Collections

Civil War correspondence of the DeBussey brothers of Ravenswood, WV. There is a single letter each from John DeBussey and George DeBussey. John DeBussey served in the Confederate Army while George DeBussey served in the 2nd. WV Cavalry. Most of the letters are from Adolphus DeBussey who served in the 4th. WV Infantry as a musician. In his letters Adolphus documents the service of his regiment in the Kanawha Valley early in the war and in the Western Theater during the battles of Vicksburg, Mississippi and Chattanooga, Tennessee. There is much mention of fighting and prolonged encampments in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi, Tennessee, and West Virginia. Included are details of an 1861 Confederate raid on Burning Springs, an 1861 skirmish at Gauley Bridge, and the 1861 battle of Guyandotte. The letters also record his experiences during Sherman's march through Georgia. The collection includes Corporal Adolphus DeBussey's flute with its case.

Includes business and personal correspondence, accounts, legal papers, bank statements, maps, etc. Business correspondence, 1850-1938, include letters concerning A. P. Howard's various business enterprises; farm, livestock, fruit and produce, Wellsville, Ohio; printing firm, Columbus, Ohio; tannery, Corry, Penna.; bank and metal works, Pittsburgh, PA; farm, Congo, WV; subscription agent in Wellsville, Ohio for National Era, Washington, D.C. Earlier letters are to A. G. DeSellem, an uncle, including several concerning missionary work and anti-slavery activities; mention is made of several colleges, Western Reserve, Oberlin, and a school in Albany.

Includes the wills of A. P. Howard, Corry, Pennsylvania; 1897, and Sarah H. Howard, Wellsville, N. Y., correspondence, reports, leases, tax receipts, and mortgage. Information on J. W. Howard and Hugh H. McCullough estates. Copy of Bradstreet's report on the University Company of Olympia, Washington and J. R. Chaplin, manager of the Company. Also, report on various business enterprises and financial standing of A. P. Howard. Some correspondence of Edward Spencer and tax receipts for land in Kansas. One copy of "The Practical Engineer," John Wallace, Pittsburgh, Penna., 1865, and one copy of "The Popular Educator," Vols. III and IV, London, N. C.

Photographs of an African-American family, circa 1880-1960, most likely of Richmond, Virgina. Included are snapshots, studio portraits and photo postcards of family members and also a postcard of the "Barracks of Colored Recruits, Camp Lee, Petersburg, Va." (addressed to Eliza Chatman, Richmond, Va.). Some photos are identified by first names or location. Names include Pearl, Russell, Constance, Berkley, Allen, Beverley Boxyem, Samuel, Mary, James, Horace, Sarah, Mother Booker, Julie, Lester Hall, Joe Bill Williams and Mildred. Locations in addition to Richmond, are Norfolk, Virginia Beach and Tappahannock, Va., Detroit, Michigan, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Pennyslvania. Subjects of photos include visiting relatives, returning from church, several people in military uniform, children playing, post cards, pictures of individuals, studio portraits and family photos.

This collection features one 2.25 X4" tintype photograph of an unidentified African American man dressed in a three-piece suit with a bowtie, pocket square, and derby hat with a sash perched at a stylish angle on his head. The man leans against a marble column against a plain background in a studio.

This collection contains numerous stereograms taken throughout the Jim Crow Era. The stereograms portray the racist attitudes of the time period. Stereograms are an early form of photography which was often used for educational purposes. When a view finder is used to look at the stereograms, the images appear to be three dimensional.

This collection contains images of both African and African American individuals. The subjects photographed include military personnel, men, women, and children. Some individuals were photographed inside of a photographer's studio. The images vary in size and format and range in date from circa 1850s-1945. Each item has a description at the file level.