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Collection

War of 1812 collection, 1806-1860

2.5 linear feet

The War of 1812 collection is a miscellaneous collection of approximately 300 single items relating to the War of 1812. The papers cover many aspect of the war on both the American and British sides, including naval and military operations, regimental matters, trade issues, and state and national politics relating to the war.

The War of 1812 collection (approximately 300 items) contains miscellaneous letters and documents relating to the War of 1812. The papers cover many aspects of the war on both the American and British sides, including naval and military operations, regimental matters, trade issues, and state and national politics relating to the war. Item types include letters, memoranda, reports, orders, documents, reminiscences, financial documents, and returns.

Collection

Turner-Whiton papers, 1798-1892 (majority within 1831-1880)

1.5 linear feet

The Turner-Whiton papers contain correspondence, financial records, legal documents, essays, and newspaper clippings pertaining to T. Larkin Turner, a druggist from Boston, Massachusetts, and his wife, Elizabeth D. Whiton. The material primarily concerns the couple's courtship and two of Turner's pharmaceutical products.

This collection contains correspondence, financial records, legal documents, essays, and newspaper clippings pertaining to T. Larkin Turner, a druggist from Boston, Massachusetts, and his wife, Elizabeth D. Whiton. The material primarily concerns the couple's courtship and two of Turner's pharmaceutical products.

The first three subseries in the Correspondence series are grouped by correspondents: Elizabeth Whiton letters to T. Larkin Turner (122 items), Letters to Elizabeth Whiton (121 items), and T. Larkin Turner letters to Elizabeth Whiton (12 items). These subseries are comprised of personal letters written in the mid-19th century, primarily concerning the writers' social lives in Hingham, Charlestown, and Boston, Massachusetts. Elizabeth Whiton's correspondents included her siblings and female friends.

The Letters from H. subseries contains 43 letters that a man named Henry and his wife Marie wrote to his parents while traveling in Italy, France, England, and Germany in 1884 and 1885. Henry wrote the majority of the letters, commented on his life in Venice, Paris, and London, and mentioned a recent cholera epidemic. The subseries also includes a ticket and printed advertisement in French.

The Chronological Correspondence subseries comprises the bulk of the collection. The first 2 items are letters from Reverend Sherman Johnson of Southborough, Massachusetts, to a female acquaintance. Most items from 1833-1880 are personal letters to T. Larkin Turner and Elizabeth D. Whiton (later Elizabeth Turner), including their letters to one another during their courtship (ca. 1837-1843) and later letters from a branch of the Turner family in Lexington, Massachusetts. The courtship-era letters primarily concern Turner and Whiton's daily lives in Boston and Hingham, Massachusetts, respectively. Elizabeth Whiton also received letters from male and female friends in New England and New York, particularly in Charlestown and Boston, Massachusetts.

T. Larkin Turner received letters from several correspondents, including George R. Turner, who wrote a series of letters to Turner about his work for a Massachusetts railroad in 1847 and 1848. He commented on his in-state travels, his co-workers, and the railroad's progress. George W. Prescott of the United States Navy Yard in Pensacola, Florida, wrote personal letters to Turner from 1877-1883. Undated items include additional correspondence between Turner and Whiton and genealogical notes about the Turner family.

Advertisements include printed booklets, fliers, and other advertisements for T. Larkin Turner's medical cures, particularly the "Tic-Douloureux, or Universal Neuralgia Pill" and "Lorraine's Vegetable Cathartic Pills." Manuscript drafts of advertisements are also present. Other clippings are articles on medical conditions such as neuralgia, on Turner's pills, and on other medical topics.

A group of papers related to Turner's Nostrums contains manuscript drafted advertisements and notes about T. Larkin Turner's "Tic-Douloureux, or Universal Neuralgia Pill" and other products. Two lengthy manuscript drafts concern the neuralgia pill and a cure for menstrual discomfort. Notes concern various medical conditions and the importance of sleep, among other topics.

The Receipts and Documents series primarily contains receipts to Captain Larkin Turner and T. Larkin Turner, largely for everyday personal expenses. T. Larkin Turner also purchased a newspaper subscription and hired a horse and buggy on at least one occasion. Indentures and similar legal documents primarily pertain to land in Massachusetts.

The Muster Roll/Town Roster series contains two items: a booklet with names of Boston residents and other annotations, and a booklet containing copied information from a 1757 muster roll.

The Genealogy series has notes and fragments about the Whiton, Turner, and Whitney families, as well as poetry, essays, correspondence, and receipts of payment for copied documents.

T. Larkin Turner composed a 94-page Memorative of Larkin Turner, his father, on the backs of assorted documents, scraps, and ephemera items. The bound volume, the first in a series, covers Larkin's life until about 1812.

Additional Newspaper Clippings pertain to deaths, marriages, and the Fusilier Veteran Association.

The Miscellaneous series contains ephemera, sketches, a lock of Turner's hair, a Tufts library card for "Russell H. Whiting," and other items.

Collection

Thomas J. Chew family papers, 1797-1875 (majority within 1802-1857)

777 items (1.75 linear feet)

The Thomas J. Chew papers mainly consist of ingoing and outgoing correspondence of Thomas J. Chew and his wife, Abby Hortense Hallam, in the early 1800s. A significant amount of the collection was written during the War of 1812, and many of the letters relate to Chew's duties as purser of several ships of the United States Navy and in the Navy Yards of Boston and New York. Other personal letters, official documents, and account books are also included in the collection.

The bulk of the collection is the Correspondence series (716 items), which contains the personal and Navy-related correspondence of Thomas J. Chew and other members of his family and together spans the years 1797 to 1875. The Thomas J. Chew family papers also include documents (9 items), financial records and receipts (40 items), account books (3 items), and miscellaneous items (7 items).

Early letters in the collection include an account by Joseph Chew of various branches of the Chew family, including a short history of the different Chew families emigrating from Virginia, accounts of his nieces and nephews (of whom Thomas J. Chew is one), and a mention of the marriage of his sister, who "died last year [and] has left children whose names I do not know;" these included future President Zachary Taylor. A group of letters from 1802 between Thomas J. Chew and Secretary of the Navy Robert Smith discuss Chew's future in the Navy after his return from the West Indies.

Much of the pre-War of 1812 correspondence of Thomas J. Chew consists of autograph copies of Chew's outgoing letters as well as incoming letters regarding his official duties as purser of the John Adams; a main correspondent during this period was Thomas Turner. A letter from Turner at the Navy Department Accountant's Office, dated June 7, 1809, outlined changes to the Naval Regulations, as well as reminding the recipient that "the most minute compliance with all the regulations…will be required." Other letters addressed to Turner regarded payment for sailors onboard the John Adams and the settlement of the ship's accounts.

Thomas J. Chew received another commission as purser from the Navy Department, signed by Paul Hamilton and dated April 29, 1812, and joined the crew of the Constitution almost immediately thereafter (May 20, 1812), serving under Isaac Hull. Most of the letters of late 1812 dealt with issues related to Chew's duties as purser and include copies made by Chew of letters to various clerks and officials within the Navy Department. One of the few more personal items from this period was a letter from Isaac Hull to Chew, dated November 1, 1812. Chew spent the winter between 1812 and 1813 at the Navy Yard in Boston, where he nonetheless kept a consistent professional correspondence as purser in the Yard (February 10, 1813; [April] 1813).

Chew's wife, Abby Hallam, related her esteem for Captains James Lawrence and Isaac Hull in a June 1, 1813, letter to Thomas, anticipating his imminent departure that had, in fact, taken place one day prior. Chew's brief time as a prisoner of the British in Halifax after the capture of the Chesapeake in 1813 is represented by two letters from John Mitchell, one regarding the funeral of Captain James Lawrence and the other regarding his own return to the United States alongside other officers of the Chesapeake (June 7 and 12, 1813). A copy of a letter to William Jones, Secretary of the Navy, informing him of Chew's return to Boston is accompanied by a letter acknowledging its receipt (June 24 and July 5, 1813).

Several letters in the collection concerned the ongoing difficulty regarding the distribution of disputed prize money for the capture of the Volunteer and Liverpool Hero in early 1813. Chew, as purser of the Chesapeake, did not wish to distribute prize money disputed between Captain Samuel Evans and Commodore Stephen Decatur "until it is settled to whom it belongs" (July 16, 1813), noting also that he would obey the ruling of the district court when doing so (July 23, 1813). By September of that year, Chew was prepared to pay an allotted amount of prize money to Decatur, though the matter was addressed again in a draft of April 10, 1819, in which Chew defended his conduct.

The Chews corresponded often with and about high-ranking officers in the Navy. A letter from John H. Elton, dated May 16, 1814, inquired as to the well-being of Abby Hallam and paraphrased Oliver Hazard Perry, stating that the men of the Superior "have seen the foe but they are not ours, neither could we meet them." Likewise, a letter from Charles W. Greene, dated May 16, 1814, discussed various personalities in the Navy including the fact that Commodore Decatur "says Evans is crazy." On June 9, 1814, Isaac Chauncey gave Chew orders to "immediately report to Captain Trenchard [as] the Purser of the Madison--you will also receive the Crew of the Oneida and act as her Purser until further orders." Other letters from prominent figures in the United States Navy include a personal note from Isaac Hull from December 30, 1814.

Post-war correspondence in the collection includes many items addressed to Thomas J. Chew and his wife; these items are mostly of a personal nature, interspersed with correspondence related to Thomas's ongoing duties as purser of the Washington. Letters were written by both Thomas and Abby in this period; hers spoke of home and family while his recounted his experiences on the Washington, including travel to the Mediterranean from June 1816-July 1818. In one letter, Thomas wrote about "the government and the people [being] much occupied at home with the transactions out here. The former have much to do, in my humble opinion, to secure to us the high character we acquired during the short war" and expressed his hope that "[his son] Lawrence will not be inclined to become a Navy officer" (May 9, 1818). Abby discussed the growth of their children, including the sickly Lawrence and a child who died in infancy (May 19, 1816). A letter of January 9, 1821, provided an account of another child's early death: "[God] has call'd home our dear babe, lent only for a season…her life has been a short one, but she has suffered much yet…& now she lies cold & inanimate corpse." Personal correspondence between husband and wife becomes much scarcer in the collection after this date. A letter from Thomas to the Reverend William Bull of Lebanon, Connecticut, related the news of the death of Lawrence and asked Edward to share the news with his wife, Eliza (October 26, 1829).

Thomas's other post-war correspondents included various naval officers involved in his duties as purser, as well as others whose letters were of a more personal nature. The latter include M. C. Attwood, who wrote a letter recounting the USS Cyane's travels through the West Indies and the Caribbean (December 27, 1822) and for whose estate Chew eventually became responsible (September 27, 1823), working closely with Richard Ringgoth of Chestertown, Maryland. Chew's correspondence in 1829 includes many letters from Amos Kendall of the U.S. Treasury department's Auditor's Office discussing Chew's work as purser through 1832. Letters of March 9 and March 29, 1832, discussed the reconciliation of Chew's outstanding accounts as of his retirement at that time.

The collection contains many personal letters addressed to Abby Hallam (later Chew), particularly regarding her daughters. Often signing her letters "Hortensia," she corresponded with both friends and family. Frequent correspondents included Lucretia M. Woodbridge of New London, Connecticut, and Mary Perkins in the early 1810s and a cousin Jacob in 1818. In various letters from the early 1830s, Abby recounted to her daughter Mary, who was staying with Edward and Eliza Bull in Lebanon, Connecticut, the progress of her sisters in school. Other family letters in this period were written between Abby and her children, amongst the children, and to the Bull family. A letter from George Lewis to Thomas Chew, dated December 18, 1843, asked "sanction to my addresses to [Mary Hallam Chew]…no gentleman should address a lady, or make any other attempt to gain her affection, unless assured of her parents approval." The pair were engaged soon thereafter (January 15, 1844), and a letter from A. Lewis, likely George Lewis's sister-in-law Adelaide Lewis, offered assistance to Mary in making plans for her wedding (March 7, 1844).

The focus of the correspondence gradually shifts toward Thomas and Abby's daughters, who wrote to their parents, to their aunt Eliza Bull, and to one another. Abigail, who often signed herself Hortense, and Mary shared vibrant personal correspondence beginning in 1840, including a letter from Abby who offered some helpful advice as Mary began to maintain a household of her own: "I want to know how your nurse & cook come along, don't err in my way & give them too much liberty--require them to do their duty I believe is the secret" (May 1, 1846). Mary's friend Josie wrote on July 28, 1846 to give condolences to Mary upon the death of her father. Other Chew family members represented in the collection include George R. Lewis, Thomas J. Chew's future son-in-law, and Chew's daughters and granddaughters. Also included are scattered letters relating to Harry W. Nelson, Jr., who married a great-granddaughter of Thomas J. Chew; these include a stern reprimand from a godfather dated April 13, 1853, and several undated items.

The correspondence series also contains several items addressed and authored by Mary Norton of Hopkinton, New Hampshire, beginning in the mid-1820s; by 1829, she was a resident of Boston. The collection includes an August 10, 1829 letter from Moses Story, who proposed that Mary "consider [her]self a candidate for my companion in life." Her relationship to the Chew family is unclear.

The series also includes 54 undated items, mostly comprised of personal correspondence, with a significant portion being between Abby and Thomas. One letter from Abby to Thomas foresaw the loss of one of their children: "From every appearance the agony will soon be past with our dear little infant." Much of the correspondence also came from Eliza Bull, addressed to various members of the Chew family. A letter addressed to Abby from a niece, Frances, described the arrival of a baby, Cecilia, and included a poem dedicated to the occasion. Also included are several letters addressed to Harriet Lewis, recently widowed and receiving letters primarily from her sister, Jennette Richards.

The Documents series (9 items) includes several items related to Thomas J. Chew's time in the Navy, including his time as a prisoner of the British, his involvement in Decatur v. Chew, and his resignation from the Navy. Two legal documents are included as well as an inventory for the Protection Fire Insurance Company and a partially-signed petition.

Many of the items in the Financial Records and Receipts series (40 total items) were addressed specifically to Thomas J. Chew, and the series includes receipts for various purchases in New York and Boston. These items span the years 1806-1847, with several items that date to the War of 1812. Several receipts regarded payment for James Lawrence Chew's tuition at the Classical School of New Jersey in the 1820s. A note from Samuel Phillips asked Thomas J. Chew to pay his share of the prize money for the capture of the Plattsburgh to Mrs. Jane Phillips. This was accompanied by a receipt roll, housed with other oversized manuscript items, which listed the distribution of the prize money for the capture of that ship. A pay roll for the officers of the Peacock is also housed in the small oversize area. This series also includes three stock certificates, all pertaining to stock held by Mary F. Hallam.

The Account Books series contains three items: one small account book housed in a red leather wallet and two bound volumes. The first contains various personal records for 1814, and the bound volumes contain records kept by Thomas J. Chew in his capacities as purser for the Washington, treasurer for St. Anne's Church in Brooklyn, and in an unknown capacity for the United States Naval Fraternal Association. One of the bound volumes contains Sunday Accounts for the Navy Department dealing with balances due and paid to various personnel.

The Miscellaneous series (7 items) includes two dated personal items as well as poetry, essays, and a partial family tree.

Collection

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

1.75 linear feet

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.

Collection

Pollard family papers, 1841-1893 (majority within 1844-1865)

0.5 linear feet

The Pollard family papers contain correspondence, indentures, and financial records related to Asa D. Pollard and his children, including Joseph G. Pollard, Cyrus W. Pollard, Emily F. Pollard, and George F. Pollard. Members of the Pollard family corresponded about their lives in New Hampshire and Massachusetts from the 1840s-1860s.

The Pollard family papers (334 items) contain correspondence, indentures, and financial records related to the Pollard family of New Hampshire and Massachusetts.

The Correspondence and Documents series (228 items) includes personal letters between siblings Joseph G. Pollard, Cyrus W. Pollard, Emily F. Pollard, and George F. Pollard. From 1849-1865, the Pollard siblings wrote to each other about their daily lives, social activities, health, local travel, and family news from cities and towns in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and New York. Some of George F. Pollard's letters concern his education in New Hampton, New Hampshire. Joseph Pollard wrote about his work teaching in a country schoolhouse; in one letter, he mentioned his plans to attend a lecture by Ralph Waldo Emerson, though he suspected it would be "beyond ordinary comprehension" (December 8, 1857). During the Civil War, the Pollards sometimes mentioned topics such as the draft, particularly as it related to Cyrus Pollard and his relocation from Woburn, Massachusetts, to Albany, New York; they also discussed George Pollard's attempt to obtain a commission in the Union Army. The Pollard siblings received letters from other acquaintances, occasionally pertaining to business matters.

The series also includes indentures regarding Asa D. Pollard and land in New Hampshire and Massachusetts; one document pertains to his purchase of a pew in the First Congregational Church in Woburn, Massachusetts (November 1, 1860). Undated items include a manuscript "Report of the School Committee of Woburn," a printed circular letter to children attending Sabbath schools, and a report about Emily Pollard's academic progress at the Charlestown Female Seminary.

The Financial Records series (106 items) is comprised of receipts, invoices, accounts, and promissory notes. Most of the items pertain to the financial affairs of Asa D. Pollard, including receipts for Pollard's tax payments in Derry, New Hampshire. Many of the remaining items, including most of the items dated after the mid-1850s, relate to Joseph G. Pollard's financial affairs in Boston.

Collection

Nicholas Fish papers, 1775-1844

97 items

The Nicholas Fish papers (97 items) consist of letters and documents that span Fish's career as a Revolutionary War officer and New York City politician. The collection is made up of 87 letters and 10 documents and financial records.

The Nicholas Fish papers (97 items) consist of letters and documents that span Fish's career as a Revolutionary War officer and New York City politician. The collection is made up of 87 letters and 10 documents and financial records.

The Correspondence series (87 items) is comprised of 14 letters written by Fish, 70 letters addressed to Fish, 2 letters to his son Hamilton Fish (1833 and 1844), and one item to the Committee of Defense of New York (August 4, 1815).

The series contains 52 items from Fish's military activities in the Revolutionary war (1776-1786). Forty-one of these letters are addressed to Fish as adjutant general of New York, 1785, regarding the raising and provisioning of troops to aid the first United States Army, commanded by Josiah Harmar on the frontier of the Northwest Territory. Discussed are transporting supplies, maintaining troop levels, defending the settlers of the region from Indians, taking prisoners of war, and punishing deserters. Fish received communications from the War Offices at Fort Schuyler; the Bronx; Albany; Philadelphia; and West Point. Many letters, notably, were from prominent American army officers, such as Secretary of War General Henry Knox, John Morin Scott (his former mentor), Major John Doughty, and Commissary of Military Stores Samuel Hodgdon. Of particular interest is a letter from Captain John Francis Hamtramck, who described catching and punishing 7 troops for desertion from Fort McIntosh in Western Pennsylvania (December 4, 1785), and another letter from Hamtramck, in which he discussed the poor treatment of the Six Nations hostages by the Americans in contrast to the civility shown Indian war prisoners held by the British (June 13, 1785).

A group of 36 letters relate to Fish's activities in New York politics between 1791 and 1830. These provide details of Fish's career as well as New York and American politics in general, including military affairs, the War of 1812, and presidential politics. On February 12, 1791, Fish wrote to President George Washington requesting an appointment as inspector for the district of New York. In his letter from March 10, 1794, fish discussed a dispute between Henry Dearborn and Theodore Sedgwick (March 10, 1794). In a letter to Fish, Jacob Radcliff expressed his support for Fish as New York alderman (November 8, 1810). Among letters written during the War of 1812, William Watson examined the role of Pennsylvania Germans in the Presidential campaign of 1812 (September 16, 1812); Fish wrote to James Madison concerning the punishment of Lieutenant William S. Cox for his part in the Chesapeake incident (after June 1, 1813); and Commodore J. Lewis, Chief Engineer Joseph G. Swift, and General George Izard all wrote letters regarding the defense of New York Harbor (May 8 and October 10, 1813, and August 4, 1815). (For a complete list of contributors, see the controlled access terms section.)

The Documents and Financial Records series (10 items) is comprised of military, personal, and official items.

Included are:
  • Two officer lists of the New York militia: one for the 1st Regiment (1775), and the other for the militia under Colonel John Lasher (September 25, 1776).
  • Fish's bank deposit book with the U.S. Bank from April 1792-June 1793 (8 pages).
  • Seven receipts for duties from the Supervisor's Office, District of New York, all signed by Fish (April 1795-February 1798).

Collection

Kershner family correspondence, 1854-1882 (majority within 1854-1866)

0.5 linear feet

This collection contains the incoming and outgoing personal correspondence of the family of Gustavus and Anna Kershner of Clear Spring, Maryland.

This collection (102 items) contains the incoming and outgoing personal correspondence of the family of Gustavus and Anna Kershner of Clear Spring, Maryland. Brothers Jacob B. and Edward Kershner frequently wrote to their parents about their studies, the family's finances, and other topics. In his earliest letters, Jacob described his education at Pennsylvania College; he later wrote from Mercersburg, Pennsylvania, where he attended a seminary. He also discussed finances. Edward's early letters from New York City pertain to the political climate immediately preceding the Civil War. His incoming correspondence includes a letter from a friend who expressed concern after hearing of the sinking of the Cumberland, on which Edward had served as an assistant surgeon. After the war, Edward described his life in Boston, Massachusetts. The Kershner siblings (Jacob, Edward, and Mary) also corresponded with their parents and each other about their daily lives, including Mary's experiences at Bordentown Female College. The collection contains a receipt for tuition at the college (November 29, 1864).

Collection

John Slater collection, 1808-1823, 1841-1843

23 items

The John Slater collection contains letters and receipts to Slater, a textile manufacturer in Smithfield, Rhode Island, and Slatersville, Rhode Island. Most of the correspondence pertains to Slater's business interests and finances and to the textile industry in the early 19th century.

This collection (23 items) is comprised of 15 letters and receipts to John Slater, a textile manufacturer in Smithfield, Rhode Island, and Slatersville, Rhode Island; 5 incoming letters to Messrs. S. & J. Slater of Slatersville, Rhode Island; 1 financial document; and 2 newspaper clippings.

John Slater received 11 letters, 2 receipts, and 1 invoice/receipt while living in Smithfield, Rhode Island, from June 17, 1808-October 30, 1823. His correspondents, including his business partners Almy & Brown (June 17, 1808) and his brother Samuel (August 2, 1808, and August 4, 1823), discussed business affairs and finances, particularly in relation to the textile industry. In his first letter, Samuel Slater also mentioned Napoleon's intention to seize U.S. vessels as naval prizes. E. W. Fletcher's letter of October 30, 1823, includes a list of weekly expenses from the Slaters' mill in Jewett City, Connecticut. This group of items also includes a personal letter from Thomas and Grace Gamble, Slater's sister and brother-in-law in England (June 17, 1821), a receipt for Slater's subscription to the Rhode-Island American (October 10, 1817), and an invoice and receipt for tuition and firewood for Slater's daughters Eliza and Minerva at the Pawtucket Academy (November 20, 1823).

John Slater received a letter from [F.] A. Taylor in Slatersville about the possibility of constructing a parsonage (February 15, 1841). The final 5 letters (February 20, 1841-April 18, 1843) are addressed to Messrs. S. and J. Slater at Slatersville, Rhode Island. The first contains Samuel Slater & Sons' response to Taylor's request (February 20, 1841), and the remaining letters, all by William L. Slater, pertain to cotton purchases and prices. The collection also includes a financial account related to the Slatersville General Post-Office (July 1, 1840-September 1, 1840), an undated newspaper clipping about the possible re-opening of the Slater mill in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, and an undated article containing Samuel Slater's biography.

Collection

George Wray papers, 1770-1848

16 volumes (4 linear feet)

The George Wray papers contain orders, receipts, correspondence, documents, muster rolls, returns, and several bound volumes relating to Wray's work as commissary of the Royal Regiment of Artillery, primarily during the Revolutionary War.

The George Wray papers contain 11 volumes of correspondence and documents, 3 journals of stores, a volume of muster rolls, an orderly book, a volume of land titles, a trigonometry notebook, two maps, and a blank book. The materials span 1765 to 1848, with the bulk concentrated around 1770-1782.

The Correspondence and Documents series contains 11 volumes of military documents and business correspondence related to Wray's positions with the British Army, first as the Royal Regiment of Artillery's clerk of stores, and later its commissary of stores. The series spans 1765 to 1794 (bulk 1770 to 1783) and contains approximately three linear feet of material. The letters and documents provide ample information about the Royal Artillery during the Revolutionary War, as well as the stores disbursed by the commissary. The materials consist of about 500 orders to issue ordnance signed by Major Peter Traille, who was commander of the Royal Regiment of Artillery in North America; an approximately equal number of receipts for the supplies issued and goods delivered into the regimental storehouse; dozens of letters concerning supplies written between Wray, merchants, and Army officers; approximately 50 muster rolls of companies within the Royal Artillery; and returns of artificers, laborers, and African Americans employed by the regiment, as well as many returns documenting the issuance of weapons, tools, and other items.

The first two volumes in the collection concern Wray's activities as clerk of stores for the Royal Artillery, a position which he held until December 1775; more generally, they pertain to the business of the regiment. Included are muster rolls for various companies of the Royal Regiment of Artillery commanded by David Standish, John Williamson, Anthony Farrington, William Martin, William Johnston, Thomas Davies, and George Anderson. These provide the names of each company's members, as well as their designations as commissioned and non-commissioned officers, bombardiers, gunners, and matrosses. Also present are numerous receipts for items purchased from merchants by the regiment, including cloth (which was often purchased from women--see March 3, 1775 for an example), wood, stones, wheels, shingles, and other items. Many documents also record the ordnance bought for the regiment, such as gunpowder, great guns, small arms, musket balls, and chests for storage (filed under March 31, 1775).

After Wray's promotion to commissary of stores in December of 1775, the documents become more diverse and include a wide variety of returns and other document types. They take account of such matters as the ordnance and stores destroyed and left at Boston (March 12, 1776); the movement of supplies from Boston to Newport, Rhode Island, in 1777; and deliveries made by ordnance transport ships. Major John Grant of the Royal Artillery wrote much of the early correspondence of the period. In one letter, he criticized Wray for drawing on the wrong accounts to cover subsistence pay to a detachment of the regiment (September 13, 1777). In another, he commented on the scarcity of cash in New York and instructed Wray on what to pay for rebel arms brought in by American deserters (February 14, 1779). Wray's incoming correspondence sheds light on the problems and challenges faced by the regiment's commissary, as well as the specifics of the commissary's functioning. Volumes 4 through 9 of the series primarily cover Wray's administration of the commissary while stationed in Charleston, South Carolina, from December 1779 to December 1782. Included are near-daily orders for the issuance of ordnance and stores by Peter Traille, which provide a huge volume of detail on the supplies required by the artillery, as well as records of the items brought into the commissary, including brass ordnance and carriages captured at the Battle of Eutaw Springs (September 18, 1781) and at the Battle of Combahee Ferry (September 10, 1782). Also of interest are numerous inventories of "spare" supplies held by the commissary, a few additional muster rolls for Royal Artillery companies, and other documents relating to the administration of the department.

The Military Journals, Notebooks, and Other Bound Items series contains nine items within five volumes, spanning 1778-1848. Of particular note is a 52-page volume of muster rolls of the civil branch of the artillery in Charleston, which covers 1781 to 1783 (located in Volume 14). In addition to providing names, pay, and remarks on the various white laborers and tradesmen brought in to support the artillery, it also gives basic information on both enslaved and free African Americans, whom it refers to as "Negro servants." The volume classifies them by trade (including carpenters, smiths, "wheelers," sawyers, and general laborers), provides their names and the identities of their masters when applicable, and gives places of residence. Also present is a list of African Americans who acted as servants to particular officers in the Royal Regiment of Artillery.

Another item of interest is an orderly book kept by Wray while in Charleston, South Carolina, 1780-1781 (Volume 13). The book contains orders by Major General Alexander Leslie, Major Peter Traille, and Wray himself, given at the general, regimental, and company level. Wray's orders primarily concern the distribution and transportation of ordnance and supplies, as well as associated logistical issues. Other orders document courts martial, discipline among the enlisted men, personnel matters, and the duties of men in the company. An order of June 9, 1780, offers a reward for information about soldiers who have committed "depredations" against "the unprotected property of the Subjects." An August 23, 1780, order discusses a "parade" of "all the Negroes for Muster." Many later orders in the book specify a training regimen for new recruits.

Other items in the series mainly record stores issued and received by Wray at Charleston. These include an expense book for stores issued at Charleston in 1781 and 1782, a journal of stores received at Charleston in 1780-1782, and two journals of stores issued by Wray in 1778-1779 and1782-1783, with associated receipts and accounts laid into the volume. The latest item in the collection is an 1848 volume of land titles for property in New York, kept by a descendant, John Wray. The volume features surveys of the Wray property, as well as a map entitled, "Survey And Partition of the South Half of Lot No. 93 In the Artillery Patent In the Town of Fort Ann In Washington County And State of New York." A 1784 notebook on trigonometry rounds out this series.

The Map series contains a single map, drawn by Mathew Carey in 1794, and entitled A General Atlas for the Present War: Containing Six Maps And One Chart ... Including Every Place In Europe And the West-Indies, In Which the War Has Been Carried On. This atlas is housed in the Map Division.

Collection

Folts family papers, 1806-1881 (majority within 1831-1866)

0.25 linear feet

This collection is made up of correspondence and documents related to the McFarlan and Folts families of upstate New York. Materials pertain to the legal affairs of Scottish immigrant Thomas McFarlan and to the Folts family's business interests.

This collection (73 items) is made up of correspondence (66 items) and documents (7 items) related to the McFarlan and Folts families of upstate New York. Materials pertain to the legal affairs of Scottish immigrant Thomas McFarlan and to the Folts family's business interests. The 6 items concerning Thomas McFarlan include letters about family members in Scotland and documents about McFarlan's legal affairs. The remaining materials largely consist of incoming letters to Jacob J. Folts of Albany, New York, often regarding business affairs and finances. His brother George sometimes mentioned political issues, and his brother Daniel discussed his education, medical advice, and family news. Additional correspondence includes letters between other members of the Folts and McFarlan families, and bills of sale, receipts, and other financial records related to Jacob C. and Warner Folts.