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Title: Letter from Danville, Kentucky, to Lifford, Ireland.
ID3917
CollectionIrish Emigration Database
File1811-20/85
Year1819
Senderunknown
Sender Gendermale
Sender Occupationunknown
Sender Religionunknown
OriginDanville, Kentucky, USA
DestinationLifford, Co. Donegal, Ireland
Recipientunknown
Recipient Gendermale
Relationshipson-father
SourceThe Belfast Newsletter, 18th May 1819
ArchiveThe Central Library, Belfast
Doc. No.9410149
Date22/01/1819
Partial Date
Doc. TypeEMG
LogDocument added by LT, 10:10:1994.
Word Count415
Genre
Note
TranscriptEMIGRATION

Extract of a letter from a young man at Danville,
in the State of Kentucky, to his father in
Lifford, dated January 22, 1819: -
"The United States have lately bought from a nation
of friendly Indians, called the Chocktaws and Cherokees
a large tract of their country, about 250 miles west of this.
This land has been lately sold .y [by?] to the highest
bidders, in sections and quarter sections, at the different
offices lately established in that country by the Government.
"According to the report of the two treating plenipotentiaries
in behalf of the United States, the Governor of
this State (Kentucky) and Major-General Andrew Jackson,
it is said to be the best land now in possession on the
continent of America. This has caused such a spirit of
emigration amongst the people of the eastern States, as to
allow no peace of mind among them till they go and visit
this new country; and numbers who have bought land
there, have sold out, and are seen, since last autumn, daily
passing through this town in crowds, with all their family
and cattle, going to this place, called the Alabama territory;
and even the people of this State (which about twenty years
ago was considered the garden of America,) have become
dissastisfied with their places, from the numbers they see
pass to this new country, which but a little time ago was
the home of the savage. In 1816, when I came to Danville,
the same spirit agitated the people in moving to the
Missouri country, until it became so thickly settled, as at
this time to be admitted into the Union as a State. It is
therefore to be no more called the territory, but the STATE
of MISSOURI, the capital of which is St. Louis. Every
territory must number so many million of souls before it
can become a State, or have a voice in Congress.
"Though my paper keeps me within narrow limits, I
cannot but notice to you a calamity which prevails in this
country at present, occasioned by as injudicious system of
banking which the legislature of our State established here
some time ago, by granting a charter to thirty-three banks,
through a wish to promote the circulation of a paper currency,
as silver was at that time very scarce. These banks
all went into operation, and at this time few of them exist,
as was anticipated by the people. Through bad management,
and the issue of too much paper, they became insolvent,
leaving in the hands of the most industrious merchants
and farmers, large quantities of their notes, not
worth one cent."