Bryant family papers
Abstract
Descriptive Summary
- Title
- Bryant family papers
- Date
- 1866-1905, undated
- Extent
- 0.23 Cubic feet
- Subjects
- Coal mines and mining--Appalachian Region
- Ephemera.
- Spanish-American War, 1898.
- Arrangement
- Collection is arranged by format.
- Preferred Citation
- 2013MS0360: [identification of item] Bryant family papers, 1889-1904, undated, University of Kentucky Special Collections.
- Repository
- University of Kentucky
Collection Overview
- Biography / History
- Louis Edwards Bryant (1868-1937) was born in Louisville, Kentucky, to James Martin Bryant and Roberta Stockton Edwards. His family owned mineral rights on land called the "Big South Fork" in McCreary County, Kentucky, and Scott County, Tennessee. Louis studied mine engineering in Freiburg during the 1880s. When he returned, he and his brother, Dudley Edwards Bryant (1869-1937), attempted to develop mining operations on the Big South Fork, but they were hindered by a lack of railroad transportation. In 1902 the family leased their mineral rights to Justus Stearns, owner of the Stearns Coal and Lumber Company and founder of Stearns, Kentucky. After the lease expired in 1923, Stearns purchased the mineral rights from the Bryant family. Louis married Virginia Lee around 1909; they had no children. The Bryants maintained a residence in Danville, Kentucky, and Louis died there in 1937.
- Sources Howell, Benita. Folklife Along The Big South Fork: Of The Cumberland River. Knoxville: University Tennessee Press, 2003.
- Scope and Content
- The Bryant family papers (dated 1866-1905, undated; 0.23 cubic feet; 1 box and 1 folder) comprise correspondence, invitations, greeting cards, ephemera, programs, and photographs documenting the Bryant family's role in the development of McCreary County, Kentucky, and Scott County, Tennessee. The papers include letters and ephemera relating to Louis Bryant's time in Europe studying mineral engineering at a university in Freiburg, Germany. Much of the ephemera consists of wedding invitations for Louis, his brother Dudley, and his wife Virginia. Several letters from Frederick Gates of Asheville, North Carolina, reflect conditions in Appalachia following the Panic of 1893 (Box 1, Folder 2). The photographs depict the Bryant family's mining operations (Box 1, Folder 11). Additional items of interest include a letter from Thomas Bramlette certifying he knew James M. Bryant and served with him during the Civil War, dated 1866 (Box 1, Folder 1); Louis E. Bryant's passport (Box OS-14); an invitation for a ball in the Hotel Stearns, dated 1905 (Box 1, Folder 3); and a letter from Oliver E. Fox in 1898 raising a company of soldiers for the Spanish-American War (Box 1, Folder 2).
Restrictions on Access and Use
- Conditions Governing Access
- Collection is open to researchers by appointment.
- Use Restrictions
- Property rights reside with the University of Kentucky. The University of Kentucky holds the copyright for materials created in the course of business by University of Kentucky employees. Copyright for all other materials has not been assigned to the University of Kentucky. For information about permission to reproduce or publish, please contact Special Collections.
Contents of the Collection
Correspondence, 1866-1902
Ephemera, 1887-1905, undated
Invitations - Virginia Bryant, 1905
Invitations - Miscellaneous, 1899, undated
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Table of Contents
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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.
