In spring 2017, students in HIS 306 worked with their professor to transcribe these letters. In addition, they researched those mentioned in the archives and special collections of the E.H. Little Library at Davidson College, the U.S. Census, and NCPedia. They summarized their conclusions in the earliest version of the annotations included below each letter. In fall 2017, Scott Stegall, a History major, conducted additional research in archival and genealogical sources, revised the existing annotations, and wrote others. He also identified and included additional photographs. Conclusions were reached in discussion and after consideration of multiple sources of evidence. We recognize that the accuracy of some online genealogical sources varies, but these are sometimes the only sources of documentation about women, who remain underrepresented in government records and institutional archives like that of Davidson College. In addition, keepers of family stories and records are more likely to share information and photographs on these genealogical websites than donate their precious letters and pictures to a library or archive. Historians working on family and community histories use all sources of evidence — print, oral, and digital — with a critical eye, and we have done so. Some persons remain unknown to us. If you have information to share about someone mentioned in these letters, please email Professor Stremlau at rostremlau@davidson.edu.
