Collections : [University of Michigan William L. Clements Library]

The John and Samuel Hunt papers consist primarily of Civil War era correspondence between the friends and family of John and Samuel Hunt with many letters between the two brothers. Also included is John Hunt's Civil War diary, which contains accounts of his service as adjutant with the 81st Ohio Infantry Regiment between January and December, 1862.

The John and Samuel Hunt papers are comprised of 78 letters, 1 receipt, 3 miscellaneous printed items, 2 photographs, and 1 diary. The collection consists primarily of Civil War era correspondence between the friends and family of John and Samuel Hunt, with many letters between the two brothers. For the most part, cousins, sisters, and friends wrote the pre-Civil War letters, addressed to John Hunt. These concern family matters, school, and local Ohio politics.

John's Civil War era letters, mainly to Samuel with a few items to other family members, focus on his relationship to his family, particularly his parents. He also described Civil War camp life in Missouri, Tennessee, and near Corinth. Early on, in a letter from December 8, 1861, he wrote about a conflict between his regiment's lieutenant colonel and captain over a battalion drill, which almost resulted in a duel. The brothers often bonded over the activities (past and present) of the Delta Kappa Epsilon (DKE) fraternity, which they had both joined at Miami University. Samuel sent John his DKE pin, which made him popular with the ladies in St. Louis (February 23, 1862). Samuel kept John up-to-date on the fraternity's election results and activities. A few months after the war, John was working in Washington DC as a lawyer's clerk and reported that the town was "full of rebels at present seeking pardon" (September 17, 1865).

Letters from Samuel describe university life during the war and the impact that the war was having on the homefront. He included fiery political commentary and espoused bellicose sentiments, particularly in the early part of the war. In a letter to John dated May 25, 1861, Samuel wrote: "The murder of the accomplished Col-Ellsworth must and will be avenged -- those fine Zouaves will cause destruction in the enemy's camp -- they are 'spoiling for a fight' and will soon be gratified[.] " Samuel kept up his correspondence with a number of friends and Miami University alumni with whom he communicated about the school and his own academic progress.

The John Hunt's Civil War diary contains accounts of his service as adjutant with the 81st Ohio Infantry Regiment between January and December, 1862. He entered notes almost daily, except during his sick leaves in April and from August 15 through the end of 1862. During his leave, Hunt wrote a few entries in August concerning an Ohio Copperhead and his views on the draft, and recorded a short run of daily entries from November 1-22. The diary includes descriptions of travels in the north and south and is most detailed between May and August, when the 81st Ohio took part in the assault on Corinth, Mississippi, and in the late fall, when they were encamped near Corinth. Hunt's brief entries provide interesting anecdotes about life in the Union camps, soldiers' amusements, and the scene near Corinth.

The Miscellaneous series consists of two photographs (a staged family portrait and a carte-de-visite of a young well dressed man), an army pass for John R. Hunt (February 1862), and three programs concerning the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity (1862-1863).

The Emerson family papers contain letters from a Massachusetts family with relatives in Maine, Connecticut, and Wisconsin. Two sons, Horace and Irving Emery, fought for the Union Army. The letters describe life on the home front and the battlefield during the Civil War, labor on the railroads in Wisconsin, and the life of a music teacher in Maine.

The Emerson family papers consist of 98 letters and 4 printed materials. The bulk of the letters are from Horace; his earliest letters are from Bridgton, Maine, in 1851-1852, and from Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, in 1856. He wrote to his mother, Sister Maria, and brother Irving (Irvey) about his life in the West, his health, hunting bear and deer, killing cats that kept him up all night, and of leaning the engineering trade. He also requested that his wedding announcement be placed in most of the Boston papers.

Horace often used expressive language when describing his surroundings and his acquaintances. In a letter from April 15, 1858, he described Milwaukee as "the worst place I was ever in[...]Gambling is called an honorable business." Of a female friend back east he remarked, "she would comb my hair with a 3 leg stool if she could get a chance." He wrote to Irving about the railroad running between Milwaukee and Portage City: "Monday we killed 2 hogs and one cow...I wish you could have seen the cow. When we hit her it took her right up 10 feet and set her on her ass in a mud hole" (May 5, 1858). In 1861, Horace wrote a few letters from Bridgton, Maine, where his father, re-married with two children, was making shingles for a living. By April, he was beck in Wisconsin, and enlisted in the Portage City Light Guard (Second Regiment Wisconsin State Volunteers, Co. C. He described the daily routine training at Camp Randall in Madison, Wisconsin, and noted to his musical brother that they had 3 fiddles, one flute, a guitar, bones, boxing gloves and dum bells "for the mussle." When his regiment got to Washington, he called on "old Abe" at the White House and had a brief meeting and drink with him. His letter of July 26, 1861, recounts his part in the Battle of Bull Run, fighting with other "tough cusses of Wisconsin." Horace spoke often of bravery and described the enjoyable aspects of being a solder, and, like many Union soldiers in the first years of the war, thought highly of "the good General McClellan" (March 12, 1862). By January 31, 1863, however, Horace was disillusioned with the war. He wanted to leave the army and was hostile to the idea of fighting to free blacks from slavery. By July 1863, Horace was back in Wisconsin and considered enlisting in the Minnesota militia to fight the Indians: "I will go to fight Indians any time but to fight the Rebs, please excuse me." After 1863, his letters concern his work as an engineer for the St. Paul and Pacific Railroad and are about family life in St. Paul, Minnesota, with a new wife Emma and sons Irving and Horace Edwin.

In 1862, Horace's brother Irving received a number of letters from his mother, who lived in Roxbury, Massachusetts, and a few from his sister Maria. These concern family affairs and the state of the household, while her sons were at war. Irving Emerson's earliest letter is from April 3, 1863, when he writes from Camp Rogers to his mother and his sister Maria. By 1865, Irving was living in Belfast, [Maine], and was trying to earn his livelihood as a musician. Other family letters include an 1859 letter from Seth Webb to his grandchildren (Maria, Horace and Irving) and an 1864 letter from Amelia's brother Seth Webb, Jr.

Many of the letterheads, such as those dated May 27th, July 26, September 15, and October 6, 1861, have red, white, and blue images of a soldier with an American Flag. A letter from July 4, 1861, contains a large image of the Capitol.

In addition to the letters are four printed items: a monthly report of the Hartford Public High School, with the names of teachers and pupils, including Emma C. Tuttle (1875); and programs for Hartford Public Schools Fourth Musical Festival (1879), the Emerson Chorus concert on November 11, 1879, and the Collinsville Choral Union (1881), all conducted by Irving Emerson.