The William and Isaac Perkins papers contain 18 letters written between brothers William Lee Perkins and Isaac Perkins, of Ashford, Connecticut, and Kingston upon Thames, England. Their correspondence, written from 1784 to1794, frequently touched on politics, including a fairly long account of Shays' Rebellion (January 25, 1787), mention of the Constitutional Convention (May 28, 1787), and speculation by William on the chances of a reunion between the United States and Great Britain (May 14, 1787).
Also present are comments on Loyalists, the national debt, and news concerning their families and careers. In his letter dated April 4, 1788, William Lee Perkins commented on his medical writing, including attempts at "arranging and distinguishing diseases, which I am contributing my poor Endeavours to introduce in this Country." He also gave medical advice in several letters.
William Lee Perkins was born on February 10, 1736, in Suffolk, Massachusetts, and his brother Isaac was born on September 4, 1741. They were the sons of physician John Perkins and his wife, Abigail Lee. Like his father, William studied medicine; in the 1760s, he was recognized for his work in Massachusetts fighting smallpox with inoculation. A Loyalist, he was exiled to Halifax, Nova Scotia, in 1776, and several years later returned to England, where he continued to practice medicine at Kingston upon Thames, and where he published several articles on medicine. He died in 1797. His brother Isaac, a deacon, remained in North America at Ashford, Connecticut.
