Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: Jay D. Weil letters
Abstract
Descriptive Summary
- Title
- Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: Jay D. Weil letters
- Date
- 1917-1918, 1939, undated (inclusive)
- Creator
- Weil, Jay, 1894-1959
- Extent
- 0.20 Cubic Feet
- Subjects
- Letters.
- Love-letters
- Farm life
- Business enterprises
- Man-woman relationships -- United States -- 20th century
- Courtship -- 1890-1930
- World War, 1914-1918.
- Gossip.
- Friendship.
- Travel.
- Families.
- Arrangement
- Collection is arranged chronologically. The Wade Hall Collection of American Letters has been processed into discrete collections based on provenance.
- Preferred Citation
- 2009ms132.0842: [identification of item], Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: Jay D. Weil letters, 1917-1918, 1939, undated, University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center.
- Repository
- University of Kentucky
Collection Overview
- Biography / History
- Jay D. Weil (1894-1959) was born in Chicago, Illinois to Simeon Weil (1865-1936) and Alice Weil (1867-1960). By 1900, the family had moved from Illinois to Lexington, Kentucky where Jay's father worked as a livestock agent. In 1917, Jay married Bessie Sable (1893-1967) and together the couple had two children, Jayne (1919-1996) and Alice (b. 1927). Jay continued along the same path as his father, working as a livestock agent, but also owned many farms and general and feed stores.
- American Letters collector Wade Hall (1934-2015) was a native of Union Springs, Alabama. Starting in 1962, he lived in Louisville, where he taught English and chaired the English and Humanities/Arts programs at Kentucky Southern College and Bellarmine University. He also taught at the University of Illinois and the University of Florida. He held degrees from Troy State University (B.S.), the University of Alabama (M.A.), and the University of Illinois (Ph.D.). He served for two years in the U.S. Army in the mid-fifties. Dr. Hall was the author of books, monographs, articles, plays, and reviews relating to Kentucky, Alabama, and Southern history and literature. His most recent books include A Visit with Harlan Hubbard; High Upon a Hill: A History of Bellarmine College; A Song in Native Pastures: Randy Atcher's Life in Country Music; and Waters of Life from Conecuh Ridge.
- Scope and Content
- The Jay D. Weil letters (dated 1917-1918, 1939, undated; 0.20 cubic feet; 5 folders) comprises letters sent from Jay Weil to his future wife that document their courtship, his daily life, and his business ventures in Kentucky in the early nineteenth century. In the letters, Jay writes about his feelings for her, plans for their engagement and marriage, doing business with his father, traveling to farms in Kentucky, Tennessee, and Canada; spending time with friends, sharing local gossip, visiting relatives, getting approval from his parents to marry her, and his personal health. In later letters, he briefly discusses his efforts to be released from quarantine while serving in the military at the end of World War I, and his desire to return home to her. Additionally, there are two letters to Jay from friends, one inviting him to spend time with friends and another declining an invitation; a check, and a letter between Jay's daughter and her future husband.
- The Jay D. Weil letters collection is part of the Wade Hall Collection of American Letters, which includes correspondence and diaries from all over North America covering the time period of the Civil to Korean Wars. The materials were collected by Wade Hall and document everyday men and women.
Restrictions on Access and Use
- Conditions Governing Access
- Collection is open to researchers by appointment.
- Use Restrictions
- The physical rights to the materials in this collection are held by the University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center.
UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center is open Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 4:00pm. Appointments are encouraged but not required. Schedule an appointment here.
Researchers must have an SCRC Researcher Account to request materials. View account set-up and use instructions here.
Questions? Contact SCRC via our Contact Form.
Table of Contents
You may come across language in UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center collections and online resources that you find harmful or offensive. SCRC collects materials from different cultures and time periods to preserve and make available the historical record. These materials document the time period when they were created and the view of their creator. As a result, some may demonstrate racist and offensive views that do not reflect the values of UK Libraries.
If you find description with problematic language that you think SCRC should review, please contact us at SCRC@uky.edu.
UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center is open Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 4:00pm. Appointments are encouraged but not required. Schedule an appointment here.
Researchers must have an SCRC Researcher Account to request materials. View account set-up and use instructions here.
Questions? Contact SCRC via our Contact Form.
Requests
No items have been requested.
You may come across language in UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center collections and online resources that you find harmful or offensive. SCRC collects materials from different cultures and time periods to preserve and make available the historical record. These materials document the time period when they were created and the view of their creator. As a result, some may demonstrate racist and offensive views that do not reflect the values of UK Libraries.
If you find description with problematic language that you think SCRC should review, please contact us at SCRC@uky.edu.
