Letters from the Rees Family of Ohio and Oregon. The Rees Family, which was originally from Delaware, had migrated over several generations from the East Coast to Ohio, and then on to Oregon and other western states. This collection centers on the Oregon branch of the family, particularly Willard Hall Rees, who came to Oregon in 1844 in the same party as John Minto and Cornelius Gilliam. Also of note in the collection are letters related to two Rees sons who served on the Union Side in the Civil War. One, David Austin Rees, died at Kennesaw Mountain. The other, Corwin Pottenger Rees, went on to travel around the world with the Navy.
Creator
Rees Family
Source
Rees Family Correspondence, Pacific University Archives
Transcript of letter addressed to Father, who is most likely Thomas Rees from his daughter Lora Rees. This letter was transcribed sometime after the 1970's, but the original letter is not accounted for. In the letter Lora talks about how she lives with Mr. Hackery in Portland while also working a job where she sews. She has recently just gotten a pay raise from six dollars to nine dollars per week. She ends the letter with news that there is an outbreak of small pox in Walla Walla. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Transcript of letter addressed to Elizabeth Stout Rees from David Austin Rees's commanding officer about his death during battle. This letter was transcribed sometime after the 1970's, but the original letter is not accounted for. This transcript has the letter of David Austin Rees being drafted into the army, following with a letter saying where he is serving and another letter telling his mother about his death in battle. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter addressed to Willard Hall Rees from his mother Elizabeth Stout Rees who is still living in Ohio. His mother tells Willard about her recent episode of illness, but is now healthy and able to do everyday tasks again. There are currently five boys living at home who attend school. The entire family is healthy at home besides his grandfather who has recently passed away. When the grandfather passed away he did not leave a will resulting in David Austin Rees to fight his Aunt for a portion of what was left of the farm. Elizabeth wishes to have her son return home this upcoming fall; she has not met his family yet and wishes to. As much as she wishes for Willard to visit with his family she is afraid of the dangers that accompany such a long journey. There is a new railroad being built near their farm that goes to Indiana, the company building the rail road is offering the family money to have the rail road go through their farm. Elizabeth plans on making a trip with Olivia Rebecca Rees to Delaware soon. The original letter is accompanied by a typed transcript. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter addressed to a brother and sister of the Rees family back in Ohio. The letter is from their brother Willard Hall Rees who has recently moved to Butteville Oregon from Ohio. Willard apologizes for not writing sooner, but is healthy and in Oregon. There are many people Willard knows in Butteville and fills in his family in Ohio about the happenings of Butteville. Many families are starting to expand, along with being struck with the sadness of death. Willard received a letter from his father saying that one of his siblings was planning a trip to Oregon and that he wished to know more information on this topic. Willard ensures his siblings that to get to Oregon it is not too expensive giving them exact prices and a range of days they will be traveling. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter addressed to William and Angeline McCulloch from Amanda A. Rees addresses the benefits of living in Oregon. Amanda starts the letter by telling the McCullochs that she has heard gossip that they might move to the West. Amanda then goes on to list all the benefits Oregon has, but if they do not hurry they may not get any fertile land like people she knows. She closes with looking forward to them moving to Oregon and visiting her. The original letter is accompanied by a typed transcript. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter addressed to a brother of the Rees family, but neither the author of the letter nor who the letter is to be mentioned. The letter talks about local gossip in Butteville. Then the letter cuts off and switches from March to December and talks about the Presidential candidates for 1876. It was a close race between Samuel J. Tilden and Rutherford B. Hayes, with Hayes winning the election. The author of this letter strong supports the Federalist views while talking about politics during this time. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter from Thomas Marim, was addressed to friends which is most likely the Rees family. Thomas lives in Delaware still, where the Rees family is originally from before moving to Ohio. Recently Thomas has sold part of his farm and Thomas A. Rees had recently sold his entire farm for $21,000. There is a road that goes straight through the Rees farm in Delaware, now allowing cars to go through Dover to get to Philadelphia. William A. Hazel is very ill with cancer and will soon die, while Ellen Blackiston has been dead for two years. Thomas cannot think of anything else to tell his friends so closes. The original letter is accompanied by a typed transcript. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter addressed to Elizabeth Rees, but because the last pages of this letter were lost there is no way of telling who it is from. The letter states that the author’s nephew is recovering from the swelling of his limbs and is expected to be okay. The author’s cousin Thomas will be visiting soon along with the rest of his family. Then the author continues to speak of the different marriages that have been occurring locally. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter addressed to Elizabeth Rees from Cousin Sue. There were pages lost and no name was signed to this letter but with some certainty we believe it is from Cousin Sue who resides in Philadelphia. In the letter there is much talk about the Elizabeth's sons because one of Sue's sons believes he met them. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter is addressed to a dear friend, but does not specifically say who that friend is. The letter is short, most likely missing its last pages because there is not name signed at the end of it. The letter itself talks about the celebrations that occur in Philadelphia during Independence Day. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Fragment of a letter addressed to Elizabeth Rees from her son Corwin Pottenger Rees. The beginning of the letter has been lost, but the parts that are available are about life in the Naval Academy. Corwin has made friends there and speaks of fun times they have shared together. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter addressed to Elizabeth Rees from her cousin Mary Maria Linn who has had poor health the last year. She writes a short letter talking about the family in Pennslyvannia and happy for the good health of most of her family. She unfortunately has had poor health that is continuing to get worse with time. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Report card of Corwin Pottenger Rees from the Naval Academy. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter addressed to Elizabeth Rees from James F. Griffin who is writing this letter from Chicago. James is Elizabeth's brother and had originally written her letter to her father regarding an advertisement for the heirs of the Griffin family. James wishes to gather more information on the subject before acting upon anything. The advertisement states that they are looking for heirs of the Griffin Estate of England in the state of Delaware or Pennsylvania, if anyone contacts them with proof they are an heir they will receive a reward. James is not sure if they are related, he was unaware of any of his family living in the west. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter addressed to Willard Hall Rees from his mother Elizabeth Rees. Apologizes for such a late response, but was waiting for the cold to go down so she could take a trip to get her photo taken with Ellen to send to him. Elizabeth hopes to see photos of her son Willard with the next letter he writes to her. She goes on to talking about different family members of theirs, going back to her great-grandfather who emigrated from England to the English colony of the east coast. Elizabeth was originally named after her aunt, who had promised a fortune to be left behind for Elizabeth, but never happened. Elizabeth's side of the family seems to have some wealth. Updates Willard on the where about of his siblings and their health. The original letter is accompanied by a typed transcript. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter addressed to Elizabeth Rees and Libbie from unknown. Letter talks about Elizabeth's children with great appreciation for them and their great personalities. A section of the letter was addressed to Libbie apologizing for not writing back sooner, but there has been nothing noteworthy to write about. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter addressed to Elizabeth from her cousin Sue who lives in Philadelphia. Cousin Sue talks about when Olivia Rebecca Rees visited her, and was pleasantly surprised about the information she learned about her family that lives in other states. Updates Elizabeth on the local and family gossip, none of which involves her children. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter addressed to Willard Hall Rees from his brother Corwin Pottenger Rees. Corwin has never met his brother Willard, but has been wanting to for some time. Even though they have never met, Corwin wishes to connect with his brother because he too is a part of the Navy. Corwin is not high ranking, but graduated from the Navy with a honors and now works for the Navy in Washington D.C. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter addressed to Grandmother Rees from her granddaughter Lora A. Lora expresses her gratitude for her grandmother's letters; they were the first letters she has ever received from a grandparent. Lora has never met her grandmother, but still expresses her love for her. She also informs her grandmother of what it is like to live in Portland during this time. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter addressed to Elizabeth Rees from Cousin Sue who lives in Philadelphia. Cousin Sue talks briefly about Elizabeth's children and other family gossip. She ends the letter short because of the time she is busy and it is late at night. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter addressed to Elizabeth Rees from her cousin Sue who lives on the East Coast in Philadelphia. Her cousin expresses her gratitude for the needle point cloth work she has received along with letters. As a mother as well she feels pain for Elizabeth for the loss of her two sons. She hopes to see them before she dies, but is turning seventy-five soon. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter addressed to Elizabeth Rees from her son Corwin Pottenger Rees who is currently finishing his time serving the United State Navy. Corwin tells his mother that he wishes to become either a Navy Officer or a billionaire, either one is better than what he was before the war in his opinion. Corwin expresses the excitement he has about living life on his own and exploring the world. The original letter is accompanied by a typed transcript. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter to Thomas Rees from his son Willard Hall Rees. A short letter was written to Thomas Rees from his son regarding his potential pay raise in the upcoming week. Willard also discusses his friends that live in Walla Walla and the troubles they are having regarding land bought by the Indians. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
Letter addressed to Willard Hall Rees from Robert Newell. Robert is an old friend of Willard's and recently has been traveling. He tells Willard about his visit to Oregon and how beautiful he thinks it is wishing to visit again soon. Robert is currently in Pennslvania and will return home soon, but does not state where home is. The original letter is accompanied by a typed transcript. This is one item from the Rees Family Correspondence Collection, which includes many letters between family members in Oregon and Ohio.
