Cassius M. Clay journal and papers
Abstract
Descriptive Summary
- Title
- Cassius M. Clay journal and papers
- Date
- 1826-1941, undated (inclusive)
- Extent
- 0.25 Cubic Feet
- Subjects
- Agriculture -- Kentucky -- Madison County
- Journals (bookkeeping)
- Slavery, abolition, and emancipation
- Slavery -- Kentucky -- Madison County
- Arrangement
- Collection is arranged by format.
- Preferred Citation
- 2019ms040: [identification of item], Cassius M. Clay journal and papers, 1826-1941, undated, University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center.
- Repository
- University of Kentucky
Collection Overview
- Biography / History
- Cassius Marcellus Clay was born in 1810 in Madison County, Kentucky. He was the son of Green Clay, a Revolutionary War general. Clay attended Yale University and was anti-slavery, although he advocated gradual emancipation. In 1845, Clay began the True American an anti-slavery paper, and later followed this with another anti-slavery paper The Examiner. Clay served in the Kentucky Legislature from 1835-1840, and was minister to Russia twice (1861-1862; 1863-1869). During the period of his recall, 1862-1863, Clay served as a Union Major General in the Civil War. He married Mary Jane Warfield Clay in 1833 and divorced her in 1878. They had six children who lived to adulthood, including suffragists Mary Barr Clay and Laura Clay. He married Dora Richardson, the fifteen year old sister of one of his tenants, in 1894; they divorced in 1898. Cassius Clay died on July 22, 1903.
- Scope and Content
- The Cassius M. Clay journal and papers (dated 1826-1941, undated; 0.25 cubic feet; 1 box, 2 folders) primarily comprises a journal kept by abolitionist Cassius M. Clay to document financial and business transactions. Additionally, the journal occasionally documents Clay's farm as well as his family and personal life. The journal contains numerous entries detailing his transactions buying and selling livestock; selling land; settling the estate of his father Green Clay (1757-1826); his financial relationship with his brother Brutus Clay; and the buying and leasing of slaves. Though Clay was a famed abolitionist, he leased enslaved people to work his farm from his brother Brutus and others. Additionally, he purchased enslaved persons, some of whom he later freed. The journal details the financial arrangement concerning the operation of Clay's Ferry on the Kentucky River as well as the acquisition of Weddle's Mill. It contains details and entries on the moving of his abolitionist newspaper True American from Lexington to Cincinnati in 1845. Additionally, it mentions lands and funds Clay gave to John G. Fee, the founder of Berea College. The journal also makes mention of several familial relationships and conflicts in his life, including tensions in his marriage to his first wife Mary Jane Warfield Clay and his marriage to and divorce from Dora Richardson. Additionally, a section in the rear of the book contains handwriting practice and a note from Clay indicating that it was written before Dora Richardson was drugged by her sister Hoody Vanderpool and brother-in-law Abe Vanderpool. This is connected to allegations he made during their divorce proceedings.
- The collection also contains some photographs and newspaper clippings gathered for a biography of Clay by his grandson, Green Clay (1871-1962). The collection contains drafts of a newspaper article concerning Cassius Clay written by Green Clay as well as photographs of the outlaw Kit Carson and a cigar box lid.
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
Cassius M. Clay article drafts, by grandson Green Clay (article published in the Louisville Courier-Journal on 1942 January 1), circa 1941
Cassius M. Clay portrait prints, 1845-1860, undated
Cassius M. Clay photographs, 1888-1901, undated
Photographs of Richmond, Kentucky, and surrounding areas, most relating to Cassius M. Clay or other family, 1890s-1937, undated
Photographs of mostly unidentified people, undated
Lithographic prints of Russian nobility, 1864-1865, undated
Photographs of Kit Carson and New Mexico, undated
Cigar box lid - Lexington Cigars - depicting Ashland, the home of Henry Clay, undated
Newspaper clippings regarding White Hall, Cassius M. Clay, and Richmond, Kentucky, undated
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.
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Questions? Contact SCRC via our Contact Form.
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.
