Letters from Benjamin Welles to John Henry Tudor, 1799-1801

Benjamin Welles wrote these six letters to his friend and classmate, John Henry Tudor, between 1799 and 1801. Four of the letters are dated, and the dates of the other two can be deduced from their contents. Welles wrote Tudor four times in September 1799, at the onset of their senior year at Harvard, in an attempt to clear up hurt feelings and false rumors that he believed had caused a chill in their friendship. The cause of the rift is never fully explained, though Welles alludes to "a viper" and "villainous hypocrite" who apparently spread rumors and fueled discord between the two friends. In one letter, Welles asserts that "College is a rascal's Elysium - or the feeling man's hell." In another he writes: "College, Tudor, is a furnace to the phlegmatic, & a Greenland to thee feeling man; it has an atmosphere which breathes contagion to the soul [...] Villains fatten here. College is the embryo of hell." Whatever their discord, the wounds were apparently eventually healed; in a letter written June 26, 1800, Welles writes to ask Tudor about his impending speech at Commencement exercises. In an October 29, 1801 letter, Welles writes to Tudor in Philadelphia (where he appears to have traveled in attempts to recover his failing health) and expresses strong wishes for his friend's recovery and return to Boston. This letter also contains news of their classmate Washington Allston's meeting with painters Henry Fuseli and Benjamin West.

Letters to family members, 1799

Four letters dated March 11, 1799, written from debtors' prison ("Debtors' Apartment") in Philadelphia. Includes descriptions of his life in the prison and fellow prisoners.

Letter of recommendation for Elisha Parmele and Reuben Parmele, May 17, 1784

This letter, signed by Stephen West, Ezra Stiles, and Josiah Sherman, attests to the reputable character of Elisha Parmele and his brother, Reuben, who was also a minister. The signers explain the health concerns motivating the brothers' travels southward and request that those who encounter them treat them with "kindness and brotherly love."

Anti-Lever Brothers demonstration

General note: Title and date provided by Bettye Lane.

Anti-Lever Brothers demonstration

General note: Title and date provided by Bettye Lane.