It’s been a while
There hasn’t been an update on this web site in quite a while. There are times when life takes precedence over history. This year has seen illness, graduations, visitors from abroad, and many other distractions.
I am finally able to turn my attention to Pettis County. This week, I am adding some transcriptions for which there do not seem to be original letters.
The letters and artifacts on this web site did not come in a box. Many things were salvaged when my mother’s house was sold - they were rescued from a flood and then a dumpster. It is not clear how much was lost.
Two things motivated me to start this site. One was Hurricane Katrina. I realized that nothing is safe, and the more people who have access to historical documents, the more likely their content is to survive. The second was when a distant cousin on my father’s side happened to contact me to ask if I knew...something.
I said, well, yes, I have some boxes that I collected from my mother’s house. Let me look. When I opened those boxes, I opened up a world that was long gone - documents from my father’s family and mother’s family that went back 200 years. While the history wasn’t new to me, as I shuffled through letters, deeds, tintypes, photographs, I realized that it might have some value to other people.
So, my goal is access and preservation. Unfortunately, when I come across transcripts for which there are no letters, I realize how much was lost. I remember so many things from when I was little that are gone now - 200-yr. old quilts. Mollie’s “Second Day Dress” - the dress she wore the day after her wedding.
Meanwhile, enjoy the words of Nancy R. Brown, the widow of John Brown, Jr.
I have also posted a letter from Mary Brown Humes, the sister of Elizabeth Brown Marshall. As John Brown and his family were pioneers of the Republic of Texas, Mary Frances Brown Humes and her husband, David Humes, and their children, were all pioneers of California in the 1850’s. Mary writes of the horse, mule and butter thieves that plague Yuba County and the high property taxes ($25) that diminish their profits.
Lizzie Marshall, wife of George Harvey Marshall, writes of a hailstorm in March of 1884 in Titus Co., Texas, that knocked the blossoms off of the peach trees. She writes of her delight in her children, Gilford and Edna. In a later letter, Lizzie writes of the death of her much-loved son.
News from Pettiscountypioneers.com
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
