Anna Maria Evans

A Register of Her Papers in the Library of Congress

Prepared by T. Michael Womack

Manuscript Division, Library of Congress

Washington, D.C.

2008

Contact information: http://lcweb.loc.gov/rr/mss/address.html

Finding aid encoded by Library of Congress Manuscript Division, 2008

Finding aid URL: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.ms008029

Table of Contents

Collection Summary

Selected Search Terms

Personal Names

Subjects

Locations

Occupations

Administrative Information

Provenance:

Processing History:

Copyright Status:

Preferred Citation:

Scope and Content Note

Arrangement of the Papers

Container List

Collection Summary

Selected Search Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the Library's online catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed alphabetically therein.

Administrative Information

The papers of Anna Maria Roberts Evans, member of the Society of Friends (Quakers), were purchased by the Library of Congress in 1998.

The papers of Anna Maria Evans were arranged and described in 1999. The finding aid was revised in 2008.

The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Anna Maria Evans is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.).

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Container number, Anna Maria Evans Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.

Scope and Content Note

The papers of Anna Maria Roberts Evans (ca. 1828-ca. 1905) span the years 1835-1914, with the bulk of the items concentrated in the period between 1855 and 1895. The collection consists principally of correspondence relating to the Society of Friends (Quakers). Anna Maria Evans, the primary individual in the collection and an active member of the Society of Friends, lived near Rochester, New Hampshire, where she and her husband, Thomas H. Evans, owned an apple orchard. Most of the letters were written by her female relatives and friends living in New England. The letters discuss details of everyday life, faith and religious activities, and to some extent touch upon Quaker involvement in the abolition of slavery, women's rights, religious tolerance, and temperance during the second half of the nineteenth century.

The letters of Roanna Fox Bean, a close friend of Evans, span a fifty-year period from their student days in the 1850s at the Friends' Boarding School in Providence, Rhode Island, to Bean's death in 1905. Bean and her husband James, an Indian agent and real estate developer, lived at various times in Iowa, Minnesota, and California. Her letters include accounts of life in these locales. Other letters were from women who were Quaker missionaries or wives of Quaker officials both in the United States and overseas, including Gertrude W. Cartland, M. H. Morrell, and Susan T. Thompson. Education figures prominently throughout the collection, especially in the letters of Elizabeth V. Roberts, an early graduate of the State Normal School in Moorhead, Minnesota. The subject of mental illness is mentioned periodically in letters from various members of the family.

The death of the Evanses' young son Winslow in 1881 while at boarding school is recorded in a file under his name. Their daughter Flora Anna, who worked in and around Boston, was active in the revival movement of the late nineteenth century and wrote frequently of her involvement in religious organizations and attendance at revivals, particularly those of Dwight L. Moody and Sam Jones.

The Civil War is also an important subject in the collection. Although pacifists, thousands of Quaker men of draft age were conscripted during the war. Most served despite their moral opposition, though some chose flight to Canada. Letters in the collection recount such decisions, along with reports of suffering and loss of life caused by the war and the prayers of those at home for the safe return of their loved ones. Other letters chronicle war relief efforts, especially among African American refugees fleeing the South, and contain favorable references to President Abraham Lincoln.

The pursuit of arable land in conjunction with the nation's westward expansion is documented in numerous letters. In addition to offering religious instruction, many of these Quaker settlements promoted advancements in education, farming methods, and social reform for the benefit of believer and non-believer alike. A miscellany file contains a Roberts family genealogy and material relating to Evans's education. There is also a file of printed matter consisting of advertisements, handbills, inserts, programs, receipts, and religious tracts. Among the oversize items are religious printed matter and broadsides advertising dry goods and furniture.

Arrangement of the Papers

This collection is arranged alphabetically by type of material and therein alphabetically by correspondent.

Container List