Letters From Forgotten Ancestors, TNGenNet Inc. TNGenWeb Project 
Family letter, contributed by Mari Byers, Rutherford County Tennessee.
2008

*Sickness and Death in Jefferson County, Mississippi*
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From: William Lewis Harper
At Home, "Secluseval", Jefferson County, Mississippi
To his Mother, Louisa Lewis Harper
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July the 20th 1836

Dear Mother

 To answer your request, I am in good health and my shoulders are well. 
I have none to attend to now than I had to at home last. Since then my 
grammar class has been divided as we complained to our teacher 
concerning the matter. This family is extremely sickly at present. Mr. 
and Mrs. Price and the oldest child is sick, including the cook. Mr. 
Price is extremely so with the chills and fever and the headache. This 
father and mother is well as the next of us, spent the greater part of 
last night without sleep as he was suffering with the headache.

 I visited the funeral of Mr. Daniels one of the members of the board of 
trustees. It was attended with great ceremony. Mrs. Watson is also dead 
and they were both buried yesterday. Disaster also prevalent among the 
students. Many are sick but few are disabled. I will not have concluded 
without omitting that am still your affectionate son

                                                            W.L. Harper

 The session will end at the time appointed but you must be sure and 
send once during this interval. Mr. Price has relapsed since I wrote 
this with violent sick stomach and vomiting and they have sent for the 
doctor.

                                                                   WLH

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