Thomas C. Charles and Ellen McRaven Charles Letters

This collection consists primarily of transcribed letters written to and from Ellen and Thomas Charles for the period 1851-1867. Also included in the collection are biographical sketches on individuals in the letters, as well as a McRaven family history and several chapters of a history of Clinton, Mississippi, published in the Hinds County Gazette in 1875-1876. In the letter there are numerous editorial comments provided by the editor, William H. McRaven.

There are many items of interest in the letters. The most outstanding theme running throughout the correspondence from Vicksburg is that of the many epidemics of typhoid and yellow fever. Throughout the entire body of correspondence, countless names of the suffering or dead are mentioned. Due to the irregularities of the Southern mail system during the Civil War, this collection has only one letter mailed during the war. Letters following the war summarize war-time experiences and give accounts of runaway slaves and property stolen or damaged by Union forces. Reconstruction is briefly alluded to as mention was made of "Negro troops garrisoned at Jackson and Clinton."

The letters from California picture the state's pre-Civil War economy as centered around the mining industry. Items of related interest include records of salaries, jobs available, land prices, and supply prices. Of additional interest is the mention of common frontier industries, namely saloons, transportation, mail delivery and land speculation. Thomas Charles seemed to be impressed with the money to be made in farming in California. Also discussed are catalogs of building kits. (Pre-fab structures of church buildings, houses, or general stores were ordered from catalogs and transported by rail to frontier communities where the structures were then assembled.)

Both the family history written by the editor and the copies of "The Town of Clinton" give detailed accounts of family histories and the area's settlements.