Letter from Ohio:4

Introduction

This letter, the first in a series of family letters, was first published in Journal of Manx Museum No 76 (though a few greetings to old friends were not included). The letter is fragile and has disintegrated along the folds - shown as [...missing] .

For other letters see index.

Letter

Newburgh, Cuyahoga, State of Ohio. May 12th 1831.

Dear Brother,

I received your letter the 29 of April 1831. I did not get that letter you sent last year. This is the first letter I ever received from you. I hope these few lines will find you in a state of good health as I am at present. Thanks be to God that my wife and family are in a state of good health.

[. . . missing ] my house, and we are to keep school in. Old neighbour Patrick Cannell is in good health, and family, and desires to be remembered to father and to all enquiring friends. Mr. Quayle desires to be remembered to you and Phinlo Corlett.¹ Also Mrs. Quayle desires to be remembered to you. All my neighbours does very well and encreasing every day. We are about ninety persons in neighbourhood, all from the little Isle of Man, and we all attend to hear the gospel preached every Sabbath Day. It is like we shall not meet in this vale of tears, but if we meet at the right hand of God, all is right [. . .]

I am to give you a little information about my situation. I do prefer this country for my own part, and if I should be in the old country now I would soon come out. I would be very glad if some of my relations would be here, but I don't encourage any person to come. Let every person make their own mind up about that.

I have thirty two acres of improvement, eight acres under wheat and twelve acres ready to sow in [. . .] boats, and on the Lake Erie sails about one hundred schooners and eleven steam boats. Also there is a steam mill which grinds seven hundred bushels in twenty four hours, and there is one hundred and fifty thousand bushels waiting for the mill to grind: is not half the wheat that is in the town of Cleveland: they import and transport ten times more out than the whole Isle of Man. There is three churches in, and building a new church and it is to be made of stones, and William Cain from Peel is to be the general mason [ . . .].

Dear brother, give some account of this to Mrs. Caine, grandmother, and give her all the information you can understand out of this letter. Mary desires to be remembered to her dear grandmother, and to grandfather Corlett and all the family; also she sends her kind respects to Jane Cowley and John Quayle, Sill, Ballaugh, and to all enquiring friends.

Also I desire to be remembered to uncle Phinlo Corlett and William Kneen and family, and brotherin-law William Caine and family and John Caine and family; and my wife sends her kind respects to her mother and brothers. Also I desire to be remembered to Patrick Cannell and Patrick Clark and family also [. . .].

When I write again, I shall give you a little more satisfaction about the country and I will give you a little more information about my situation and neighbours .Also remember me to Mylchreest, Peel, and Margaret Shimmin, Peel,also to John Cain, Glen [...] and Wm. Cain Glenmay. So no more at present. You must excuse me for my bad writing.

Wm. Corlett.

Notes

1 Captain John Quayle and Patrick Cannell sailed with William Corlett on the Chile. The families of both became prominent citizens of Cleveland. See also the account of the voyage written by a grandson.