1837-10-20: J. R. Goldshwaite to Frances Fitzpatrick, Letter
This document is a letter from J. R. Goldshwaite to Frances Fitzpatrick and is written to condole with Mrs. Fitzpatrick on the death of her son Benjamin. The Fitzpatrick family emigrated from Ireland to the Virginia colony in the early 1700s. Over time, the family moved from Virginia through the Car...
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| Format: | Electronic |
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Auburn University Libraries
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| Online Access: | http://content.lib.auburn.edu/u?/fmw01,20 |
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Electronic |
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Fitzpatrick-Mitchell-Williamson Papers Collection |
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Auburn University Digital Library |
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Auburn University Libraries |
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Family letters |
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Family letters 1837-10-20: J. R. Goldshwaite to Frances Fitzpatrick, Letter Goldshwaite, J. R. |
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Family letters Williamson Family; Mitchell Family; Fitzpatrick Family; Alabama--Social life and customs--19th century; Condolence notes; Peoples -- Domestic Life; History -- 1819-1838: Early Statehood and Indian Removal |
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1837-10-20: J. R. Goldshwaite to Frances Fitzpatrick, Letter |
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1837-10-20: J. R. Goldshwaite to Frances Fitzpatrick, Letter |
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This document is a letter from J. R. Goldshwaite to Frances Fitzpatrick and is written to condole with Mrs. Fitzpatrick on the death of her son Benjamin. The Fitzpatrick family emigrated from Ireland to the Virginia colony in the early 1700s. Over time, the family moved from Virginia through the Carolinas and into Georgia before finally settling in Line Creek, Alabama and Verbena, Alabama. Several members of the family were active politically including William Fitzpatrick, who served in the Georgia legislature, and Benjamin Fitzpatrick, who served two terms as governor of Alabama. Sarah Fitzpatrick, a descendant of this family, married Columbus White Mitchell who was from a prominent Alabama family. The couple had ten children, seven of whom survived infancy. Three of their sons served in the Civil War on the side of the Confederacy (Phil F. Mitchell, Joseph A. Mitchell, and Columbus White Mitchell). Their daughter Mary Louisa, a central figure of this collection, married Dr. Samuel "Trinley" Thomas Williamson in September 1861 shortly after the war began. Williamson was a medical doctor who also fought in the Confederate armed forces. With Williamson and the three Mitchell brothers away fighting, Mary Louisa was left home to run the household with only the help of her sick mother and her sisters. At this time she was also pregnant with her first child who was born in 1862. All three brothers and Williamson survived the war. The family continued to live in Alabama following the Civil War. Since the mid-1900s, some branches of the family have spread out while some continue to live in Alabama. |
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Goldshwaite, J. R. |
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Goldshwaite, J. R. |
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AUfmw0120 |
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http://content.lib.auburn.edu/u?/fmw01,20 |
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https://cdm17353.contentdm.oclc.org/utils/getthumbnail/collection/fmw01/id/20 |
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1705449246155603968 |
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1837-10-20: J. R. Goldshwaite to Frances Fitzpatrick, LetterThis document is a letter from J. R. Goldshwaite to Frances Fitzpatrick and is written to condole with Mrs. Fitzpatrick on the death of her son Benjamin. The Fitzpatrick family emigrated from Ireland to the Virginia colony in the early 1700s. Over time, the family moved from Virginia through the Carolinas and into Georgia before finally settling in Line Creek, Alabama and Verbena, Alabama. Several members of the family were active politically including William Fitzpatrick, who served in the Georgia legislature, and Benjamin Fitzpatrick, who served two terms as governor of Alabama. Sarah Fitzpatrick, a descendant of this family, married Columbus White Mitchell who was from a prominent Alabama family. The couple had ten children, seven of whom survived infancy. Three of their sons served in the Civil War on the side of the Confederacy (Phil F. Mitchell, Joseph A. Mitchell, and Columbus White Mitchell). Their daughter Mary Louisa, a central figure of this collection, married Dr. Samuel "Trinley" Thomas Williamson in September 1861 shortly after the war began. Williamson was a medical doctor who also fought in the Confederate armed forces. With Williamson and the three Mitchell brothers away fighting, Mary Louisa was left home to run the household with only the help of her sick mother and her sisters. At this time she was also pregnant with her first child who was born in 1862. All three brothers and Williamson survived the war. The family continued to live in Alabama following the Civil War. Since the mid-1900s, some branches of the family have spread out while some continue to live in Alabama.[page 1]
Troy Oct 20th 1837
My dear Madam:
I have often thought since
the sad intelligence of your son's death reached
me that I would write to you; but until
now I have desisted from doing so
through fear that it might perhaps be
an intrusion upon the sacredness of
your grief. Were I to remain entirely
silent with regard to this afflicting
dispensation of Providence, I should do
injustice not only to myself, but to
the dearly cherished memory of my
departed friend -- at the same time
I feel my utter inability to say any-
thing that can in the least degree mit-
igate your distress. All I can do
is to assure you of my sincere and
heartfelt sympathy. It is true no
family ties connected us but he was
my friend, the best, the dearest friend
I ever had. -- Our acquaintance
began when we were little school-boys,
and our friendship was cemented by
15 years of almost uninterrupted intercourse.
[page 2]
I knew him well - I knew every motive
which actuated his noble heart, and
am therefore qualified to bear testimony
not only to his intellectual worth; but
to that high toned principle of honor
which was the distinguishing feature of
his character.
A more constant friend - a more
devoted son and husband, or a more
high-minded, honest man, in every
sense of the word, never drew the breath
of life. -- But he is gone - gone
where only those who live a life of up-
rightness can go.
"God of the just - Thou gav'st the bitter cup;
I bow to thy behest; and drink it up."
Long, long will his memory be cherished
by me, and long will the tears of his
friend continue to mingle with those
of the Mother he loved so fondly.
Be pleased to offer my most
sincere condolence to his aff[l]icted wife.
Respectfully yours,
J. R. Goldthwaite
Mrs. F. Fitzpatrick
Line Creek
[page 3]
P.S.
Would it be asking too much of you, to beg for
some trifle of his as a memento? If I might
be allowed to express a choice I would say
let it be an inkstand that he was in the
habit of using frequently. I want nothing
that is of any intrinsic value.
Bird might bring it to me at
any time; or perhaps you might more
conveniently send it to my Mother at
Tuskegee.
I.R.G.
[page 4]
This letter was written to
my grandmother Fitzpatrick
on death of her gifted young
son Benjamin Fitzpatrick
who died in 1837 A D just in
the bloom of life. 1837-10-20Goldshwaite, J. R.Williamson Family; Mitchell Family; Fitzpatrick Family; Alabama--Social life and customs--19th century; Condolence notes; Peoples -- Domestic Life; History -- 1819-1838: Early Statehood and Indian RemovalTroy, Pike County, Alabama, United States1837-10-20Fitzpatrick-Mitchell-Williamson Family Papers, 1850-1989, Auburn University Libraries, Special Collections and Archives, Auburn University, Auburn, AlabamaRecord Group 1223, Fitzpatrick-Mitchell-Williamson Papers4 pages, 25 cm engAuburn, Ala. : Auburn University LibrariesThis image is the property of the Auburn University Libraries and is intended for non-commercial use. Users of this image are asked to acknowledge the Auburn University Libraries. For information about obtaining high-resolution copies of this and other images in this collection, please contact the Auburn University Libraries Special Collections & Archives Department at archives@auburn.edu or (334) 844-1732.application/pdf18371020_GoldshwaiteJR_to_FitzpatrickF_letter.pdfStillimage; TextAuburn University Librarieshttp://cdm17353.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/fmw01/id/20 |