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Saturday, July 4, 2015

SIBLING SATURDAY, How We Are Getting Along on this Wide World



Jane Kimber and her husband Moses Seely wrote to her sister Sarah Kimber and spouse William Mackney in Owego, Tioga Co., NY in today’s letter. Although Jane addresses her letter to her ‘dear brother and sister’ Jane’s writings were meant solely for Sarah.

The Sisters by Currier & Ives

‘The Sisters’
Published by Currier & Ives c. 1845
Courtesy of the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Collection


Jane is catching Sarah up with the Orange County, NY family news. Their parents (Keziah and Benjamin Kimber) were well. Another Kimber sister, Abigail, would spend 2 weeks with Caleb. I’m certain this must have been Caleb Jones, the husband of their sister Susan. Susan passed in 1847 leaving Caleb with 4 children. I bet they needed Abigail to care for the Jones children.

You’ll hear about a Sabbath school celebration, the weather, little Isabel who’s quick on her feet, Phebe’s sparking, and Jane’s supper that night.

Then Jane got around to the news about sister Charity (Kimber) Clark—my 3rd Great Grandmother. Kimber sister Julie Ann and husband Erastus Elston visited with Grandmother. It wasn’t good news. Charity was upset because her folks hadn’t been to see her. She told Julie Ann she “felt sometimes as if she could not live and then to think she had no friends to come and see her”. That was only the beginning of her trouble which started with my 3rd Great Grandfather William P. Clark and their oldest child, James. Jane writes “William and James has been cutting up grate dido   they took them up once they settled it and paid ten dollars a peace”. I don’t know what cutting up grate dido means. I hope it was merely a moment of bad judgement. It cost the family $20. Grandmother had her hands full with eleven children and lonesome when William and James got themselves in some kind of fix.

Jane closes her letter wishing to see Sarah.

Transcription Letter 3:

August the 21 (no year, prob. 1852) 2 o clock

Dear Brother and Sister

I now take the pleasure of writing a few lines
to you to let you know how we are getting  along
on  this  wide  world    we are all very well at
present and I hope that these  few lines will
find  you all the same    I received your letter
the 17th and I was glad to get it   I tell you for
it done almost like talking with you   l want to
see you O how bad   O I have got a string as
long as from here to Owego to tell you the whole
but l will have to wait until I see you   Father
and Mother is well as can be expected   Abigail
has gone  to Calebs to stay two weeks   I have
not seen her since I got the letter but I will
keep it until I do   she was some better the
last time I saw her than she was when you went
away    she is going to Newburg while she in gone
   Caleb is going with her   We have been over
there and to Erastus Elstons since you left here
   we had a very good visit at both places  I
have been to Orange to meeting on Saturday and
on Sunday it was our communion season  I
enjoyed myself well   Mrs. Geimsley wanted us to
go home with them and stay all night   she asked
about you and said she wanted to see you and Mr.
Grimley said that he knew me by you for I looked
so much like you    we have had very warm wether
here not only warm but hot for one week   but we
have had almost a week of rainy wether since
that  they are going to have a sabbath school
celebration the 3 day or September in the woods
by old johnney howells near the school house
there  is six schools going to meet there and
they are  going to have the brass band from Port
   I think it will be worth seeing and l think
that I shall be around about that time    they
talk of holding a meeting on for a week    well
Sarah I hold my own yet    Only I have had the
Erysipelas in  my hands    it made me feel not
very good for a day or two but they are better
now   Isabel is well   she talks most everything
and runs till it hard to get on track of her
ofter   phebe is well   she is a spining now
they spark as much as ever and sometimes a
little more for he has to stay downstairs with
her every night   I think that looks rather
green but I think keep cool   they think they
are some pumkins   I should say rather small
ones   now Sarah I will tell you what is the
reason   I have not writin you before   I did not
know where to direct it till I could  send home
to know   now I will keep it   O shaw   why cant
I run over and see you once in a while   if I
lived as near you as you do to me I would come
and see you every now and then   I was glad to
hear that you was so much better than you were
here  and that you had got to be a walker   I
wish you and William would take a walk out  here
some day   now Sis   I must eat a peach and then
I must go and see about the grub for it is most
five o clock   I will tell you what I am goinq
to get   I am going to have short cake and
cucumbers and some berries  some peaches  and
some apples and tea   well Sarah it is tuesday
afternoon and I have got my baking done and have
just taken my pen in hand to resume my letter
again   I have not seen Chartey yet, but  Erastus
and  Juliann has been there and they said that
she was grieving herself most to death about her
folks not coming to see her   she said that she
felt sometimes as if she could not live and then
to think that she had no friends to come and see
her   she almost felt crazy   but O Sarah, you
dont know the trouble that she has now   William
and James has been cutting up grate dido   they
took them [up or pu] once but settled it and paid
ten dollars a peace   I wont wright any more
about it   now for Moses is a going to wright
William all about it and put inside of his   it
wiil be the particulars I suppose   Sarah I
told Abigail what you told me to tell her about
the papers that you took and she said it was
just like you   Mary was here a Sunday a little
while   she was well and she said that I must
tell you that she sent all of her love to you
but a little that she saved for some one else
I will tell you more about it the next letter I
wright   I dont know that I have got much more
to tell you   I cant think what to wright but if
I could see you I could talk   I tell you you
must not make fun of my wrighting for it is
awful but you know its me   O Sarah I wish you
could be here a few days and then back again
you must wright to me as often as you can and I
will do the same   William Moses wants you to
wright as soon as that trial comes of   it is a
getting late and I must close my letter for this
time but I remain your Sister untill Death. So
good bye Brother and Sister till we meet
wright to me as soon as you can

Moses and Jane E. Seely to William T. and Sarah
B. Mackney

[The Mackneys were in Owego at this time.]

[Susan Isabel was born 10 July 1851 in Orange
Co.]


NOTE: Edna Raymond, a past Town of Minisink historian, gave me typed transcripts of the letters exchanged between the Kimber sisters and their parents. This is letter 3 of 31.

Let me tell you what I can recall about the provenance of the Kimber letters. It was many years ago when I visited Edna and learned of the letters. Edna has since passed away. I believe Edna told me a couple from Illinois visited the Minisink Town Hall and brought the original Kimber letters. The Kimber descendant allowed Edna to photocopy the letters in his/her presence. Edna worked quickly. In those days copy machines were slow and the quality left much to be desired. Edna spent many hours studying and transcribing the letters as the ‘old time’ handwriting and spelling was especially difficult to read.

I can’t say how the Illinois couple came by the letters. The Mackney’s and Congleton’s moved to Illinois so it’s possible the Illinois couple were from either branch of the family tree. Winfred Drake Riddall added comments to the letters. She was a Moses Seely and Jane Kimber descendant from Buffalo, New York.


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