Davis Family Letters and Memorabilia

 

Below are a variety of images of various items related to the Davis family of Maplebrook Farm and their ancestors.

Document showing the hand writing of the Aunts & Uncles on one page:

 

Home of John Yawger Davis's grandfather & where his mother, Eliza Yawger grew up.
Within 1/2 mile of  the Maplebrook Home:

 

Birch box (dated 1795) that carried the beaver hat of Jeremiah Russell to Albany when he was a member of the state legislature:


 

 

Picture of the painting that Robert Doremus gave to Naomi. Sharon has it hanging in her Buffalo, Wyoming home:

 

Below, Eliza Yawger Davis (mother of John Y. Davis) is writing to her daughter Mary (sister of John Y) while she was visiting her Aunt Catherine Yawger Davis & Uncle Alexander Davis and their children Isabel & Llewellyn in Flint, Michigan in 1859.  (Judie Wetherby re-typed the letter as it was written to include lack of punctuation and  spelling.)

Aurelius     January 8, 1859

My Dear Mary

 I have thought of writing every weeak but have neglected it.  I hope you will excuse me  we are getting along about as usual   I am troubeled with the nurology, its caused by to much exercise I think, not having a girl, I cant very well get red of it.

Ad Fitch was here last night she inquired about you.  We expected company here to dinner to day.  They did not come Jess  Cate  &   Mrs Barton  I got a turkey ready and other fixings.  The children are in the kitchen cracking nuts Cornelia is a reading   your Pa seting by the stove   Peter at the mill.   Cornelia and Peter attended an infair party at Mr Hammans Wensday  they said there were a hundred there  Cornelia attended two partyz last weeak  One at Gorges and Mr Bartons  we were invited to Uncl Davids newyears day your Pa and I went  Cornelia was sick that day  your grand ma Emma Laffaett was there  your grand Pa had a turn of the colick the night before was not able to go   I have not heard from Father ________  There has him meeting at Methadest Church every night this weeak till last night  Cornelia Yawger has gone to New York to spend the winter

How do you get along going to school are you agoing to take musick lesons you must improve your time   Write home every weeak  does Uncle A & Cathrin intend to come out here nesst Spring, it must be lonesome  Uncle A being away

You must not get homesick you must be lively make it as pleasant as you can for Aunt Catharine  I believe I written all  So good by my dear child for the present

 I remane your affectionate Mother

 Eliza Ann Davis

PS   Give my love to Aunt Catharine and kiss the children for me  O how I would like to see you all  I hope they all will come out with you in the Spring  I escpect we will move the first of April  I think we will get seteled befour you come

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Below is an obitituary for Catherine Yawger Davis (sister Eliza Ann, and aunt of John Yawger Davis).  Catherine and sister Eliza married brothers Alexander Davis and Llewellyn Howell Davis:

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Union Springs Presbyterian Church old seating chart:

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Below is a letter written from John Y Davis to son Llewellyn, who was studying at Cornell in 1911, retyped below.

From Polly Street's collection;  John Y writes about his father's passing. John was 22 at the time

He also refers to a school in Ithaca, NY (Cascadilla). http://www.cascadillaschool.org/about/about.htm)

J. Y. Davis & Sons

Maplebrook Stock Farm

(Bell Phone 15 J, Union Springs, N.Y.)

 

                                                                                        Cayuga, N. Y., (R. D. 34) Oct  2  1911

 

My Dear Llewellyn:

I received a nice long letter from Alex this morning and was very much pleased that you were so nicely settled in your quarters for the winter and that you are to eat at a private table and have things all right.  I think of my experience forty three years ago when I began to board at the Cascadilla where everything was so rude and the board was so poor that everyone became lawlous and it was a grand scramble to get enough to eat.  “Old Barley” thought the way to keep down the expense was to put us on short rations and furnish us with sour bread, thin soup and rancid hash.

The gass pipes were put in such hurry and leaked dreadfully and the little Arin (?) coal stoves leaked gass or refuse gratally (gradually) so that we lived in a partial state of suffocation and starvation.  I think you boys may congratulate yourselves that you did not enter Cornell in 1868.

When I left you last Tuesday morning I turned and looked at my dear boys and my heart swelled with pride and gratitude and my mind reverted to that gloomy day in March 18 years ago when I rescued you a little boy from drowning in the brook and I recalled the vow that I made that day that with Lord’s help I would devote my life to my children and the plan that I made that day was fulfilled last Tuesday in your entering Cornell to complete the course in  M.E. (Mechanical Engineering) that I was not permitted to finish myself.  I hope you will find yourself soon and every thing will be pleasant.  I hope I may be spared to see you boys finish your education and be settled for yourselves.

 I lost a kind father when I needed him most and every thing was harder for me but if I am spared I trust I may be of some help to you all.

You will find everything easier as you procede in your studies and you must keep a stout heart and don’t be afraid to bend every energy determined to succeed as well as Alex.  When you feel homesick just think you can jump onto the cars and be at home in a little more than an hour.

I know you will be as brave as Alex was last year.  And you are just as able to master the studies as he was so here goes for Cornell and the Davis boys on the hill.  It makes me feel mighty good to think of them.

I can imagine you this morning hammering iron and learning the blacksmith trade.  Jerry and Johnnie helped Jim Thresher and I helped Mary Alice wash and this afternoon got stones ready for the cement on the hen house platform.  Tomorrow we will pull the beans and set up the corn on the new ground.  And Wednesday we will finish filling the silo.  It looks like good weather now and we will be able to get a lot of work done.

Write often and let us know how you are getting on.  With lots of love to you both 

Your father

J. Y. Davis

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Below is a letter written from Llewellyn to his mother, Mary Russell Davis, in 1917 from Spartanburg, SC, where he was training prior to being sent to combat in Europe during World War I.

This letter was written from Camp Wadsworth (now closed) near Spartanburg, South Carolina. This is where the 27th Div. NY National Guard trained. The letter would have been written in late 1917. Below is the subsequent history of the Division, from a web site: The newly reorganized division shipped out to Europe on April 20th 1918 and fought within several different British and American army units along with the 30th Infantry Division. The 27th was initially stationed in the East Poperinghe Line, and participated in actions at Dickebusch Lake and Vierstratt Ridge during the late summer of 1918, and then in September the struggle to break the formidable German defenses of the Hindenburg Line. On September 25th, the division participated in the Somme Offensive and provided a break through of the Hindenburg Line itself forcing the Germans into general retreat. After a final confrontation with the retreating Germans at the Le Selle River the Armistice ended the fighting and the division was sent home in February of 1919, to be mustered out several months later. Llewelyn Davis was an Artillery officer in the Division. Llewellyn, as the letter below mentions, was injured in a poison gas attack near the end of the war.

   

                                                                                Thursday Nov 22

Dearest Mother: 

          I don’t know what Gladys would think if I neglected her as long as I have you.  Why the other day she did not have a letter for about five days so began to think we had moved on from here.

          As for that you needn’t fear for it will be certain to be next year before we leave here.  The second batallion went to the range last week – the first of the troops to get rifle practice.

          We are getting actual trench warfare here except of course for the being under fire.  Each unit of troops goes into the trenches for 48 hours and while there are forbidden leaving or even so much as looking over the top except of course those who are on watch.  All work is done after dark just as they are doing across.

          There are about twenty miles of trenches in a network covering an area of about sixty acres.  All the instruction is given under supervision of French and British officers so in order to keep them as near as possible like conditions across there is a close exterior guard posted allowing no one to enter or come out except officers.

          We go in Saturday night for our trick of trench life and are now on 48 hours exterior guard duty.  The whole company is encamped over here in pup tents doing three hours on and six off.  They keep us pretty busy at night as we are supposed to be under actual conditions as well as those in the trenches.  Every available officer constitutes himself an enemy patrol or scout and tries to sneak thru the lines.

          Your letter came last night and was sure welcome out here.  I went down and called on Mrs. Hudson the other night and enjoyed myself very much.  She is a mighty nice lady and I expect to see her again before she goes back.  She was over at camp this noon when I was over there.  Stone (sp?)

and Hudson are both on guard so she was interviewing the major trying to get a furlough for them.  It seems mighty good to get word direct from you people and I expect she will have quite a lot to relate when she gets back.

          She said something about Fred breaking his brace.  Was it anything serious?

          By the way what has become of Frank Morse?  Did he go the first of the month?

          The trenches are dug along the top of a small sized mountain or a mighty good sized hill so from my tent door now I can look out over the valley to the south east to where Spartansburg lies quite plainly discernible on the side of another hill three miles away.  There is one tall office building of white terra-cotta which stands out plainly among the green trees of the city.  Over to right and left stretches the camp-row on row of tents almost as far as I can see.  Right in this section the camp is laid in a pine woods which has been thinned out somewhat but as I am above it I can see the tents down among the trees.  The Co M Camp lies about a mile away to the south west.  It is about four o’clock now and I can hear faintly the band playing for guard mount over there.  The sky is overcast very much like a typical fall day up home.  I hope it doesn’t come on to rain as I have no desire to spend the night in a pup tent in the rain.

          So you think I ought not to have two sweaters do you?  I guess I will not give yours to somebody else.  I think too much of it for that.  Gladys made me a dandy big muffler but it hasn’t been cold enough for that yet.

          Are you people able to get sugar yet or is that truly a luxury now.  We have our breadless and meatless days but as far as I can see get just as much sugar as ever.  I think Uncle Sam should look into this shortage as it seems to me to be just a holdup.

          Well the ink is almost gone out of my pen.  This is a new one Gladys gave me as someone stole my good one a while ago.  How are you this winter little mother?  I’m feeling fine all the time and am cheerful and happy as a cricket.    

                                                              Love to you all up there and most

                                                                       especially you and Dad.                                                                              

                                                                                        LLewellyn

 

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Below is a letter written from Uncle Charles F. Davis to Llewellyn in 1918, who was recuperating in England after being gassed in Europe near the end of World War I:

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