Collection Details:

Collection Name and Number: Richard Abbey and Family Papers (Z/0068).
Creator/Collector: Richard Abbey; and others.
Date(s): 1843-1891.
Size: 1.00 cubic feet.
Language(s): English.
Processed by: MDAH staff.
Provenance: Gift of Donor, of Place, State, on Date; Z/U/XXXX.XXX.
Repository: Archives & Records Services Division, Mississippi Department of Archives & History.

 

Rights and Access:

Access restrictions: Collection is open for research.

Publication rights: Copyright assigned to the MDAH. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to Reference Services. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the MDAH as the owner of the physical items and as the owner of the copyright in items created by the donor. Although the copyright was transferred by the donor, the respective creator may still hold copyright in some items in the collection. For further information, contact Reference Services.

Copyright notice: This material may be protected by copyright law (Title 17, U.S. Code).

Preferred citation: Richard Abbey and Family Papers (Z/0068), Mississippi Department of Archives & History.

 

Biography:

Richard Abbey

Richard Abbey (November 16, 1805 - October 22, 1891) settled in Yazoo County in 1840 and became a cotton planter and Methodist preacher. He served the Publishing House of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, in several capacities. He was appointed special agent in 1872 to prosecute its claim against the United States government for property destroyed during the Civil War, and he also wrote numerous religious books and pamphlets, most of which were published by the Publishing House of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South.

 

Scope and Content Note:

Business papers and personal correspondence of Richard Abbey (November 16, 1805 - October 22, 1891) and family. The papers generally pertain to the church claims, general church affairs, the publication and sale of Abbey's books, agricultural developments of the day, and personal business affairs. There is a will by Cornelius Van Houten, dated October 1850, and a map of the Mississippi Valley Route of the Louisville, New Orleans, and Texas Railway Company, dated April 1877.

Abbey's correspondence with Methodist leaders includes eleven items (February 28, 1877 - April 17, 1890) from C. K. Marshall and seven items (May 17, 1880 - August 8, 1890) from Charles B. Galloway.

Family correspondence includes letters from Abbey's brother, M. E. Abbey, and from his grandsons, M. J., R. A., John H., Will Willis, and L. A. Magruder. There are also letters to Will Willis from Abbey.

The papers are arranged chronologically as follows:

  • undated, 63 items
  • 1843, 1 piece
  • 1850-1859, 10 pieces
  • 1860-1869, 10 pieces
  • 1870-1880, 38 pieces
  • 1880-1889, 429 pieces
  • 1890-1891, 11 pieces

 

Series Identification:

Series 1: Series title. Dates.

Series Description text to come.

Box 1, Folder 1