Letter from Rossetta Alexander to William Henry Seward, April 11, 1866
xml:
Letter from Rossetta Alexander to William Henry Seward, April 11,
1866
transcriber
Transcriber:spp:sss
student editorTranscriber:spp:tps
Distributor:Seward Family Digital Archive
Institution:University of Rochester
Repository:Rare Books and Special Collections
Date:1866-04-11
In the context of this project, private URIs with the prefix "psn" point to
person elements in the project's persons.xml authority file.
In the context of this project, private URIs with the prefix "pla" point to
place elements in the project's places.xml authority file.
In the context of this project, private URIs with the prefix "psn" point to
person elements in the project's staff.xml authority file.
In the context of this project, private URIs with the prefix "psn" point to
person elements in the project's bibl.xml authority file.
verical-align: super; font-size:
12px;
text-decoration: underline;
text-decoration: line-through;
color: red;
Letter from Rossetta Alexander to William Henry Seward, April 11, 1866
action: sent
sender: Rossetta Alexander
Birth:
Death:
location: Macon, GA
receiver: William Seward
Birth: 1801-05-16
Death: 1872-10-10
location: Washington D.C., US
transcription: sss
revision: crb 2015-09-16
<>
Page
1
cheap & plenty in Georgia you can
have your own agent leave to
do this for me you must of
course know whether I have any
right to call on you delicacy
forbids me from going into
particulars in this case; I will
if you require it give you
all the evidence of the truth of
what I have said My Mother
knows more of the case than any
other person I am affectionately
Yours,
Rossetta Alexander
I write myself my good mistress
taught me to read & write
I forgot to say I am nearly white
My Mothers Name was Milly
h
h
Rossetta Alexander
Macon
Georgia
Macon Georgia 11th April 1866
Honl William H Seward
This communication may excite much
surprise & possibly indignation, I beg you
to read without either, for nearly
forty five years I have been a
slave & therefore I had no chance
to assert my rights, & claim my real
Paternity, I was born the slave & property
of Majr William Alexander
County with whence you lived while
you was in Georgia. My Mother &
my old Master who is now dead
always said you was my Father. I
do not know whether I was born
before or after you left Georgia. I
have been taught to claim you as
my Father from my childhood now
since my race have been freed
and emancipated by the result of the
war, I feel that I have a right
to call on you for aid, I have been
the Mother of eleven children have six
now to support & we are all very
poor both black & white I appeal to you
as a man high in position rich in
means to aid me with money to
buy me a little house land is
Page
2Honl William H Seward
This communication may excite much
surprise & possibly indignation, I beg you
to read without either, for nearly
forty five years I have been a
slave & therefore I had no chance
to assert my rights, & claim my real
Paternity, I was born the slave & property
of Majr William Alexander
Birth: 1780-03-11 Death: 1857-03-13
of PutnamCounty with whence you lived while
you was in Georgia. My Mother &
my old Master who is now dead
always said you was my Father. I
do not know whether I was born
before or after you left Georgia. I
have been taught to claim you as
my Father from my childhood now
since my race have been freed
and emancipated by the result of the
war, I feel that I have a right
to call on you for aid, I have been
the Mother of eleven children have six
now to support & we are all very
poor both black & white I appeal to you
as a man high in position rich in
means to aid me with money to
buy me a little house land is
cheap & plenty in Georgia you can
have your own agent leave to
do this for me you must of
course know whether I have any
right to call on you delicacy
forbids me from going into
particulars in this case; I will
if you require it give you
all the evidence of the truth of
what I have said My Mother
knows more of the case than any
other person I am affectionately
Yours,
Rossetta Alexander
I write myself my good mistress
Birth: 1784-08-13 Death: 1833-09-13
taught me to read & write
I forgot to say I am nearly white
My Mothers Name was Milly
h
Unknown
ROSSETTA ALEXANDERh
Unknown
April 11/ 68Rossetta Alexander
Macon
Georgia