Talleyrand, Keokuk County, Iowa
Aug the 22nd, 1889
Dear Brother and Sister:
This afternoon finds me seated to answer your kind letter which came to hand some time ago. It found us all well and hope this may find you all the same. We have got through with our harvest and have had a granery built. We took the carpenters away yesterday. We will thrash before long. Oats was good and corn looks well yet, but we are having very dry weather now and if rain don't come soon will cut it short. I have about 250 young chickens this year. We had 8 head of calves but no colts. Lost two last winter.
Well, Hulda you wanted to know to now (know) whether Brainard's wife is good. (apparantly good as in a proper lady, as opposed to as in good health) Well, I don't know whether or not, but think she must be for she belongs the ME church. I never saw her until after they was married. She taught school in their district last summer and boarded at Pa's part of the time and Pa thought she was a very fine girl. Then, we have no society of any kind in Talleyrand and no preaching except a quaker woman once ever (every) two weeks. We would like to sell if we could and go somewhere to get in better society, but land is dull sail (sale) now.
Well, Edwin, we was over to the old home last week to see if we could see or find out how things was left. We found a will made about six years ago. It gives the place to Brainard and Willie. They to pay each of the rest 800 hundred and 33/100 dollars and have four years to pay it in without interest.
And he also wills them his personal property, money, and notes (?). They to pay all debts and funeral expenses. Do you see that leaves nothing for the rest of us to do but wait four years. I think that is very unjust. Don't you think there is or has been another will since but whether it will ever come to light or not is hard to tell, but we are going down to Washington to see the man that maid (made) the first (will) and see whether he knows about it. We may find out something and we may not. I said to Brainard: "Do you calculate to stand by the will and take the place?" and he said that just as the rest thought about it. He didn't want it if the rest don't want him to and the will makes him and Willie the administrators. So you see it is all in their hands unless we can brake (break) or find another will as I feel pretty shure there was from what Pa has said time after time to me.
I will write no more this time but remain as ever your unworthy sister
PS We all send love to all. write soon.
_________________________
Notes:
The "unworthy sister" was Agness Taylor, the fourth child of James and Sarah (McCart) Taylor. She married Andrew McCampbell. I have obtained a history of the McCampbell family indicating they lived in Talleyrand, which is where this letter is postmarked from. Her descendants still farm family homesteads in the area (late 1990's), with the surname Brinning.
Brother & Sister were Edwin and Huldah (Beaty) Taylor, of Jamestown/Concordia, Cloud Co, Kansas.
Talleyrand is a few miles south and west of Keota in Keokuk, County; and is just a few miles from the Taylor home place, which is just inside the Washington County border with Keokuk County.
James Taylor's obituary indicates the "home place" referred to in this letter was a few miles south and east of Keota.
Her reference to Brainard's wife was to Nan Jackson. Their wedding announcement in the Keota Eagle says that a J. B. Taylor (our Brainard was really James Brainard) married a Nannie J. Jackson on April 25, 1889 in Sigourney, Iowa. Sigourney is the county seat of Keokuk county, the county just west of Washington Co., Iowa. Brainard and Nan are in the 1900 and 1910 census in Dutch Creek Township, Washington Co, IA, indicating they were living on the old Taylor homestead.
William (Willie) is nowhere to be found and his whereabouts is a mystery. Granddaughters of Edwin & Hulda: Lois (Taylor) Drury and Margaret (Taylor) Nolan, both remember talk, when they were children, of a Taylor uncle who left Iowa on a trip to Kansas to visit and was never heard from again. Purposefully disconnected from the family? A victim of a robber? We may never know, but we'll keep looking, as he's the only Taylor sibling of Edwin that we haven't accounted for.