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Booton-Modesitt Family Papers, Special Collections Research Center, Swem Library, College of William and Mary.
Purchase.
Accessioned and minimally processed in December 2009 by Ute Schechter, Warren E. Burger Archivist. Arranged and described by Terry N., SCRC staff, prior to _.
Papers of the Modesitt-Booton families of Luray, Virginia. The bulk of the collection consists of papers relating to Lucy Marye of Luray, Virginia who married James Modesitt in 1815. She was widowed in 1827 and remarried James Booton in 1830. Lucy was born to Peter and Eleanor Marye and was sister to William Staige Marye, who is considered one of the founders of Luray, Virginia Also included are letters by John Booton and others relating to slavery and politics, children's copy books, account books, a broadside, invoices, legal contracts and documents.
Group of 15 Circulars for the Commissioner of Revenue for Virginia from the 1840s and 1850s, they belonged to Charles Modesitt who was the Commissioner in Page County
1 of 2. Ten Copy Books by the Children, Sarah, Wyatt Stage and others, from the 1840s and 1850s, they range from a few pages to several with around 70 pages. They are all handwritten and have areas for copying the same line over and over again along with other areas for class notes and exercises.
2 of 2. Ten Copy Books by the Children, Sarah, Wyatt Stage and others, from the 1840s and 1850s, they range from a few pages to several with around 70 pages. They are all handwritten and have areas for copying the same line over and over again along with other areas for class notes and exercises.
New England Primer , Old School and New School
Lucy Modesitt's accounts
The General Laws in relation to Commissioners and Collectors of the Revenue, 1850. Laws in relation to Commissioners and Collectors of the Public Revenue, etc. 1858. Annual Reports of the Fish Commissioners of the State of Virginia, 1875-1877
Richmond Examiner enclosing a copybook exercise by John W, Modesitt, circa January 2, 1860.
Confederate Bond Coupon from 1864 Small Broadside for selling the business of Robert Modesitt, selling the entire stock 1850s 18 page account book for items including Hog Skins, Squirrel Skins, Sheep Skins and other items from 1834 Small Account Book/Ledger including clothing items from 1835 2 Page Handwritten Poem written by John Booton 1844 at Luray Academy Diary of Charles Modisett as a Teacher of the Public White School in the Springfield District from 1880, including enrollment, attendance, ages of kids, along with a selection of his notes as teacher. Prayer book and 4 page Policy of Insurance from the Insurance Company of the Valley of Virginia at Winchester from 1853 Virginia Confederate Bond Coupon 1864 Several Engraved Rewards of Merit for the Children from the 1840s-1860s Nice License for Private Entertainment by Charles B Modesitt 1860 Handwritten note for the Election of 1853, listing all the votes fro Congress, Senate and House from Price's Mill, Brintz's Mill, Mohler's Mille, Honeyville, Springfield, Rileysville, Oakham and Luray with Armstrong, Butler, Faulkner, Buswell, Keyser and Spitter all running for office Small Printed Broadside of the Faculty of Jefferson College from 1849 Documents dealing with the death and estate of James Modesitt from 1827.
Complaint of 1824: 3 page complaint, 1824, about a slave that was hired for a year threatening to run away with her husband. Her husband actually comes and demands that he sell her back to the previous owner or she will run away.
"Dear Sir I am informed by Mr Thomas Clore that you wish to purchase a farm on this side of the mountain. I have a small one. I will sell on accommodating terms the tract contains 137 acres, it is on the south side of the Robison River"
"Did you see Belle Austin's husband while you were in Uniontown? He is a whopper. Considerably over six feet. I saw a catalog of the Steubenville Seminary a few days ago which had the name of Margret Thompson from Luray, Virginia in it. Pray, who is she? Is she Dr. Thompson's daughter? The seminary is only a days ride from this place."
"I hope Daniel Kibler's letter has not put Charlie in the notion of going to the West. I suppose from what he says that his father has taken up some government or vacant land, as it is called."
"We stayed in Washington city until 5:00 Saturday evening. We went to the president's house, the public grounds, the Washington Monument, the Equestrian Statue of Jackson, the Capitol, the Patent Office. I enclose a five dollar note which I got from Mr. Grove. It turns out to be counterfeit."
"Rob's little boy, Austin got kicked by a horse about ten days ago and had his collar bone broken. It still had to be fastened to its place but he does not complain of it hurting him any and is running about as if nothing unusual had happened to him. He is one of the boldest and most reckless boys I ever saw."
"Cousin Jno Booton wrote to me a few weeks ago saying that Dr Rust was desirous that I should return in the spring to practice with him.I don't know what to say about it. I shall write to John asking what share Dr Rust is willing to give and how long he proposes the partnership should last. This will give me time to hear from you on the subject.""I sent by him one dozen bottles of McMunn's Elixir of opium for Lucy.It will help to control her cough and whenever she requires an opiate whether in the shape of Laudaman Panegone, Black Drop, Morphia, or Solid Opium"
"I have sent a vial of spirits of Mendereri, you will please give cousin Lucy a teaspoon full every hour, when she seems feverish, until her skin becomes moist, I have also sent some creamer tartar she can use to make the magueria operate should it not operate without"
"I was very busy for a while after Mr Fetzer left here for Wheeling. You said in your letter that Doctor Robertson has sold his farm to David Kibler for $900 and has moved to the West. I don't recollect any David Kibler unless he is a son of old Philip Kibler."
"Aunt Lucy, You will please inform me of what were the movements of you father during the Revolution of our country, if you have any information on this please inform me."
"I start for the West in the morning but not very far, yet my trip will be longer, I fear than will be entirely pleasant to me. I have hope of getting back before 1st April, will be much pleased to be disappointed to the contrary. My trip west from which I have just returned, was a pleasant one with the exception of cold weather. I experienced a river severe time crossing the Alleghany Mountains"
"I suppose you have heard of the steam boat explosion here last week. It was a melancholy thing indeed, there was at the time and since died from injuries, twenty-six or seven persons. The boat was entirely new and was about to make a short trip for trial and had not left shore fifty yards when the boiler burst and made the dreadful destruction of life, there was eighty-two persons on board and only fifteen escaped unhurt"
"We have had a warm political contest here but all is lost. JK Polk will certainly be president of the US. I am disappointed beyond measure. I could not have believed he could have beaten our gallant old Harry, but it is all over, and we must make the best of it."
"We arrived here on the 4th of the month being detained by the snow two days at Harpers Ferry. I was in the United States Armory at the Ferry it was a great curiosity to me indeed to see more than three hundred person employed in making guns."
"I have heard alarms of fire every night since I have been here. The first night I got here there was a fire very near in sight of my window besides three others. The town seemed to be in commotion all night. I have gotten along from the time I left home. I will give you first and account from the day I left. The first day I went to Shenandoah Furnace. The next day I went to Harrisonburg and the next day to New Market where I remained until Wednesday. I walked from New Market to Mount Jackson, seven miles. It was not the day for the stage when I left New Market."
"I have got about 5 or 6 hundred silk worms which keep me very busy of mornings and evenings feeding them and shifting them on fresh leaves. I feed them on the natural mulberry and James William on the Morus Multicaulis. My worms appear to grow faster than his."
"The University of Virginia receives an annuity of $15,000 from the state and one of the conditions on which is receives it is that there shall be one student from every congressional district from the state educated free of charge for tuition and boarding. I could perhaps get in there from the Paige District, but it would make me feel a little too degraded to be educated at the expense of the state. Besides, the Virginia University is one of the best, if not the very best, college in the United States
"The honorable James Buchanan passed through here last Monday and made a short speech to the students. I was very well pleased both with the speech and the man. One does not see any of the outward peculiarities which are sometimes taken for characteristics of greatness, except indeed the deep cunning expressed by his eyes or the sharpness and prominence of the chin."
"There was arrested yesterday and taken to jail a man by the name of Thomas Evans for the murder of Hayden Bliss on 19th of November 1845. After this fatal affray Evans says he went to Ohio but feeling uneasy and uncomfortable there he thought it would be better for him to return home. We are told he made no resistance to the officer who arrested him but quietly and peaceably submitted to his control and direction. Evans says he did it in self defense. He murdered him by chopping Blisses head in a horrid manner with a corn cutter. The murdered man was a brother in law of the murderer
"There was a murder committed but a short distance from there. The murder was a negro supposed to be a runaway and stabbed up a white man for trying to arrest him and made his escape. William says he has volunteered for Texas, tell him if he is very eager to get there an opportunity now offers for staying five years so if he wants to go bad he had better come on here immediately as there are now officers here from the army recruiting"
There was a great animal show here yesterday and wax works and four white negro boys their father and mother are said to be black and these naturally white, their noses are flat and their hair white and curly and have every resemblance of a negro except their eyes and feet. I saw a man after the show was over and said he pulled out a bunch of his hair to ascertain whether he had on a wig or not and found that he had not."
"A great number of volunteer soldiers passed through here within the past week for Mexico. I also saw two Indians pass through yesterday on the stages going home from Washington City. They belong to the Caw tribes in a remote part of Missouri. They were bare headed and nothing to cover their body but a blanket thrown carelessly over their shoulders and a pair of shoes. It would be impossible for me to describe the beads and jewelry of various kinds about their persons. They could speak English Tolerably well."
"On Friday last Samuel S Austin brother of Mary, was killed on the hill this side of Brownsville, by the bursting of a wall swivel, that is a Mexican gun made of brass and weighing between 100 and 125 pounds. A piece of it about 10 inches long and 1 inch thick struck him in the abdoment or rather his thigh and mashed the hip bone, throwing clear out a part of the joint nearly as large as the half of a hen's egg and tearing out his entrails.He had gone down the Ohio river to Wheeling to meet the volunteers from this county just returning from Mexico." The other accident resulted in the death of a little boy a few days previous to that. He was the son of Mr Peter Kremer of this place and was hanging with his hands to the coupling pole of a wagon and the driver not knowing he was there stopped and commenced backing the wagon, when the little boy fell and the wheel passed right over his neck, breaking it and causing instant death"
"I left your overshoes at the Post Office at New Market to be returned to you, I will send those Saddlebags and Overcoat in Roberts Trunk"
Nice Handwritten Invitation to John and Robert to attend a social party at the Washington House in Luray, signed by all the managers 1845
Nice letter from L.C. Marye from Fredericksburg, 1845, "I saw your cousin, J.K. Booton last Tuesday, I believe he was in usual health. He is now captain of the company that your father had the command of before his decease"
"We have a had a great deal of wet, The National road has been in a horrid condition, all winter, it is getting a little better now. You have a nice set of candidates for the Senate, I must confess. The county candidates will do a little better."
"The woman arrested sometime ago for killing the Watchman, has been tried and acquitted on the ground that she committed the murder in Self-Defense. Charles Austin, Marye's Brother, was to be tried for seduction and breach of promise of marriage but the case was compromised before it came into court by his Father paying the girl's father five hundred and fifty dollars. Another girl sued Skiles Austin for a case of the same nature.The male portion of that family have turned out badly"
"I have one important matter to communicate and that is that I am going to be married in May unless something strange, very strange, turns up. I hope you are willing to trust my judgment in the selection of a companion for life. I think my choice is a prudent and happy one and one that cannot fail to please you. I am sure if you love me or any child you have, you will love her. I wish you could see her."
"There are two literary societies composed of the students of the college. They meet once a week and in rotation have lectures, compositions, and a debate. I am a member of the largest one, the Adelphian, and last night I spoke two rounds on the debate. The first time I ever made a speech. The question for debate was this. Can a government be perpetuated which is not founded on a religion?"
"Aunt Lucy, You will please inform me what were the movements of your father during the Revolution of our country, if you have any information on this please inform me."
"The expectation of a war with Mexico has caused great excitement and go where you will almost you will find that the subject of their discussion, in fact the surgeon of the Union Town Companies have had a great many applicants under pretence of different diseases to try to get off from going to war"
"The people here are very apprehensive of the cholera, none has occurred in town yet, but there have been several cases at the poor house, a good many deaths by cholera have taken place in Brownsville."
"I saw this morning an account of another battle fought between the Americans and the Mexicans which lasted sometime. During the action, lieut. Thomas Jordan and many other gallant officers were wounded. I reckon Mr. Jordan will be much grieved to hear that his son has happened to such a sad accident but it will be of some consolation to him to think that it was done in defense of his country. Brid. Gen.Joshua Howe of this place received orders from the president this morning to call together the militia of this country and march to the field of battle on the 22nd of June. I would like to know if there is any likelihood of many being taken away from Luray."
"We were detained at Harpers Ferry nearly two days and saw a great many curiosities there, one of which was the U States armory, a great curiosity indeed."
"I am going to school at Madison College, do not let the word College deceive you any person would naturally suppose that it was a large flourishing institution but they would be wonderfully mistaken. For it is nothing to be compared with the Luray Academy when it was under the admirable superintendence of G.W. Grayson or Bandylegs as we used to call him."
"I wish he had been here last Sunday Morning to witness the departure of the Fayette County Volunteers for Mexico, it was an imposing sight."
"I felt like jumping up and cracking my heels together when I heard that Colb of Georgia was elected speaker of the house and then the Chairmen of all the important committees in the senate are pro-slavery men. Such a triumph of the south puts the abolitionist about here considerably down in the mouth. What do you think of the President's Message, I think it small potatoes"
"There has been a good deal of excitement here since the election and it seems that the Whigs have beat the Democrats in this state and the Democrats had beat the Whigs in Ohio. Great efforts will be made by each party to carry this state in November for President."
"I was a little surprised last Thursday morning when I got up to discover an attempt to break in the store during the night. They bored holes with an auger through the door next to the street with the intention to get out the key, I suppose, but they did not succeed. They were scared off by the watchmen. If they had gotten in, I think they would have met with rather a warm reception. I did not hear them as I sleep upstairs, but if they had come up there, I had the thing that would have made them get out a little quicker than they got in. There seems to be a gang of villains about here for awhile. They have attempted to fire buildings and do other mischief. One rogue has been safely lodged in jail for breaking in a store in Parkersburg, Virginia and robbed it of $200."
Letter from John Booton while at college from 1850 "The Niggers are very numerous here and very important. A few evenings since a big black fellow who thought himself as good as anybody undertook to make some students here from Kentucky and some of the other slave states, get out of his road. The even convinced him he had waked up the wrong passengers. They gave the negro a little the soundest cudgeling he ever had. The whole body of the negroes became outraged at this and armed themselves with guns, pistols, bowie knives, axes, and clubs swearing vengeance on the white fellows that whipped their colored brother and if the rest of the students came to their assistance, prepared for a general battle. They did not proceed to violence but contented themselves by getting out warrants for the arrest of the students concerned in the affray. Some think the disturbance will not end here but that during the coming vacation while a good many of the students are at home the negroes will attempt to overpower those that remain here. All I can say is that if they do there will be blood spilled. The blacks are nearly all armed. To make the matter worse a good many of the inhabitants take sides with the niggers. How I despise such people. I have hardly benevolence enough to wish them a happy hereafter. I have never had any difficulty with the blacks or their white allies and hope I shall not have."
Letter from John Booton Christmas Eve 1845 about a sermon by the well known Indian Missionary, John Douglas Bemo from the Seminole Tribe "I heard a Seminole Indian preach last Sunday a week in the Presbyterian Church at this place I also heard him give a description of himself, his tribe the same night. It was very interesting indeed there was a collection made for him to distriubte amongst his tribe, he got $100 at this place, $19 of which he got out of James Peach's Family, the Indian's name was John Bemo of the seminoe tribe, a nephew of the celebrated Chief Osceola."
Letter to Dr F.W.G. Thomas, who became a well known physician in Missouri looking for employment from 1852. Letter from Rockingham with a folk art drawing of a bird with a branch at the top of the letter
"I see by the newspapers that the Democrats have done the thing up brown at the election in the Old Dominion. As far as heard from they have already a majority of seven over what they had in the last legislature. How is it in Page, is Boswell or Keyser elected?"
"Since the treaty with Mexico has been concluded a great number of soldiers going home passed through this place. The most of them looked the worse for the war, there were several distiguished officers of high rank among them, that that I saw were, General Pillow, Quitman, Cadwalder and last but not least Major General William Butler of Kentucky, the Democratic Candidate for Vice President." "General Patterson and Shields also went through here but I did not see them... The Whigs and Democrats both have polls up. The Whig pole is 210 feet high... There was a discussion at the Whig Pole on Friday night between AJ Ogle and J.S. Dawson, the former the Whig Candidate for Congress and the latter the Democratic one for the same office."
"We had a grand illumination of the town about a week ago in celebration of the surrender of the city of Vera Cruz. Capt. S.S. Austin has just [?] from Mexico, he went about 3 months ago by himslef but afterwards joined the 3rd artillery and served as 1st Lieutenant and the attack on Vera Cruz." "He has a prospect of seeling out here too and if he does I think he will go to Missouri probably after that concern is closed in Baltimore. His business calls him to Missouri now for two or three weeks. Say nothing about this out of the family for he does not wish it mentioned to any person I know."
"There is an old colonel by the name of Semaroski lecturing on Napoleon Bonaparte he served under Napoleon in the French war, 23 years. He has been in 202 batlles he has a very large scar from his mouth to his ear and a very large lump on his side where he was wounded with a cannoncall. He is also a minister of the Gospel a Lutheran by profession. He was born in Poland and educated in france and moved to Indiana after the French Revolution."
"I was going to write to you last Sunday but as Gen. Taylor was expected to pass through here this week. I put it off in order to give you an account of his reception and description of his person. He arrived here yesterday evening at 7 precisely and remained overnight. A large concourse of citizens met him about a mile from town and escorted him to the Clinton House in a open carriage. He was welcomed to the town in a short speech by E. P. Oliphant, to which he replied in a speech of about three to five minutes... It seems that everybody had got it into their noggins that he was a large man, consequently they were disappointed to find him a small one."
"This is a day of sad gloom in our town. The Cholera in its most malignant form commenced its savages here yesterday. I think the first occurred about 8 AM and died about noon. Since that time 7 have died and there are others that are sick that may terminate fatally. It is so far confined to one street principally none having occurred but in the vicinity of that street. The gloom and alarm here you can hardly conceive, many have left town and many more I think will leave."
"The woman arrested sometimes ago for killing the Watchman, has been tried and acquitted on the ground that she committed the murder in Self-Defense. Charles Austin, Marye's Brother, was to be tried for seduction and breach of promise of marriage but the case was compromised before it came into court by his Father paying the girl's father five hundred and fifty dollars. Another girl sued Skiles Austin for a case of the same nature. The male portion of the family have turned out badly."
"I saw this morning an account of another battle fought between the Americans and the Mexicans which lasted sometime. During the action, lieut. Thomas Jordan and many other gallant officers were wounded. I reckon Mr. Jordan will be much grieved to hear that his son has happened to such a sad accident but it will be of some consoloation to him to think that it was done in defense of his country." "Brid. Gen. Joshua Howe fo this place received orders from the president this morning to call together the militia of this country and march to the field of battle on the 22nd of June. I would like to know if there is any likelihood of many being taken away from Luray."
"We were detained at Harpers Ferry nearly two days and saw a great many curiosities there, one of which was the U States armory, a great curiosity indeed."
"We have had a warm political contest here but all is lost. J.K. Polk will certainly be president of the US. I am disappointed beyond measure. I could not have believed he could have beaten our gallant old Harry, but it is all over, and we must make the best of it."
"I am going to school at Madison College, do not let the word College deceive you any person would naturally suppose that it was a large flourishing institution but they would be wonderfully mistaken. For it is nothing compared with the Luray Academy when it was under the admirable superintendence of G.W. Grayson of Bandylegs as we used to call him."
"I wish he had been here last Sunday Morning to witness the departure of the Fayette County Volunteers for Mexico, it was an imposing sight."
"I felt like jumping up and cracking my heels together when i heard that Colb of Georgie was elected speaker of the house and then the Chairmen of all the important committees in the senate are pro-slavery men. Such a Triumph of the south puts the abolitionist about here considerably down in the mouth. What do you think of the President's message, I think it small potatoes."
"There has been a good deal of excitement her since the election and it seems that the Whigs have beat the Democrats in this state and the Democrats had beat the Whigs in Ohio. Great efforts will be made by each party to carry this state in November for President."
"I was a little surprised last Thursday morning when I got up to discover an attempt to breakin the store during the night. They bored holes with an auger through the door next to the street with the intention to get out the key, I suppose, but they did not succeed. They were scared off by the watchmen. If they had gotten in, i think they would have met with rather a warm reception. I did not hear them as I slept upstains, but if they had come up there, I had the thing that would have made them get out a little quicker than they got in." "There seems to be a gang of villians about here for awhile. They have attempted to fire buildings and do other mischief. One rogue has been safely lodged in jail for breaking in a store in Parkersburg, Virginia and robbed it of $200."
"The University of Virginia receives an annuity of $15,000 from the state and one of the conditions on which it receives it is that there shall be one student from every congressional district from the state educated free of charge for tuition and boarding. I could perhaps get in there from the Paige District, but it would make me feel a little too degraded to be educated at the expense of the state. Besides, the Virginia University is one of the best, if not the very best, college in the United States."
"We stayed in Washington city until 5:00 Saturday evening. We went to the president's house, the public grounds, the Washington Monument, the Equestrian Statue of Jackson, the Capitol, the Patent Office. I enclose a five dollar note which I got from Mr. Grove. It turns out to be counterfeit."
"The honorable James Buchanan passed through here last Monday and made a short speech to the students. I was very well pleased both with the speech and the man. Once does not see any of the outward peculiarities which are sometimes taken for characteristics of greatness, except indeed the deep cunning expressed by his eyes or the sharpness and prominence of the chin."
"There was a murder committed but a short distance from there. The murder was a negro supposed to be a runaway and stabbed up a white man for trying to arrest him and made his escape." "William says he has volunteer for Texas, tell him if he is very eager to her there an oppotunity not offers for staying frive years so if he wants to go bad he had better come on here immediately as there are now officers here from the army recruiting."
"There was a great animal show here yesterday and wax works and four white negro boys their father and mother are said to be black and these naturally white, their noses are flat and their hair white and curly and have every resemblance of a negro except their eyes and feet. I saw a man after the show was over and said he pulled out a bunch of his hair to ascertain whether he had on a wig or not and found that he had not."
Letter from John Booton from 1851 about escaped enslaved persons from Virginia and the battle that ensued over them being arrested and the free Black persons and abolitionists that got involved and were ready to fight for them, really fantastic: "We had a great excitement here last Monday on account of the arrest of some runaway negroes from Virginia. There were warrants issued for the arrest of five fugitives. Two of them were taken at Robstown on the Loughegheny River, but the free blacks and abolitionists raised a mob, rescued the slaves and cut some of the officers. Two others were arrested in Brownsville and after creating a good deal of excitement were brought to Uniontown for trial. After they had been lodged in jail news came that there was a considerable body of armed negroes headed by one or two abolitionists coming from Brownsville to attempt a rescue. In hearing this the sheriff ordered out the military to maintain the laws. A part of the darkies reported to be coming, come in town one at a time. Finding the soldiers ready and anxious for a fight they left town without ceremony. Money was raised to indemnify the owners and the slaves set at liberty."
"A great number of volunteer soldiers passed through here within the past week for Mexico. I also saw two Indians pass through yesterday on the stages going home from Washington City. They belong to the Caw tribes in a remote part of Missouri. They were bare headed and nothing to cover their body but a blanket thrown carelessly over their shoulders and a pair of shoes. it would be impossible for me to describe the beads and jewelry of various kinds about their persons. They could speak English Tolerably well."
"She seems to decline fast but she does not appear to suffer much severe paint often. Dr Henkel's medicine weakened her very fast while taking to Dr Kim came in to see her and advised her together with Dr Crane to discontinue the use of it"
"On Friday last Samuel S. Austin brother of Mary, was killed on the hill this side of Brownsville, by the bursting of a wall swivel, that is a Mexican gun made of brass and weighing between 100 and 125 pounds. A piece of it about 10 inches long and 1 inch thick struck him in the abdoment or rather his thigh and mashed the hip bone, throwing clear out a part of the joint nearly as large as the half of a hen's egg and tearing out his entrails. he had gone down the Ohio river to Wheeling to meet the volunteers from this county just returning from Mexico." "The other accident resulted in the death of a little boy a few days previous to that. He was the son of Mr. Peter Kremer of this place and was hanging with his hands to the coupling pole of a wagon and the driver not knowing he was there stopped and commenced backing the wagon, when the little boy fell and the wheel passed right over his neck, breaking it and causing instant death."
"I wasvery busy for a while after Mr. Fetzer left here for Wheeling. You said in your letter that Doctor Robertson has sold his farm to David Kibler for $900 and has moved to the West. I don't recollect any David Kibler unless he is the son of Philip Kibler."
"I have got about 5 or 6 hundred silk worms which keep me very busy of mornings and evenings feeding them and shifting them on fresh leaves. I feed them on the natural mulberry and James William on the Morus Multicaulis. My worms appear to grow faster than his."
"I left your overshoes at the Post Office at New Market to be returned to you, I will send those Saddlesbags and Overcoat in Robert's Trunk."
Nice handwritten invitation to John and Robert to attent a social party at the Washington House in Luray signed by all the managers.
"I saw your cousin, J.K. Booton last Tuesday, I believe he was in usual health. He is now captain of the company that your father had the command of before his decease."
"I see by the newspapers that the Democrats have done the thing up brown at the election in the Old Dominion. As far as heard from they have already a majority of seven over what they had in the last legislature. How is it in Page, is Boswell or Keyser elected?"
"Since the treaty with Mexico has been concluded a great number of soldiers going home passed through this place. The most of them looked the worse for the war, there were several distinguished officers of high rank among them, that that I saw were, General Pillow, Quitman, Cadwalder and last but not least Major General William Butler of Kentucky, the Democratic Candidate for Vice President." "General Patterson and Shields also went through here but I did not see them..The Whigs and Democrats both have polls up. The Whig pole is 210 feet high...There was a discussion at the Whig Pole on Friday night between AJ Ogle and J.S. Dawson, the former the Whig Candidate for Congress and the latter the Democratic one for the same office"
"We had a grand illumination of the town about a week ago in celebration of the surrender of the city of Vera Cruz.Capt S.S. Austin has just ? From Mexico, he went about 3 months ago by himself but afterwards joined the 3rd artillery and served as 1st Lieutenant in the attack on Vera Cruz." "He has a prospect of selling out here too and if he does I think he will go to Missouri probably after that concern is closed in Baltimore. His business calls him to Missouri now for two or three weeks.Say nothing about this out of the Family for he does not wish it mentioned to any person I know."
"There is an old colonel by the name of Semaroski lecturing on Napoleon Bonaparte he served under Napoleon in the French war, 23 years. He has been in 202 battles he has a very large scar from his mouth to his ear and a very large lump on his side where he was wounded with a cannonball. He is also a minister of the Gospel a Lutheran by profession.He was born in Poland and educated in France and moved to Indiana after the French Revolution
"I was going to write to you last Sunday but as Gen Taylor was expected to pass through here this week. I put it off in order to give you an account of his reception and description of his person.He arrived here yesterday evening at 7 precisely and remained over night. A large concourse of citizens met him about a mile from town and escorted him to the Clinton House in an open carriage. He was welcomed to the town in a short speech by E.P. Oliphant, to which he replied in a speech of about three to five minutes..It seems that everybody had got it into their noggins that he was a large man, consequently they were disappointed to find him a small one"
"This day is a day of sad gloom in our town. The Cholera in its most malignant form commenced its savages here yesterday. I think the first occured about 8 AM and died about noon. Since that time 7 have died and there are others that are sick that may terminate fatally. It is so far confined to one street principally non having occured but in the vicinity of that street. The gloom and alarm here you can hardly conceive, many have left town and many more I think will leave."
"Did you see Belle Austin's Husband while you were in Uniontown? He is a whopper. Considerably over six feet. I saw a catalog of the Steubenville Seminary a few days ago which had the name of Margret Thompson from Luray, Virginia in it. Pray, who is she? Is she Dr. Thompson's daughter? The seminary is only a days ride from this place."
"I hope Daniel Kibler's letter has not put Charlie in the notion of going to the West. I suppose from what he says that his father has taken up some government or vacant land, as it is called."
"The Niggers are very numerous here and very impudent. A few evenings since a big black fellow who thought himself as googd as anybody undertook to make some students here from Kentucky and some of the other slave states, get out of his road. They even convinced him he had waked up the wrong passengers. They gave the negro a little the soundest cudgeling he ever had. The whole body of the negroes become outraged at this and armed themselves with guns, pistols, bowie knives, axes, and clubs swearing vengeance on the white fellows that whipped their colored brother and if the rest of the students came to their assistance, prepared for a general batte. They did not proceed to violence but contented themselves by getting out warrants for the arrest of the students concerned in the affray. Some think the disturbance will not end here but that during the coming vacation while a good many of the students are at home the negroes will attempt to overpower those that remain here. All I can say is that if they do there will be blood spilled. The blacks are nearly all armed. To make the matter worse a good many of the inhabitants take side with the niggers. How I despise such people. I have hardly benevolence enough to wish them a happy hereafter. I have never had any difficulty with the blacks or their white allies and hope I shall not have."
"We had a great excitement here last Monday on account of the arrest of some runaway negroes from Virginia. There were warrants issued for the arrest of five fugitives. Two of them were taken at Robstown on the Loughegheny River, but the free blacks and abolitionists raised a mob, rescued the slaves and cut some of the officers. Two others were arrested in Brownsville and after creating a good deal of excitement were brought to Uniontown for trial. After they had been lodged in jail news came that there was a considerable body of armed negroes headed by one or two abolitionists coming from Brownsville to attempt a rescue. In hearing this the sheriff orfered out the military to maintain the laws. A part of the darkies reported to be coming, come in town one at a time. Finding the soldiers ready and anxious for a fight they left town without ceremony. Money was raised to indemnify the owners and the slaves set at liberty."
"Rob's little boy, Austin got kicked by a horse about ten days ago and had his collar bone broken. It still had to be fastened to its place but he does not complain of it hurting him and and is running about as if nothing unusual had happened to him. He is one of the boldest and most reckless boys I ever saw."
"She seems to decline fast but she does not appear to suffer much severe pain often. Dr Henkel's medicine weakened her very fast while taking to Dr Kim came in to see here and advised her together with Dr Crane to discontinue the use of it."
"James W Modesitt Sheriff of Page County on the 6th day of July last and enclosed a copy of each together with a list of Free Negroes and transmitted them by mail to your office."
Indenture Document, Will, Work calculations
"1824 Slave Document being an appraisal and dividing up of 21 Slaves, they are all named in the document."
"Document from 1824 being a 3 page complaint about a slave that was hired for a year threatening to run away with her husband. Her husband actually comes and demands that he sell her back to the previous owner or she will runaway.
A document from Charles Modesitt from Page County from 1857 that includes listing the number of Free Negroes in the town at 3 cents each, there were 48 at the time