| Quantity: | 2 boxes (0.50 cu.ft.) |
|---|---|
| Access: | Open to research |
| Acquisition: | Purchased; November 1995 |
| Processed By: | Hon Lee, Student Intern, State University of New York at Albany, Spring 1996 |
The Allen Family Papers are comprised mainly of personal correspondences between the Allen family as allied with the Waldo and Warcup families. These families resided in Westernville, Oneida County, New York.
Many of the letters were sent to Mrs. Lydia Allen from her son and daughters, Mrs. Julia B. Waldo, Miss Lydia Allen, Mrs. Nancy DePelchin, Mrs. Catherine H. Wright, Mrs. Diana Hutchinson, Ms. Susan C. Allen, and Wolcott B. White.
Most of these letters concern routine matters of everyday life such as household chores, the state of their health and finances. The letters of Catherine Wright and Nancy DePelchin often discussed their situation in rural Texas where they taught school. They mentioned various hardships due to the hot weather, disease, and meager pay.
The Waldo family was related to the Allen family through the marriage of Julia Allen and Henry B. Waldo, a farmer. She wrote mostly to her siblings regarding personal and family matters.
The Warcup family correspondence consists of letters written by Edith and Stanley Warcup, their daughter, Marion L. Warcup, and Edith's sister, Mary. Marion Warcup wrote about her experiences as a student at a school in Oneonta, New York. Edith and Stanley Warcup's letters suggest a vocation that involved growing fruits and raising fowl.
Several of the letters were written during the First World War and provide information on the hardships of that time. In one letter to her parents, Marion complains about the shortages of meat, milk and fruit. In another letter, Marion makes reference to the influenza outbreak and other diseases prevalent in the early-20th century. The letters also include references to agricultural matters, food prices (retail and wholesale), and new technologies, including automobiles and phonographs.
Also included are folders containing miscellaneous items such as a will, receipts, canceled checks, a locket of hair, and a booklet of burial certificates.
The correspondence is arranged in chronological order beginning with the most senior members of the family and dates when the letters were written.
| Box | Folder | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Letters to Rev. Jason Allen, 1809-1830 |
| 1 | 2 | Donation receipts of Rev. Jason Allen, 1818-1823 |
| 1 | 3 | Letters to Rev. Jason Allen |
| 1 | 4 | Letters to (Mrs.) Nancy Allen, 1800-1812 |
| 1 | 5 | Letters to (Mrs.) Lydia Allen, 1834-1874 |
| 1 | 6 | Letters to Mrs. Lydia Allen from Lydia Allen, 1854-1859 |
| 1 | 7 | Letters to Mrs. Lydia Allen from Lydia Allen, 1860-1874 |
| 1 | 8 | Letters to Mrs. Lydia Allen from Catherine H. Wright, 1851-1872 |
| 1 | 9 | Letters to Mrs. Lydia Allen from Susan C. Allen, 1852-1872 |
| 1 | 10 | Letters to Mrs. Lydia Allen from Nancy Allen (DePelchin), 1856-1860 |
| 1 | 11 | Letters to Mrs. Lydia Allen from F.S. Hutchinson, 1856-1887 |
| 1 | 12 | Letters to Mrs. Lydia Allen from Wolcott B. White, 1857-1860 |
| 1 | 13 | Letters to Henry B. Waldo, 1849-1897 |
| 1 | 14 | Letters to Henry B. Waldo from Wolcott B. White, 1858 |
| 1 | 15 | Letters to Mrs. Henry B. Waldo (Julia), 1850-1853 |
| 1 | 16 | Letters to Mrs. Henry B. Waldo (Julia) from Wolcott B. White, 1850-1854 |
| 1 | 17 | Letters to Mrs. Henry B. Waldo (Julia) from Susan C. Allen, 1851-1895 |
| 1 | 18 | Letters to Mrs. Henry B. Waldo (Julia) from Lydia Allen, 1855-1879 |
| 1 | 19 | Letters to Mrs. Henry B. Waldo (Julia) from Diana Hutchinson, 1873 |
| 1 | 20 | Letters to Mrs. Henry B. Waldo (Julia) from G.H. Allen, 1892-1893 |
| 1 | 21 | Letters to Wolcott B. White, 1855-1876 |
| 1 | 22 | Letters to Wolcott B. White from Susan C. Allen & Diana Hutchinson, 1854-1856 |
| 1 | 23 | Business of Wolcott B. White, 1834-1860 |
| 1 | 24 | Letters to Susan C. Allen, 1854-1874 |
| 1 | 25 | Letters to Diana Hutchinson, 1854-1860 |
| 1 | 26 | Letters to Frank C. Waldo, 1906-1916 |
| 1 | 27 | Allen and Waldo Family - Miscellaneous |
| 2 | 1 | Letters to John Warcup from Robert Warcup, 1834 |
| 2 | 2 | Letters to Stanley Warcup, 1894-1924 |
| 2 | 3 | Letters to Stanley Warcup from friends Fred L. Giles and Fred Rogers, 1883-1889 |
| 2 | 4 | Letters to Stanley Warcup from Mary L. Warcup, 1919-1920 |
| 2 | 5 | Letters to Mrs. Stanley Warcup (Edith), 1904-1939 |
| 2 | 6 | Letters to Marion Warcup, 1920 |
| 2 | 7 | Letters to Marion Warcup from Aunt Mary, 1914-1920 |
| 2 | 8 | Letters to Marion, Edith and Stanley Warcup from Aunt Mary and children, 1918-1920 |
| 2 | 9 | Letters to Stanley Warcup from Marion Warcup, 1918-1922 |
| 2 | 10 | Warcup - Miscellaneous |