George Barrett Family Papers (MS-636)

Series 1, Barrett Family Historical Material, consists of Barrett family papers dating to the nineteenth century, and early twentieth century.

Subseries I, Business Records, features materials documenting the business enterprises of George Barrett and Isaac M. Barrett. The majority of the material documents operations of George Barrett’s woolen mill. Material is scattered, but provides a broad view of the network of people and businesses involved in the production and consumption of textiles in mid-nineteenth century Ohio. George worked with relatives, as well as with people (workers, merchants, and other professionals) throughout the Miami Valley, and in places like Cincinnati, and Indiana and Tennessee. The material includes documents about machinery (including looms and spinning machines), correspondence about ownership and employment at the mill, correspondence and documents regarding the processing, dyeing, manufacture, and trade of wool, yarn, fabrics, and blankets. Material is foldered according to subject, and arranged in chronological order. Also included is business material related to assorted enterprises the Barretts undertook, such as Isaac’s fuel oil burner patent, and George’s later-life employment as an insurance agent and book canvasser.

Subseries II, Legal documents, primarily contains deeds, mortgages, and bonds involving members of the Merritt and Barrett families. The materials document land ownership in New York, Michigan, and Ohio, as well as relationships between Mahala Merritt Barrett and her siblings. Additionally, the series contains Mary Evans’s articles of agreement for teaching a school in Greene County, Ohio.

Subseries III, Correspondence, contains letters written primarily by and to members of three generations of the Barrett family. Letters are arranged in chronological order, grouped by sender or recipient. Though many family members are represented in the correspondence, the majority of the letters are by and to Isaac Barrett and Mary Evans Barrett, exchanged with their children, relatives, and friends. A significant amount of the letters document the couple’s courtship, as well as the their time during Isaac’s business trips and government service, as well as Mary’s trip to Iowa to be with her daughter during Ella Barrett Dolliver’s first pregnancy and childbirth.

The letters provide significant insight into daily life in the nineteenth century. Many shed light on women’s lives in the mid-nineteenth century, including mother-child relationships, courtship practices, spousal relationships seen through Mahala and Mary Barrett’s letters. Letters also feature discussions about everyday activities like knitting and sewing, as well as decision-making processes about household management. Correspondence to and from Mary during her studies at the Xenia Female Seminary document the activities and thoughts of woman pursuing higher education, as well as daily home life of the siblings of students. Letters also contain themes of women’s health, including a relative’s stay in Kellogg’s Battle Creek Sanitarium, Mahala Merritt’s treatment for breast cancer, and Ella Barrett Dolliver’s pregnancy.

Subseries IV, Writings, contains compositions by members of the Barrett family. This includes the handwritten manuscript and an early edition of George Barrett’s book Versification of Some Portions of the Four Evangelists. (Additionally, there is an 1833 Erie and Kalamazoo Railroad note, which was found tucked between pages 80 and 81 of Versification). There are multiple essays composed by Mary Evans (later Barrett) during her studies at the Xenia Female Seminary. (As well as material that may have been written or transcribed by other women, possibly one of Mary’s sisters.) Additionally, there are two drafts of speeches in Isaac Barrett’s handwriting.

Subseries V, Photographs, contains two photographs (one a negative) of the Barrett & Sons Mill operated by Isaac Barrett in the late-nineteenth century. There is a silver gelatin print of a Barrett family gathering, which features annotations on the reverse identifying the subjects. There are also twentieth-century copies of portraits of Mary Evans Barrett’s parents.

Subseries VI, Memorabilia, contains miscellaneous books and objects owned by the Barrett family. Of note are several textile objects: souvenir swatches of Mary Evans Barrett’s wedding dress and traveling dress, a pair of Civil War insignia from Isaac Barrett, a sample of blanket wool manufactured by George Barrett’s mill, and a watch case owned by Mary Evans Barrett.

Series 2, Genealogical Material, contains genealogical research notes and material created by descendants of George and Mahala Barrett in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.

Subseries I, Family Trees and Genealogical Schedules, contains scattered pedigree charts, family trees, and genealogy reports, and other summary-level information on members of the Barrett family. It includes two pedigree charts handwritten by George Barrett. The subseries also contains self-published volumes on Barrett family history, featuring historical narratives, photocopied documents, and other research materials produced and compiled by genealogists in the Barrett family.

Subseries III, Research Notes and Genealogical Correspondence, contains genealogical research notes as well as correspondence of Barrett family descendants regarding Barrett genealogy. The bulk are letters written among George Barrett’s great-grandchildren, particularly letters written to Evelyn Barrett (wife of Lawrence H. Barrett) by her cousins Arthur M. “Arch” Barrett, Barbara Hougen, and Louise Edwards (wife of William N. Edwards). These letters document the cousins’ collaborations on family trees, and contain notes on their recollections of family history. Researchers of more recent generations of the Barrett extended family may find this genealogical information useful. It also contains notes of research by Barrett family genealogists, as well as notes about family documents. Some materials described by the notes are not a part of this collection, and their location is unknown, but the notes provide sidelights on Barrett family history.