Stoddard Family
Papers, 1820-1963; bulk, 1860-1910

SC17361

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Biographical Note:

Asa Stoddard (1814-1906) was born near Williamson, Wayne County, New York, the son of Asa Williams Stoddard (1790-1868) and Lucretia Harding Stoddard (1793-1814). He was married three times, first to Mary Ann Russell (1817-1846) with whom he had one daughter, Lucy Lucretia Stoddard (1838-1853). He was married next to Ann Elizabeth Anthony (1826-1849), with whom he had no children.  He and his third wife, Laura Jane Sanford(1825-1910), had two sons: William Sanford Stoddard (1853-1898) and Lucien Harding Stoddard (1855-1939). Asa Stoddard was primarily a fruit farmer, but he also worked as a cooper and school teacher during his early years. He wrote a number of poems that were later published. Asa Stoddard lived near Williamson until 1863, when he moved to Cooper Township in Kalamazoo County, Michigan.  Lucien Stoddard eventually assumed operation of and inherited the title to the family farm in Michigan. He married, about 1882, Lavinia A. Pease (1857-1944), and they had five children: Ellsworth F. (1884-1968), Minnie B. [Rickard] (1885-?), Grace A. [Mason] (1886-1971), William A. (1889-1971), and Jane (Jennie) P. [Hagle] (1892-1986).

Scope and Content Note:

The Stoddard Family Papers consist chiefly of the correspondence of Asa Harding Stoddard, his third wife, Laura Jane (Sanford), and their son, Lucien, and his wife, Lavinia (Pease). Most of the letters addressed to Asa H. Stoddard came from friends and relatives in Wayne County, New York, after Asa and his family had moved to Michigan in 1863. These letters generally concern agricultural interests as well as personal and family matters. Some of the more interesting letters Asa received were from his friend, John Adams, of Williamson, who wrote about his fascination with spiritualism and attending camp meetings held near Casadaga Lake, New York. Other letters of special interest were written by Jacob Ubrassen, a former farm hand, who wrote about his experiences of military service in Company D of the 160th New York Regiment of Infantry during the Civil War.

The correspondence of Lucien and his wife, Lavinia (Pease) Stoddard, consists chiefly of letters they received from relatives living in western New York. Lucien's relatives lived in the vicinity of Williamson and Marion, in Wayne County, New York, whereas Lavinia's relatives lived in the vicinity of Alexander, Genesee County, New York, and Scottsville, Monroe County, New York.  The correspondence of Asa Stoddard and his wife is arranged chronologically with special folders for principal correspondents from the Russell, Sanford, and Stoddard families. The Russell relationship was established through Asa's first wife, Mary Ann Russell, who passed away in 1846. He married Laura Jane Sanford in 1852. Letters from John Adams and Jacob Ubrassen are also in separate folders. Lucien and Lavinia Stoddard's correspondence is similarly arranged. Most of the special folders relate to Lavinia's relatives who resided in Alexander, Genesee County, New York, or in the vicinity of Scottsville and West Henrietta, Monroe County, New York.

Other papers include genealogical notes collected by Jane Stoddard Hagle; land titles and other legal papers of the Stoddard and allied families; school papers and writings of Asa Stoddard; and photographs related mostly to the Pease family. Altogether, the Stoddard family papers provide a good perspective on rural and small town life in upstate New York in the latter half of the nineteenth century and early twentieth century.

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