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

Ann M. Van Wart kept these 2 journals about her life in New York City in the early 1830s. She wrote about attending Episcopal church services, teaching Sunday School, and taking trips to northern New York and surrounding states.

Ann M. Van Wart kept these 2 journals about her life in New York City from August 11, 1832-January 31, 1834 (Volume 1, 144 pages), and February 2, 1834-March 13, 1837 (Volume 2, 117 pages). Each volume contains some regular daily entries, though she wrote less frequently over time; most entries are dated between 1832 and 1835.

Van Wart began her journal in Orange, New Jersey, where she and her parents were living in an attempt to evade the New York cholera epidemic. She returned to New York on August 28, 1832. In later entries, Van Wart, who traveled with her parents by stagecoach and steamboat, described visits to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; New Haven, Connecticut; Orange, New Jersey; and towns in northern New York such as Albany and West Point. While in Philadelphia, she described the Fairmount Water Works, and one trip to northern New York included a visit to Mount Lebanon Shaker Village.

Van Wart noted her attendance at religious services, particularly at Christ Church in New York City, where she heard and reflected on sermons by Thomas Lyell and Aldert Smedes, and, on at least one occasion, Bishop Benjamin T. Onderdonk. Van Wart also wrote about her experiences teaching Sunday School, sometimes commenting on visits to pupils' houses. Her other social activities included visiting friends and family members and taking French and music lessons; in her entry of December 31, 1832, her twenty-first birthday, she mentioned having rejected a potential suitor.

This collection is comprised of 7 letters Anne Belden received from her friend Clara in 1851 and 1852. Clara wrote of her social life in New York City and detailed her travels through upper New York to Niagara Falls and into Canada.

This collection is comprised of 7 letters Anne Belden received from her friend Clara in 1851 and 1852. Clara wrote of her social life in New York City and detailed her travels through upper New York to Niagara Falls and into Canada. In her first letter, dated December 31, 1851-January 2, 1852, Clara wrote of her New Year's resolution "to commence writing more legible and, I hope, more interesting letters." Her subsequent letters, frequently compiled over the course of several days, provide details her social life in New York City, which involved group gatherings and more intimate meetings with acquaintances, as well as her trip across northern New York and into Canada. From July through August 1852, Clara traveled by railroad and steamship first to Trenton Falls, New York, and thence to Niagara Falls. Along the way, she described the scenery, her companions, and her modes of transportation; she also spent time in Canada near Lake Champlain and in Montreal, where she focused again on her natural surroundings. Clara continued to write after her return to New York City, and on November 18, 1852, described the plight of the Gallia, recently wrecked in the Bahamas, on which a friend had originally intended to travel.

This collection contains letters that United States Army lieutenant (and later general) Amos Beebe Eaton wrote while training at the United States Military Academy and traveling in New York, Connecticut, Ohio, and Michigan. His early letters reflect the daily life of cadets at West Point in the mid-1820s, and his later letters to his wife provide family news, as well as information about the Army and contemporary politics.

This collection (59 items) contains letters that United States Army lieutenant (and later general) Amos Beebe Eaton wrote to his grandmother, Tryphena Cady of Canaan, New York, and to his wife, Elizabeth Selden Eaton.

Eaton wrote 6 letters to his grandmother between September 14, 1822, and March 26, 1826, while attending the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York. He described cadets' daily lives at the academy, including their physical regimen, and discussed the possibility of remaining in the military after graduation. Though he considered applying for the marine corps or becoming a doctor, he stayed with the army, and wrote 3 letters to his grandmother between April 16, 1828, and October 21, 1830, while he served at the Hancock Barracks near Houlton, Maine. A group of 5 letters, written to his sister and grandmother from Fort Niagara, New York, between February 21, 1831, and November 8, 1833, concern his movements with the army and his family life, including news of his new wife and young daughters. He also described Fort Niagara and shared some of his opinions on enlisted men. He wrote to his grandmother from Fort Gratiot, Michigan Territory, on July 7, 1834, commenting on his distrust of the pursuit of recognition.

Between 1832 and 1836, Eaton wrote to his wife Elizabeth ("Betsy") while he traveled in New York, Connecticut, Ohio, and Michigan, on military and personal business. He often mentioned family members, religious sentiments, and general details of his daily life. Two letters were written from Detroit during the Black Hawk War, in which he briefly mentioned ill soldiers, his opinion about the mistreatment of Native Americans, and the military's pursuit of Black Hawk (July 24 and 30, 1832). In another he discussed foreign relations with France as well as abolitionism (February 12, 1836). The collection also contains 2 letters that Eaton wrote while serving as Commissary General of Subsistence in 1867.

Several letters are addressed to Amos Eaton. One, written by "Gordon" on August 10, 1832, comments on the public reaction to and possible consequences of a recently published letter of Amos's, wherein he attributes the cholera outbreak in the military during the Black Hawk War to the mistreatment of Native Americans. Also included is a letter that Amos Beebe Eaton's father wrote to his son with extracts of his communication with New York Senators about the motivations behind Eaton's statements, a partial copy of the offending letter, and the impact it had on his military career (September 21, 1838). Other material includes one letter addressed to Elizabeth Eaton from a sibling (July 3, 1836) and a copied document signed by several recruits, stating that they had recently received pay (June 9, 1835).

This collection is made up of the incoming and outgoing correspondence of Amelia Lippincott Williams of New York City and her husband, Esek Hartshorne Williams of Red Bank, New Jersey. The bulk of the collection is comprised of 15 letters that Esek wrote to Amelia during their courtship and while traveling for business reasons during the first few years of their marriage. Amelia and Esek received the remaining 7 letters from friends and family members in New York and New Jersey.

This collection is made up of the incoming and outgoing letters of Amelia Lippincott Williams and her husband, Esek Hartshorne Williams. Esek wrote 16 love letters to Amelia during their courtship and early married life. Amelia also received 2 letters from friends and 1 from a niece named Mary. Esek received 1 letter from Amelia, 2 from his brother George, and 1 from a friend.

Amelia Lippincott was living in New York City when she received 7 letters from Esek H. Williams of Red Bank, New Jersey, between April 22, 1833, and November 10, 1834 (including 1 undated). His letters are affectionate and flirtatious, and often refer indirectly to the couple's romantic relationship. Esek Williams shared news from Red Bank, occasionally mentioned his work in a local store, and, on November 4, 1834, joked about Amelia's political awareness and her support of the Whigs.

After their marriage, Esek wrote 9 letters to his wife while he traveled west for business reasons; he sent 6 of these letters from Michigan in the winter of 1840-1841. He described his experiences near Fredonia, New York (December 13, 1840); Cleveland, Ohio (December 19, 1840); and Kankakee, Illinois (February 14, 1841). He mentioned his lodgings and modes of travel, and often remarked about his love for his wife and children, who remained in New York City. He spent much of his journey in southeast Michigan, where he had financial interests, and provided Amelia with news of his arrival and activities in Detroit (January 1, 1841, and January 10, 1841) and Ann Arbor (March 7, 1841). He discussed financial matters, including his difficulties with state-issued currency, "Michigan money," which he referred to as the only currency in regular circulation in Ann Arbor (March 7, 1841). On a later trip to Michigan, he noted the economic conditions in Detroit (January 1, 1843). On July 2, 1848, he composed his final letter, written from Marshall, Michigan; he expressed his intent to sell his farm in Ann Arbor. Two of his letters have pencil sketches of horses.

Amelia Lippincott Williams received dated personal letters from R. Montgomery, who shared her thoughts on fashionable hats (May 26, 1835), and a woman named Catherine Lent, who hoped Amelia could soon visit (October 1, 1835). Undated letters include 3 from friends and acquaintances, including one in which Amelia's niece Mary mentioned an outbreak of measles and a large social gathering in Shrewsbury, New Jersey. Esek H. Williams received two brief personal letters from his brother George.

Congregationalist preacher Almon Underwood kept this journal from 1832-1850. Underwood wrote about his faith, religious work, and life in Massachusetts, New York, and New Jersey. The volume also contains an autobiography entitled "My Life Work," 2 sermons, and 15 pages of financial records, some of which concern John Underwood's estate.

Congregationalist preacher Almon Underwood kept this journal (630 pages) from June 1832 to 1850. He began writing in Troy, New York, and discussed his religious life, the state of the church, sermons, Sabbath schools, and other religious institutions; one entry contains "rules for sermonizing" (p. 58). Underwood sometimes reported on his travels to towns such as Brunswick and East Nassau, New York. A few entries pertain to current events, such as riots (p. 13) and cholera epidemics (pp. 35, 38). Prompted by harsh reactions to his opposition to slavery, Underwood moved to Newark, New Jersey, in 1844, where he continued to write about religion. The volume also contains an autobiography entitled "My Life Work" (pp. 307-403), 2 sermons, and 15 pages of financial records, some of which concern John Underwood's estate.