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Garrett Tolley and wife Catharine Van Loon
to
Richard Van Hoesen
1843
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From the personal collection of Sylvia Hasenkopf
Mr. Richard S. Van Heosen
Town of Preble
Courtland County
Athens August 21st 1843
Dear children:
After so long time I take my pen in hand to write a few lines it is not for want of affection to you that I have not answered you kind letter before but it is because I through so much Business & neglet I have omitted it, still hoping those few imperfect times may find you & your dear Children all enjoying the great Blessing of health we are all injoying a comfortable Degree of health through the divine Blessing of our heavenly Farther, O it is onely for us to mourn that we make sutch ill returns for all the goodness and kindness bestowed upon us by so kind a heavenly Farther, but we have yet reason to rejoice that we have and advocate with the Farther who is touched with our infermityes & interseeds for us with the Farther or may we dayly go to him & pray that he would grant us that good spirit to lead & direct us in all our duty the Rev. John Watson is with us still as our pastor & is a faithfull preacher of the gospel & the people of his charge are mutch united with him but we find it hard work to make up his salary on account of the couldness & scarity of money, but if we where all alive tot eh Gospel we could do more then is done, I saw a letter yesterday in the hand of Dr. John Wheeler informing us that the Rev. Wm. Van Cliff will be here to day & make us a visit of three or four days & preach for us on Wensday afternoon at 4 oclock ~~ Jane I wish you could be here to heare him, but I must change my theme time & the narrow limits of a letter will not permit me to write all I want to commucate to you, but I hope we shall once more be permitted to communicate face to face once more in the land of the living, if not hoping we shall meet in heaven where we shall onely commercate the love of Christ. I have had a hard summer so far I had to see to all the work on the old farm this season & had to be down in Athens two part of the time Wm. has give up work him self & gave all over to Garret his son which gives me all the care of the family & Garret has to work the Haight farm two this sumer they have not let it out, your Grand Mother has taken a partner in her old age Mr. Nicholas I. Van Loon & moved down to Athens &as far as I can learn takes more comfort and ease then she did with Maria. She says thay are all verry kind to her ~~
Your uncle Matthew Spoor has lost his son Henry by death this summer & his son Peter is verry sick yet & Peter Spoor informed me yesterday that your aunt Magdalene was taken sick to last week Mr. Derick Van Wie I was informed yesterday was given up by the Doctor& did not expect he could live & have heard from there this morning I have got through with my hay & harvest last week grass has been verry good with us & have a full crop wheat good & rye we have had some drye wether in July but now it is verry rainy & whet, to day it rains & last night it rained last night it rained verry heavy I have sent up a Barrel of fish with the steam Boat. Hioe 12 shad & 600 Herren Jacob Brandow put them up I could not and to it my self at that time he says thay are put up in good order. I have consigned them to the care of Danford Siracuse, according to the direction in your letter I have wrote on the head of the Barrel with Black paint Richard S. Van Heosen Preble consigned to the care of Danford Siracuse. I have paid no freight on the Barrel onely the ferage across the River. Richard Van Valkenburgh has been complaining all sumer & has done verry little Business & cant pay me more on that note he says before September he says that he sent his Butter to York this spring & lost money on it, but he will pay it up this fall. I Expect your Farther & Mother down this fall & you & Jane if you can come please let me know by letter as soon as you receive those few lines please write soon.
I expect I will will have to go to Canida som time this fall but what time I am not able to say don’t let that hinder you nor your Farther & Mother to come I shall expect them in September
If I should go to Canida I and your mother would stop & see you, time will not permit to write more, Grand Mother going in sending her best respects to you and all her dear friends and longs to see them, please pass by all mistakes
We remain your well wishers & parents
Garret Tolley
Cathren Van Loon
PS: (different handwriting)
When we received your letter I proposed calling your babe Henrietta but mother insiss on Catherine but if I any choice I think Isabella Graham ~~~ perhaps you have read her life at all events your father intends getting you one before we come out. I can wish nothing better for your little one then that she may imetate her Saviours life & doctrine like unto her.
Henry & his wife are tolerable but the children are getting the whooping cough – Catharine Frasies & Goerge took tea here last Wednesday & Caroline Tolley & her children on Thursday.
Uncle Johns family are well Rachel Ann wants to go west. Mr. & Mrs Degroat want go only a short distance
Yours
CVL Tulley