Manuscripts Division
William L. Clements Library
University of Michigan

Finding aid for
Earl Family Letters, 1853-1896

Finding aid created by
Cheney J. Schopieray, October 2009, and Erin Platte and Meg Hixon, November 2011

Summary Information

Title: Earl family letters
Creator: Earl, Jane Layton
Inclusive dates: 1853-1896
Bulk dates: 1855-1875
Extent: 28 items
Abstract:

The Earl family letters contain correspondence between members and friends of the Earl family in New York, Michigan, and Missouri, written during the latter half of the 19th century.

Language: The material is in English
Repository: William L. Clements Library, University of Michigan

909 S. University Ave.
The University of Michigan
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1190
Phone: 734-764-2347
Web Site: www.clements.umich.edu

Access and Use

Acquisition Information:

2009. M-4770 .

Access Restrictions:

The collection is open for research.

Copyright:

Copyright status is unknown

Processing Information:

Cataloging funded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC). This collection has been processed according to minimal processing procedures and may be revised, expanded, or updated in the future.

Preferred Citation:

Earl family letters, William L. Clements Library, The University of Michigan

Arrangement

The collection is arranged chronologically, with undated items placed at the end.

Biography

Members of the Earl family (based near Pembroke, New York) moved west in the mid-1800s. Stephen Van Rensselaer Earl (alternately spelled "Rensellar") settled in Kalamazoo County, Michigan. Sanford Earl and his wife, Jane E. Layton, lived in Comstock, Michigan. David E. Earl, a graduate of the University of Michigan Law School, moved to Missouri after the Civil War and became a farmer.

Ann Adams was born in New York around 1837. She and her husband, John Adams, a carpenter, lived in Ovid and Allegan, Michigan, with their children, who included Charles and Evangeline.

Collection Scope and Content Note

The Earl family letters contain correspondence between members and friends of the Earl family in New York, Michigan, and Missouri, written during the latter half of the 19th century. Most letters are addressed to Jane Layton before and after her marriage to Sanford Earl and have news about friends in New York and Michigan. One frequent correspondent, Ann Maria Adams, described life in rural Michigan. Several Earl family members wrote from Pembroke, New York, about family news and social activities. The collection also has three detailed letters that David E. Earl, a farmer in Avola, Missouri, wrote in 1874 and 1875. He discussed life in the rural Midwest, agricultural prices, and the effect of national politics on the local economy. An undated poem is entitled "Do they miss me at home."

Subject Terms

Subjects:

• Agriculture--Missouri.
• Ovid (Mich.)
• Pembroke (N.Y.)
• United States--Politics and government--1865-1877.
• United States--Social life and customs--19th century.

Contributors:

• Adams, Ann M.
• Earl, David E.
• Earl, Stephen Van Rensellar, 1824-1893.

Genre Terms:

• Letters (correspondence)

Contents List

Container / Location		Title
Box   Box 8, Small Collections		Earl family letters [series]:
Folders   7-10		September 5, 1853-March 30, 1896, and  undated