David Shelton Edwards, American, died 1874 Search this
Medium:
paper; ink / handwritten
Dimensions:
39.4 x 32.1 cm (15 1/2 x 12 5/8 in.)
Type:
Covers & Associated Letters
Place of Destination:
Connecticut
Place of Origin:
Florida
Date:
July 22-23, 1837
Description:
The rate for a single letter (one sheet of paper) traveling more than 400 miles was 25 cents. The absence of the word "Paid" indicates that the letter was sent unpaid and 25 cents was collected from the addressee.
In 1837 the letter probably would have traveled overland or by steamboat to Mobile, Alabama, where it joined the Great Mail route north using combinations of horse, coach, steamboat and train. In this letter David Shelton Edwards notes that he is sending it by the overland route to Mobile because the steamboat to Mobile was grounded. He uses the term "express" for the steamboat indicating that it is the faster way to send his letter. No extra fee was charged for using the steamboat and in this instance the phrasing “express” is Shelton’s own, not an official post office term.
The notation "No. 2" on the letter front and interior probably indicates this is the sender's second letter. Frequent correspondents often numbered their letters to indicate to the recipient if any letters went missing or delayed.
Addressed from US Ship Constellation, David Shelton Edwards relates all the news regarding his promotion: Captain MacIntosh had announced it in his absence to discourage others who were seeking this position; Edwards tells his wife Harriet that he joined the Constellation on the 18th of the month. He goes on to give her updates on all the acquaintances she made while visiting him at the Navy Yard in Pensacola, Florida. He describes how much he misses her when he walks by the house they shared in Pensacola. He concludes the letter with a note on how long it took her last letter to reach him. Then advises that she should sell her pew in the church at Sing Sing, New York, and gives suggestions for how to spend the profits.
This letter is part of the correspondence of David Shelton Edwards between the years 1835 and 1848. The 48 letters from this period held by the National Postal Museum are primarily addressed to Edward's wife Harriet; in 1830, Edwards married Harriet Eliza Henry and they had two children, William and Harriet. They kept up a frequent correspondence when his naval service kept them separated. Between 1835 and 1848, Edwards served as a Surgeon at the hospital in the Pensacola Navy Yard, Florida; Fleet Surgeon to the West Indies Squadron; and Surgeon aboard many vessels engaged in the Mexican-American War. His naval career spanned from 1818 to 1861 and his last sea cruise ended in October of 1859 after which he retired to his family home in Connecticut except for a brief time spent at New Bedford, Massachusetts recruiting for the Union Navy during the Civil War. He died in Trumbull, Connecticut on March 18, 1874.
Reference:
National Museum of American History, Naval History Archives. David Shelton Edwards Papers. Accession Number: 1978.0652.
New York Public Library, Rare Books and Manuscripts Division. "David S. Edwards papers, 1818-1865."
