dear harriet

(Great Great Grandfather at age 30)

So many little treasures found in my parents house.  Bits and pieces of my ancestors lives.  

 

Three photos of and one letter written by, my Great Great Grandfather.  This letter was written in 1857 to my GGGF's fiance, Harriet, about six weeks before their wedding day.  No words of love or mention of their impending nuptials.  GGGF was soon to be 23, perhaps his youth precluded his use of flowery language. He is quite the serious minded young man. I feel a bit sad for dear Harriet LOL. 

 

I suspected this letter couldn't be an original but I had so wanted to believe that it was the original that I momentarily talked myself into believing it was.  Then, I googled when typewriters came into use and typewriters were not commercially available in 1857.  PHOOEY.  

Can't even trust one's relatives to leave you the real authentic stuff. SHEESH.

So a family member must have typed this up, copying from the original, at some later date.  My guess is that another branch of the family kept/received, the original letter and the rest of the relatives received a typed facsimile.

 

(I thought I didn't have a picture of Harriet but I just remembered that I do!)

 

(there is barely visible handwriting at the bottom of the page - I tried to darken it but no luck. WAH!)

Possibly a family clue, lost forever now, left by whoever typed up the letter.

Although GGGF seemingly wasn't much of a romantic, he appears to have been quite industrious in other areas of his life.  He was a farmer, a banker, a real estate agent and a representative in the state legislature for eight years.

These two photos are of GGGF, not sure what age?  Look at that mustache!

I have some of the documents he wrote ... land grants, patents, indentures, etc., written on parchment.