Albert Hobart, Jr., Correspondence

Access and use

Location of collection:
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Special Collections, University Libraries (0434)
Newman Library
Virginia Tech
P.O. Box 90001
560 Drillfield Drive
Blacksburg, VA 24062-9001
Contact for questions and access:
Phone: (540) 231-6308
Fax: (540) 231-3694
Restrictions:

The collection is open for research.

Terms of access:

The copyright status of this collection is unknown. Copyright restrictions may apply. Contact Special Collections and University Archives for assistance in determining the use of these materials.

Reproduction or digitization of materials for personal or research use can be requested using our reproduction/digitization form: http://bit.ly/scuareproduction. Reproduction or digitization of materials for publication or exhibit use can be requested using our publication/exhibition form: http://bit.ly/scuapublication. Please contact Special Collections and University Archives (specref@vt.edu or 540-231-6308) if you need assistance with forms or to submit a completed form.

Preferred citation:

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], Albert Hobart, Jr., Correspondence, Ms1989-081, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Summary

Extent:
0.1 Cubic Feet 1 folder
Creator:
Hobart, Albert, Jr. (Atlanta, Ga.)
Abstract:
The collection consists of twelve letters from Albert Hobart, Jr., a native of Massachusetts living in Atlanta, Georgia, during Reconstruction, addressed to "Freind [sic] Wallace," and largely focusing on Hobart's personal thoughts concerning on the weather, his friends' activities at home, and his own homesickness.
Language:
The materials in the collection are in English.
Preferred citation:

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], Albert Hobart, Jr., Correspondence, Ms1989-081, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Background

Scope and content:

This collection consists of twelve letters written by Albert Hobart Jr., a native of Massachusetts living in Atlanta, Georgia and operating a store during Reconstruction. Addressed to "Freind [sic] Wallace," 10 of the letters date from the latter half of 1869. The letters focus almost entirely on personal matters. A rare exception occurs on June 16, 1869, when Hobart reports the apparent removal of Freedmen from legislative offices and their later reinstatement. Elsewhere, Hobart mentions the Peace Jubilee of 1869, Thanksgiving, New Year's Eve, and the prospect of spending Independence Day in the South, but the letters focus largely on the weather, personal activities of his friends at home, and Hobart's own homesickness.

Biographical / historical:

The writer of these letters had orginally been identified as a native of Abington, Connecticut, but evidence in the letters suggest that he was instead from Abington, Massachusetts. A 15-year-old Massachusetts native named Albert Hobart appears in the 1860 census as a resident in the Abington home of Albert and Sarah E. Hobart. In the 1865 Massachusetts state census, Albert Hobart appears as a 19-year-old shoemaker. The 1870 census lists a 24-year-old Massachusetts native named Albert Hobart living and working as a wholesale dealer in Marion (Jefferson County), Texas. A 63-year-old, unmarried cutlery salesman named Albert Hobart, a native of Massachusetts, appears in the 1910 census as a resident of Rockland (Plymouth County), Massachusetts. The 1920 census shows Hobart still living in Rockland but working as a fruit farmer. An Albert Hobart died in Rockland in 1929.

Acquisition information:
The Albert Hobart, Jr., Correspondence was purchased by Special Collections in 1989.
Processing information:

The processing and description of the Albert Hobart, Jr., Correspondence commenced and was completed in 2022. Preliminary processing had occurred in 2001.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard