| Title: | Mary Cumming, Petersburg, [Va?] to Margaret Craig, Lisburn. |
|---|---|
| ID | 773 |
| Collection | Irish Emigration Database |
| File | Cumming, Mary/6 |
| Year | 1811 |
| Sender | Cumming (n. Craig), Mary |
| Sender Gender | female |
| Sender Occupation | middle class housewife |
| Sender Religion | unknown |
| Origin | Petersburg, Virginia, USA |
| Destination | Lisburn, Co. Antrim, N.Ireland |
| Recipient | Craig, Margaret |
| Recipient Gender | female |
| Relationship | sisters |
| Source | T 1475/2 pp.45-47: Copied by Permission of Miss A. McKisack, 9, Mount Pleasant, Belfast. |
| Archive | The Public Record Office, Northern Ireland. |
| Doc. No. | 9006087 |
| Date | 06/12/1811 |
| Partial Date | |
| Doc. Type | EMG |
| Log | Document added by JM 01:09:1993. |
| Word Count | 1084 |
| Genre | |
| Note | |
| Transcript | I wish you had seen me, my beloved Margaret, when I received all your welcome letters. I was above stairs at the time, busily engaged in putting up bed-curtains. Mr. Cumming had been looking all over the house for me, at last he came upstairs, and after standing for a minute, without any preface he took out the welcome packets. I knew immediately who they were for, I made one spring across the bed, and as I sat down to read them there was not a happier creature in America. I felt real joy, for it was so long since I heard from any of you. I have written to Miss McCully, M.B. and my Father, and I now begin to write to my darling Meg. The last long letter which I wrote to you has not left Baltimore yet, I suppose. If you feel the degree of joy when you receive one of my letters as I do when I hear from you it will not be my fault if you do not hear often. I am determined to write once every month, perhaps oftener, and I hope you will do the same. I have now got over all my fatigue, and at present enjoy excellent health. I have had a good many visits and I will have more. I like the Petersburg ladies very much indeed, from what I can see there seems to be a pleasing society here, but I will try and give you a description of those who have already called on me. First, then there was Mrs. Colquhoun, who is almost a next door neighbour, and Mrs. Bell, who I think will be my great favourite here. She is an elegant American, pleasing, gentle in her manners, she lives at a charming place called Blandford, about half a mile from Petersburg. I have been there twice, she has no children, and has therefore time to cultivate a charming garden, which is in the nicest order. Mr. Bell is brother to the gentlemen who died in London. Mrs. Bell has some fine lemon and orange trees, which are most beautiful at present. Two of them belong to Mr. Cumming and I think there are two dozen of large oranges on one of the trees. Some are ripe and they look delightful, Mrs. Bell is keeping them till we get some place to put them in. She has got a great variety of fruit trees of all descriptions in her garden. So much for my favourite, Mrs. Bell. Mrs. Colquhoun is pleasing, but not so elegant in her manners as Mrs. Bell, she however appears to be gentle, and I am sure I shall like her. Now to give you an adequate description of one of my own countrywomen, who was my next visitor. She is a Mrs. Moore, who lives very near me. She has resided twenty years in America, but she is completely Irish in her manners, which I like very much. She is a great, large, fat, bouncing-looking woman, appears to be perfectly good natured, and extremely obliging to me indeed, but I come from Ireland, and that is my recommendation with Mrs. Moore. When #PAGE 2 she came to see me she shook hands, and welcomed me to Petersburg in the true Irish mode of hospitality. "Och, dear", she said to me, "my heart warmed to you whenever I saw you come into church". She is a complete national character and I like her very much. She is an old acquaintance of Mr. Cumming's, and seems to have taken quite a fancy to me. She told him he was quite right in bringing a wife from Ireland. She is to have a ball next week, to which I shall be invited. My next visitors were Mrs. Anderson and Miss Hexatt. She is rather an elderly lady and lives with her brother in a pleasant spot a short distance from town, called Strawberry Hill. I was there last Sunday, she seems to be pleasing in her manners. She is an Englishwoman. Mrs. Anderson is a well-informed, elegant, American, she also lives out of town. Mrs. Robinson called the other day, she lives near me, I cannot as yet judge of her as I have only seen her once, but I think her a pleasing young woman. This is a list of my visitors as yet. Some of the ladies are prevented calling through illness. I think I shall have a pleasant society. This, my beloved Margaret, is my birthday, and I know you will all think of poor Mary. God knows what may happen before another year. Who could have told me this day twelve months that I would spend my next birthday in America. I hope to hear from you, my darling Margaret, very soon, it is a long time since your letter was written. Oh that I was with you to tell you a hundred little things I cannot write so well about. You will see my letter to Miss. McCully. I cannot tell you how much both Mr. Cumming and I were astonished to hear that Mr. Richardson's marriage had not, nor was not to take place. Mr. Cumming met with him in Liverpool the day before we sailed, and he then appeared to be in wedding haste, for he would hardly stop to speak to him. Mr. Cumming desires his most affectionate love to you all. You are a great favourite of his. You cannot think how much better he looks than when he was in Ireland, he has got quite fat, and enjoys uninterrupted good health. He is the picture of happiness. Apropos of a picture, I will not get mine done till I regain my healthy looks again. Mr. Cumming had me weighed the other day, and I am seven stone and a half. I was once nearly nine. He is ten pounds more than when he left America. Tell my darling Rachel I am delighted to hear how much she is improved since I saw her. My next letter will partly be to her. Tell her I will bring her a little present when I return. Give my kindest love to my dear James, I shall write to him some time soon. I intend writing to Mrs. Cumming tomorrow. Farewell, my beloved, darling Margaret! I will spend many happy days with you yet. Write soon, and tell me everything. How are the Derry people? Have you heard from them lately? |
