Insightful annotations combine with meticulous historical and genealogical research to make this special book much more than simply a compilation of family letters; it captures the thoughts, dreams, and character of nineteenth-century Americans as they migrated westward and became involved in the Civil War. While the letters typically focus on family events such as births, illnesses, deaths, and the strong desire to visit loved ones, they also describe the success or failure of the crops that year, floods and droughts, politics and war.
The book is highly readable, with brief narrative sections that fill in the family history and explain the circumstances of the sixteen letters within. The Jordans "...moved from Botetourt and Greenbrier Counties, Virginia, through Cabell County and into Indiana where..." they settled in Tippecanoe and White Counties. The Sextons moved from Cabell County, Virginia, into Wayne County, Illinois. The Coons settled in Polk County, Missouri, and the Porters pursued their dreams in Cass and Page Counties, Iowa. Appendices contain associated readings, obituaries, and the charts and genealogies of five generations of the Jordan family. A full-name index is also included. If your ancestors were part of the nineteenth-century westward migration, you will recognize their stories here.
Jerry (Jerald) Jordan
(2004), 2016, 5.5" x 8.5", paper, index, 146 pp.
ISBN: 9780788434020
101-J3402
