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
Title: Anna Maria Evans Papers
Span Dates: 1835-1914
Bulk Dates: (bulk 1855-1895) ID No.: MSS84259 Creator:
Evans, Anna Maria, ca.
1828-ca. 1905 Extent: 550 items;
3 containers, plus 1 oversize;
1.2 linear feet
Language: Collection material in
English
Repository:
Manuscript Division, Library of
Congress,
Washington, D.C. Abstract: Housewife and member of
the Society of Friends (Quaker). Correspondence and printed matter pertaining
to religious activities, education, domestic matters, and the impact of the
Civil War on Evans's family and friends.
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.
Personal Names Bean,
Roanna Fox--Correspondence. Cartland,
Gertrude Whittier, 1822-1911--Correspondence. Evans,
Anna Maria, ca. 1828-ca. 1905. Evans,
Flora Anna--Correspondence. Evans,
Thomas, d. 1902. Jones, Sam
P. (Sam Porter), 1847-1906. Moody,
Dwight Lyman, 1837-1899. Morrell,
M. H.--Correspondence. Thompson,
Susan T.--Correspondence.
Subjects Evangelistic work--United
States. Missionaries. Religious
institutions--Massachusetts--Boston. Religious
tolerance--Society of Friends. Slavery--United
States. Society of
Friends--Missions. Society of
Friends. Temperance--Religious
aspects--Society of Friends. Women's rights--Religious
aspects--Society of Friends.
Locations California--Social life and customs. Iowa--Social life and customs. Minnesota--Social life and customs. Rochester
(N.H.)--Social life and customs. United
States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865.
Occupations Quakers.
Provenance: The papers of Anna Maria Roberts Evans, member of the Society of
Friends (Quakers), were purchased by the Library of Congress in 1998.
Processing History:The papers of Anna Maria Evans were arranged and described in 1999.
The finding aid was revised in 2008.
Copyright Status:The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Anna Maria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.).
Preferred Citation: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.
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.
This collection is arranged alphabetically by type of material and
therein alphabetically by correspondent.
Container |
Contents |
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BOX 1
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Letters received |
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BOX 1
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Evans, Anna Maria
Roberts
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BOX 1
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Armstrong, Jennie,
1889
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BOX 1
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Barton, Maria Varney,
1865, 1876
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BOX 1
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Bean, Roanna Fox,
1854-1856, 1866-1898, 1905, n.d.
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(7
folders)
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BOX 1
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Beede, Abigail,
1873-1899, n.d.
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(3
folders)
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BOX 1
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Beede, Huldah M.,
1889-1891
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BOX 1
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Cartland, Gertrude W.,
1880-1889
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BOX 1
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Dillingham, Pruda Austin
(stepsister),
1886-1889
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BOX 1
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Evans, Flora Anna
(daughter)
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BOX 1
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1881-1888
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(3
folders)
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BOX 2
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1889, 1895-1897, n.d.
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(5
folders)
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BOX 2
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Evans, Thomas H. (husband),
1869
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BOX 2
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Goddard, Mary J.,
1881-1887
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BOX 2
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Hoag, Susan Beede,
1875, 1899-1900
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BOX 2
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Jenkins, Lydia E.,
1881-1885
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BOX 2
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Jones, M. F.,
1853-1857, 1873
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BOX 2
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Kelly, Abigail H.,
1865, 1881-1885, n.d.
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BOX 2
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Meader, Elizabeth,
1865
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BOX 2
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Meader, Susan L.,
1875-1878, 1888, n.d.
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BOX 2
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Miscellaneous,
1850, 1865-1890, 1897-1898, n.d.
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BOX 2
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Moore, Caroline M. Varney
("Carrie"),
1863, 1869-1879
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BOX 2
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Morrell, M. H.,
1879-1890
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BOX 2
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Paige, Lizzie J.,
1877, n.d.
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BOX 2
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Pinkham, Lucinda,
1871-1883, n.d.
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(2
folders)
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BOX 2
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Pinkham, M. Beede,
1855-1856, 1863-1866, n.d.
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BOX 2
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Quimby, Elizabeth S.,
1863, 1880-1890, n.d.
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BOX 2
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Roberts, Edith A. ("Edie"),
1892-1896
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BOX 2
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Roberts, Edward Everett
(brother),
n.d.
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BOX 3
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Roberts, Elizabeth V.,
1885-1896
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BOX 3
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Roberts, Jessie (father),
1865-1876
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BOX 3
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Roberts, Martha Austin
(stepmother),
1876, 1884, n.d.
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BOX 3
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Roberts, Mary H.,
1841, 1875-1882
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BOX 3
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Roberts, Olive A.,
1866-1869
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BOX 3
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Roberts, Sarah Beede (mother),
1853, 1859
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BOX 3
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Thompson, Susan T.,
1882-1884
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BOX 3
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Varney, Cynthia,
1890
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BOX 3
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Varney, Eliza P.,
1877-1880, 1887
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BOX 3
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Varney, Lydia E.,
1857
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BOX 3
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Wiggin, A. Huldah,
1892-1897
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BOX 3
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Wiggin, Samuel Beede,
1858
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BOX 3
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Evans, Flora Anna,
1872, 1881-1899, n.d.
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BOX 3
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Evans, Thomas H.,
1856-1889, n.d.
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BOX 3
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Evans, Winslow (son),
1875-1881, n.d.
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BOX 3
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Miscellaneous family members,
1838, 1846, 1863-1865, 1874-1880, 1887-1903, 1912-1914,
n.d.
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BOX 3
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Roberts, Jesse and Sarah Beede,
1835, 1849-1879, n.d.
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(4
folders)
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BOX 3
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Roberts, Martha Austin,
1878-1882
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BOX 3
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Unidentified,
1859, n.d.
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BOX 3
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Miscellany,
1853, n.d.
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BOX 3
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Printed matter,
1857-1894, n.d.
See also Oversize |
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BOX OV 1
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Printed matter,
1886-1887, n.d. (Container 3)
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