John Wilkes Brooks Family Papers

1832, 1883-1921
Manuscript Collection #595
Portions of this collection are digitized (3 items)
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Creator(s)
Brooks family
Physical description
0.11 Cubic Feet, 60 items , consisting of letters, marriage and death records, and school census.
Preferred Citation
John Wilkes Brooks Family Papers (#595), East Carolina Manuscript Collection, J. Y. Joyner Library, East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina, USA.
Repository
ECU Manuscript Collection
Access
No restrictions

Papers (1832, 1883-1921) including letters, marriage and death records, school census.

Biographical/historical information

John Wilkes Brooks was born November 16, 1856, the son of Edwin and Martha Brooks. He married Susan Elizabeth "Lizzie" Fields on March 25, 1884. Six sons and four daughters survived him at his death, April 4, 1921.

Scope and arrangement

Most of this collection consists of letters (1883-1888) to or from Lizzie Fields Brooks, the majority of which were written during the Brooks' courtship. In the correspondence there is mention of a Methodist revival in La Grange, N.C. (1884), tremors from an earthquake, land rent, and the price of cotton (1886). Two letters mention illness (1886, 1888). Also included are records of Brooks, Hardee, and Moore family deaths (1843-1863); a marriage license (1832) for James Nelson and Annice Moore; a 1907 census of school children for Greenville Township, Pitt County, N.C.; a photograph of Red Banks School, with its pupils and teachers; and a 1921 memorial for John W. Brooks.

For additional information, see Collection #370.

Administrative information
Custodial History

June 23, 1990,, 17 items; Papers (1832, 1883-1921) of Pitt County, N.C., family, including correspondence, school census, marriage and death records, and a photograph of Red Banks School. Gift of Mrs. Rachel Brooks Hord, Crescent City, Florida.

Source of acquisition

Gift of Mrs. Rachel Brooks Hord

Processing information

Processed by C. Crews, February 1991

Encoded by Apex Data Services

Copyright notice

Literary rights to specific documents are retained by the authors or their descendants in accordance with U.S. copyright law.

Metadata Rights Declaration
Key terms
Family Names
Brooks family
Hardee family
Nelson family
Topical
Cotton--Prices--North Carolina
Earthquakes--North Carolina--Pitt County
Methodist Church--North Carolina
Public schools--North Carolina--Pitt County
Rent--North Carolina--Lenoir County--19th century
Revivals--North Carolina
Places
La Grange (Lenoir County, N.C.)--History
Pitt County (N.C.)--Genealogy
Pitt County (N.C.)--History