Manuscripts
Letters
Letter from Westley A. Anderson of Roanoke, Alabama, to "Mrs. Martha Hunter, Choctaw Ct. Farm post office, Mississippi," mailed July 21, 1853. Anderson was the husband of Frances (Fanny) Harris, Martha’s sister. The Andersons and the Hunters had traveled together to Mississippi in 1835 and settled on adjacent lands. Both families are recorded in the 1850 census of Choctaw Co., Miss. Thereafter, the Andersons moved to Alabama, not far from Meriwether Co., Ga., where both families had lived before migrating to Mississippi.
The letter is from the collection of James A. Womack, a great‑grandson of Martha Hunter’s daughter, Frances Caroline.
Alabama Randolf Ct July 15th 1853
Dearer sister I received your letter 2 weeks past I now take the liberty to pen you all these few noose threw hevens blessings This day weeke I weare restord from a vilont a tack of the billous fever it being nipt in the bud Wore soone remooved We air all in good helth at present I hope these will finde you all well The blud flux has been verry potet in Georgia and Chambers Ct A few cases in this settlement and some deaths but it wore verry fatal in Chambers Thom Bennet past by my house this Spring rite from Talbot [Georgia] he told me that the old man Ray had just died John Russels wife and dater with many others He also past by Croffords the day before Tha weare well Tom [Martha’s brother] never rites to me. I wood rite to him if I new what post office Your mother [Sarah Gardner Harris, remarried to James Powell] is in title to one quarter section of land for your father[Capt. Thomas Harris of Baldwin Co., Ga.]’s service in the ware She can easly prove his servis As yet John Stevens is yet living and many others If she will obtain the warrent she can sell it for one dollar per acor I wood giver hir that my self but thare is no difficulty in selling them A lawyer will obtain it for $5 dollars I now will mention the drouth which has been verry fatal here On the 9, 10, 11, 12 of this instant wee had good raines but the corn wore almost intirely spent Nothing moore at present but Remains yours till death
Westley A Anderson
Letter from Pinson Calvin Hunter to his sister Frances Caroline Hunter. Pinson (1841‑1910) served as a private in Company B of the 15th Mississippi Infantry, "Winona Stars of Carroll County," CSA. He was wounded at Shiloh.
Cumberlan Gap Tenn Oct 20th 1861
Mrs F C Womack
Dear sister it is with plasure that I take my pen inhand to drop you a few lines to let you know how we are getting a long we are getting a long very well so far my self and henry have had the measles but they did not hut us much we have not got entirely from under the effects of them but if we take good cear of hour selves I don’t think we will be in any danger I want you to wright to me and give me all the nuse I and henry are in the horse pttle my regiment is gone one in to kentucky I don’t know where they wil stop at I am listening to hear of there getting in to a fight every day I don’t know whin I shal get up with my regiment you must not exspect any nuse from me for I am where there is no nuse and therefore you must excuse me for not wrighting any nuse you must give your best love and respets to your family also to brother and his family tell Salie and dump that I would like to see them very well whin I go one in to kentucky I don’t know whin I shal hear from you for there are know mules hear you all must wright to me wright to me soon nothing more nothing more at present
P C Hunter
Letter from Leonidas W. Hunter (1828‑1863) to his wife Nancy Woodruff Hunter. A note in the left‑hand corner: " ‘Preserve Forever’ ‑ L. W. Hunter." This was the last letter his family received from him. Leonidas, called L. W., served as a corporal in Company B of the 29th Mississippi Infantry, CSA. He died at the Battle of Lookout Mountain, 24 November 1863.
Camp near Shelbaville, Tennessee
February 27, ‘63
Dear and ever beloved Wife and Children:
I will try to write to you again tho I have not heard from you sinse I wrote to you before, but I live in hopes that I will get one soon, dear. I am tolerably well at this time. I have been exposed a heep lately. I was out all last week on picket with the briggade. We got in Monday nite and Wednesday morning I had to go out on another rode and stay twenty‑four hours, and it has rained all the time, nearly. I can’t stand as much hardships as I could before I was sick last spring but I am looking much better than you would expect. Honey, don’t let my hardships greave you for I will bare it the best I can. I am nearly as heavy as I ever was but I have not got the use of myself like I had before, but don’t mind that.
Dear wife, I am pestered about you. You wrote that you did not know what you should do for your meat, honey. It does pester me allmost to death to think I can’t help you but I am here and I shall have to stay here, for I see no chance to get home. There has been some that have gone home without leave and some of them have been shot and other . . . by having a hole cut in the head of a barrel and slip the barrel down over them and let their head come out through he head of the barrel, and they have to walk on parade grounds or some other public place. You know I will stay here before I will do that.
I want you to write to me for I do love to hear from you all. I sent you some money a good while ago and I never have heard from you sinse I sent it. I would love to know whether you got it or not. I want you to get all you can out of the countay. Talachatchey County is giving ten pounds of salt to everyone in family, which would give you forty pounds of salt. I think if you would see Watson he would help you get it. Please write honey, for I am in trouble about you, but I can’t help it. Tell mother she must remember me in her prayers and all the rest of the praying christians in your settlement.
Cousin H. J. Harris is well. James Spencer is well, Henry McQuary is here. He is well. Tip Hilhouse is here and he is well. So is Hy Bingham and a heap of others that I could mention. Our armey is tolerably healthy at this. There is a heap of talk of peace here and it can’t come too soon to suit me. Tell Frances and Pint to write to me. Tell Cooper to write. Tell Fowler I would like to read a letter from him and all the rest of our folks. So I believe that I am through for this time, so I will come to a close. I am remaining you affectionate husband until death.
To his wife ‑ Nancy Hunter
L. W. Hunter
Letter from Marcilus Samuel Hunter (1830‑1888) to his sister Frances Caroline Hunter Womack, called "Frank." Samuel served as a 1st sergeant and a 3rd lieutenant in Company G of the 17th Louisiana Infantry, CSA, and was taken prisoner at Vicksburg.
April 9th 1863
Camp Ouachita near Vicksburg
Dear Sister Frank
It is with pleasure that I answer yours of the 29 March which came to me a few days ago as you may be sure that I was glad to hear from you and to hear that you were all well
My health is good you would not hardly no me now I am so much fatter than I was when I was at home last spring.
We have very fine weather now here though it is be ginning to get very dusty we have a rather tuf time of it here now we have to get up every third morning at 3 oclock and go a bout two miles on picket to watch the move ments of the Feds the river bank from Vicksburg to the Yazoo flats above town are strewed with soldiers every night a waiting for the yanks to make their attack on Vicksburg They may attact us whenever they get ready and they will find us ready to receive them and give them gun and ball aplenty We feel perfectly confident of holding of this place and repelling of any foe that may attact it if they fight us here at all they will have to come square up to the mark and fight to give us his dew which I don’t believe that they will ever do they are two well acquainted with the situation affairs and the locality of the country for to attact us here The health of the soldiers here is very good now and they are in fine spirits too You must give my love to all of the connection ciss all the children for me and tell Caroline & Mary Jane that they must be good girls and learn and try hard to write and read give my love to Henrietta & Mother also to Sallie & Jane and their children Tell Nancy that I have not quite for got her yet You must give my love to her and family Well Pint you must be having of a fine time of it now you have all the girls to your self only as some sick Soldier come home I am verry much surprised at you letting of Buck get married You must write to me soon
M S Hunter
Frank you must do the best you can for your self and try and make a good crop this year you must pay par tic ular attention to the raising of corn and hogs I would not plant any cotton at all you can make more money at raisin grain and hogs than you can at raising of cotton I would not raise more cowes than just enough for family use I would try to keep enough on hand to get milk and butter all the time
Your Brother
M S Hunter
PS give my best respects Major Womack & family & to Mr Englands & Family
M S Hunter
Letter from Marcilus Samuel Hunter to his brother Silvanus Gardner Hunter (1823‑1900), for the past twenty‑five years the administrator of their father’s estate. The letter was found among family papers of Leo Hunter, Mantee, Miss., in 1968
Lind Grove, La., Nov. 7th 1869
Dear Brother
I will now write you a few lines. We are well and seem tolerable well. I will make enough this year to pay for my place and corn for another year. So I think that I am a‑getting fixed so that I can do very well for the future. The health of this section of the country is good at this time but there has been a good deal of sickness here during the summer and it was financially fatal though me and Olivia has had good health.
As to the selling of the old homestead, I am willing to be governed entirely by the rest of you, though I think it best to sell. If you sell, you will hand my interest in it to Sister [Frances Caroline Hunter Womack]. And as to Brother Whit [Baldwin Whitson Hunter, who died in the Civil War]’s estate, I can’t tell anything about it or at least I can’t say any different sum, but I am in hopes you will be as liberal as you can in the matter when you hear what I want done with the money. I want you to pay it to Sister, and she is to spend it in educating of hers and Brother L. W. [Leonidas W. Hunter, who died in the Civil War]’s children. She will give you receipts for all moneys you pay his for me and sign my name when and wherever necessary.
Corn crops are good in this section of the country this year. Cotton is not good. There will not be more than half or two thirds of crop made here. I suppose it is owing to a very hor and dry spell of weather we had here the last of July and August. We have no special news in these parts. I would be glad to come to see you all, but it is impossible for me to come this year, and I can’t tell when we can come. You must write soon. Give [mine] and Olivia’s love to Sis Sallie [Sarah Hannah McMullen Bingham Hunter, Silvanus’s wife] and the children. Olivia joins me in sending our love to you all.
Your brother
M. S. Hunter
Letter from Gregory Turner Hunter to Silvanus Gardner Hunter
This letter from Gregory to his older brother is from family papers of Mrs. Ladye Margaret Smith Townsend of Brandon, Miss., a descendant of Pinson Calvin Hunter.
Centerville Ark Jan 26th 1891
Dear Bro Yours of the 11th inst at hand and contents duly noted We were so glad to hear from you all and to hear that you were all well and doing as well as you were. This leaves us all well hoping that it may find you all enjoying the same. I believe I wrote to you in reguards to my getting crippled in the faul my ankle has almost gotten well I think by spring it will be well enough for me to plow on it I think that I wrote about our crop. We are having quite a serious time of it This winter I am trying to settle W. H. [his son] We fenced him about 30 acres last winter and cleared some 4 acres We have built him a barn and now we are putting him up a house The stile of his house is 2 sixteen feet rooms with an Ell of 17 ft with a porch to the Ell and [page two] a porch to the back side of the Hall and 16 ft room with a Portico in front. We are covering it now We are doing a good chance of the work ourselves it will take us some time to complete it yet times are quite dull in this part of the country though I can not see why it should be so. We made a tolerably good cotton crop corn not quite so good and meat tolerable cheap from 4 to 5 cts and tolerably plentiful I would suppose that the fall off in the price of cotton had something to do with the times. We were very sorry to hear of Charley and Sallie’s [Charlie Chandler and his wife Sallie Womack, a daughter Gregory and Silvanus’s sister Frances Caroline Hunter Womack] bad luck with their boy also Gimmy’s misfortune [James “Jimmie” Alston Hunter, their late brother Leonidas’s son] Am in hopes that he will do well he seems to stick to this some better than he has at any thing before. We had not heart [heard?] of Bose Lucius and John Chandler difficulty. I want you to tell the children that I have not forgotten them I often think of the pleasant hours I spent [page three] with them while on my stay in that country and I hope that it may be so that we can be together again sometime tell Willy [Silvanus’s son] if he can not find a girl in that country that he wants to starve to death to come over and I think that we can furnish him with one in Arkansas. You said nothing about Sudie [and] Iver [Sudie and Iva are Silvanus’s daughters] I hope that they are getting along all right tell Sallie [Mrs. Silvanus Hunter] that I intended for Wife to come to see her this winter but owing to having to settle W. H. it was not practicable I hope that she can come next winter if not sooner. I know that she deserves a visit and must have it if life last. We received a letter from Pint and Fannie Emmer [their brother Pinson Calvin Hunter and his daughter, of Yalobusha Co., Miss.] some time before Christmas Pint stated that he had made a very good crop plenty corn to do him but did not say any thing about marrying I recon we need not be surprised at [page four] any thing these times. As to Newton King’s marrying the lady that he did surprised me some little I recon that I was very well acquainted with her first husband, and I suppose that she is quite a nice lady I hope that she will be good to his children. I must come to a close as it is getting time to go to Nappers house I don’t know whether you will be able to read this scrall so as to make sense out of it as I am not in the habit of writing by lamp light. I will say this much Yours was appreciated very much and hope that you will not think it a burden to us to read your letters. Tell Sallie Wife has about 50 hens and she thinks of making [a] hall [haul?] this spring on the Egg market she has Plymoth Rock and likes them very well so good by for this time Yours brother G. T. Hunter
N. B. Not having an opportunity to mail my letter when I wrote it causes it to be late. Nothing new since I wrote all well G. T. Hunter