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CA - Murphys,Calaveras County - 1861-1873 - Cutting Letters About Civil War, Politics, Mining & Lumb

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles / Documents Start Price:4,250.00 USD Estimated At:8,500.00 - 17,000.00 USD
CA - Murphys,Calaveras County - 1861-1873 - Cutting Letters About Civil War, Politics, Mining & Lumb
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This is an important group of 16 letters and correspondence from 1861-1873. It contains all but 2 letters written within this date range except the SS Central America Letter (10-18-62) and a letter describing Bills of Exchange (12/18/62) which includes Cutting’s frank comments on Lincoln and negroes.

There is much discussion of Civil War Politics: “The State of California is strong for the Union… Californians can fight, you bet!”, although Cutting has “strong tendency to pro slavery”. The 1861 letter mentions buying out the Dickinson lumber business in Murphy’s. Their mill was 7.5 miles away.

Other comments: “The people of California… have an inveterate hatred of all kinds of paper money” (12/18/62) “I am glad the war is over - and now comes the tug to recover from its effects” (7/14/65). Ephraim also discusses the financial conditions of their lumber business in Murphy’s.

On letter (11/7/65) mentions him sending a ‘San Francisco Rose” which is a color cutout card, present here, with original color envelope for mailing, which I expect is quite rare. “Placer Gold Mining is about ‘played out’ – quartz mining for Gold & Silver and Copper Mining are now the rage” (11/7/65) The Jan 5th, 1868 letter mentions receipt of the huckleberry, blackberry and grapevines – perhaps they were venturing to make wine. By 1868 “there is a general depression in all kinds of business”.

The last letter is a 2pp letter on printed lettersheet “Kimball & Cutting, Lumber Dealers, Murphy’s, Calaveras Co. Cal (1873)” Some letters have covers (5). There are at least 3 different varieties of Murphy’s cancellations – but all stamps are torn off.