Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: Wilbur and Elvina Blackburn letters
Abstract
Descriptive Summary
- Title
- Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: Wilbur and Elvina Blackburn letters
- Date
- 1883-1893, undated (inclusive)
- Creator
- Blackburn, Wilbur
- Extent
- 0.14 Cubic Feet
- Subjects
- Letters.
- Family.
- Farm life
- Agriculture -- Kansas
- Crops
- Livestock.
- Health
- Cancer
- Child rearing
- Arrangement
- Collection is arranged by subject. The Wade Hall Collection of American Letters has been processed into discrete collections based on provenance.
- Preferred Citation
- 2009ms132.0910: [identification of item], Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: Wilbur and Elvina Blackburn letters, 1883-1893, undated, University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center.
- Repository
- University of Kentucky
Collection Overview
- Biography / History
- Wilbur W. Blackburn (1842-1904) was born in Fredericktown, Ohio to John Blackburn (1810-1893) and Rebecca Zink (1813-1893). In 1866, he married Elvina Keyes (1849-1925) and together they had two daughters, Effie (1879-1951) and Bertha (1888-1975). No other biographical information available.
- 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 Wilbur and Elvina Blackburn letters (dated 1883-1893, undated; 0.14 cubic feet; 4 folders) comprises letters sent to Wilbur and Elvina Blackburn from family and friends that document life in Kansas in the late nineteenth century. Letters from friends discuss daily life in Kansas, personal health, families, the weather, building new railroad lines, and financial affairs. Letters from family come from their brother- and sister-in-laws, discussing the move from Ohio to Kansas, planting crops and trees, building a home, the birth of a second child, crop harvests, hunting, raising livestock, their desire to see Wilbur and Elvina again, and the influx of new residents to the state. They also write about the sister-in-law discovering a lump in her breast, surgery to remove it, thoughts about it being cancer, her personal health through the ordeal, plans to move back to Ohio in hopes the climate will help her heal, and the discovery of a second lump in her armpit.
- The Wilbur and Elvina Blackburn 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.
Contents of the Collection
Keyes family to Wilbur and Elvina Blackburn, 1883-1885
Keyes family to Wilbur and Elvina Blackburn, 1886-1890
Ella Craven to Elvina Blackburn, 1885-1886
General letters, 1884-1893, undated
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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.
