Z 1875.000 Howry Family Papers

James Moorman Howry was born on August 4, 1804, in Botetourt County, Virginia. In 1811, he accompanied his family to Rogersville, Tennessee, where as a young man he was employed in various mercantile enterprises and in the office of the chancery clerk. Howry also attended a military academy where he rose from the rank of lieutenant at the age of seventeen to colonel commandant at the age of twenty-two. He also availed himself of the opportunity to read law in the office of Governor Peter Parsons of Rogersville, and he was admitted to the Tennessee bar. Howry quickly rose to prominence in the legal profession in Middle Tennessee, prompting Governor Carroll to appoint him attorney general of the Twelfth Tennessee District. He also served as clerk of the Tennessee House of Representatives, Senate, and Supreme Court. Howry married Narcissa Bowen while living in Nashville, Tennessee.

In 1836, Howry and his wife settled in Oxford, Mississippi, where he practiced law and reared a family of eleven children. Howry was elected circuit judge of the Eighth Judicial District in 1841. After retiring from the bench in 1856, Howry resumed the practice of law. In 1857, he was elected to the Mississippi Senate, serving two terms. Howry was a founder of the University of Mississippi in 1844 who served on that institution's board of trustees for many years.

James Moorman Howry was actively involved in the Masonic Order in Tennessee and Mississippi during much of his adult life. He died in Oxford on April 15, 1884.

Charles Bowen Howry, son of James Moorman Howry and Narcissa Bowen Howry, was born in Oxford, Mississippi, on May 14, 1844. During the Civil War, Howry enlisted as a private in the Twenty-ninth Mississippi Infantry. He served in the battles of Atlanta, Chickamauga, Franklin, Jonesboro, Lookout Mountain, Missionary Ridge, New Hope Church, Peachtree Creek, and Resaca. At the time of surrender, Howry held the rank of brevet captain.

Howry attended the University of Mississippi, where he was a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity. After receiving a bachelor of laws degree in 1867, Howry practiced law in Oxford until 1893. He was a law partner of J. W. T. Falkner, grandfather of writer William Faulkner. Howry was elected to the Mississippi House of Representatives in 1880, serving until 1884. From 1885 to 1889, Howry served as United States attorney for the Northern District of Mississippi. Howry served as Democratic National Committeman during the presidential campaign of Grover Cleveland in 1892. He served as assistant United States attorney general for the defense of Indian depredation claims from 1893 to 1896. President Grover Cleveland appointed Howry an associate justice of the United States Court of Claims, and he served from 1897 to 1915. After Howry retired from the federal bench in 1915, he established a legal consulting practice in Washington, D.C. During 1918 and 1919, he served as special counsel to the United States Department of Labor.

Charles Bowen Howry married his first wife, Edmonia Beverley Carter, of Oxford, Mississippi, on January 14, 1869. They had three children, Lucien Beverley, Maude, and Willard Carter Howry. Howry married his second wife, Harriet Holt Harris, of Columbus, Mississippi, on July 21, 1880. They had four children, Charles Bowen, Jr., Elizabeth Butler, Hallie Harris, and Mary Harris Howry. Howry married his third wife, Sallie Behethaland Bird Smith, of Monticello, Florida, on July 25, 1900. They had no children. Charles Bowen Howry died in Washington, D.C., on July 20, 1928. He was buried in the cemetery of St. Peter's Episcopal Church in Oxford.

There is limited correspondence in the collection pertaining to James Moorman Howry. However, there are several important letters that provide an indication of the political climate in Mississippi and the South before and after the Civil War. Of particular interest is a letter written by George H. Young, Waverley, Clay County, in 1860. Related printed material documents Howry's sustained involvement in the Masonic Order.

There is extensive correspondence in the collection pertaining to Charles Bowen Howry. Apart from documenting the legal practice and judicial career of Howry, this correspondence provides valuable source material for the cultural, economic, educational, military, political, and social history of north Mississippi during and after Reconstruction and of Washington, D.C., during the years that Howry lived there. Also included are two letters from J. W. T. Falkner concerning Howry's appointment to the United States Court of Claims; one letter from United States Senator Edward Cary Walthall congratulating Mrs. Howry on her husband's confirmation as associate justice of the United States Court of Claims; and one letter from Stephen Dill Lee, president, Agricultural and Mechanical College of Mississippi, advising that it would be unwise to allow Howry's son to be excused from freshman drawing class. Additional letters contain important references to United States Senator William Van Amberg Sullivan of Oxford.

Charles Bowen Howry's correspondence also documents important aspects of women's history, especially the careers of two of his daughters, Mary and Elizabeth. There are significant letters documenting Mary Howry's association with the internationally acclaimed Denishawn dance company and school that was founded by Ruth St. Denis and Ted Shawn in 1915. Also included are significant letters documenting the career of lyric soprano Elizabeth Howry who trained in Europe under Madame Marcella Sembrich and performed with the Washington Symphony Orchestra.

The legal papers are mainly associated with Charles Bowen Howry's law practice, and they date from the 1850s to the 1910s. The financial papers of Charles Bowen Howry include invoices and receipts dating from the 1860s to the 1910s. There are few photographs of Howry family members in the collection. However, there are images of James Moorman Howry, Charles Bowen Howry, Lucien Beverley Howry, and Elizabeth Butler Howry. The scattered social papers of the Howry family provide a glimpse into the social life of a distinguished family that achieved prominence in Oxford, Mississippi, and Washington, D.C.

Lucien Beverley Howry's papers primarily document his literary endeavors and his keen interest in Howry family genealogy. Included are various manuscript poems and a manuscript biography of Mississippi writer Walter Malone and certificates of membership in various genealogical organizations. Of additional interest is a letter written by Dunbar Rowland to Lucien Beverley Howry deriding Senator Huey P. Long of Louisiana and disparagingly commenting on the New Deal.

This series contains an extensive amount of incoming and outgoing correspondence of numerous Howry family members. Principal correspondents include friends and family, business contacts, and political acquaintances. The content of the correspondence is very broad and includes references to the University of Mississippi, the social and political climate on the eve of the Civil War, land dealings, agricultural practices, transportation of commodities, insurance policies, state politics, family concerns, Elizabeth Howry's musical career, the World War I experiences of Charles Bowen Howry, Jr., the American Red Cross, and the Woman's National Foundation. There are numerous items of special interest, including a letter from the chancellor of the University of Mississippi to President Grover Cleveland recommending Charles Bowen Howry for the position of assistant attorney general of the United States; a few letters from United States senators regarding Charles Bowen Howry's confirmation to the United States Court of Claims; several letters from J. W. T. Falkner regarding legal and personal matters; a letter from Charles Bowen Howry to his daughter Mary in Germany warning her of approaching war in 1914; and a letter from Mrs. Dwight David Eisenhower's secretary to Mary Howry regarding the presidential inauguration in 1952. The correspondence concerns Howry family matters while they lived in Oxford, Mississippi, and Washington, D.C. There are also letters from friends and family in Columbus, Mississippi.

Box 1, folders 1-59

This series includes material pertaining to the legal practice of Charles Bowen Howry and, to a lesser extent, that of James Moorman Howry. Included are correspondence between Charles Bowen Howry and clerks of the probate and chancery courts of Lafayette County, Mississippi, regarding court dates, appearances, and rulings; letters regarding bankruptcy proceedings, land dealings, inheritance, receipts of claims, and payments between James Moorman and Charles Bowen Howry and their clients; and letters between James Moorman and Charles Bowen Howry and opposing attorneys, as well as United States district and circuit court judges, regarding settlements and claims. The last will and testament of Charles Bowen Howry, property deeds, and family insurance policies are also included.

Box 1, folder 60

This series contains invoices and receipts for furniture, clothing, advertisements, shipping fees, and land purchases. There are also promissory notes of payment, receipts of payment for legal services rendered, letters regarding land investment, and letters regarding cemetery plots and headstones. Moreover, there is a list of the clients represented by Charles Bowen Howry. Much of the material is undated.

Box 1, folder 61

The material in this series concerns the involvement of James Moorman Howry in the Masonic Order. Among the items is an 1874 edition of the Masonic Jewel containing an article written by James Moorman Howry; applications and certificates relating to the Charter of Lodge of Perfection, the Masonic Mutual Benefit Association, and the Grand Council of Mississippi. Of particular interest is a report by James Moorman Howry to the Grand Lodge of Mississippi on foreign correspondence and an account of James Moorman Howry's life and work in freemasonry in an 1885 edition of the Voice of Masonry.

Box 1, folder 62

This series consists of three military documents relating to Willard Howry. These include a certificate of promotion to corporal, a discharge from the United States Army, and a letter from the Surgeon General notifying Willard Howry that he had been cleared for admission into the Army and Navy General Hospital.

Box 1, folder 63

This series contains various essays, journal entries, and other literary papers, mostly written by Lucien Beverley Howry. Included are essays concerning philosophical and political issues; poems and short stories; and random entries from Lucien Beverley Howry's private journal.

Box 1, folder 64

This series consists of applications and certificates pertaining to Lucien Beverley Howry's membership in various genealogical and historical organizations. The organizations include the Colonial Order of the Crown, First Families of Virginia, the Institute of American Genealogy, the Society of Descendants of Knights of the Most Noble Order of the Garter, Society of the Sons of the Revolution, the Sovereign Colonial Society of Americans of Royal Descent, and the Virginia Historical Society. Included is a genealogical chart tracing Lucien Beverley Howry's descent from Charlemagne.

Box 1, folder 65

Box 2, folder 1 (oversize)

This series includes various invitations, announcements, greeting and calling cards, and thank-you notes. There are many invitations from family, friends, and foreign ministers and ambassadors. Of particular interest is a thank-you note from Mrs. William Jennings Bryan.

Box 1, folder 66

This series contains photographs of various members of the Howry family, particularly James Moorman Howry and Charles Bowen Howry. Included are cartes-de visite and a tintype.

This series includes a variety of printed material, most notably a copy of the farewell speech of United States Senator James Gordon of Mississippi. Other items include various poems written by Lucien Beverley Howry; notices of land for sale by James Moorman Howry; reports of Willard Carter Howry's grades from the University of Mississippi; an American Bar Association dues notice; and a program from a dinner honoring members of the United States Court of Claims.

Box 1, folder 68

This series consists of numerous articles, many written by Charles Bowen Howry for The Oxford Eagle, dealing with various agricultural, economic, and political issues. There is also an article about James Moorman Howry written by an admirer. Included are numerous articles focusing on the life and death of President James Buchanan.

Box 1, folder 69

This series consists of two certificates of Willard Carter Howry's foreign service in the American National Red Cross in 1919 and 1921.

Box 1, folder 70

This series consists of certificates, commissions, and diplomas (parchment) pertaining to various Howry family members. Of interest are a University of Mississippi bachelor of laws diploma (1867) signed by James Moorman Howry, Benjamin Grubb Humphreys, Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar, and John N. Waddel; two University of Mississippi diplomas (1890) of Lucien Beverley Howry; a commission of Governor Robert Lowry (1882) appointing Charles Bowen Howry as a University of Mississippi trustee; a certificate (1884) admitting Charles Bowen Howry to the practice of law before the United States Supreme Court; and a certificate (1921) appointing Charles Bowen Howry to the Bar of the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia.

Box 2, folder 2 (oversize)