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Special Collections Research Center
William & Mary Special Collections Research CenterEarl Gregg Swem Library
400 Landrum Dr
Williamsburg, Virginia
Business Number: 757-221-3090
spcoll@wm.edu
URL: https://libraries.wm.edu/libraries-spaces/special-collections
Steven Bookman, University Archives Specialist.
Administrative Information
Conditions Governing Use:
Before reproducing or quoting from any materials, in whole or in part, permission must be obtained from the Special Collections Research Center, and the holder of the copyright, if not Swem Library.
Conditions Governing Access:
Collection is open to all researchers.
Preferred Citation:
Helen M. Hoskins Papers, Special Collections Research Center, Swem Library, College of William and Mary.
Acquisition Information:
Acc. 2013.226 was received by Special Collections via U.S.P.S. on 8/14/2013. The collection was purchased for Swem Library with support from the Clarice Garrison Quasi Endowment.
Processing Information:
Accessioned and minimally processed by Steven Bookman, University Archives Specialist, in October 2013.
Scope and Contents
The collection contains correspondence, receipts, poems, and other material concerning Helen M. Hoskins and her family of Sheffield, Massachusetts. Most of the correspondence is between Helen and her mother, Sabra Hoskins, but also includes letters written by Helen's husband, H.T. Wheeler, her son, Horace Wheeler, siblings, numerous cousins, and friends. Included in the collection are poems, compositions, and other ephemera related to Helen's time as a teacher at female academies in Maryland, (Patapsco Institute), Virginia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Mississippi, and Ohio.
Arrangement of Materials:
This collection is arranged into two series, correspondence and ephemera. The correspondences are arranged chronologically by author and recipient, and the ephemera is arranged chronologically.
Related Material
Mary Lou Yancey Autograph Album (MsV Auto13).
Subjects and Indexing Terms
- African Americans--Religion
- Correspondence
- Hampton (Va.)--History--19th century
- Presidents--United States--Election--1848
- Printed ephemera
- Receipts (financial records)
- Religion and culture
- Slavery--Virginia--18th century
- Slaves--Virginia--Social conditions
- United States--History--Mexican War, 1845-1848
- Women--Education--Virginia
- Women--Virginia--Social life and customs
Physical Characteristics or Technical Requirements:
The fragile nature of this material may limit handling.
Container List
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 1 id241335
Letters to Sabra C. Hoskins from Helen M. Hoskins1847-1859 and undatedScope and Contents
Some of the topics covered in the papers include the 1848 U.S. Presidential Election, The Mexican-American War, slave uprisings in Hampton, Virginia, the education of women, benevolence societies, Sunday school, social comparisons between the north and south, the Know Nothing movement, and outbreaks of various diseases including cholera, yellow fever, dysentary, and small pox in Virginia in the 1840s and 1850s, as well as diseases common to young children and the prevalence of influenza and bilious fever. Folder includes 50 letters and 2 undated letter fragments.
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 2 id241336
Letters to Sabra C. Hoskins from Helen M. Hoskins1860-1868 and undatedScope and Contents
Located in Ohio. Topics include the distinction of states as loyal and in rebellion, the appearance of rebel leader John Morgan in southern Ohio in the summer of 1863 and the northern response, the disruption of daily activities including mail services due to the civil war, reference to the riots in New York in regards to the draft, the 100th anniversary of the Methodist church in England and America. Helen and her husband are often ill, and Helen speaks frequently of homeopathic and plant-based medicinal practices. Includes 21 letters and 1 undated letter fragment.
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 3 id241337
Letters from L. Curtis to Sabra C. Hoskins1835-1841Scope and Contents
Letters to Sabra C. Hoskins from her nephew L. Curtis. Topics include the death of two students of typhus fever at Hamilton College, the dismissal of the student body, and religious philosophy. 2 letters.
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 4 id241341
Letters from Augustus H. and Sybil A. Kellogg to Sabra C. HoskinsMay 1848- December 1848Scope and Contents
Letters to Sabra C. Hoskins from her niece and nephew. They write their separate letters on the same paper. They discuss life on their rural farm and births, deaths, and weddings in their family. 2 items.
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 5 id241344
Letters from H.T. Wheeler to Sabra C. Hoskins1852-1858Scope and Contents
Letters to Sabra C. Hoskins from Helen's husband. Topics include what he perceives as Sabra's mistreatment of Helen, the possibility of her moving in with them, and the provision and management of her finances. 3 items.
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 6 id241347
Letters from Horace Wheeler to Sabra C. Hoskins1860-1868Scope and Contents
Letters to Sabra C. Hoskins from Helen's son, Horace. Topics include his daily activities, drawings, his parents' health, and his reluctance to write letters. 3 items.
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 7 id241505
Letters from Mary H. Hoskins to Sabra C. Hoskins1862-1866Scope and Contents
Letters to Sabra C. Hoskins from her granddaughter, Mary. Mary writes about her parents and siblings, the birth of her sister, her studies in school, and the activities of their church. 2 items.
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 8 id241506
Letters to Sabra C. Hoskins from Various Authors1830-1860 and undatedScope and Contents
Letters to Sabra C. Hoskins from family members and friends writing about their daily lives and Helen's future teacher, L. Kellogg, on her tuition fees. 7 items.
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 9 id241507
Letters from Sabra C. Hoskins to Various Recipients1849 and undatedScope and Contents
Includes a letter to a probate judge asking if she, Sabra, could own retain land willed to her from her father and a letter requesting the delivery of groceries. 2 items.
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 10 id241508
Letter to Helen M. Hoskins from Sabra C. Hoskins1847- 1861 and undatedScope and Contents
Letters to Helen Hoskins from her mother. Letters include discussion of daily life in Sheffield, Massachusetts, especially the happenings of the church, references to religious revivalism, the 1860 census, the 1860 election, and the declaration of Civil War. 24 items. Letter dated January 13, 1859 included a small scrap of linen. The fabric is referenced in the letter. It has been removed and placed in the Manuscripts Artifacts Collection (Mss 2013.226.01).
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 11 id241509
Letters from Eliza to Helen M. Hoskins1839-1855Scope and Contents
Letters to Helen M. Hoskins from either a childhood friend or cousin. Contents include frequent references to religion, references to an argument and subsequent falling out of the two friends, and discussion of the duties of a housewife. 5 items.
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 12 id241510
Letters from Lucy to Helen M. Hoskins1840 and undatedScope and Contents
Letters to Helen M. Hoskins from a friend. The contents are centered on religion. 2 items.
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 13 id241511
Letters from Emeline Curtis to Helen M. Hoskins1843-1849 and undatedScope and Contents
Letters to Helen M. Hoskins from her cousin. The letters discuss their daily lives, families, and religious devotion.
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 14 id241512
Letters from Ellen A. Robertson to Helen M. Hoskins1847-1849Scope and Contents
Letters to Helen M. Hoskins from a friend in Hampton, Virginia. Letters discuss their lives and the lives of acquaintances in Hampton. Helen's future husband, H.T. Wheeler is first mentioned in these letters. 2 items.
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 15 id241513
Letters from Hannah M. Laylor to Helen M. Hoskins1854-1857Scope and Contents
Letters to Helen M. Hoskins from a friend. Contents include discussions on their family and acquaintances. 4 items.
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 16 id241514
Letters to Helen M. Hoskins from Various Authors1841-1858 and undatedScope and Contents
Letters to Helen from various friends, family, and acquaitances. Contents include a letter from her husband, H.T. Wheeler, written on the back of a pamphlet for the Morris Female Institute listing "H.T. Wheeler, A.M. and Lady" as principals and an apology letter from one of Helen's students. 12 items.
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 17 id241515
Letters to Franklin Hoskins from William Gleason Jr.1841-1842Scope and Contents
Letters to Franklin Hoskins, Helen's brother, from a friend. They discuss their family, daily lives, and, particularly, the illnesses that they frequently encounter. 2 items.
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 18 id241516
Letters to Hoskins Family Members from Various Authors1820-1849Scope and Contents
Letters to various Hoskins family members primarily from other Hoskins family members. 4 items.
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 19 id241517
Letter from H.T. Wheeler to Horace Wheeler1859Scope and Contents
Letter from H.T. Wheeler, husband of Helen M. Hoskins, to their son, Horace. The letter discusses the weather in Tuskegee, Alabama, and includes the first commandment written in Hebrew. 1 item.
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 folder: 20 id241518
Letter to Arthur from E.B.R.1889Scope and Contents
Content refer heavily to previous correspondences. Given the date, author, recipient, and contents, it is unlikely that this letter belongs with the rest of the Helen M. Hoskins papers. 1 item
- Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 21 id241519
Hoskins family ephemera1818-1848 and undatedScope and Contents
Ephemera related to the Hoskins family. Includes Asa Hoskins's, husband of Sabra C. Hoskins and father of Helen M. Hoskins, appointment to lieutenant in the Massachusetts militia in 1818, an account book to a local grocery store, drawings, poems, prayers, and song lyrics, and a sewing sample that has been relocated to the Manuscripts Artifacts Collection (Mss 2013.226.02).