EATON FAMILY PAPERS, 1816-1870 MH 90 Processed by: Robert

EATON FAMILY
PAPERS, 1816-1870
MH 90
Processed by:
Robert Craig
October 2003
Volume:
1 box
.25 Linear feet
Provenance:
The provenance of this material is unknown.
Conservation:
The material was placed in acid-free folders.
Copyright:
Requests for permission to publish material from the collection must be submitted
in writing to the Manuscript Librarian in the Phillips Library at the Peabody Essex
Museum.
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH
Thomas Eaton was born 6 February 1769 in Francestown, New Hampshire, the son of
Moses and Anna Webster Eaton. He studied medicine at Vermont Medical School and practiced
that profession in Weare and Henniker, New Hampshire, for eight years before returning to
Francestown where he continued medical practice as well as progressive farming for the remainder
of his life. He married Betsey Eaton of Weare, New Hampshire, daughter of Obediah and Betsey
Paige Eaton, on 20 February 1798. She was born 12 October 1782 at Weare and died at
Francestown 14 October 1840. They had five children born at Francestown: Obediah Page Eaton,
Moses Webster Eaton, Betsey Eaton, Harvey Wallace Eaton, and Anna Frances Eaton. Dr. Eaton
died at Francestown on 23 January 1858.
Obediah Page Eaton (b. 13 September 1800) studied medicine in Cincinnati, Ohio, and
practiced at Smithland, Kentucky, on the Ohio River, where he died at an early age, unmarried.
(This last statement is in question since in at least one letter Obediah Eaton is mentioned with a
family.)
Moses Webster Eaton (b. 14 April 1803, d. 3 January 1882 at Nashua, New Hampshire)
engaged in farming on the family farm after his father’s death and later became the proprietor of the
©2003, Phillips Library at the Peabody Essex Museum
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MH 90: Eaton Family Papers
Francestown Hotel. He married Louisa Shepard Lawrence on 17 September 1828; they had five
children, all born in Francestown.
Betsey Eaton (b. 3 August 1807, d. Boston 16 December 1831) married James Harvey
Dudley (b. 8 August 1801 at Pembroke, New Hampshire), son of Trueworthy and Sarah H. Rowell
Dudley, of Boston, Massachusetts, on 17 September 1828. They had one son, Thomas E., born at
Weare, New Hampshire in 1829. Dudley later married Mrs. Elizabeth C. Hoyt.
Harvey Wallace Eaton (b. 22 June 1813, d. Burlington, Iowa, 10 November 1838) studied
medicine at Dartmouth and Union Colleges and practiced at Syracuse, New York, and Burlington,
Iowa. He died unmarried.
Anna Frances Eaton (b. 23 April 1824, d. after 1890) married Levi Bartlett Gale, son of
Benjamin and Prudence Varnum Gale, of Concord, New Hampshire, on 28 July 1846. They had
eight children.
SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE
The Eaton Family Papers is a collection of correspondence between various members of the
Eaton family and is presented as a single series. The letters primarily discuss family matters, travel,
and the business climate, particularly in regards to the price of wool.
BIBLIOGRAPHY AND RELATED COLLECTIONS
Cochrane, W. R. and George K. Wood. History of Francestown, N. H. from Its Earliest Settlement
April, 1758 to January 1, 1891: With a Brief Genealogical Record of all Francestown
Families. Nashua, N.H.: James H. Barker, 1895.
Dudley, Dean. History of the Dudley Family, with Genealogical Tables, Pedigrees, &c. Wakefield,
Mass.: Dean Dudley, 1886-1894. (Nine parts plus appendix and index bound in two volumes.)
Gale, George. The Gale Family Record in England and in the United States. Galesville, Wis.: Leith
and Gale, 1866.
Little, William. The History of Weare, New Hampshire, 1735-1888. Lowell, Mass.: Published by
the Town of Weare, 1888.
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MH 90: Eaton Family Papers
EATON FAMILY PAPERS, 1816-1870
CONTENTS LIST
Box
Folder
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Contents
Date
Letters from James Harvey Dudley to his in-laws, Dr. Thomas
Eaton and his wife. These letters contain a wide variety of
subjects, including the general business climate in Boston, wool
prices, his lamenting of the loss of his wife Betsey Eaton
(December 1831), and his esteem and affection for his in-laws.
1831-1844
Letters from James Harvey Dudley to his brother-in-law
Harvey Wallace Eaton. These letters describe his visits to
Francestown, visiting with his son there, and describes a
journey with Moses Webster Eaton through New Hampshire
into Vermont.
1834-1835
Letters from Obediah Page Eaton to his parents. These letters
deal with a variety of matters, from news of his travels in the
middle part of the country where he was practicing medicine to
the appropriate time to sell wool.
1832-1839
A letter from Obediah Page Eaton to his brother Harvey
Wallace Eaton. He thanks his brother for a catalog he sent and
exhorts him to be more diligent in writing as a means of
developing his writing skills.
1832
Two letters from Harvey Wallace Eaton to his parents. The
first letter describes his situation at Dartmouth College and his
daily routine; the second discusses the sale of wool as well as
his beginning his medical internship.
1830, 1836
Two letters from Anna Frances Eaton to her parents. She is
away at school in Keene, New Hampshire (Keene Academy?)
and is expressing her homesickness and her desire to see her
parents and wishes them a Merry Christmas.
1836
A letter from Levi Bartlett Gale, husband of Anna Frances
Eaton, to his father-in-law, Dr. Thomas Eaton. He explains his
motivation for going to California to improve his situation;
additionally he describes the corruption in New York City
regarding literature, graphics and prostitution, etc., as he waits
for a steamer to leave.
1849
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MH 90: Eaton Family Papers
Box
Folder
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Contents
Date
Two letters from Levi Bartlett Gale to his brother John
[Varnum Gale]. He is asking John to visit him in Sacramento
where he is residing and is in poor health.
1850, undated
Four letters to Dr. Thomas Eaton: a letter from I. Lawrence
informing him his wool had not been sold; a letter from the
trustees of Lane Seminary seeking a contribution for the
institution; a letter from B. Gale of Concord, New Hampshire,
informing Dr. Eaton that deposits in the local savings bank
would earn 4% if left on deposit for six months.
1833-1846
Two letters to Harvey Wallace Eaton. One is from his father,
Dr. Thomas Eaton, in which he questions his son’s decision
not to take a final term at school and wonders if he can
complete his degree, additionally; he discusses the situation
on the farm, etc.
1834, 1836
Two letters to Levi Bartlett Gale, one inquiring about
acquiring land from the estate of Col. Varnum, and the other
from “Augusta” discussing family related matters and
potential visits.
1844
One letter from Betsey Eaton Eaton to her husband, Thomas
Eaton, first chiding him for not writing, then telling him of
her circumstances while visiting in Boston.
1816
One letter from Betsey Eaton Dudley to her mother, in which
she asks her mother to send Hannah to help her and wonders
when she might see her parents. Also mentioned is her son,
Thomas, and his accomplishments in speaking. This letter
was written about a month and a half prior to her death.
1831
Miscellaneous letters. One is addressed to “Frank” from
“Leon” which is almost incomprehensible; the other is from
George F. Eaton to “Fannie,” containing family comments
and questions regarding friends and family in New England.
1860, 1870
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©2003, Phillips Library at the Peabody Essex Museum