Images
File — Box: 2217.0001, Folder: 24
Scope and Contents note
From the Collection:
This collection consists of family letters written by Juliet Bestor Coleman, her daughter, Alice Coleman Meriwether and her son-in-law, John Samuel Meriwether, all of Eutaw, Alabama, between 1833 and 1864.The collection also has a very small (3.75" x 2.75") travelogue detailing her three-week journey from Suffield, Connecticut to La Grange, Alabama in 1833. There is also a small collection of letters between the Bestor and Coleman families regarding Juliet's last illness and her death.
The bulk of the collection is the correspondence between Alice Coleman Meriwether and her husband, John Samuel Meriwether, while he was serving in the 38th and 40th Alabama Infantry Regiments during the Civil War. There is a hand-drawn map of the Battle of Vicksburg showing the movements of the 40th Alabama Infantry Regiment.
There is a photograph of a painting of Daniel P. Bestor, Juliet's older brother, and a print enlargement of a photograph of Alice Coleman Meriwether. Also included are snapshots of Alice's and John C. Coleman's tombstones. The collection also contains 64 envelopes, 31 of which have Confederate States postage stamps attached.
There are several pieces of letters as well as 1778 Continental United States eight and twenty dollar bills, entitling the bearer to eight or twenty Spanish milled dollars. A small "Reward of Merit" certificate stating that "Miss Juliet Bestor has... excelled those of her class in the art of writing and merits my esteem" signed by Amelia Bestor, Instructor, is also included with a small book of poems and a booklet on the flags of the Confederacy.
While Juliet's handwriting is very legible it is incredibly small (her letters to and from her mother and sisters have been transcribed).
The bulk of the collection is the correspondence between Alice Coleman Meriwether and her husband, John Samuel Meriwether, while he was serving in the 38th and 40th Alabama Infantry Regiments during the Civil War. There is a hand-drawn map of the Battle of Vicksburg showing the movements of the 40th Alabama Infantry Regiment.
There is a photograph of a painting of Daniel P. Bestor, Juliet's older brother, and a print enlargement of a photograph of Alice Coleman Meriwether. Also included are snapshots of Alice's and John C. Coleman's tombstones. The collection also contains 64 envelopes, 31 of which have Confederate States postage stamps attached.
There are several pieces of letters as well as 1778 Continental United States eight and twenty dollar bills, entitling the bearer to eight or twenty Spanish milled dollars. A small "Reward of Merit" certificate stating that "Miss Juliet Bestor has... excelled those of her class in the art of writing and merits my esteem" signed by Amelia Bestor, Instructor, is also included with a small book of poems and a booklet on the flags of the Confederacy.
While Juliet's handwriting is very legible it is incredibly small (her letters to and from her mother and sisters have been transcribed).
Dates
- 1833 - 1864
- Majority of material found within 1862 - 1864
Extent
From the Collection: 0.4 Linear Feet
Language of Materials
From the Collection: English
General
Photograph of a painting of Daniel P. Bestor, Juliet's older brother; a print enlargement of a photograph of Alice Coleman Meriwether; a print enlargement of the house Juliet and James Coleman bought in 1850 in Eutaw, Alabama; snapshots of Alice's and John C. Coleman's tombstones
Creator
- From the Collection: Meriwether, Alice Coleman (Person)
- From the Collection: Meriwether, John Samuel (Person)
- From the Collection: Coleman, Juliet Bestor (Person)
Repository Details
Part of the The University of Alabama Libraries Special Collections Repository