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This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held in the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available through the World Wide Web. See the Duplication Policy section for more information.
Size | 7 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 46 items) |
Abstract | Samuel A. Agnew grew up and attended college and seminary in Due West, S.C. In 1852, he moved to Mississippi, and thereafter lived in the northeastern part of the state, chiefly in Tippah and Lee counties, where he was an Associate Reformed Presbyterian minister, teacher, farmer, and prominent local citizen. The collection contains a detailed diary of Agnew's thoughts, experiences, and activities; neighborhood news; public events, particularly as they affected the locality; relations with slaves and free blacks; the Civil War, during which he was in the area of operations of both armies; Reconstruction, which was tumultuous in his vicinity; the Ku Klux Klan; local and regional church affairs; farming and leadership in the local Grange; major natural events; frequent travels to Memphis and to other parts of Mississippi; and many other aspects of personal and public life that came within his view. There are occasional gaps in the diary before 1873 and after 1883. |
Creator | Agnew, Samuel A., b. 1833. |
Curatorial Unit | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection. |
Language | English |
Processed by: SHC Staff
Encoded by: Noah Huffman, December 2007
Finding aid updated for digitization by Kathryn Michaelis, October 2010
Updated by: Laura Hart, June 2021
Back to TopThe following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.
Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's online catalog.
Agnew grew up and attended college and seminary in Due West, S.C. In 1852 he moved to Mississippi, and thereafter lived in the northeastern part of the state, chiefly in Tippah and Lee counties, where he was an Associate Reformed Presbyterian minister, teacher, farmer, and prominent local citizen.
Back to TopThe collection contains a detailed diary of Agnew's thoughts, experiences, and activities; neighborhood news; public events, particularly as they affected the locality; relations with enslaved people and Black people who were free before the American Civil War and emancipation; the Civil War, during which he was in the area of operations of both armies; Reconstruction, which was tumultuous in his vicinity; domestic terrorism of the Ku Klux Klan; local and regional church affairs; farming and leadership in the local Grange; major natural events; frequent travels to Memphis and to other parts of Mississippi; and many other aspects of personal and public life that came within his view. There are occasional gaps in the diary before 1873 and after 1883.
Back to TopArrangement: chronological.
Folder 1 |
Introductory materialIncludes a copy of the original finding aid; two maps showing places mentioned in the Agnew diaries; a photograph of Samuel Agnew's house in Union City, Miss.; typed excerpts from obituaries on Samuel Agnew; and some miscellaneous fragments. |
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Folder 2 |
Volume 1: 1 March-28 April 1851Written while attending Erskine College, Due West, S.C. Also contains copy pages, stated to be the work of Calvin P. Agnew, and some genealogical notes. 1 March entry refers to his father as "Enoch Agnew," and a later entry mentions his father telling him to stay in the "store;" also a mention of his father's idea of perhaps moving to Maury Co., Tenn. |
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Folder 3 |
Volume 2: 21 October 1852-1 January 1853Account of move from Due West Corner, S.C., through Georgia and Alabama, to Tippah County, Miss., mentions iron works in Cass County, Ga., and describes wooded condition of Tippah County, Miss. A note on 1 January mentions Agnew's graduation in the year past, the death of his brother, Calvin Pressly Agnew, and the family move to Mississippi. There is an account of a trip to Holly Springs, Miss., and lists of meetings of the Memphis Presbytery, 1853-1868, and the A. R. Synod of the South, 1833-1868. An entry on the last page indicates Agnew's starting to Troy, Obion County, Tenn., to place himself under the care of the Presbytery as a divinity student. |
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Folder 4 |
Volume 3: 17 April-3 October 1854Description of a two-week trip from Tippah County, Miss., by stage, carriage, boat, and train to Due West, S.C. Also covers Agnew's stay at the Erskine Theological Seminary; a trip to Laurens, S.C.; his return trip to Mississippi; and another trip to Lafayette County, Miss. |
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Folder 5 |
Volume 4: October 1856-16 April 1857Accounts of Agnew's move to take charge of a church at Madison County, Miss.; social life; travels to nearby places; and national politics. Also accounts of money spent and lists of meeting of Synods of Presbyterian Church. Entries include:
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Folder 6 |
Volume 5: 26 September 1860-1 March 1861Entries include:
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Folder 7 |
Volume 6: 28 October 1861-4 April 1862Much talk of war and rumors of troop movements and battles, in Tippah County, Miss. Accounts of organizing companies in the neighborhood; sickness and death among the troops; Agnew's father making knives for volunteers; and other happenings within the family and neighborhood. |
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Folder 8 |
Volume 7a: 5 April 1862-23 September 1863This volume is filled with rumors and bits of news collected by Agnew at his home in Tippah County, Miss., concerning the war activities in his neighborhood, as well as those in other parts of the country. There are reports of skirmishes here and there, stories told by passing soldiers or other travelers, gleaned from newspapers. These accounts reveal that many soldiers, both United States and Confederate, passed near Agnew's home. Enslaved people self emancipating and talk of moving them elsewhere are some of the things Agnew writes about in this volume. Entries include:
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Folder 9 |
Volume 7b: 27 September 1863-November[?] 1864Volume 7b is closed due to extreme fragility; researchers must use digital scans, microfilm, or transcriptions. |
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Folder 10 |
Volume 8: 12 September 1864-10 December 1865This volume, as others, is filled with notes about news from the neighborhood, war rumors, farm and family activities, church services and other meetings. Entries include:
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Folder 11 |
Volume 9: 11 December 1865-31 December 1866Entries include:
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Folder 12 |
Volume 10: 1867Entries include:
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Folder 13 |
Volume 11: 1868Entries include:
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Folder 14 |
Volume 12: 1869Entries include:
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Folder 15 |
Volume 13: 1870Entries include:
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Folder 16 |
Volume 14: 1871Entries include:
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Folder 17 |
Volume 15: 1872Entries include:
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Folder 18 |
Volume 16: 1873Entries include:
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Folder 19 |
Volume 17: 1874Entries include:
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Folder 20 |
Volume 18: 1875Entries include:
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Folder 21 |
Volume 19: 1876Entries include:
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Folder 22 |
Volume 20: 1877Entries include:
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Folder 23 |
Volume 21: 1878Entries include:
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Folder 24 |
Volume 22: 1879Entries include:
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Folder 25 |
Volume 23: 1880During this year, Agnew worked on compiling a history of his community, collecting narratives from the memories of various persons. He mentions a number of these collected narratives. Entries include:
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Folder 26 |
Volume 24: 1881Entries include:
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Folder 27 |
Volume 25: 1882Entries include:
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Folder 28-49
Folder 28Folder 29Folder 30Folder 31Folder 32Folder 33Folder 34Folder 35Folder 36Folder 37Folder 38Folder 39Folder 40Folder 41Folder 42Folder 43Folder 44Folder 45Folder 46Folder 47Folder 48Folder 49 |
Volumes 26a-45: 1883-1902Diary entries for these years are the same type as those made in previous volumes, and contain material on the following topics: church affairs--administration, organization, meetings of the Memphis Presbytery, sermons, baptisms, services, pastoral visits, references to Methodist church appointments and meetings (among the churches Agnew mentions serving in Lee County, Miss., and adjoining counties, are Bethany, Corders, Ebenezer, Guntown, and Hopewell); miscellaneous news items from various towns--illnesses, deaths, marriages, local crimes, social events, county and town politics, and civic improvements; personal items--illnesses of family, births, deaths, visits, and farming; brief notations of state politics, national and international events; and a few references to books. There's also an account of a college commencement at Starkville in 1887, and an 1853 land title. |
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Transcription Volume TV-923/1-9
TV-923/1TV-923/2TV-923/3TV-923/4TV-923/5TV-923/6TV-923/7TV-923/8TV-923/9 |
Typed transcriptions of manuscript volumes 1-10, 19, and 29 |
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Box 15 |
Marriage data and transcriptionsAcquisition information: Additions of July 2012 (101624) and April 2013 (Acc. 101787) Compiled list of marriages mentioned in the papers. Four volumes of typed excerpts from the diaries of Samuel A. Agnew. The transcriber included the excerpts that they considered the most important, rather than the entire text of the diaries. Dates include 1861-1865, 1871-1875, 1876-1879, and 1880-1883. |
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Reel M-923/1-20
M-923/1M-923/2M-923/3M-923/4M-923/5M-923/6M-923/7M-923/8M-923/9M-923/10M-923/11M-923/12M-923/13M-923/14M-923/15M-923/16M-923/17M-923/18M-923/19M-923/20 |
Microfilm copy of collection materials, 1851-1898 |