Summary Information
Crandall Family Correspondence
1854-1911
Mss 203; Micro 417
0.8 c.f. (2 archives boxes) and 1 reel of microfilm (35mm)
Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)
Correspondence of members of the Crandall Family collected by Katherine M. Crandall Train of Baraboo, Wisconsin. The correspondence mainly consists of letters on health and financial matters and on military service by family members in the 6th Wisconsin, the 17th Wisconsin, the 23rd Wisconsin, and other regiments during the Civil War. Portions of the Civil War correspondence are also available on microfilm.
English
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-mss00203 ↑ Bookmark this ↑
Biography/History
The Crandall Family, which numbers among the pioneer families of Baraboo, Wisconsin, first became established in that community in 1847 when David Phelps Crandall (1802-1863) located there. The family included Crandall's parents Simeon (died 1852) and Ruth, his second wife Priscilla, and his children, Robert B., Katherine M[ary?] (born 1842), Eliahu Alonzo, and David M. (1852?-1863). In 1851 the family moved to a former home in Montgomery, Mississippi, but in 1856 returned to Baraboo.
David P. Crandall was described as “a man of mark, famous for his endurance,” although the Sauk County histories do not indicate his occupation. Apparently he was concerned about educational matters, as he is listed as one of the incorporators of the Baraboo Collegiate Institute, a private high school established in 1858, to which he sent his children. During the 1870's Katherine Crandall became a teacher in a private school in Baraboo which offered progressive kindergarten instruction. Eventually she became the director of this establishment, which then became known as Miss Crandall's Select School. David P. Crandall's son Robert, who was a 2nd lieutenant in the 23rd Wisconsin during the Civil War, was also interested in educational matters, serving briefly as Sauk County superintendent of schools. Robert Crandall later moved to North Dakota, where he was deputy clerk of court, and to Olympia, Washington, where he held a similar position. He died in 1901.
Katherine Crandall continued to reside in the family home with her mother. On September 6, 1894 she married James G. Train (born 1830), a widower. A former Wisconsin legislator, Train was also an attorney and a farmer who had resided in Baraboo since 1853. Train was described by one Sauk County historian as “liberal in religion.” Although the Crandalls were originally Baptists, Katherine Train apparently held views similar to those of her husband, and she was a member of the Free Congregational Church. The date of Train's death could not be established, but it is presumed to have taken place about 1910. Katherine Crandall died on December 3, 1920.
Scope and Content Note
The Crandall Family Papers consist primarily of letters collected by Katherine Crandall Train, who is most frequently referred to in the correspondence as Kitty or Katie Crandall. The vast majority of the letters are addressed to her, although a small percentage of the items dating from the Civil War period were written by her or by her father, David P. Crandall. As a result, there is little direct evidence in the collection about her life or the family's history in Baraboo, although some conclusions can be drawn from the letters by inference.
Approximately half of the correspondence dates from the Civil War period. During this period Kitty Crandall received letters from her brothers Robert Crandall and Eliahu Alonzo (Lon), both of whom served in the 23rd Wisconsin Volunteers, and from cousins Frank M. Crandall, who enlisted in the 6th Wisconsin, and Oren Jameson, who served with the 17th Wisconsin. In addition Kitty, who was then a student at the Baraboo Collegiate Institute, received letters from several other relatives and friends. These letters refer to participation in such battles as Corinth, Fredericksburg, Vicksburg, and Chattanooga and to their daily lives. Taken together this incoming correspondence also permits an understanding of the impact that the Civil War had on the life of an average family. The Crandalls, for example, lost both Frank Crandall, who had apparently lived with them in Baraboo at some time, and Oren M. Jameson. In addition to their war-related losses, David M. Crandall, the youngest son in the family, died of illness during the period. Portions of the Civil War era correspondence are also available on microfilm because these papers were lent to the Society for microfilming prior to the deposit of the collection of original material. It is likely that the film contains a few items which were not included with the later donation of the manuscript material.
After the war the majority of the letters received by Kitty Crandall were from female cousins and friends. However, her brothers Lon and Robert gradually emerge as her most frequent correspondents. Their letters are full of references to various family matters, illness, travel, and business concerns.
Administrative/Restriction Information
Presented by the Dr. E. L. Jewell Family, Loganville, Wisconsin, and by William Thies, Reedsburg, Wisconsin, 1959. Accession Number: M59-82, M59-133
Contents List
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Mss 203
Box
1
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1854, 1960-1879
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Box
2
Folder
1-4
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1880-1911
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Box
2
Folder
5
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, Undated correspondence and fragments
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Box
2
Folder
6
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Miscellany
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Micro 417
Reel
1
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Civil War correspondence on microfilm, 1855-1865
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