, Lydia Maria Child, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucy Stone, Charles G. Finney, James Birney, Wendell Phillips, William Lloyd Garrison, Henry B. Stanton, Sereno Wright Streeter, Theodore Erastus Clarke, Dioclesian Lewis, and Samuel Dorrance. Many letters document Weld's friendship and working relationship with Charles Stuart. Letters of Theodore's parents, siblings, and other family members are also present.

From approximately 1821 to 1836, letters pertaining to Weld refer to his early pursuit of a career in the ministry, his association with temperance, and his early anti-slavery activities. Weld and his correspondents discussed the Colonization Society, Weld's near drowning accident in the Alum River in 1832, and his attendance at the Oneida Institute, Lane Theological Seminary, and Oberlin College. In addition to his work as an itinerant speaker on behalf of the American Anti-Slavery Society (AASS), incoming letters show that he received numerous requests to lecture at anti-slavery and temperance societies. His correspondence refers to threats of violence against abolitionists and sheds light on the activities of the AASS.

Weld's correspondence with the Grimké sisters began in 1837. His letters to and from the sisters, especially Angelina, primarily concern women's rights and abolition. Weld's attitude was frequently didactic, and his letters convey much advice to the sisters on becoming political activists. On February 8, 1838, Weld wrote a letter to Angelina declaring his love for her; most of the correspondence between this time and May 1838 revolves around their courtship and wedding. Their wedding certificate, dated May 14, 1838, is present in the collection's series of documents.

Correspondence from 1839 to 1844 is mainly concerned with Weld's publications, American Slavery As It Is andThe Anti-Slavery Almanack , as well as the Amistad court case in 1841. Correspondence with Angelina and Sarah during Weld's brief tenure in Washington, D.C, highlights his work with John Quincy Adams, Joshua Reed Giddings, and others in keeping the slavery question a subject of debate in Congress. The Welds' adoption of the "Graham diet" is discussed in letters of this period.

The years between 1845 and 1853 marked a time of transition for Weld as he began his career as a schoolmaster. Charles Stuart's letters to Weld indicate an increasingly strained friendship, and although Weld still corresponded with other abolitionists, fewer letters address the issue of slavery during the late 1840s and early 1850s. From 1854 to 1867, Weld corresponded mostly with his children. He also received many letters from former pupils, many of whom referenced their educations at Eagleswood. Letters from 1868 to 1895 revolve around the legacy of the abolition movement and family life. Weld began to receive letters from fellow aging abolitionists and their children, especially to offer condolences after the deaths of Sarah and Angelina.

Prior to the Clements Library's 2012 addition, the papers included over 500 letters by and over 250 letters to Sarah and Angelina Grimké. The sisters were introspective writers and typically sent detailed and lengthy letters to their friends and family members. This correspondence provides insight into major events in their lives, such as their struggles with religious identity, their speaking tour throughout Massachusetts in 1837, and the births of Angelina's children. They often discussed books they had read, such as Woman and Her Era by Eliza Wood Farnham, or public talks they had attended. Among their correspondents were Sarah M. Douglass, Jane Smith, Julia A. Tappan, Rachel and Mira Orum, Elizabeth Pease, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Elizabeth Smith Miller, Susan Wattles, Sarah Wattles, Augustus Wattles, Harriot Kezia Hunt, their brother Frederick Grimké, and others.

From 1825 to 1830, the sisters discussed and reflected extensively on religion. Letters during this period are especially pertinent to Angelina's religious conversions, first to the Presbyterian faith and later to Quakerism. Correspondence between 1831 and 1835 includes content on Society of Friends meetings and Angelina's encounters with Catherine Beecher. Thomas Smith Grimké and Hester Snowdon, a slave whom Angelina had known in Charleston, also wrote letters in the later 1820s.

Between 1835 and 1837, the Grimké correspondence documents the beginnings of the sisters' involvement in the anti-slavery movement. Several items refer to Angelina's published letter to William Lloyd Garrison and others pertain to her bookAppeal to the Christian Women of the South . The majority of letters written in 1837 and 1838 concern abolitionism and women's rights issues, highlighting the difficulties Angelina and Sarah encountered as female abolitionists and public figures. Some of the correspondents with whom the sisters discussed these issues include Sarah L. Forten, Sarah M. Douglass, Henrietta Sargent, Theodore Weld, Jane Smith, and Elizabeth Pease. One letter dated March 30, 1838, was written by Nancy Adams, a formerly enslaved woman living in Uxbridge, Massachusetts, recounting her life story and escape from slavery.

Angelina and Sarah received 16 letters from their mother, Mary Smith Grimké, in 1838 and up to her death in 1839. The letters reveal the sisters' continued involvement in abolition, especially the time they spent conducting research forAmerican Slavery As It Is . Motherhood, domesticity, and Angelina's children were frequent topics of discussion, especially from 1839 to 1847. Between 1848 and 1863, Sarah exchanged two dozen letters with physician and women's rights advocate Harriot Kezia Hunt; Frederick Grimké; and Augustus, Susan, and Sarah Wattles. In addition to discussing abolition and women's rights issues, they also wrote about spiritualism, religion, politics, and other intellectual topics.

2. 2012 Addition to the Weld-Grimké Family Papers correspondence

The 961 letters from the Clements Library's 2012 acquisition span 1853 to 1899, with the bulk dating between 1862 and 1899. The addition is comprised primarily of the incoming correspondence of Angelina and Theodore Weld's daughter Sarah Grimké Hamilton (neé Weld) and her daughter, Angelina Grimké Hamilton, in whose wooden trunk the papers were preserved. At least 75 different writers contributed to the newly discovered body of letters; the most prolific correspondents include Theodore Dwight Weld, Angelina Grimké Weld, Sarah Moore Grimké, William Hamilton, Charles Stuart Weld, and Anna Harvell Weld. The Weld children also corresponded with their parents' associates, including Lucy Stone, James Armstrong Thome, and Henry B. Blackwell. This correspondence is largely family-focused, with content on race relations, women's rights, temperance, and the legacy of the anti-slavery activists and movements. Please note that the following numbers of letters attributed to individuals in this section only include those from the collection's 2012 acquisition.

Theodore Dwight Weld wrote approximately 180 letters between 1857 and 1893. He wrote to his daughter Sarah and granddaughter Angelina Hamilton extensively, offering advice on education, reassurance about Sarah's intellectual development, news about his activities and current events, family and financial matters, and recollections of his younger days. He referenced major sociopolitical issues of the time, such as women's suffrage and temperance (with content on the Woman's Christian Temperance Union). Weld wrote about and provided updates on many family members and friends, including the Shepards, the Birneys, Archibald Grimké, Francis Grimké, Charles Stuart Weld, Anna Harvell Weld, William Hamilton, Angelina Hamilton, and Angelina Grimké Weld.

Notable letters include:

  • Series of five letters related to his 1862-1863 lecture tour, including a November 23 letter respecting his speech at Boston's Music Hall. Following the lecture, Senator Charles Sumner thanked Weld profusely for his The Power of Congress Over the District of Columbia (1838) and remarked on recent interviews with President Lincoln over the subject of emancipation. His letter to Sarah Weld dated [November] 24, 1862, contains remarks on a visit with John Greenleaf Whittier.
  • May 20, 1863: Mentions a combat injury sustained by James G. Birney's son David Bell Birney ("All the Birneys were in the thick of the fight at Chancellorsville").
  • His letters addressed the ill-will that developed between Sarah and her sister-in-law, Anna Harvell Weld. Theodore Weld's remarks on the relationship and his efforts to understand the tension may be found especially in his letters of April 30, 1877; February 23, 1883; and July 12, 1890.
  • January 26, 1880: Discusses his lectures on women's suffrage.
  • January 6, 1883: Reflects on the death of Mary Anna, with remarks on the emancipation of "Aunty Betsey Dawson" in the 1820s and on Mary Anna's moral courage and self-sacrifice.
  • July 25, 1885: Reassures his pregnant daughter, who had expressed fears about dying in childbirth.

Angelina E. Grimké Weld's approximately 260 letters date from 1857 to 1878 (over 170 of them undated). She sent the majority of them to her daughter Sarah or granddaughter Angelina ("Nina"). The primary topics of conversation included food, housekeeping and home renovations, visiting lecturers, financial matters, health concerns, and politics. She also supplied news about Samuel Chace, Archibald Grimké, William Hamilton, Angelina Hamilton, Anna Harvell, the Haskells, the Mosleys, Gerrit Smith's family, the Philbricks, Charles Stuart Weld, Theodore Dwight Weld, and Theodore Grimké Weld.

Angelina Weld provided her daughter with motherly support, shown, for example, by an undated letter (January 20). In it, she addressed Sarah Weld Hamilton's concerns that "little Nina" showed preference to her father William Hamilton, by describing the jealousy she [Angelina] sometimes felt toward her sister Sarah M. Grimké, whom she recognized as having a closer relationship with Angelina Weld's children than they had with their mother. Angelina assured her daughter that she understood her feelings--and that Angelina felt relief when Sarah Moore Grimké moved out of their household.

Angelina Weld wrote multiple letters about the presidential election of 1876, including a compelling discussion of President Hayes' Cabinet and the appointment of Frederick Douglass as Marshall of the District of Columbia. On the latter, she remarked that it must have been hard "for the Democrats to swallow this, and yet I suppose as politicians the hope of the Colored vote to help them into office in future" was a factor in Douglass' confirmation. She believed that the strife of party politics would ultimately work to resolve "the most difficult problem of our day," the reconciliation of the black and white races (March 18, [1877]).

Sarah Moore Grimké's letters to her niece Sarah Weld (later Hamilton), number roughly 100 and span 1853 to 1869 (bulk 1862-1869). Her letters to Sarah offer a glimpse into their relationship, in which Aunt Sarah demonstrated a deep interest in her niece's life, offering educational advice (see for example her undated letter in which she encouraged her niece to pursue courses that would lead to a diploma), expressing concern for Sarah's physical and mental well-being, and discussing her niece's financial concerns/school expenses. Sarah M. Grimké also kept her niece abreast of family news, including details about the mental health struggles of "Sodie"/"Sody" (Theodore Grimké Weld) and the family's efforts to "cure" him (see especially June 10, 1863, and August 22, 1875). She also discussed literature (including Les Miserables in three letters in 1862 and 1863) and politics. Sarah M. Grimké provided updates on and news about Theodore Grimké Weld, the Birneys, Gerritt Smith, Lucy McKim Garrison, Charles Stuart Weld, and Julia Tappan.

Sarah Moore Grimké sent two letters to her niece and nephews while in Washington, D.C., 1853-1854:

  • [December 26, 1853 or January 2, 1854?], to Sarah, Charles, and Theodore G. Weld: Offers vivid descriptions of the Capitol building, the Senate and House chambers, and the U.S. Supreme Court. She informed her niece and nephews that she sat in the Chief Justice's chair and proclaimed that perhaps a woman would someday occupy the seat--an act that "amused" her companions. She described the John Trumbull paintings in the Capitol rotunda and noted that the empty alcove would be suitable for another once the slaves were emancipated.
  • [March 3, 1854?], to Sarah Weld: Comments that she will be leaving the city soon, but has not yet visited Mount Vernon. She reconciles herself by noting that "although [George] Washington may have done right in his day, yet his achievements in the cause of liberty are connected with cruelty & slaughter, and fail to inspire the mind with that sacred feeling of reverence, which we experience in contemplating the characters of Howard & Fry, of Oberlin and Chisolm." She then describes an incident in which a tall, stalwart, and fiercely angry white man dragged a young African American boy onto the Capitol yard in order to beat him for an alleged verbal slight. Following Sarah Grimké's intervention, which prevented the battery, she followed the aggressor long enough to witness him greeting a young child with great tenderness and affection. The lesson of the experience, she informed her niece and nephews, was that "we are two beings just as the evil or the good spirit has possession of us...let us try to be always under the influence of the good."

Sarah Weld Hamilton's letters, about 120 in total, address women's rights and writing submissions to serials including the Independent (1869-early 1870s), her relationship with William Hamilton and her parents' disapproval of him (see especially October 28, 1869, and June 13, 1871), religion, and temperance. She later wrote about child rearing, family matters, visits to Cambridge and Boston (see especially October 21, 1891, in which she reminisces at length about her youth). Sarah included updates on and anecdotes about the Badger family, William Hamilton, Mary Livermore, the Blackwell family, her parents, Julia Ward Howe and her daughter Laura, "Lizzie" [Elizabeth A. L. Cram], Lucy Shepard, Thomas Hill, and Lucy Stone. Selected examples include:

  • November 29, 1869, to William Hamilton: Explanation of her views on women's roles, firmly stating her belief that women should be able to support themselves and not be dependent upon their husbands.
  • January 16, 1870, to William Hamilton: Description of Sarah Weld's responsibilities and fellow workers at the Woman's Journal office.
  • March 6, 1870, to William Hamilton: Mention of an "octogenarian Grimké" at a women's meeting and a reevaluation of her initial impressions of Julia Ward Howe.
  • March 13, 1870, to William Hamilton: Description of voting at Hyde Park with a group of women and the reactions of the men present. In her subsequent letters to William Hamilton, she remarks that he probably views the act as "play-voting," and offers her perspectives on the women's rights movement.
  • October 6-31, 1891, to Angelina Hamilton: Eight letters to her daughter while visiting Cambridge, Boston, and Hyde Park, with her father Theodore D. Weld. She offered lengthy recollections of her youth and discussed meetings with children and grandchildren of her parents' friends (Smiths, Wrights, Badgers, Garrisons, et al.), and provided explanations to help her daughter contextualize the information.

William Hamilton wrote about 40 letters between 1870 and 1899, primarily about his health, his wife Sarah's health and death, his daughter Angelina, and his work in various educational and occupational endeavors (ministry, law, trade, and lumbering). Of particular note are his letters to Sarah written while conducting business both in and around Washington D.C. A few examples include:

  • July 14, 1870 to Sarah Hamilton: discusses his recurring/continual health problems, which the doctor diagnosed as a disease "of a nervous character."
  • August 10, 1872-September 13, 1872, to Sarah Weld Hamilton: Twelve letters to his wife respecting travel and a visit to Washington, D.C., and his return trip to Boston. He described the city in detail, discussing government buildings, the city layout, and General Lee's house. He provided commentary on the presidential contest between Horace Greeley and incumbent president Ulysses S. Grant. On August 29, he noted: "the little I am able to gather about politics here, is that the Negroes are very nearly a unit for Grant--that the old Virginians are all nearly for Greeley and that more recent inhabitants are variously disposed."
  • November 6, 1898, to Angelina Hamilton: Discusses Angelina's ethical and spiritual concerns as they relate to practicing as a physician. Offers advice about the dangers of professional rivals, citing Dr. Luella Day as an example.
  • January 28, 1899-February 3, 1899, to Angelina Hamilton: Four letters respecting the final sickness ("brain hemorrhage" followed by a coma), death, and funeral of her mother.

Charles Stuart Faucheraud Weld's 10 letters date from 1868 to 1895 and primarily revolve around his duties/role as a son and brother. He wrote about US-European finance, Unitarianism and Dwight L. Moody, his aging parents' health, his efforts to help his brother Theodore engage with others, the death of Theodore D. Weld, and current writing. Charles Weld's wife Anna Harvell Weld sent approximately 50 letters between 1877 and 1895, and was a main source of news for Sarah Hamilton regarding the well-being of Sarah's father, Theodore Dwight Weld, and brother, Theodore G. Weld. Her correspondence also reflects the growing tension that existed between Sarah and herself. A later source of conflict was Sarah Weld Hamilton's desire to write a book about her father's life and her accompanying quest for supporting materials. Anna Harvell Weld also discussed Francis Grimké, Archibald Grimké, Theodore Dwight Weld, Theodore Grimké Weld, and Charles Stuart Weld. Examples of Anna Weld's letters include:

  • July 27, 1889, to William Hamilton: Asking for his assistance in stopping Sarah from writing a book about Theodore D. Weld.
  • February 12, 1890, to Sarah Hamilton: Anna tells Sarah that Theodore Dwight Weld does not want a book written about him.
  • February 16, 1892, to Sarah Hamilton: If someone is going to write about Theodore D. Weld, it should be his nephew, Archibald.
  • [postmarked February 3, 1894] to William Hamilton: Discussing Sody's living arrangements. Anna remarks that since Angelina Weld's death, no one has had control over Sody. She doesn't fully agree with sending him to an asylum and had hoped that William and Sarah Hamilton would take him. She refers to Sarah's claim that Sody had made an inappropriate advance towards Sarah, which Anna believes is either a misinterpretation or a faulty memory.

Angelina Grimké Hamilton wrote approximately 30 letters between 1878 and 1899, offering insight into her education and work towards becoming a physician. Her letters pertain to childhood activities, food, family, medical duties/work, and school. Of particular note are the letters she sent between December 9, 1892, and December 16, 1896, to Sarah, William, and Nettie Hamilton. In them, Angelina wrote about her time at Hahnemann Medical College and subsequent internship. She discussed her classes and clinical work, which included dressing a scalded arm, giving children vaccinations, and tending to a sprained ankle. She briefly mentioned visits to the Art Institute (March 5, 1893) and the Columbian Exhibition (February 19, 1893).

In 1868, the Grimké sisters discovered that they had nephews living in Washington, D.C. Although the Weld-Grimké Family Papers do not contain any letters by Archibald, and only two by Francis Grimké (October 31, 1879; November 6, [1879]), the correspondence does include many references to their education, activities, careers, and families. A few examples include:

  • July 31, 1868, Sarah Moore Grimké to Sarah Weld: Reference to her "newly found" nephews.
  • January 12, 1876, Theodore D. Weld to William and Sarah Hamilton: Brief remarks on Archibald Grimké's admission to the bar: "Mr. B. prophesies that A. will soon attain a position that few lawyers secure when so young. When he was admitted to the bar of the Supreme Court on motion of Mr. Sewall, he was warmly welcomed. One of the prominent lawyers, Mr. Shattuck took him by the hand and said 'Mr. Grimke welcome to our fraternity. From what I hear of you, I doubt not that you will be an honor to the Boston bar.'"
  • March 28, 1880, and May 1, 1880, Theodore D. Weld to Sarah Weld Hamilton: Remarks on the birth of Angelina Weld Grimké (NB: who would become a prominent writer, poet, and activist for African American rights in the 20th century).
  • February 23, 1883, Theodore D. Weld to Sarah Hamilton: Lengthy description of Francis Grimke's recent week-long visit, his sermon at the Orthodox Church, his Presbyterian congregation in Washington, D.C., and other subjects.
  • April 26, 1885, Theodore D. Weld to Sarah Hamilton: Theodore is the only person that has complete information about the departure of Archibald Grimké's wife Sarah Stanley and their daughter Angelina, outside the parties directly involved. While not at liberty to reveal much detail, Theodore provides Sarah with his perspectives on the separation.

The Diaries series contains 16 diaries: Nine by Sarah Grimké, seven by Angelina Grimké, and one by Louis Weld. Sarah's diaries date from 1819 to 1836 and they contain poetry, copies of Bible passages, and her thoughts on religion and marriage. She also reflected on women's issues, on her experiences as a Quaker, and about her daily experiences. Angelina's diaries date from 1828 to approximately 1835 and record her struggles with her transition between the Presbyterian and Quaker faiths, her relationship with Sarah, and her reasons for opposing slavery. The "Angelina Grimké Manuscript, 1832-1833" (beginning, "I think I have sincerely desired to receive a right qualification...") relates to her courtship with Edward Bettle, who died of cholera in 1832.

The Notebooks and Writings series consists of essays, lecture notes, and 39 notebooks kept by various members of the Weld-Grimké family. Theodore Weld's essays cover a diversity of subjects, including the oppression of women, Shakespeare's works, William Lloyd Garrison, abolition, and subjects related to political philosophy. Approximately eight notebooks belonging to Sarah are also in the collection; these include essays on women's political rights, the education of women, and the status of women in society. Her essays, "Sisters of Charity" and "The Condition of Woman" are some of the notebooks with titles. The series also includes Angelina's lecture notes and several undated autobiographical essays by Weld and his children. Of particular note is a biography of Weld written on 22 notepads by his daughter Sarah Grimké Weld Hamilton.

The Photographs series contains loose images in multiple photographic formats, including 18 cartes de visite, 17 cabinet cards, 5 developing out prints, 1 card mounted photograph, and 1 quarter-plate daguerreotype of the Weld-Grimké family by Greenleaf Weld. Also present are a Weld family album of cartes de visite and a photo album related to Eagleswood Academy, containing cartes de visite and tintypes.

The Printed Items series is made up of nearly 200 newspaper clippings, pamphlets, broadsides, and cards. The clippings mainly pertain to the topics of slavery and the abolition movement, although some also concern women's rights and the legacies of Theodore Weld and the Grimké sisters. Also included are family members' obituaries, including those of Sarah Moore Grimké. Nine family Bibles and Books of Common Prayer are also included, dating from 1740 to ca. 1921.

The Realia and Ephemera series contains several linear feet of three-dimensional objects associated with the Weld-Grimké family, including hair, Chinese ivory sewing box (gift of Benjamin Grimké), a cameo brooch, Angelina's eyeglasses and case, a silver Addison watch, a quilt presented by Eagleswood students, and a pocketknife belonging to Theodore Weld, a Chinese fan, a silhouette of Angelina G. Weld, and 17 elegant hand-cut valentines. Most of the items date to the mid-19th century.

In addition to this finding aid, the Clements Library has created a comprehensive writer index, which identifies letters acquired by the Clements Library in 2012 and letters published in Barnes and Dumond: Weld-Grimké Family Papers Writer Index.

Collection

Vashti Detwiler Garwood collection, 1827-1990 (majority within 1834-1896)

0.5 linear feet

This collection contains correspondence, diaries, ephemera, photographs, and other material related to Vashti Detwiler Garwood, a schoolteacher and physician in Ohio, Massachusetts, Kansas, and Michigan. The collection documents her experiences teaching school in Ohio and Massachusetts, as well as her coursework at the Boston University School of Medicine. Also included are additional photographs of her family and a published history of the Novy-Garwood families.

This collection (0.5 linear feet) contains correspondence, diaries, ephemera, photographs, and other material related to Vashti Detwiler Garwood. The material documents her experiences teaching school in Ohio and Massachusetts, as well as her coursework at the Boston University School of Medicine. Also included are additional photographs of her family and a published history of the Novy and Garwood families.

The Correspondence series is comprised of 16 personal letters between members of the Cannon family of Pennsylvania and members of the Detwiler and Garwood families. The Cannon siblings wrote and received three letters between 1862 and 1864, sharing recent news such as local deaths. Isaiah Cannon also informed his brother, D. H. Cannon, of his intention to enlist in the Union Army (February 1, 1864).

The remaining 13 letters relate to Vashti Detwiler Garwood, including several from her mother-in-law, Angeline Garwood (1805-1881), who reported family news from Lewisburg, Ohio. Vashti received a letter from Spencer Willard Garwood, her future husband, written while he served in the 132nd Ohio Infantry Regiment during the Civil War; he provided some of his impressions of the South and shared updates about his regiment (July 7, 1864). In one late letter, W. H. Berkey, editor of the Vigilant, responded to her letter concerning conditions within the Cassopolis Jail in Cassopolis, Michigan; the Women's Christian Temperance Union believed Garwood's previously printed letter a fraud, though a clipping attached to the letter respects the Vigilant's verification of her identity (September 19, 1896).

Vashti Detwiler Garwood kept 5 Diaries and Journals between 1858 and 1868, most of which concern her experiences as a schoolteacher in Ohio and Massachusetts, as well as the early years of her married life in Fort Scott, Kansas. She wrote sporadically until the fall of 1864, when she began composing entries more frequently. Some of the journals document overlapping periods of time. Along with her experiences, she often recorded her thoughts and emotions, frequently related to her religious beliefs and her relationships. Her small pocket journal, kept throughout 1860, also contains quotations, algebra problems, and financial accounts. One late, undated entry in the journal, written between January 1, 1859, and December 31, 1864, is a lament composed after her failed attempt to win admission to Mount Holyoke Female Seminary. Her final journal, kept between January 2, 1865, and September 8, 1868, occasionally refers to military developments during the Civil War, and contains a brief allusion to the assassination of Abraham Lincoln (April 15, 1865). The series also holds a typescript of diary entries written between January 16, 1864, and September 27, 1864, made from a diary in the collection.

The Writings are 4 jokes and humorous anecdotes, including 1 referencing Native Americans; 6 poems, often sentimental in nature; a list of quotations and a set of notes; an 8-page lesson on "The Rainbow," composed in a question-and-answer format; and 2 essays on writing compositions, totaling around 3 and a half pages. One of the latter compositions is signed by Vashti Detwiler Garwood.

The first subseries of Documents and Ephemera holds items related to Vashti Detwiler Garwood's studies at the Boston University School of Medicine between 1880 and 1881, including tickets verifying her membership in the class and permission to attend lectures, an order of lectures for 1880-1881, 2 commencement tickets, and several items attesting to her successful completion of individual courses. Other material includes a printed circular addressed to students, which states the faculty's commitment to the fair treatment of women (February 5, 1882); tuition receipts; and an event program, printed in Latin. Other Documents and Ephemera are three manuscript slips attesting to Hiram Garwood's good conduct in school, funeral notices, invitations, and 3 printed, colorful cards presented to Martha and Vashti Detwiler as "reward[s] of merit."

The Recipes series (5 items) contains several recipes, including 2 individual items and a three-page sheet containing many recipes, a fragment from a food-related account, and a bill of fare.

Visual Material (22 items) includes photographic portraits and snapshots of members of the Detwiler and Garwood families, both identified and anonymous; a photograph of President James A. Garfield; a postcard depicting the University of Michigan's 1908 commencement exercises, with Vashti Detwiler Garwood marked; and a colored illustration of a woman. The collection also contains a cased ambrotype portrait of Christian Detwiler and Vashti, his daughter, taken in the fall of 1853, and a bound "Souvenir of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania" containing several views of the town.

Printed Material (22 items) consists of 16 newspaper clippings, most of which contain poetry or recipes; an educational pamphlet entitled The Family Bible Teacher, number 18 in a series; a newsletter from the Greenwich Academy, which mentions an upcoming visit by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow; 1 of Vashti Detwiler Garwood’s calling cards; and 2 small cards printed with memory- and friendship-themed mottos.

Also included is a copy of the Novy-Garwood Family Record and Connections, a book published in 1990.

Artifacts include a leather wallet purchased by Christian Detwiler in 1827, a circular wooden box, a paper doll, and several outfits for the doll.

The collection also holds 6 pages of Genealogy notes.

Collection

Turner-Harlan family papers, 1725-1924 (majority within 1799-1924)

3.5 linear feet

The Turner-Harlan family papers are made up of correspondence, legal and financial documents, photographs, scrapbooks, genealogical information, and other materials spanning multiple generations of the Turner and Harlan families of Newport, Rhode Island, and Maryland. The collection particularly regards US Navy Surgeon Dr. William Turner (1775-1837), Commodore Peter Turner (1803-1871), Hettie Foster Harlan née Turner (1850-1937), and their relations.

Collection Scope and Content Note:

The Turner-Harlan family papers are made up of correspondence, legal and financial documents, photographs, scrapbooks, genealogical information, and other materials spanning multiple generations of the Turner and Harlan families of Newport, Rhode Island, and Maryland. The collection particularly regards US Navy Surgeon Dr. William Turner (1775-1837), Commodore Peter Turner (1803-1871), Hettie Foster Harlan née Turner (1850-1937), and their relations. The papers are arranged into five series: Turner Family Papers, Harlan Family Papers, Photographs, Printed Materials, and Turner-Harlan genealogical papers

The Turner Family Papers seriesconsists of 112 letters to and from members of the Turner family and their associates, five log books, and assorted ephemera, with most items dating between 1790 and 1860.

The Turner family Correspondence and Documents subseries contains 112 incoming and outgoing letters and documents of members of the Turner family between 1749 and 1871 (bulk 1799-1840s).

The largest coherent groups within this subseries are 40 letters and documents of Dr. William Turner (1775-1837), revolving largely around his military and medical careers between 1799 and 1837; and 49 letters and documents of Peter Turner (1803-1871), most of them letters to his parents while in naval training and service, 1820-1844. Selected examples from William Turner's manuscripts include:

  • August 2 and 13, 1752, letter by William Turner (1712/13-1754) to his father, written with mirrored lettering. He discussed his fears of small pox in Newark; the tremor in his right hand, which forces him to write with his left; and a 30-pound debt.
  • Christopher R. Perry's appointment of William Turner (1775-1837) as chief surgeon of the frigate General Greene, August 31, 1799.
  • An October 10, 1799, letter by Dr. William Turner from Cap François, Saint-Domingue, in which he relates Captain Perry's description of Toussaint Louverture.
  • A September 20, 1800, letter by Dr. Turner defending his assessment and actions relating to a yellow fever outbreak originating from the General Greene on its arrival in Newport, Rhode Island.
  • Oliver Hazard Perry ALS to his mother, ca. 1807-1808, informing her of the death of Benjamin Turner, who was killed in a duel over an argument about Shakespeare's plays.
  • A letter from Henry Fry respecting the personal effects of Dr. Peter Turner, who died of wounds sustained at Plattsburgh (October 17, 1813).
  • Three letters to Hettie Foster Turner from siblings Lillie and George Turner relate information about the health of family members in E. Greenwich, Rhode Island. One of these letters is dated October 18, 1813, the others are undated.
  • William Turner's December 23, 1814, letter to General Thomas Cushing, explaining that one condition of his current appointment must be permission to continue his private practice while also tending to garrison duty.
  • Three manuscript Portsmouth Marine Barracks countersign-watchword documents from August 22 and 24, and October 31, 1849. The August 24, 1849, countersign "Revolution" matched watchword "Cuba."
  • Family letters of Henry E. Turner, William C. Turner, George Turner, and others

The 49 letters and documents of Peter Turner are largely comprised of correspondence with his parents. Turner wrote as a midshipman aboard vessels in the West Indian and Mediterranean squadrons during the 1820s. He sent his most robust letters from Rio de Janeiro on July 10, 1826, and aboard the US Ship Falmouth on a voyage to Vera Cruz in 1828. Turner met the Erie at Vera Cruz, expecting to find his brother William C. Turner aboard, but the sibling had been left at Pensacola for unspecified reasons. Peter Turner received the disconcerting news of the death of a family member and wrote about his distress at not being able to return home. He updated his parents as he traveled to Pensacola and then the Navy Yard at Charleston, South Carolina. Later in 1828, he joined the US Ship Hornet on a voyage to Brooklyn; yellow fever took the lives of three midshipmen on the trip (November 19, 1828).

From 1828 to 1829, Peter Turner wrote from Brooklyn, where he became an officer in March 1829. The remainder of Peter Turner's correspondence and documents are scattered, including for example:

  • A May 4, 1828, letter respecting the estate of Dr. William Turner of Newport, Rhode Island.
  • A May 11, 1844, letter by Peter Turner from Rio de Janeiro on stationery bearing an engraved view of the "Praca do Commercio" [Praça do Comércio] by Friedrich Pustkow.
  • A letter to Turner respecting a check for $25, which was bequeathed to Turner from commodore Uriah P. Levy, December 1862.
  • Three letters and documents respecting the transfer of ownership for pew 83 in Trinity Church, Newport, Rhode Island, in January 1862.
  • Two documents regarding $1,387 owed to the estate of William Mathews by the US Naval Asylum in June 1863.

The Turner family Logbooks subseries includes five log books from three different United States Navy vessels:

  • US Schooner Nonsuch, August 8, 1821-May 19, 1823. Daniel Turner commanded this vessel on its voyage from the New York Navy Yard to Port Mahon [Minorca] and subsequent service in the Mediterranean. The volume includes five watercolor coastal profiles or views (Corsica, Cape St. Vincent, Milo, and Corvo).
  • US Schooner Nonsuch, September 9, 1824-December 14, 1824. Daniel Turner, commanded this ship from Palermo Bay, south along the African coastline, past the Canary Islands, and to the Navy Yard at New York.
  • US Schooner Nonsuch, November 1, 1824-December 3, 1824; December 11, 1826-December 31, 1826. The remainder of the volume contains illustrated mathematical propositions related to conic sections and spherical geometry.
  • US Schooner Shark, August 5, 1827-October 24, 1827. Isaac McKeever served as commander of the Shark during this voyage from the coast of Nova Scotia to the United States Naval Seminary at the New York Navy Yard. The remainder of the book, beginning at the opposite cover, is comprised of question and answer format essays on aspects of seamanship. The author was an unidentified individual at the Naval Seminary. The essays are followed by a celestial map.
  • US Ship Southampton, December 15, 1850-October 31, 1851. Lieutenant Peter Turner commanded the Southampton during the ship's December 30, 1850-October 31, 1851, voyage. The ship set sail from the Brooklyn Navy Yard, traveled around Cape Horn, and arrived at San Francisco harbor.

The remainder of the Turner family series includes miscellaneous writings and cards. The three pieces of writing include a recipe for "Dr. King's Diarrhoea Mixture" (undated); a note from "Daughter" to her mother, secretly pleading with her to change the daughter's teacher (undated), and "Lines on the Death of Miss Martha Turner" (September 17, 1870). Five calling and visiting cards date from the 1850s to the late 19th century.

The Harlan Family Papers series includes approximately 250 items relating to the lives of the Harlan family. The series includes correspondence, legal and financial papers, and scrapbooks.

The Harlan family Correspondence subseries contains 45 letters to and from members of the Harlan family, 1846-1925, with the bulk of the materials falling between the 1880s and the 1910s. A majority concerns the everyday lives of the Henry and Hettie (Turner) Harlan family, including their siblings and children. The most prevalent writers and recipients include Hettie's brother James Turner Harlan of Philadelphia; William H. Harlan of the law firm of Harlan & Webster in Bel Air, Maryland; and Hettie's aunt Ada H. Turner.

One item of particular interest is a letter from "David" [Harlan?] to Henry Harlan, dated August 12-14, [1846], and written aboard the US Steamship Princeton (during the US-Mexico War). David summarized and speculated about current political matters, including tensions relating to the ousting of President Salinas, the assumption of the presidency by Paredes, and the anticipation of the return of Santa Anna. He also provided a lengthy anecdote about the laborious process of loading sheep and cattle from the shores of Sacrificios onto the Princeton.

The Harlan family Legal and Financial documents subseries contains 165 items, dating primarily between 1815 and 1924, and consisting of land deeds and contracts, estate-related materials, and assorted receipts, accounts, checks, and other financial materials. The bulk of the real property referred to in the documentation was in Harford County, Maryland.

One bundle of 21 telegrams, manuscript notes, and newspaper clippings trace the April 1902 Disappearance and Suicide of James V. P. Turner, a prominent Philadelphia lawyer and son of Commodore Peter Turner.

A group of 12 miscellaneous Writings, Cards, and Invitations date from the 1870s to the 20th century. These include 1877 New Year's resolutions by Hettie F. Turner; an 1886 "Journal of Jimmie & Pansie Harlan's Doings and sayings" [By Hettie Foster Turner Harlan?]; a handwritten program for Darlington Academy commencement entertainments, June 18, 1897; and a typed graduation speech titled "We Launch To-night! Where Shall We Anchor?" ([James T. Harlan?], Darlington Academy, class of 1899).

The Photographs series includes six cyanotypes, three cartes-de-visite, four snapshots and paper prints, and three negatives depicting members of the Turner and Harlan families. The CDVs are portraits of Commodore Peter Turner (unidentified photographer), a 16 year-old Henry Harlan (by Richard Walzl of Baltimore), and Hettie Foster Turner Harlan in secondary mourning attire (by Philadelphia photographers Broadbent & Phillips). The cyanotypes, prints, and negatives include 1890s-1910s images of the family's Strawberry Hill estate, Henry and Hettie Harlan, "Pansy" (Hettie F. Harlan), and other family members.

The Scrapbook subseries is comprised of six scrapbooks relating to different elements of the Harlan family.

  • "Old Harlan Papers" scrapbook, 1750-late 19th century, bulk 1810s-1840s. Includes 19th century copies of 18th century land documents. Land documents, property maps, and other legal documentation largely respecting Harford County, Maryland, lands. The real property includes "Durbin's Chance," "Betty's Lot," "Stump's Chance," and other properties. The original and copied manuscripts are pasted or laid into a picture cut-out scrapbook belonging to Peter Smith, ca. 1960s (Smith may or may not have been the compiler of the "Old Harlan Papers").
  • Harlan Family scrapbook, March 21, 1793-[20th century]. This volume includes land deeds, contracts, documents, letters, printed items, and genealogical materials related to multiple generations of the Harlan family, particularly in Maryland. Of note is a March 6, 1835, legal agreement respecting the sale of Emory, a 17-year old slave, by Anne Page to Dr. David Harlan, Kent County, Maryland.
  • Harlan Family scrapbook, "Furniture References," 1860s-1960s, bulk 1890s-1920s. This volume contains interior and exterior photographs of the Harlans' "Strawberry Hill" farm near Stafford, Maryland. Some of these photographs include notes about the furniture depicted in them. Other significant materials include approximately 15 letters by Hettie F. Harlan, James V. P. Harlan, and others, 1898-1902.; and an 1864 "Great Central Fair" committee ticket for Hettie F. Turner (a "Lady's Ticket"), accompanied by a tintype portrait of two women.
  • James T. Harlan, "Photographs" album, 1906-1913, 1948-1949. Harford and Baltimore County, Maryland. Interiors and Exteriors of Harlan and Stump family homes; travel photos to Perry Point (Perryville), Maryland, in 1910. 1909/1910 motorcycles, 1906, 1909, and 1910 snapshots from the Baltimore Automobile Show; a 1911 trip to Newport, Rhode Island; ca. 1905-1907 trip to Druid Hill Park; snapshots of James T. Harlan's Baltimore office, National Surety Company of New York.
  • Cleveland Commission for the celebration of the Centennial of Perry's Victory on Lake Erie (Perry Centennial Committee of Cleveland, Ohio) scrapbook, 1913. Newspaper clippings, correspondence, real photo and picture postcards, a printed program "The Progress of Woman" (September 16, 1913); printed invitation card for a reception held by the "Committee on Women's Organizations of the Cleveland Commission Perry's Victory Centennial" September 15, 1913); mounted paper portrait photograph of William G. Turner, 1902.
  • Handmade album titled "Harford" by an unidentified compiler. Through pasted-in postcards, snapshots, verses from newspaper clippings, and plant matter, the unidentified compiler documented their sentimental attachment for scenes and people in Harford County, Maryland (particularly Stafford and Darlington).

The Printed Materials series includes:

  • Approximately 20 newspaper clippings (19th-early 20th century) and a single copy of the newspaper Public Ledger (v. 1, no. 1; Philadelphia, Friday Morning, March 25, 1836).
  • In Memory of Elizabeth Dale, Widow of Admiral George C. Read, 2nd ed. (Philadelphia, 1863).
  • Henry E. Turner, M.D., Greenes of Warwick in Colonial History. Read Before the Rhode Island Historical Society, February 27, 1877 (Newport, RI, 1877).
  • [The Quaker Calendar], Westtown 1907 (Philadelphia: Printed by Leeds & Biddle Co. [incomplete]).
  • University of Maryland Annual Commencement. Academy of Music. Monday Afternoon, May Thirty-First at Four O'Clock (1909)
  • William Jarboe Grove, Carrollton Manor Frederick Country Maryland. By William Jarboe Grove, Lime Kiln, Maryland., March 29th, 1921 (198 pages [incomplete]).
  • Charles D. Holland, Some Landmarks of Colonial History in Harford County, Maryland (Baltimore, 1933).
  • "Commodores Belt of Blue Cloth and Gold Embroidery." Addressed to Commodore Peter Turner from the Navy Department. One page, showing design for a commodore's belt and sword sling, and including a manuscript notation "This is correct" (undated).
  • One page "prayer."

The Turner-Harlan Genealogy series consists of a wide array of materials relating to genealogical research of the Turner-Harlan families. Items include handwritten family trees, familial biographies, and professionally-produced genealogical items. Also included are 20th century Harlan family newsletters.