Morton-Halsey family papers

The Morton and Halsey family papers and addition (MSS 3995) contain family letters and some business letters, financial and legal papers, diaries, ledgers, printed items, and photographs belonging to the family of Jeremiah Morton (1899-1878), his wife Jane Smith Morton, and his son-in-law Joseph Jackson "J. J." Halsey (1820-1907) Halseys' wife, Mildred Halsey and their children and grandchildren with the family papers spanning from 1838 to 1951 in Culpeper, and Orange County, Virginia as well as the Halsey branch of the family from New Jersey, and Abraham Halsey (J.J.'s brother) in California.

The collection contains documents, ledgers, and correspondence that Jeremiah Morton and J. J. Halsey owned and sold enslaved persons. Jeremiah Morton was involved in the internal slave trade between Virginia and Mobile, Alabama (ca. 1847-1863) with accounts, descriptions, and values placed upon enslaved persons including itemized tax receipts This book doubles as a notebook of legal questions with page references and sections headed "The Rights of Things," "Toller's Law of Executors," and "Reeves Domestic Relations."

Content Note: The correspondence particularly from J. J. Halsey contain references or imagery involving racism. In addition to the numerous enslaved persons in this family, J. J. Halsey and other family members often slur African Americans in correspondence throughout the collection.The purpose of this note is to give users the opportunity to decide whether they need or want to view these materials, or at least, to mentally or emotionally prepare themselves to view the materials.

There is also an 1855 registration form for Andrew Johnson, "a person of colour," indicating his status as "born free in the County of Orange, Virginia," and identifying him by his color, stature and marks or scars upon his face, head or hands.

Topics include the Civil War with J. J. Halsey fighting for the Confederacy and his brother Edmund fighting for the Union Army, reconstruction, African Americans holding office and politics, alcohol addiction, mental illness, agriculture, economy, coal, mining, White Sulphur Springs, and the Southern Pacific Railroad. Brief mention of the Spanish American War, moonshine, domestic abuse, divorce, education, Virginia Female Institute, Virginia Military Institute, Princeton University, University of Virginia, and Charlottesville, Virginia.



There are Civil War accounts including the Stonewall Jackson Valley Campaign and the mention of many Generals such as Robert E. Lee, [Richard Stoddart] Ewell, William Tecumseh Sherman, and battles in Elk Run, Harrisonburg, New Market, Richmond, Mount Jackson and the surrender at Appomattox at Wilmer McLean's house. There are also two pages from the notebook of Mildred Halsey, which offer a day-by-day account of life while her husband is at war and Union forces occupy nearby areas. J. J. Halsey wrote that their house was between the “cannon of both armies.”

Most of the letters include typed transcriptions which explain relationships of the family members which start with Jeremiah Morton through to his great-grandchildren, Louisa "Lou" Halsey b.1880, Caroline Virginia Halsey Stearns b.1878, and Frank "Buddie" Halsey b. 1881, Fannie Dickenson (b. 1884), James "Short" Halsey b. 1889, and step-children Hattie, Willie, and Anne "Mate," Helen Halsey, Jamie Alexander (engaged to "Georgie",) Celia Alexander b. 1886, and Mildred Alexander 1877-1890, and step-children and eight children of Robert Ogden Halsey and Ella Halsey.

There is a lengthy autobiographical account of the career of William "Extra Billy" Smith, written in 1873 when Smith was running for U. S. Senate. The account includes his election to public office as Virginia state senator (1836), governor (1845), and U. S. congressman (1853-1859), and describes some of his Civil War experiences.

The correspondence of J. J. Halsey also includes letters and maps concerning the Knights of the Golden Horseshoe, and correspondence and papers related to Dr. Bee Bartow Halsey's case with the newly formed state board of medical examiners, contesting their right to license physicians.

Related materials include essays and verse by J. J. Halsey, materials relating to the rebuilding of "Lessland," Dr. Bee Bartow Halsey's examinations at Williston Seminary, Virginia, and papers concerning tuition for Irena Louisa Halsey at Piedmont Female Institute.

Series 4: The ledger series of the collection consists of eighteen volumes from 1812-1882 including Jeremiah Morton's account book regarding the sales of enslaved persons, Dr. R. Brigs ledgers dated 1812-1819, contain medical procedures like pulling a tooth. Other ledgers are from residents of Madison, Orange, and Culpeper counties. Some are in the hand of J. J. Halsey, while other volumes bear the names of Charles B. Porter, John A. Porter, B. W. Brown, and Nalle, Fishback and Company.

Selected list of correspondents: Jeremiah Morton: John B. Barbour, Jr., Robert Bolling, W. B. Caldwell, Allen T. Caperton, Reverend John Cole, R. H. Dulany, Frederick Gamble, Jedediah Hotchkiss, G. W. Leyburn, R. H. Maury, William Maury, A. M. Phillips, Riggs and Company, B. T. Sage, Slaughter, Franklin and Company, Alexander H. Stephens, George Terrill and B. R. Wellford. Joseph J. Halsey: John H. Antrim, J. L. Archer, Robert Bolling, W. C. Conrad, Peter V. Daniel, James Gaven Field, Dr. Jeptha Fowlker, A. J. Gordon, Colonel W. W. Gordon, Andrew Grinnan, Cornelia Grinnan, Ella Grinnan, M. G. Harman, General Eppa Hunton, General John D. Imboden, H. C. Marchant, Norton Marye, R. H. Maury, William Maury, B. T. Nalle, Phillip Nalle, Samuel H. Newbury, R.V. Richardson, William C. Rives, John Robertson, Taylor Scott, Francis H. Smith, John K. Taliaferro, Jacquelin P. Taylor, Tazewell Taylor, George Terrill, John Timberlake, C. S. Todd, Charles Wagner, Thomas P. Wallace, George Wederburn, and John Woolfolk.

There are also Morton's or Halsey's personal records, including their accounts with area merchants and residents of Madison, Culpeper or Orange counties, Virginia, whose affairs were handled by J. J. Halsey. as a lawyer. Individuals and firms listed are: William C. Austin, Beechwood and Mallory, John Blackwell and Hannah Blackwell, Charles G. Britt and James Beckham, Bushrod Brown, Thomas Brown, Thomas, Frances Bunley and Susie Bunley, M. A. Carter, John Clark, James Clark and Reuben Clark, William D. Clark, Timothy Costello, J. W. Crittenden, Sarah A. Daniel, William P. Eliason, Adam Everheart, John Gaurd, John Glaspell and Mary Glaspell, Gray Family, Thomas I. Green, R. W. Hall, James Hansbrough, Jane Hansbrough and Peter Hansbrough, Eppa Hunton, Parchal Hutchenson, Philip Johnson, James Jones, Thomas A. Keith, George Morton, Thomas Morton, Martin Nalle and Philip Nalle, Lewis Nelson, George Pannill, Charles B. Payne, W. S. Peyton, Colonel John A. Porter, John C. Rayland, William Rixey, Reverend W. F. Robins, J. W. Shadrack and John H. Somerville, Samuel Shadrack, George A. Sleet, Daniel W. Smith, James Somerville, E. W. Stearns, Steeles Tavern, Augusta County, Virginia, James L. Stringfellow, John Terrill, C. R. Van Wyck and L. D. Winston, John Vaughan, C. S. Waugh and N. B. Waugh, [John] Thomas Morton Wharton, Wharton and Nalle, William Wharton, Colonel Bruce Williams, Walter C. Winston, Winston family, and Isaac Willis.

The collection also contains a land grant from Patrick Henry, as Governor of Virginia, to Uriel Mallory as assignee of William Morton, 1782 November 8 (in the existing collection)