Restrictions to Access

No restrictions. Open for research.

Copyright Notice

Copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], in the Badger Family Papers #953-z, Southern Historical Collection, Wilson Special Collections Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Acquisitions Information

Received from Mary Badger Wilson of Washington, D.C., in February 1945; purchased from J. Douglas Mattox of Raleigh, N.C., in March 1998 (Acc. 98045); received from Vincent Rollman of Colorado Springs, Colo., in July 2006 (#100452).

Sensitive Materials Statement

Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, the North Carolina Public Records Act (N.C.G.S. § 132 1 et seq.), and Article 7 of the North Carolina State Personnel Act (Privacy of State Employee Personnel Records, N.C.G.S. § 126-22 et seq.). Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in this collection without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill assumes no responsibility.

Processed by: Patrick Huber, Linda Sellars, 1992, 1998

Encoded by: Roslyn Holdzkom, July 2006

The 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.

• Badger family.
• Badger, Delia Haywood Williams, 1807-1876.
• Badger, George Edmund, 1795-1866.
• Badger, Thomas, 1843-1911.
• Confederate States of America--Social conditions.
• Families--North Carolina--Social life and customs.
• Fayetteville (N.C.)--Social life and customs.
• Hale, Mary Badger, 1836-1884.
• Raleigh (N.C.)--Social life and customs
• Reconstruction (U.S. history, 1865-1877)--North Carolina.
• Slavery--North Carolina.
• Women--Alcohol use--History--19th century.
• Women--Confederate States of America.
• Women--North Carolina--Social life and customs.

• George Edmund Badger Papers (#37)

The Badger family of North Carolina included George E. Badger, superior court judge, secretary of the Navy, and United States senator, 1844-1855, of Raleigh, N.C.; his third wife, Delia Haywood Williams Badger; their children, Mary Badger Hale (b. 1836) and Thomas Badger (b. 1843); Badger's daughter, Kate Badger Haigh (b. 1827); and his wife's daughter Melissa Williams.

George E. Badger was first married in 1818 to Rebecca Turner. She died six years later without issue. In 1826, he married Mary Polk, daughter of Colonel William Polk, with whom he had two children: Catherine (b. 1827) and Sarah (b. 1833). Mary Polk Badger died in 1834. In 1836, Badger married a widow, Delia Haywood Williams. They had seven children: Mary Rose (b. 1836), George Edmund (b. 1838), Richard C. (b. 1839), Annie H. (b. 1841), Thomas (b. 1843), Sherwood (b. 1844), and Edmund S. (b. 1846).

The collection is chiefly family letters, 1835-1867, of Badger family members including George E. Badger, superior court judge, secretary of the Navy, and United States senator, 1844-1855, of Raleigh, N.C.; his third wife, Delia Haywood Williams Badger; their children, Mary Badger Hale (b. 1836) and Thomas Badger (b. 1843); Badger's daughter, Kate Badger Haigh (b. 1827); and his wife's daughter Melissa Williams.

Letters dated 1835-1836 are to Melissa Williams, Delia Badger's daughter by a previous marriage, who was attending school in Philadelphia, from her mother and from family friend Mary I. Lucas of Raleigh, N.C., primarily about family activities. Most of the later letters are to Badger's daughter Kate Badger Haigh of Fayetteville, N.C., from George, Delia, or sister Mary Badger Hale of Raleigh, giving family and neighborhood news. Of particular interest is an 1849 letter from Delia to Kate that contains a rich description of 50 drunken women and other rowdies at a cotillion in Raleigh. There are also a few letters from the Civil War period that include, in addition to news of the activities of family and friends, an account of how Delia and Mary spent their time quilting and sewing, mention of a group of neighborhood women visiting the troops in Richmond, Va., complaints about inflated wartime prices, and requests for fabric and other goods. In an 1863 letter to one of her sisters, an overworked Mary Badger Hale complained about the inability of her sickly and/or pregnant slaves to work. Two 1867 letters briefly mention military orders, the scarcity of money, the fear of land confiscation, and rumors of an African American candidate for mayor of Raleigh.

Also included are financial and legal papers, 1876-1888, of Thomas Badger. These include accounts relating to the estate of his mother, Delia Badger, other accounts, receipts, and rental agreements. Three photographs are in the collection: one of Thomas Badger Jr., around 5 years old; one of Dr. and Mrs. Wheat, Salisbury, N.C.; and a postcard showing a flood.

• Photographs (P-953/Folder 1)