This collection is made up of around 70 incoming letters to editor John H. Hunt of Sag Harbor, New York. Hunt's correspondents primarily wrote about their daily lives in Brooklyn, New York, and Chicago, Illinois, though they also commented on politics, marriage, religion, and business.
Hunt's most frequent correspondents were G. H. Gleason, W. Henry Seely, and D. Lansing Lambert; he also received 3 letters from his brothers and a late series of letters from Benjamin F. Huntting. Gleason, Seely, and Lambert requested news from Sag Harbor and often referred to mutual acquaintances. The bulk of the correspondence concerns their daily lives and, to a lesser extent, their economic fortunes, particularly during the mid-1850s. W. H. Seely, who worked in Chicago, complained about the unfavorable economic climate in the West, and briefly considered joining a friend who had moved to Bolivia to pursue a business opportunity (November 28, 1857). Seely also commented on his religious views, and others mentioned their involvement with Sabbath schools or prayer meetings. During the summer of 1856, letter writers mentioned the upcoming election, and most reported their intention to vote for John C. Frémont. Hunt's correspondents occasionally provided their opinions about marriage and shared news of recent unions. In multiple letters, D. Lansing Lambert mentioned his "wife," whom he revealed to be a young man and a close acquaintance (May 28, 1856). He enclosed an explicit broadside in his letter of October 19, 1857, titled To Lovers of Horizontal Refreshments, which provides a list of services offered by a brothel.
John H. Hunt was born in October 1836, the son of H. W. and Frances E. Hunt of Southampton, New York. His siblings included Edgar, Frances, Alexander, Agnes, and Mary. Hunt lived in Southampton and Sag Harbor, New York, where he worked as an editor. He also founded the Sag Harbor Express. On April 28, 1862, he married Abigail Jane Davis Huntting, and they had one son, George. John H. Hunt died after 1920.
