Getting packages to POWs

Today we hear about packages going to soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq with relatively few problems. In 1862, Eugenia Monroe wrote to General Wooll asking for his assitance in getting a package of clothing to her brother, Austin G. Monroe. Austin, of Norwich, served with the 2nd Infantry Regiment of Connecticut Volunteers, Rifle Co. B and was captured in the battle at Falls Church, Virginia. He was paroled a year later. Evidently the logistics of getting packages to prisoners was difficult even with the opposing parties in the same country.

Civil War correspondence

A 19th century love story is contained in the letters between Frederick Allen Lucas and his “dear friend” Sarah Jane Wadhams, both of Goshen, Connecticut. He was serving with the 2nd Regiment of Heavy Artillery, Connecticut Volunteers and longed for news of home. Tentative at first, the letters gradually reveal more personal information and insights as the relationship develops. Many Civil War era letters exist. The unique aspect of this collection of more than 100 missives dated from 1863 to 1866 is that it consists of both sides of the correspondence. Not only do Fred’s detailed letters describing life as a soldier exist, but so do the replies from Sarah Jane, whom he called Jennie. They share their political opnions, their positions on the draft, and their experiences with teaching. The story has a happy ending. In 1867 Fred asked Sarah’s father for her hand in marriage, which was accepted.

Magician’s diaries

We recently (January 2007) purchased at auction ten diaries written by Albert Walker (1836-1902) of Glastonbury, Connecticut. He was a farmer and spoon maker by trade, but also rolled cigars, repaired and cleaned clocks, played the fiddle for dances, and performed magic and ventriloquism. An essay he wrote on ventriloquism and dialog for a Punch and Judy play are written in one volume accompanying the diaries. The diaries date from 1856-1865 and provide just hints of his magic performances. For example, on August 28, 1856, he wrote, “factory boys come up after segars [sic] performed a few tricks.” On January 2 of the same year, he went to Hartford and got his “performing apparatus”. In 1857, he spent two nights in September working on his Punch and Judy images and his dancing image. All three of these puppets/figures plus several more characters are now part of the museum collection, part of the same purchase. Walker’s “performing apparatus” includes the box or trunk he made and painted himself, curtains, magic wands, metal and cardboard cups, an assistant’s costume, card tricks and side tables. This is the most complete collection of magic-related material anyone on staff has ever seen.

Hello world!

Welcome to the Connecticut Historical Society Library’s new blog. We will be reporting new additions to our collections, mostly manuscript but some printed material and media as well. We are constantly adding new manuscripts and rediscovering ones already in the collection. Information about these items/collections will appear here before they show up in our online catalog.