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- Folded letter by US Navy Surgeon David Shelton Edwards
Folded letter by US Navy Surgeon David Shelton Edwards
Object Details
- Description
- In 1835 the letter probably would have traveled overland or by steamboat to Mobile, Alabama, where it joined the Great Mail route north using combinations of horse, coach, steamboat and train. The circular date stamp indicates the letter was forwarded on 3 June from the Pensacola, Florida post office. The rate for a single letter (one sheet of paper) traveling more than 400 miles was 25 cents. The absence of the word "Paid" indicates that the letter was sent unpaid and 25 cents was collected from the addressee.
- David Shelton Edwards begins this message by asking how his family is doing and responding to his wife Harriet's previous letter. He continues giving her financial instructions and explains that he is interested in their finances because he has "very little doubt but that money will again be very scarce. & everything will go down." He goes on at great length regarding their preparations for her upcoming visit to see him in Florida, including what furniture to bring, how to lease their house at Sing-Sing, New York, and instructions for paying off the mortgage. He finishes with his opinion that their oldest child, William, should remain at the Infant school in Brooklyn until they leave for Pensacola.
- This letter is part of the correspondence of David Shelton Edwards between the years 1835 and 1848. The 48 letters from this period held by the National Postal Museum are primarily addressed to Edward's wife Harriet; in 1830, Edwards married Harriet Eliza Henry and they had two children, William and Harriet. They kept up a frequent correspondence when his naval service kept them separated. Between 1835 and 1848, Edwards served as a Surgeon at the hospital in the Pensacola Navy Yard, Florida; Fleet Surgeon to the West Indies Squadron; and Surgeon aboard many vessels engaged in the Mexican-American War. His naval career spanned from 1818 to 1861 and his last sea cruise ended in October of 1859 after which he retired to his family home in Connecticut except for a brief time spent at New Bedford, Massachusetts recruiting for the Union Navy during the Civil War. He died in Trumbull, Connecticut on March 18, 1874.
- Reference:
- National Museum of American History, Naval History Archives. David Shelton Edwards Papers. Accession Number: 1978.0652
- New York Public Library, Rare Books and Manuscripts Division. "David S. Edwards papers, 1818-1865."
- Data Source
- National Postal Museum
- Date
- May 31 - June 2, 1835
- Object number
- 1978.0652.5
- Writer
- David Shelton Edwards, American, died 1874
- Type
- Covers & Associated Letters
- Medium
- paper; ink / handwritten
- Dimensions
- Height x Width (unfolded): 12 7/8 x 15 7/8 in. (32.7 x 40.32 cm)
- Place of Origin
- Florida
- Place of Destination
- New York
- See more items in
- National Postal Museum Collection
- Topic
- American Expansion (1800-1860)
- Covers & Letters
- Record ID
- npm_1978.0652.5
- Usage
- CC0
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