| Title: | Samuel McCulloch, Heekenseek to his father, Carrickfergus |
|---|---|
| ID | 3808 |
| Collection | Irish Emigration Database |
| File | mcculloch, samuel/14 |
| Year | 1774 |
| Sender | McCulloch, Samuel |
| Sender Gender | male |
| Sender Occupation | looking for work |
| Sender Religion | unknown |
| Origin | Hackensack, N. Jersey?, USA |
| Destination | Carrickfergus, Co. Antrim, N.Ireland |
| Recipient | unknown |
| Recipient Gender | male |
| Relationship | son-father |
| Source | The Belfast News-Letter, Friday 29 April to Tuesday 3 May 1774 |
| Archive | The Central Library, Belfast |
| Doc. No. | 1200308 |
| Date | 29/04/1774 |
| Partial Date | |
| Doc. Type | EMG |
| Log | Document added by LT, 19:12:00. |
| Word Count | 783 |
| Genre | |
| Note | |
| Transcript | To SAMUEL McCULLOCH, at Carrickfergus, in the County of Antrim, in Ireland. Heekenseek, [Hackensack, New Jersey?], Sept. 24th, 1773. Dear Father, " This comes with our duty to you and to our step- mother, and our love to your brothers and sisters, and to let you know that it has pleased God to spare all the principals of our two families, but it was sore on our children; for on the 19th of June, Tommy Jackson died, and the day after the two girls, to our great grief, both died in one hour. This was the greatest trouble I ever felt, to see our two fine girls thrown into the ocean after they had been seven weeks on board and were on the coast. Our mate died, and several more men and women, and about 12 children. We had a great fever on board; men lay raving through all the births [berths?]. I never lay down that night, but I was afraid that some of us would have it before the morning. Our children died of a short illness, and not of the fever. When we came to York, Billy and me went on shore, and at about 3 o'clock we set out for our brother's, but we could not come to his house, and we lay down and slept in a wood. " When we came to his house he was just talking of us, and was surprised to see us. He could not done more for us if he had been possest [possessed?] of thousands. He gave me and Billy a pair of bucks skins and all other things we stood in need of, and set out with us to York and paid all our passages, and spared no expence on us: he had new cloaths [clothes?] made for all the children, who all had the fever, but they are all recovered and is well; and Semmy and Jammy is both at school, our sister Eve shewed [showed?] all the love and affection for us that was in her power. The waving [weaving?] is scarce at present. James has sold the house he built, and had bought a lot that there stood three houses on, and we have lived in one of them each of us, but there is not work here for us, so we are going to move some miles into the country. James keeps a merchant shop and is in good credit. All things seems to go well with us, but there is many of the people that comes here have cause to repent their leaving Ireland; for indeed this country comes far short of the character it gets with you, and for apprentices and redemptioners they had better stay at home if they take my advice, for I would not wish any one that I would give a drink of water, to come here. And let John Baird know that I would not advise him here; all the great stories of it is lies. It is true it is pleasant, and great plenty of fruit, and they will tell you of so many shillings they will get. It is true there is a great deal of shillings in a little money, for the York shilling is your seven-pence. Billy and Mary sends their duty to you and their step-mother, and their love to John and his wife, and to Catherine, and to Rachel, Susy sends her love to her brothers and sister, and to Sarah Euant; and let them stay at home till they hear from us again. The Dutch is a strange people, for you would take them all for one; their cloaths [clothes?] is all alike. The Justices of the Peace goes bare-footed, and he that is representative for this county in the Grand Council is sexton, and bell-man, and grave-digger. Remember me to John Tennant and to Rachel, and I hope to see them. Tho' I do not expect to see you, my father, yet it may please the Lord to see other yet. Dear father, write to William Harper, and let him Know that you have heard from us, and that I do not advise William Walker to come to this country, or to any of the Carolinas: if his brother writes for him, and he comes, he will be sorry for it. Remember me to the two Miss Campbell's, and tell them I think they are as well at home as they would be here. If a man goes to the woods, and slaves all his days, maybe his children may have some land; but an acre in Ireland is worth three of the best I ever saw here. So dear father, we are all very well; may God bless you all, Is the wish of your loving children. SAMUEL McCULLOCH. |
