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 | 20 items |
Abstract | The collection includes miscellaneous items of Laura Margaret Cole (Mrs. James R.) Smith (b. 1806) of South Carolina; her daughter, Laura Smith Brumby (fl. 1866- 1885); and her son-in-law, James R. Brumby (b. 1846). Included are a diary, 1833-1834, of Laura Margaret Cole Smith, with entries discussing courting, death and dying, and the nullification crisis of 1832, and her reminiscences, written as epsitolary fiction, recounting her childhood and daily life. Also included is a diary, 1884-1885, of Laura Brumby, describing a wagon trip from Thomasville, Ga., to Clearwater and Tampa, Fla.; and reminiscences, written in 1929, of James R. Brumby, a native of Holmes and Yazoo counties, Miss., Confederate soldier who served with the 7th Georgia Cavalry in the Army of Northern Virginia, and chair manufacturer of Marietta, Ga., in which he detailed family history, including his experiences during the Civil War and Brumby family activities in the furniture business. |
Creator | Brumby (Family : Simpson, Sarah Catherine Brumby, 1840-1915)
Smith (Family : Smith, Laura Margaret Cole, 1806-1883) |
Curatorial Unit | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection. |
Language | English |
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.
The collection includes miscellaneous items of Laura Margaret Cole (Mrs. James R.) Smith (b. 1806) of South Carolina; her daughter, Laura Smith Brumby (fl. 1866- 1885); and her son-in-law, James R. Brumby (b. 1846). Included are a diary, 1833-1834, of Laura Margaret Cole Smith, with entries discussing courting, death and dying, and the nullification crisis of 1832, and her reminiscences, written as epsitolary fiction, recounting her childhood and daily life. Also included is a diary, 1884-1885, of Laura Brumby, describing a wagon trip from Thomasville, Ga., to Clearwater and Tampa, Fla.; and reminiscences, written in 1929, of James R. Brumby, a native of Holmes and Yazoo counties, Miss., Confederate soldier who served with the 7th Georgia Cavalry in the Army of Northern Virginia, and chair manufacturer of Marietta, Ga., in which he detailed family history, including his experiences during the Civil War and Brumby family activities in the furniture business.
Back to TopReminiscences and a diary, 1833-1834, of Laura Margaret Cole (Mrs. James M.) Smith as a young woman in the South Carolina low country between Charleston and Savannah, Ga. The volume of reminiscences (46 pp.) is written as epistolary fiction and features Laura's remembrances of her childhood at "Selvalla" with her older sister Sarah Evelina (called "Clara" in the epistles), her oldest brother James Jefferson ("Frederick"), and her brother Richard ("Edward"). The small diary (23 pp.) is also written in the form of letters and contains entries for the years 1833 and 1834 relating to single life, courting, death and dying, and the nullification crisis.
Also included are three fragments, parts of which appear in the diary or the reminiscences; enclosures from Laura's diary, including a cure for headache; and two small volumes of poems (one 40 pp., the other 44 pp.), presumably written by Laura.
Typed transcriptions of the diary and the reminiscences are available. Also included in the typed transcriptions are one of the fragments and a letter enclosed in the diary, neither of which appears in the diary itself or in the reminiscences.
Folder 1 |
Reminiscences |
Folder 2 |
Diary, 1833-1834, and enclosures |
Folder 3 |
Fragments |
Folder 4 |
Poems |
Folder 5 |
Typed transcription of reminiscences and diary |
Writings by James R. and Laura Smith Brumby, including Laura Brumby's diary, 1884-1885, and an autobiographical sketch by James, 1929. The diary of Laura Smith Brumby (106 pp.) describes the journey of the Brumby family from Thomasville, Ga., to Clearwater, Fla., and includes references to the family's eating habits, church attendance, and land inquiries in the Tampa Bay area. James R. Brumby's 1929 autobiographical sketch (11 pp., typed) was "written at the request of my children" with the intention of setting forth his account of the history of the Brumby Chair Company of Marietta, Ga. In it, he identified many family members, related their various moves and business ventures, gave an account of his Civil War experiences with the 7th Georgia Cavalry in the Army of Northern Virginia, and detailed the activities of the Brumby family in the chair manufacturing business.
Typed transcriptions are available.
Folder 6 |
Laura Smith Brumby diary |
Folder 7 |
Laura Smith Brumby diary, typed transcription |
Folder 8 |
James R. Brumby autobiography (and typed transcription) |