Circa 1908 Letter1 from Phebe CAMPBELL Hoyt
Uncle Joe and family are well.
Grace and her family were at her father's all last week. Grace has
four children.
Aunt Call is well.
Uncle Allen and
uncle George are getting to be old men, must be eighty. Aunt Jane is not as well as I am well.
Christmas will soon be here , the girls2 are planning for it
already. Frank3 is at Charlie's4, is helping him
with his musickal [sic] charts. will be
home Christmas.
We are as well as usual.
Well must close.
We all join in sending our love.
I wish you a merry Christmas and happy new
year.
1. We don't know to whom this letter was written, but it appears to have been to one of her nephews or nieces (or perhaps to their spouse or child). Because she refers to several of her siblings as 'uncle' or 'aunt' we can rule out their children or grandchildren. And those who died before 1907/8. Some possibilities might be Mary CAMPBELL Shipman, Kate CAMPBELL Horton, Tommie Campbell, Wm. Clayton Campbell, Emma CONGDON Buck, Ed Congdon, Charlie Congdon, Jennie CRANE Bosard, Laura BOSARD Mourey, Ann BOSARD Owlett, Herb Hughey, Stella LOOP Hooker Wilbur, Will Selph or Jennie SELPH Cady. The latter seems unlikely because she lived in Nelson.
The existing letter is a single sheet of paper, both sides filled. It is possible that instead of being the entire letter the surviving sheet is merely the last sheet of a longer letter.
2. Phebe's granddaughters, Jessica, Elizabeth & Isabelle Hoyt.
3. "Frank" may have been Frances GOODRICH Hoyt.
4. "Charlie" may have been "Professor" Charles Blackwell Campbell. He was a musician and music teacher. But I don't know Frances Hoyt would have been able to help him with his sheet music --- if that's what the "charts" were.
Transcribed by Phebe's great-grandson, Wm. Thompson, Nov. 28, 2014
Copyright © 2014 William B. Thompson. Commercial use prohibited.