Blake family correspondence, 1825-1854 - University of Michigan William L. Clements Library - University of Michigan Finding Aids (original) (raw)

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Blake family correspondence, 1825-1854

Blake family correspondence, 1825-1854

Summary

Creator:

Blake, Jonathan, 1807-1863 and Lyon, Ephraim, 1786-1866

Abstract:

The Blake family correspondence is made up of incoming letters to Jonathan Blake of Warwick, Massachusetts, and New York City, and a smaller set of incoming letters to Blake's future son-in-law, Ephraim Lyon of New York City. Correspondents from New England and New York discussed daily life, education, religion, travel, and other topics.

Extent:

0.5 linear feet

Language:

English

Authors:

Collection processed and finding aid created by Kay Miller and Meg Hixon, April 2013

Background

Scope and Content:

The Blake family correspondence (140 items) includes incoming letters to Jonathan Blake of Warwick, Massachusetts, and New York City (around 115 letters), along with a smaller set of incoming letters to Blake's future son-in-law, Ephraim Lyon of New York City (around 15 items). Their outgoing correspondence makes up the remainder of the items.

Jonathan Blake's incoming correspondence, which is dated from 1825-1847, mainly consists of personal letters from his siblings and cousins, though he also received letters from other acquaintances. His family often provided news of their lives in Warwick, Massachusetts, and Northampton, Massachusetts, commenting on subjects such as education, local and family health, and religion. A brief group of letters between Jonathan Blake and his wife Mary in 1838, 1840, and 1843 concerns his attempts to persuade her to join him in Warwick, where he hoped to nurse his fragile health, though she did not wish to leave New York City. After 1847, the correspondence largely consists of incoming personal letters to Ephraim Lyon and Lyon's letters to Mary Blake before their marriage. His friends and family members reported on their social lives in Waterford, Connecticut, and on other subjects, and Lyon wrote to Blake about his romantic feelings for her and, in one letter, the possibility of moving to California to pursue his fortune (August 3, 1852).

Biographical / Historical:

Jonathan Blake, Jr. (May 29, 1780-April 13, 1864), of Warwick, Massachusetts, and his wife, Patty Conant Blake (d. 1819) married around 1802. Their children included John Pierce (1803-1893), Mary Ann (1805-1807), Jonathan (August 27, 1807-December 30, 1863), Mary Ann (1810-1833), Martha Miriam (1812-1895), and James Edward (1817-1873). Jonathan Blake, Jr., married his second wife, the widow Betsey Howland Ballard, in 1821.

Jonathan Blake (1807-1863), the son of Jonathan Blake, Jr., and Patty Conant Blake, lived in Warwick, Massachusetts; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and New York City. He married Mary Jerome (b. May 13, 1804), the daughter of Richard Jerome and Esther Leach of Waterford, Connecticut, on December 20, 1830, and their children were Mary Ann (December 27, 1832-January 5, 1912), Spencer Cone (b. July 17, 1835), and Judson Jerome (b. July 17, 1835).

Mary Ann Blake (1832-1912) married Ephraim Lyon (May 8, 1825-September 1, 1906), the son of Ephraim Lyon (1786-1866) and Margaret Strickland (b. 1787). Their children were Laura, Alice, and Perry.

Acquisition Information:

2003. M-4273.1 .

Processing information:

Cataloging funded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC). This collection has been processed according to minimal processing procedures and may be revised, expanded, or updated in the future.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged chronologically, with undated items placed at the end.

Rules or Conventions:

Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS)

Additional Descriptive Data:

Bibliography

Blake, Samuel. Blake Family. A Genealogical History of William Blake, of Dorchester, and His Descendants, Comprising All the Descendants of Samuel and Patience (White) Blake. With An Appendix, Containing Wills, &c. of Members of the Family, and Other Interesting Matter. Boston: Ebenezer Clapp, Jr., 1857.

Additional information, including brief summaries of individual items and genealogical research, may be found in the Manuscripts Division.