Starkweather family correspondence, (bulk 1849-1859)

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  Ella P. Starkweather letter to "Mrs. Dwight and Family,"

  Manuscripts

  This letter was written by Ella P. Starkweather, a school teacher, living in the town of Bridgewater, now part of South Dakota. Starkweather describes her experiences in Dakota Territory to her friends back home. To her surprise, she likes the school where she is teaching. There are new series of books, a school room that is large and pleasantly furnished. She writes that some of her students could benefit from a lesson on cleanliness: "...a few would be rendered much more attractive by a vigorous application of soap suds..." Regarding life on the frontier, she writes: "You may imagine the people here are sick of the country, and I can hardly give you an idea how happy and contented they all seem to be. They say the most scant time for provisions they have known is since I came and I know of no one suffering." She also touches upon the weather and the farmers. "The country looks lovely, farmers who had seed here and sown find everything encouraging." Near the end of the letter, she describes her layover in Sheldon, Iowa for five days and her amusement regarding a car half-filled with Bohemian immigrants.

  mssHM 80839

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  Upson family correspondence

  Manuscripts

  The majority of these letters deal with the Upson family's mining and business interests in California and Montana; life in Sterling, Montana, and Sacramento and San Francisco, California; and the settlement of the estate of Gad Ely Upson after his death in 1866. There is one letter by James Upson written in Panama while on his voyage to California onboard the ship Falcon. There is also one letter written by Hiram D. Upham, Deputy Agent for the Blackfeet Indians. The originals of these letters are in the Upson Family Papers at Yale University Library.

  mssHM 68204-68214

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  Curtis family correspondence, (bulk 1855-1892)

  Manuscripts

  A collection of family correspondence containing 110 items, the letters are chiefly to Delia Augusta and Sarah Henrietta Curtis from their brothers. The letters include discussion of the Curtis sisters' studies and education, family news, the Civil War, life in Ohio, Tennessee, Arizona, and California, from 1820 to 1892; also included are a few letters of Henry James and Clarissa Fisher Curtis. The collection also contains a typewritten summary and outline of the Curtis family letters (1984) and ephemera.

  mssHM 50671-50759

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  Steele Family Correspondence

  Manuscripts

  The collection contains thirty letters chiefly from the Steele family of Ann Arbor, Michigan, between 1856 and the 1870s, to Ellen Steele Sturges (1837-1930). All but one of which are addressed to Ellen (or Ellen and David) Sturges from her immediate family (and one friend, identified only as "Rebecca"). The aberrant letter was written in 1856 to David B. Sturges from Ellen (it is unclear if they were already married at this point). The correspondence contains detailed descriptions of the failing health and treatment of Julia and Valentine Steele in the months leading up to their deaths. There are occasional references to cultural and religious life in Ann Arbor in the letters of the 1866-1876 period, especially regarding the growth of the Methodist Church and the public speeches of Erastus Otis Haven (1863-1869), the second president of the University of Michigan and pastor of the First United Methodist Church. Though politics and national affairs are rarely discussed, HM 73855 includes Phebe Steele's thoughts on President Ulysses S. Grant's unsuccessful bid for a third term. Ebenezer and Phebe Steele express deep anxiety throughout the 1866 correspondence as to their daughter's safety from Indians in Montana, though no specific events are referenced. In addition to the correspondence, there is a family record, believed to be in the hand of Phebe Steele, detailing the birth and death dates of the siblings and parents of Ebenezer Steele, as well as a folder containing seven empty envelopes.

  mssHM 73830-73862

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  Johnson family letters

  Manuscripts

  Seven letters written by Sanford and Benjamin Johnson to family in Massachusetts and Maine. They were written from San Francisco, New Diggings, and Indian Flat, California

  mssHM 59828-59834

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  Clark family correspondence

  Manuscripts

  This collection contains 21 letters from Sarah Clark to her husband and children. The remaining correspondence is between Clark family members. There are a few additional pieces written by friends, relatives, and one business associate. The correspondence covers a wide range of subjects including: the citrus industry in California and Nevada; economic conditions in California, Indiana, and Nevada; agriculture in Northern California; hunting; sickness; courtship; children; and business. There are also two letters containing love poetry, and the collection contains an express receipt from Wells Fargo and Company. Sarah Clark (fl. 1852-1895) is the most prolific figure in this collection, as she wrote twenty-one letters and was the addressee of eight. There are, however, eighteen other authors of these letters, including her sons, Charles 3 Scope and content note (continued) Francis Clark (7 letters), Joshua Clark (6 letters), William G. Clark (3 letters), and Robert V. Clark, Jr. (3 letters). There are 5 letters from her husband, Robert V. Clark, a combined six from Sarah's three sisters, and an assortment of letters from friends, acquaintances, and one business associate. The letters describe day-to-day activities of the family members as well as their hopes, dreams, and longings. Sarah Clark, left to care for six children while her husband tried to establish a new life in California, attempted to survive with little money and with the hope that she would once again be reunited with her husband. Her early letters relate a longing for his companionship and her need to support and take care of him. Her later letters focus primarily on her ill health and occasional discomfort.The letters in the collection also make reference to diseases such as smallpox, home remedies such as a bread and milk poultice for aches and pains, and the death of a child in town where no one attended her funeral. There are upbeat moments as family members participate in various functions such as picnics, parties, and one outdoor event where Joshua Clark recalls that women participated in a football game. Joshua Clark also received two letters containing love poetry from a woman named Reta. There is ample discussion of the citrus industry with at least two family members, C. F. (Charles Francis) Clark and William G. Clark, involved in the distribution and sale of an assortment of fruit. There are passing references to the opera coming to town, singer Jenny Lind (spelled "Lynn" in the letter), and winter sports such as sledding. There is occasional talk of road surveying and road taxes and one family member runs into several "Chinamen" while surveying his property. Some of the correspondence discusses courtship and marriage. In one letter, a woman named Emma requests a photograph of a prospective suitor with very little requirements as to appearance, height, or weight. Her only stipulation is that he be able to support her and be an Israelite.

  mssHM 61076-61139