Letters from J. Epps Jones Callaway to Johnny Callaway, 1874-1897

This collection documents the lives of the Callaway and Jones families in Cuthbert, Georgia; Geneva County, Alabama; and Lake City, Florida. The collection includes letters that document the extended Jones family’s everyday lives and relationships with each other.

The collection primarily centers on J. Epps Jones Callaway. Letters between her and John Callaway range from 1860-1862, with the bulk being in 1862. The letters cover their courtship and marriage in 1860, and pick up again in 1862 when he is serving in the Civil War with Georgia’s Smith Legion. These letters, in which she addresses him as “sweetness,” provide information about her life at home and his with the cavalry. A letter from June 1862 includes his commentary on medical conditions in camps, and in his letter on November 20, 1862, he describes a “demoralized” atmosphere among soldiers. At least once during this time she travels to visit him, taking their infant with her. Their letters stop days before his death on December 28, 1862. His service took him through Georgia, Tennessee, and Kentucky.

Epps did not marry again. The rest of the letters that Epps received and wrote show her business dealings on her and her son’s behalf as a widow, as well as personal letters with friends and family. The Callaways owned some land in Georgia and Florida. It is important to note that at times some letters are addressed to Mr. Epps Callaway, although these were most certainly intended for her.

As the collection includes material from the antebellum South, researchers will find information about enslaved persons scattered throughout letters and other documents. John A. Jones’s partial farm journal from South Carolina for the years 1845-1846 provides detailed information about the enslaved persons' work, food, clothing, and illnesses. Numerous persons were mentioned, including Eliza, Brutus, John, Mariah, Harriet, and Nelly.

The collection includes a number of written materials including poems, journals, school notes, and perhaps speeches. The subject matter of these varies greatly. Several attributed to Eppes Callaway are about death.

The collection includes 160 photos and about thirty negatives. Only a few photographs of people are identified; they are not Jones or Callaway family members represented in the rest of the collection. Most images are of men, women, and children. Most of the photographs are in very poor condition.