| Title: | Robert McCoy, Pennsylvania, to Alexander McCoy, Liverpool |
|---|---|
| ID | 3797 |
| Collection | Irish Emigration Database |
| File | mccoy, robert/16 |
| Year | 1842 |
| Sender | McCoy, Robert |
| Sender Gender | male |
| Sender Occupation | farm labourer |
| Sender Religion | unknown |
| Origin | Mercer Co., Pennsylvania, USA |
| Destination | Liverpool, England |
| Recipient | McCoy, Alexander |
| Recipient Gender | male |
| Relationship | brothers |
| Source | D1444/19B: Presented by H.W. McCoy, The Old Manor, Ashley, Hampshire, England |
| Archive | The Public Record Office, Northern Ireland |
| Doc. No. | 9408363 |
| Date | 22/10/1842 |
| Partial Date | |
| Doc. Type | EMG |
| Log | Document added by LT, 12:08:1994. |
| Word Count | 1468 |
| Genre | |
| Note | |
| Transcript | For Mr Alexander McCoy No. 46 Bedford street Toxteth park Liverpool England 25 [Cents?] [postmarks] Liverpool Ship Mercer County Coolspring township [--?] october 22 Dear Brother I again take the present opportunity to write to let you know that I am in good health thank god hoping you enjoy the same and all the friends and [people?] mother and John has recovered as I am uneasy in mind respecting them your Letter was 7 weeks from the date to it come here I would have wrote sooner only for waiting to get for & wrote By uncle as he Lives 8 miles South of mercer and 12 miles north But the think no more of that here than you want of 4 or 5 miles uncle does not Like it write as he is trobled [troubled?] with rheumatism pains in his hands but he appeared in as Good health as any Kneed [need?] wish he is some thing fretful since he last his comerad [comrade?] as I believe she was a good one from what I here [hear?] he is very affection him self and some of the chilren but there is some of them not so I have not seen them all yet there same of the girls lives one mile from us & married to William Alexander she is very friendly and he has as much friendship in him as if he was my own Brother the have big children Dear Brother I have given you the account in the last [ha--?] I got on to I [-------?] work in mercer you thought it was sorrer [sorrier?] work than I was used with I grant I never wrought hard at home that and all that I never put in a summer easier in my life I wrought 4 months in the Breek [Break?] yard and then had just 10£ earned all Cleer [clear?] [profit?] with ought one penny of expese [expense?] one month Before I had done in the Breek [Break?] yard I had another bargain made that it where I now Live with an old Cople [Couple?] there man is Glendining the old man is between 80 and 90 years old and the woman 70 or upwards the have neither son nor daughter Living only 2 grand daughters the one is 10 the 8 years old he has 200 acres for them he has one hundred set the other hundred [before?] on I have engaged to work it the way I am to do is this I am to get the one third of all the crop he finds the seed and all the Farming utensials [utensils?] a pair of oxen 2 horses same feed them all he has 19 acres of meadows I am to get the half of the hay and keep as many cows as I wish of all kinds he has given me a cow and is going to fother [fodder?] hir [her?] this winter as I have no fother [fodder?] yet he is Lending me every thing I want to I have crop of my owne [own?] next year he tells me to Buy nothing he can give me an send me to keep all the money I can the came from Ireland Long ago he say he has friends at siskanmore [Seskinmore?] the name of Clendinning [Glendinning?] he came from coxtown [Cookstown?] he is a covenanter he is so glad to get an irish man to take care of his place that he would give any thing we would ask he says to me [one?] day since I came to now I will teell [tell?] you more than I told you get it is likely I wont Live Long and if you wish to stay on here when I dye [die?] to keep these 2 girls you Shall have this place free to the come to the age of 21 and be paid for keeping them beside he had his wheat sowed when I came and he gave me a field to sow all for myself there is 2 acres in it it is a good heard [herd?] now he has anarchord [anchored?] of all knows of proof and we will have the half we are only 2 miles from mercer it is a [large?] there is either sesshions [sessions?] or [election?] or some geathering [gathering?] every week well then you may think that it will be hard to work all this But it is not so ahrd the farming is done with plows [ploughs?] and horrows [harrows?] here you might go to 10 farmer houses before you would get a spade well you might think it [----?] If I would say one man would harves [harvest?] more than 4 would do in our County but when I shain [shown?] you how you will not we the wheat is sowed september or the begining [beginning?] of october then in apriel [april?] or may the oats is sowed potatoes is put in may the indian corn in may then in June there is another kind of wheat called Buck wheat and it is rupe [ripe?] in september then the seeding done in June in July the meadows is ready for cutting august the wheat and oats september as I [rem?] the Buck wheat I often seen grains of it in the [----?] it is when [cornered?] black grain would to think it was well september the indian corn is rupe [ripe?] october the potatoes harvest lasts all most all summer Besides the sheer more here the have a kind of a sythe that the cut all the grain with one man would cut have than 6 would sheere [shorn?] so I may work hard or easy I may hire men in a [thrice?] or do all I can my self I expect the old couple will not [live?] Long as the are very frail the old woman was sick since we came here we thought she would have died and she would still say it was the Lord sent us here to take care of the Little girls we have a good house under the roof with theirs a good spring at the end of the house and plenty of fire wood in short we want for nothing more than if we were their own Children all I have to do is put his share into the farm I have not to thrash or fother [fodder?] his cattle [------?] my own pleasure [torn] and then I will do he will pay me well for he has plenty of money or if I was busy the often from him, as he wants me to do and feed them I would have the two part and him the third but I intend to do this way one year to I get fother [fodder?] and send there is many I believe sending home bad news from this place such as will not Save the sea port towns and go to the country any man that likes may make a fancsy [fancy?][home?] as Bludying [blue dyeing?] and I believe the Bluedyer make there own indigo If porter strain was here he would make more money in one year than ever he handled of his owne [own?] there is not one blue dyer in my knowing If he comes I will give him a free house and help to set him up to the farmers makes their owne [own?]sugar and soap and bakes their own Bread and makes some to sell of these things to provisions is cheap here and man can get good wages and live very cheap in a town to work of my trade people think there is bad times when the do not get money in handfuls as the rest to do go from 12 to 6 dolars [dollars?] will buy as good a cow as in Carlow and all other things as such I intend to get some cows and sheep if the winter was over I want no horse the old man has 2 good ones that I can ride when I please clothing is high and that is all that is high I have not room to as use well to mention such and such ones there is as good pay for spining [spinning?] and weaving as any thing for wool is so plenty that the people make their own clothing of all kinds and Blankets and flaning or [flanneling?] there is plenty of flax and spinning wheels and Looms and as good a way of making Linnen [Linen?] as in our Country if the knew the way to do it But the half of this country knows nothing but Chopping wood I add no more at present But I remain your affectionat [affectionate?] Brother Robert McCloy If I had mor [more?] room I would give mor [more?] news I wish to give and hear all news |
