Richardson-Sinkler Connections , livre ebook

Richardson-Sinkler Connections
Richardson-Sinkler Connections
Planting, Politics, Horses, and Family Life, 1769–1853
Edited by Harriet Clare Sinkler Little

Publication of this book is made possible in part by the support of the South Caroliniana Library with the assistance of the Caroline McKissick Dial Publication Fund
© 2019 University of South Carolina
Published by the University of South Carolina Press
Columbia, South Carolina 29208
www.sc.edu/uscpress
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data can be found at http://catalog.loc.gov/ .
ISBN 978-1-61117-972-9 (hardback)
ISBN 978-1-61117-973-6 (ebook)
FRONT COVER PHOTOGRAPHS: The Lodge, Eutaw Plantation, 1938, courtesy of Library of Congress; ( inset ) drawing from the Shark journal, courtesy of the South Caroliniana Library, University of South Carolina, Columbia
For eight generations of Sinklers—past and present—who have assiduously preserved family documents and memorabilia for more than 250 years
Contents
Preface
Editorial Method
Acknowledgments
Abbreviations
One . Signs of the Times—Introducing the Families
Two . Family Matters
Three . Politics, Horses, Planting, and Other Business
Four . Mentoring Another William—William H. B. Richardson
Five . The Twilight Years
Six . Everybody Loves Seaman
Seven . Reflections
Epilogue
Appendix A. People and Places of Interest
Appendix B. Contract for the Construction of Eutaw Plantation
Appendix C. Exhibition of Charleston College, 1829 Program
Appendix D. Customs Documents
Selected Bibliography
Index
Preface
In 2008 Harriet Clare Sinkler Little, William Henry Sinkler, and Norman Sinkler Walsh donated their collection of Sinkler family documents to the South Caroliniana Library. Included were numerous letters written to their third great-grandfather, William Sinkler, the majority of them from his first cousin and brother-in-law, James Burchell Richardson. Encouraged by Dr. Allen Stokes, Harriet Little continued her transcription of these letters, while extending her search for William Sinkler’s letters to James Burchell Richardson (thus far not found). Additional letters and other documents were located, some in other South Caroliniana Library collections, some at the Rubenstein Library at Duke University, and several at the South Carolina Historical Society.
In addition to the aforementioned letters are many written by James Burchell Richardson’s wife, Ann Cantey Sinkler Richardson, to her brother, husband, and son; those of Margaret Cantey Sinkler to her son and other family members; letters written by various family members to William Sinkler’s son Seaman Deas, while he was attending medical school in Pennsylvania; many written by the Richardsons to their son William Henry Burchell Richardson, while he attended South Carolina College and later; and more from other Sinkler and Richardson relatives, friends, and business associates.
Most of the letters are from the Sinkler Family Papers, 1705–1984, in the South Caroliniana Library at the University of South Carolina, Columbia. Those that are from other archives are noted individually.
Editorial Method
Transcription has been verbatim et literatim of complete documents, although the placements and forms of datelines, salutations, postscripts, and so on have been standardized. Each document is given a heading identifying the writer and recipient, and the location of each has been noted, if known. Addresses are retained for the information they provide—for example, notes, mode of delivery, and other related facts. In cases where archaic spelling was obvious, words have usually been left as they were, without emendation. In some cases, clarification seemed necessary, and these have been set aside in brackets or explained in footnotes.
When deemed helpful, explanations of events and identification of names are provided in footnotes. Also included is a listing of “People of Interest” and “Places of Interest.”
In an effort to avoid needless repetition, names are occasionally abbreviated—for example, JBR for James Burchell Richardson. This is always done in close proximity to the full name, so it is hoped that it is not confusing. A list of abbreviations has been included for further clarification.
Several genealogical charts have been included for clarification of family relationships. While the utmost care has been taken to provide accurate information, there are some cases where ambiguous or conflicting data has made this difficult. Nevertheless, it seems potentially helpful to provide these charts despite those conditions.
In some cases, siblings have been omitted in an effort to confine charts to a single page; this has not always been noted on the chart. The author’s records include sources and detailed explanations, but it would have been cumbersome to have included them here. The reader should view them as aids to understanding family connections but not as research sources.
Acknowledgments
Allen Stokes, who accepted the Sinkler documents on behalf of the South Caroliniana Library in 2008, suggested this project in a way that I could not refuse. He meticulously proofread all my transcriptions, occasionally enlisting additional help with arcane terms and spelling, and was always available when I needed guidance and support. Without his help, this book would not exist.
Others who helped in ways large and small were Perry Richardson Bishop, Eliza Couturier, Joe Cross, Meg Gaillard, Nancy Gaillard, Keith Gourdin, Charles Howell, Richardson Hyman, Gerhard and Wally Karwinski, Terry Lipscomb, Paul Little, William Henry Sinkler, Harvey Teal, and Norman Sinkler Walsh.
Also: Mike Coker at the Berkeley County Museum, Katherine Richardson at the Camden Archives and Museum; Pat Kruger, Doreen Larimer, Cortney Price, Pattie Rivers, and other members of the Charleston Chapter of the South Carolina Genealogy Society; Marianne Cawley, Nic Butler, Lish Thompson, and Dot Glover at the Charleston County Public Library’s South Carolina Room; Grahame Long, Jan Hiester, and Jennifer McCormick at the Charleston Museum; Nancy Cave at the Clarendon County Archives; Harlan Greene, head of Special Collections at the College of Charleston Libraries; the staff at the Dorchester County Library, Summerville; Steve Tuttle and Bryan Collars at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History; Beth Bilderback, Ron Bridwell, Henry Fulmer, and Elizabeth West at the South Caroliniana Library, and Sumter Genealogical Society.
Abbreviations
People
NOTE : Abbreviations are used sparingly, and usually quite close to the person’s name to avoid redundancy, but this guide is provided in case the abbreviation is not immediately obvious.
ACSR
Ann Cantey Sinkler Richardson, daughter of James Sinkler and wife of James B. Richardson
CR
Charles Richardson, younger brother of James B. Richardson
CS
Charles Sinkler, older brother of William Sinkler, sometimes referred to as “Col. Sinkler”
EASM
Elizabeth Allen Sinkler Manning, William Sinkler’s daughter, and wife of Richard I. Manning
HDL
Henry Deas Lesesne, nephew of William Sinkler’s wife, Elizabeth Allen Broün
JBR
James Burchell Richardson, oldest son of General Richard Richardson and Dorothy Sinkler
JPR
John Peter Richardson, younger brother of James Burchell Richardson
JS
James Sinkler, father of William Sinkler and Ann Richardson
JSD
James Sutherland Deas, younger brother of William Sinkler’s mother-in-law, Mary Deas
MCS
Margaret Cantey Sinkler, wife of James Sinkler and mother of William Sinkler
MDB
Mary Deas Broün, sister of William Sinkler’s wife, Eliza Allen Broün
PG
Peter Gaillard, builder of the plantation known as the Rocks
RR
Richard Richardson, father of James B. Richardson
SD
Samuel Dubose, cousin of William Sinkler
SDS
Seaman Deas Sinkler, William Sinkler’s son and a medical doctor in Charleston
TG
Thomas Gaillard, Charleston lawyer who moved to Alabama to become a cotton planter
WHBR
William Henry Burchell Richardson, son of James B. Richardson
WHS
William Henry Sinkler, son of William Sinkler
WS
William Sinkler, son of James Sinkler of Old Santee, and builder of Eutaw Plantation
Sources
DU
Duke University, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book and Manuscript Library
SCDAH
South Carolina Department of Archives and History
SCHS
South Carolina Historical Society
SCL
South Caroliniana Library
Portion of an 1854 map of South Carolina by J. H. Colton. Courtesy South Carolina Department of Archives and History.
Chapter 1
Signs of the Times
Introducing the Families
With current technology providing multiple forms of instant communication, many of us find it difficult to conceptualize how people corresponded two hundred years ago. Yet, for numerous reasons this correspondence was even more critical during the early nineteenth century, especially for those not living in cities. Families and friends were often separated by many miles, and visiting was a major undertaking, occasionally requiring multiple means of transportation. Frequently, those able to travel carried with them letters from others to be delivered at their destinations to friends and family. Sometimes this was the only way of transmitting money. Letters refer to the enclosure of specific amounts of money—in some cases breaking the total payment into smaller sums sent in multiple letters.