Thirkell family letters
Scope and Contents
This collection contains 47 letters in total spanning from 1854 to 1919. They are primarily correspondence between members of the Thirkell family and their relatives in England. The letters sometimes contain references to the social atmosphere in Utah, such as disputes between Utah and the U.S. Government, particularly concerning polygamy. However, since many of the letters are from England, they also chronicle the lives of people from rural areas of England. Religion is also occasionally discussed as many of the Thirkells’ Baptist relatives who remained in England did not convert to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and often looked down upon polygamy.
Reid Harper introduces the letters with a family history followed by typed transcripts, and sometimes photocopies, of every letter. The transcripts outline the author and the date. The hard copies of the letters themselves are also included in this collection.
Box 2 contains two oversize diplomas belonging to Archie Darley, one from Cache Public Schools and the other from Brigham Young College.
Dates
- 1854-2007
Language of Materials
Material in English
Conditions Governing Access
No restrictions on use, except: not available through interlibrary loan.
Conditions Governing Use
It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances.
Permission to publish material from the Thirkell family letters must be obtained from the Special Collections and Archives manuscript curator and/or the Special Collections and Archives Department Head.
Biographical Note
The Thirkell family emigrated from England in 1853 and settled in Maughan’s Fort, today known as Wellsville, in Cache Valley, Utah.
Extent
2 boxes (1.75 feet)
Abstract
This collection contains 47 letters in total spanning from 1854 to 1919. They are primarily correspondence between members of the Thirkell family in Utah and their relatives in England.
Arrangement
These letters are arranged according to their author and then chronologically. Reid L. Harper's introduction and transcriptions of the letters are located at the beginning of the collection.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
This collection was donated to USU Special Collections and Archives by Reid Harper in 2008. Harper compiled the items into a binder in 2007 after discovering them in his cousin’s possession.
Processing Information
Processed in March of 2015.
- England--Social life and customs--19th century.
- Mormon converts--England--19th century.
- Mormon pioneers--Cache Valley (Utah and Idaho)
- Mormon pioneers--Utah--Wellsville.
- Mormonism
- Polygamy--Religious aspects--Mormon Church--19th century.
- Polygamy--Utah--19th century.
- Utah
- Utah--Social life and customs--19th century.
- Wellsville (Utah)--History--19th century.
- city and town life
- home and family
- pioneers
- Title
- Guide to the Thirkell family letters 1854-2007
- Author
- Finding aid/Register created by Joanna Dobrowolska and Clint Pumphrey
- Date
- ©2015
- Description rules
- Finding Aid Based On Dacs (Describing Archives: A Content Standard, 2nd Edition)
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid encoded in English.
Revision Statements
- 2009: Template information was updated to reflect Archives West best practice guidelines.
Repository Details
Part of the Utah State University, Merrill-Cazier Library, Special Collections & Archives Repository
Merrill-Cazier Library
Utah State University
3000 Old Main Hill
Logan Utah 84322-3000 United States
435 797-8248
435 797-2880 (Fax)
scweb@usu.edu