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Lemuel Kinne
Correspondence, 1899-1904
SC23073

Quantity: 1 box (0.25 cubic ft.)
Access: Open to research
Acquisition: Purchase; Mrs. Hudson's Fine Books & Paper, Chelsea, N.Y., December 2005
Processed By: Nicholas Webb, Student Assistant, State University of New York at Albany, October 2008

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Biographical Note:

Lemuel Kinne lived in Mongaup Valley, Sullivan County, N.Y., with his wife, Ida, and his son, Wellington. He was the son of Caroline G. Kinne of Maplewood, Sullivan County, N.Y. He had several brothers and sisters, many of them residents of west-central Connecticut, including Julia E. Kinne of Terryville, Conn., H.M. Kinne of Gaylordsville, Conn., who ran a lumber business, and Asil Kinne, who eventually emigrated to California.

In 1900 Lemuel Kinne traveled through Connecticut, working as a lumberman in the employ of his brother. The following year he returned to Mongaup Valley. In 1902 he suffered a serious leg injury, possibly caused by a work-related accident, but over the course of the following year his leg recovered well enough for him to walk on it.

Scope and Content Note:

This collection consists of letters received by Lemuel Kinne from 1899 to 1904, the majority of which were written by his wife or by his sister, Julia. Ida's letters, written to Lemuel from the family farm in Mongaup Valley, describe her life on the farm and provide news about the neighbors, including births, deaths and marriages. Ida often expresses her longing that her husband could be at home with her. Julia's letters, written from her home in Terryville, Conn., discuss the activities of the Connecticut branch of the Kinne family and their neighbors.

In addition, the collection contains several letters from William Lybatt, a close friend of Lemuel's. Lybatt was apparently a resident of Noxon, Dutchess County, N.Y., but he traveled throughout the United States on business and kept Lemuel informed of his travels via occasional letters; of particular interest are an April 1900 letter in which William describes the Chicago stockyards and a September 1901 letter in which he discusses the assassination of President McKinley.

The collection also contains letters from Kinne's mother, Caroline, his brother Asil, and a friend named Lewis Morey, who served at the U.S. Army base in New York harbor. 

Container List:

Box Folder Description
1 1 Correspondence, 1899 (4 items)
1 2 Correspondence, January-February 1900 (6 items)
1 3 Correspondence, March 1900 (7 items)
1 4 Correspondence, April 1900 (6 items)
1 5 Correspondence, June 1900 (6 items)
1 6 Correspondence, September-October 1900 (2 items)
1 7 Correspondence, December 1900 (5 items)
1 8 Correspondence, January 1901 (4 items)
1 9 Correspondence, February 1901 (4 items)
1 10 Correspondence, March 1901 (3 items)
1 11 Correspondence, April 1901 (3 items)
1 12 Correspondence, June 1901 (5 items)
1 13 Correspondence, August-December 1901 (4 items)
1 14 Correspondence, 1902 (1 item)
1 15 Correspondence, July 1903 (3 items)
1 16 Correspondence, August-November 1903 (4 items)
1 17 Correspondence, 1904 (4 items)
1 18 Correspondence, undated (5 items)
1 19 Postal covers
Last Updated: February 25, 2022