Can you help us solve a mystery? I would love to read your thoughts on this in the comments section. When I return to Ireland from the U.S. I am in the habit of meeting with one of my Irish cousins near his workplace in the jostling heart of downtown Belfast. I enjoy our long lunches & laughter. This year he shared with me a never before published series of approximately 20 original letters. The letters were sent from America back to Ireland. The letters began in 1839, they still exist in Ireland today & have never been published or seen by the public. They catalog the story of an Irish family’s immigration to America over a period of 30 years. We are digitizing the originals for posterity. We are also in the process of transcribing the contents for those who struggle reading the old style handwriting & sometimes faded script. Here is the link for the full transcription of this Irish Emigrant letter home. Below I have shared the original script of the first of these letters and plan to publish the rest over the coming months.
We are looking for clues & internet detectives. Any assistance is greatly appreciated. Given the handwriting, the language & tone, this is obviously a well educated immigrant. What else can you derive from the content? Are there any insights in the content? Ultimately we hope to discover what happened to these Irish people after they landed in America? Did they have descendants? Feel free to transpose the content into the comments below to help us bring this 187 year old mystery full circle.
Please note, the 2nd & 3rd pages contain writing in a different color, flowing in a different direction. I have been told this was so the sender could get more information onto the page without incurring additional postage cost. The last image below shows the front cover of the letter, it includes the recipients address, and the letter is stamped with locations and dates of its journey. I would love to ready your thoughts in the comment section. The letter begins “Louisville Ky, Oct 16th 1839, Dear Father….”
