John Franklin Wooten Papers

1843-1942 (bulk 1843-1891), undated; 1843-1891
Manuscript Collection #789
Creator(s)
Wooten, John Franklin, 1821-1903
Physical description
0.25 Cubic Feet, 1 box, 1 oversize folder, correspondence, deeds, court records, financial records and land surveys
Preferred Citation
John Franklin Wooten Papers (#789), East Carolina Manuscript Collection, J. Y. Joyner Library, East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina, USA.
Repository
ECU Manuscript Collection
Access
Access to audiovisual and digital media is restricted. Please contact Special Collections for more information.

Papers (1843-1942; bulk 1843-1891) of Kinston, NC, attorney John Franklin Wooten and members of the Wooten, Harper and Moseley families of Lenoir Co., NC, and the Christian family of Virginia including correspondence, deeds, plats, financial records and miscellany.


Biographical/historical information

John Franklin Wooten (November 22, 1824?-November 9, 1903) was an attorney in Kinston, North Carolina. He attended William and Mary College in Williamsburg, Virginia, and graduated from the University of Virginia with a law degree in 1845, the same year that he married Mary Adams Christian (June 6, 1829-May 28, 1878) of West Point in King & Queen County, Virginia. The Wooten, Moseley, and Harper families were all based in Lenoir County, NC.

Sources: The Heritage of Lenoir County, published by The Lenoir County Historical Association, 1981, p. 438. Maplewood Cemetery in Lenoir County, NC at http://lenoir.lostsoulsgenealogy.com/cems/maplewoodcem.htm.


Scope and arrangement

The material in the papers belonged to various members of the Wooten, Moseley, Christian, and Harper families. The majority of the collection consists of correspondence belonging to John Franklin Wooten and Mary Christian Wooten dating from 1843 to 1868. Most of the correspondence between Mr. and Mrs. Wooten prior to 1845 is love letters while letters written after 1845 detail Mr. Wooten's travels and domestic concerns. Other letters are from friends and relatives. The remaining letters in the collection (#789.1.i-j) are addressed to various members of the Christian family (1852 – 1866) and to John and Mary Wooten's daughter Fannie Moseley (1878, 1933). Throughout all of the correspondence can be found many letters written by Etheline N. Christian Phillips (later Tudor) to her sister Mary Christian Wooten.

The collection contains legal and financial documents belonging to the Wooten, Moseley, and Harper families. The Wooten family's documents consist of a deed for land in Lenoir County, NC, a University of Virginia diploma belonging to Richard C. Wooten and records detailing the settlement of two estates. The first, the estate of enslaver James Christian of Charlottesville (Mary Christian Wooten's father), was settled with the assistance of A. B. Evans (assumed to be an attorney) and involved the division of land and sale of enslaved persons. This included the sale Henry, an enslaved person. The second, the estate of Council Wooten, was settled in Jefferson County, Florida. The settlement also involved a suit between Lafayette Wooten and John F.Wooten, Marion Wooten, and Council Wooten's widow. The records for the division of this estate include descriptions of the disputed land in Lenoir County, NC, and a description of how the enslaved persons on the estate divided, including the first name and approximate age. The documents belonging to the Moseley family include deeds for land belonging to W. O. and Wiley J. Moseley in Lenoir County, NC; records of money owed W. O. Moseley; a Certificate of Shares for Chesterfield Manufacturing Company in Chesterfield County, VA, belonging to Fannie D. Moseley; and a document related to W. O. Moseley and his role as administrator of Fannie C. Murphy's estate. A land deed and hand drawn survey of land located in Lenoir County, NC, belonging to John F. Harper are also included in the collection.

Other items in the collection include drafts of two county histories, "Lenoir County" (possibly a school child's paper) and "La Grange & Vicinity"; poems and anecdotes clipped from newspapers; drafts of two poems, "Spring & Youth" and "Getting Drunk Again"; two booklets, "A Mason on Self – Knowledge" and "The Name and Family of Moseley"; and an unsigned, undated photograph of a young woman taken at Campbell C.H., VA.


Administrative information
Custodial History

November 21, 1999 75 items; Papers (1843-1899, 1919-1942) of Kinston, NC attorney and members of the Wooten and Moseley families, including correspondence, deeds, plats, and miscellany. Donor: Mrs. Cameron R. Dudley.

Source of acquisition

Gift of Mrs. Cameron R. Dudley

Processing information

Encoded by Apex Data Services

Processed by Brandie Cline April 2006. Revised by Martha Elmore March 2012.

Descriptions updated by Ashlyn Racine, May 2023

Copyright notice

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


Key terms
Personal Names
Christian, James--Estate
Wooten, Council--Estate
Wooten, John Franklin, 1821-1903
Wooten, Mary Christian, 1829-1878
Family Names
Christian family
Harper family
Mosley family
Wooten family
Topical
Land titles--North Carolina--Lenoir County
Probate records--North Carolina--Lenoir County
Slave records--North Carolina--Lenoir County

Container list
Box 1 Folder a Correspondence between John Franklin Wooten and Mary Christian Wooten. Includes letters written during courtship (1843 - 1845) and after marriage (1847) and references to the Washington Society, Mr. White School, and wedding plans. (1843-1847) 8 items, 16 pages
Box 1 Folder b Correspondence from Etheline N. Christian Phillips and Richard S. Phillips to John F. and Mary Wooten. Includes references to the effects of the Civil War, the death of Richards S. Phillips' father, plans to build a school in Charlottesville, VA, and business matters. (1852-1858, 186?, undated) 6 items, 12 pages
Box 1 Folder e Letter from Edward Wooten to his cousin, John F. Wooten. Written at a theological seminary in Fairfax, VA. Lists numerous Civil War battlefields and refers to the Confederate Army. Also includes a reference to the Bishop Atkinson. (1867) 1 item, 2 pages
Box 1 Folder f Letter from F. A. Sullivan to John F. Wooten. Discussion of John F. Wooten and Mary Christian's courtship and of the 1844 Presidential race between James K. Polk and Henry Clay. (1844) 1 item, 2 pages
Box 1 Folder h Letters of condolence to John F. and Mary Wooten for the death of a son and of Mary's mother. Includes references to funeral customs, canning of produce for winter use, milking cows, and a description of a county fair. (1853-1867) 5 items. 8 pages
Box 1 Folder i Correspondence to members of the Christian family. Includes letters to Marie Christian and Richard S. Phillips. (1854, 1867, 1886) 3 items, 8 pages
Box 1 Folder j Correspondence to Fannie Moseley. Includes letter from Etheline "Ethie" Tudor of condolence on the death of Fannie's mother (Etheline's sister) Marie Christian Wooten and from the Attorney General of Kentucky concerning Wooten family reunions and genealogy. (1878, 1933) 2 items, 4 pages
Box 1 Folder l Moseley family financial and legal records. Includes record of money owed to J. W. Moseley by F. D. Moseley, I.O.U.s made out to W.O. Moseley by Rob B. Gilliam, legal document signed by Fannie C. Murphy related to W. O. Moseley, deeds for land to W. O. Moseley and W. J. Moseley, and a Certificate of Shares for Chesterfield Manufacturing Company in Chesterfield County, Virginia belonging to Fannie D. Moseley. (1852-1925) 7 items, 9 pages
Box 1 Folder m Land records of John F. Harper. Includes land indenture and a hand drawn land survey. (1878, 1885) 2 items, 3 pages
Box 1 Folder n Draft, "History of Lenoir County." No documented author. 1 item, 12 pages
Box 1 Folder o Draft, "La Grange & Vicinity" by C. S. Wooten. Local history. (1942) 1 item, 4 pages
Box 1 Folder p Pamphlet, "The Name and Family of Moseley." Compiled by the Media Research Bureau in Washington, DC. Includes genealogical information about the Moseley family and a short bibliography. Tri-fold. 1 item, 14 pages
Box 1 Folder q Miscellaneous. Newspaper clippings, Mason booklet titled " Mason on Self - Knowledge" (missing pages), photograph of a woman taken at Campbell C.H., VA, and unsigned poem titled "Spring & Youth." (1886, undated) 7 items, 26 pages
Folder os1 Folder 2 Item 1 Survey (May 1868) of Lands at Monticello (Lenoir County, NC). Lands of Cicero Whitfield, Samuel Mewborn, T. Askew, Curtis Phillips, W. J. Moseley, and Augustus Moseley
Folder os1 Folder 2 Item 2 Letter (September 21, 1844) from Mary Christian to John Franklin Wooten
Folder os1 Folder 2 Item 3 Letter (May 18, 1845) from F[annie] A. J. [T.?] to Mary Christian Wooten
Folder os1 Folder 2 Item 4 Letter (February 10, 1845) from F. A. Sullivan to John Franklin Wooten
Folder os1 Folder 2 Item 5 Letter (January 29, 1853) from L. L. Page to Mary Christian Wooten
Folder os1 Folder 2 Item 6 Letter (July 4, 184?) to Mother [Possibly Amy C. Christian] and Sir Ben, care of James Christian, from John F. and Mary Wooten
Folder os1 Folder 2 Item 7 Letter (July 11, 1845) to Lavinia Christian. Signature unclear
Folder os1 Folder 2 Item 8 Deed (March 1, 1875) between W. O. Moseley and Wiley J. Moseley for land in Lenoir County, NC
Folder os1 Folder 2 Item 9 Poem, "Getting Drunk Again." Signature unclear
Folder os1 Folder 2 Item 10 Deed (August 1891) to W. O. Moseley from Henry and Stella Gray for a parcel of land in Vance Township, Lenoir County, NC
0789-s3 Oversized Materials Folder, 1844 - 1891, n.d 0