Continuation of December 1877 letter, and start of letter from Charleston, November 22, 1876
Book 1, Page 205 ·1876–1877
Transcription
Two handwritten pages of cursive ink mounted side-by-side on a dark backing.
The left-hand sheet (end of the December 16, 1877 letter from page 203–204):
He stais with Christie a week in Columbia, so I suppose he saw his old friends there — I heard from Lydia last week. She said Marina was better but had to keep very quiet — I am so glad Ellen is there this winter — Uncle Theodore has gone to Argyle to stay a week and bring Aunt Louisa down — Both are well now. I suppose you know he was ill with fever last August. He looks as well as ever now. Minnie has been very feeble all summer — they got safely up to the plantation a few days ago — but she has to keep very quiet, & has not the strength to do much — Emmie Barnwell has gone to teach the children again this winter —
The right-hand sheet (a new letter, dated November 22, 1876):
Charleston Nov 22d 1876
Dear Mainnie
I have thought a thousand times of writing to you — would you believe it? I often hear Ellen FitzSimons say, “I want to write to Mainnie”, — but she has a variety of things to do, and writing is not easy to her. She has made John and Louisa happy by taking them to Church to St Philips this afternoon. — Aunt Susan is reading, and no doubt has written to Gaillie from whom she gets her weekly letter regularly. She also hears from Tee — very nice affectionate letters, which often tell how wonderful a person Gaillie
AI Notes
Two facing manuscript pages mounted side-by-side. The left-hand sheet is the end of the December 16, 1877 letter (pp. 203–204), mentioning Christie in Columbia, news from Lydia about Marina, Ellen FitzSimons being there for the winter, Uncle Theodore at Argyle bringing Aunt Louisa down, Minnie’s feeble health, and Emmie Barnwell again teaching the children. The right-hand sheet begins a new letter dated ‘Charleston Nov 22d 1876,’ addressed ‘Dear Mainnie,’ in which the writer says Ellen FitzSimons often speaks of wanting to write but finds writing difficult; she has taken John and Louisa to St. Philip’s; Aunt Susan is reading and writes weekly to Gaillie (‘Gaillard Stoney FitzSimons,’ Amy’s father); the writer also hears from ‘Tee’ (likely ‘Toto’/Theodore Stoney FitzSimons) very nice affectionate letters about Gaillie. No body-text corrections of substance — but people list upgraded to canonical full forms; ‘Gillie’ and ‘Aunt Susan’ replaced with canonical names; ‘Mainnie’ preserved as written (writer’s spelling for ‘Minnie’ = Mary Anne Perry FitzSimons).
Both letters continue beyond this page. “Tee” likely refers to Toto / Theodore Stoney FitzSimons, Gaillie’s brother.
Gaillie — Gaillard Stoney FitzSimons (b. ~1863) — is one of the seven children of Dr. Christopher FitzSimons (3rd) and Susan Milliken Barker, and a younger brother of Samuel Gaillard FitzSimons Sr. (the compiler Amy’s father). “Aunt Susan” is the widowed matriarch Susan Milliken Barker FitzSimons, writing him weekly during this Reconstruction-era period when the older household was still reassembling from the war’s economic ruin.