Papers (1781-1887) consisting of photocopies of correspondence, information on variety of subjects, social letters, information on church.
The collection contains information on a variety of subjects and covers a period of more than one hundred years. Two items deal with the Revolutionary War in that one Luke Wiles was wounded in battle in Guilford County, N.C., and was discharged from the militia due to his wound. In 1825, Wiles sought relief from the national government in the form of a pension.
A second area of correspondence is that of the 1820s and consists of social letters from Sarah Massie in Lynchburg (Nelson Co.) and Richmond, Virginia, to her aunt, Mrs. Sally T. Massie. Of particular interest are commentaries on private education of the period with a listing of course work, which includes grammar, geography, farming, writing, spelling, and reading. A school of dance is also found to be in existence at this time. An 1825 letter describes a visit to Richmond, Virginia, by the Marquis de LaFayette, including an account of parades, military assemblages, dinners, parties, and a "grand ball" given in his honor. Further correspondence of the 1820s is of a "social" nature, consisting of reports of births, deaths, funerals, marriages, parties, climate, etc.
A third area of correspondence is that of the 1880s which includes information on a schism of the Episcopal Church in Virginia, a variety of social institutions, and an apparently successful mineral spring in Arkansas owned by a member of the Goode family.
Loaned by Mr. Thomas H. Bland
Processed by T. Coker, January 1972
Encoded by Apex Data Services
Literary rights to specific documents are retained by the authors or their descendants in accordance with U.S. copyright law.