A Guide to the James W. McRea Letters, 1836 McRea, James W., Letters, 1836 1043588

A Guide to the James W. McRea Letters, 1836

A Collection in
the Library of Virginia
Barcode Number 1043588


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Library of Virginia

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Email: archdesk@lva.virginia.gov(Archives)
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© 2003 By the Library of Virginia.

Funding: Web version of the finding aid funded in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Processed by: Greg Crawford

Repository
Library of Virginia
Barcode number
1043588
Title
James W. McRea Letters, 1836
Physical Characteristics
12 p.
Collector
Arlington County
Physical Location
The Library of Virginia, Local Government Records Collection, Arlington County
Language
English

Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Preferred Citation

James W. McRea Letters, 1836. Samuel Harrison Smith, Treasurer of the Washington National Monument Society versus Thomas K. Beale (Judgments, October 1838) Library of Virginia. Richmond, Virginia.

Acquisition Information

These materials came to the Library of Virginia in shipments of court papers from Arlington County.

Historical Information

James W. McRea was a collector for the Washington National Monument Society. He was sent to Alabama in March 1836, to raise funds for the construction of a monument honoring George Washington.

The letters were used as evidence in a debt case heard in Arlington County titled Samuel Harrison Smith, Treasurer of the Washington National Monument Society versus Thomas K. Beale. The suit was settled in the society's favor in October 1838.

Scope and Content Information

Three letters written in 1836 by James W. McRea to the treasurer of the Washington National Monument Society. McRea writes about his fundraising efforts in Alabama on behalf of the society. He reports his successes and failures in raising money and the total amount he collected. McRea writes of meeting Governor Clement C. Clay, speaking to students at the University of Alabama, attending a fund raiser in the town of Livingston in Sumter County, and serving as a quartermaster in the Alabama militia during the Creek War. The letters conclude with McRea tendering his resignation to the society due to his frustration with collecting money in Alabama.

Arrangement

Chronological.

Contents List

Box 77
Letter - James W. McRea to Samuel Harrison Smith, 2 April 1836
Box 77
Letter - James W. McRea to Samuel Harrison Smith, 26 May 1836
Box 77
Letter - James W. McRea to George Watterston, 15 October 1836