Catherine Womack
1792 - June 8, 1856
letters
The
following letters
were written
to William
Womack son of William
Womack and Catherine Blankenship.
They have been typed just as the originals were written.
The originals are in the
possession of Nelda
Womack, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Campbell County March 11, 1835
My
Dear Son,
Through the goodness and
kind providence we are yet spard but not well. I have bin sick ever since last
fall, sometimes veary bad, but
thank God I have got some better. I
hope these lines will shortly be in your hands that now goes from me your
poor afflicted mother and hope they may find you enjoying good health and that
your mind and notions are turning toward Virginia again.
Oh, My William, What could posess you to leave all your friends and go so far
away? Do my dear child come back
and let me see you once more. I
hope you have no family to take care of and
if you have not you can do as well here as you need to --- and here you would be
with your friends which ought to be more satisfaction to you than to be with no
connections at all.
Your brother James is living with Mr. Austin learning the Carpenter,s trade and
says he will try to find you as soon as he can, but you my William, come in and
work with James. He gets fifty-five dollars this year.
Dear Son, I must now inform you we received letter from you in june
last and answered it in a few days and have not heard nor seen a word from you
since. Your sister Catherine and James and Larkin and John.... your brothers heard it read.
Leroy was in Lynchburg and
Larkin is living with him at Mr. John Thirmons (?) learning the saddlers trade.
I have not seen your sister Catherine nor Joseph nor James since before
Christmas.
I am living with Mr. Little. He
is overseer for Mr. Richard Chilton at the tole gate trading in Lynchburg.
You are well acquinted with the place.
Mr. Little says he intends to try to come next fall if he can. He wants
to know how the price of everything generally is. His wages this year is a hundred and fifty dollars, 5
barrels corn and five hundred weight of pork and a milk cow.
Let us know if you are much pleased with the Illinois State and what sort of a
place it is and be sure to let us know in your letter whither you intend to come
and see us or stay with us and when we may look for you. I hope you will start
as soon as you get this for we want to see you much.
None of your brothers nor your sister Catherine is not present but all
want to see you and would join me in love to you.
Little Mary Catherine says you must come here. My Dear Son I feel sorely
at this time. I can hardly set to
rite. I
must conclude my letter. Answer
this as soon as possible and direct your letter to Lynchburg Post Office.
Also direct it to Mr. John Little.
I remain your loving mother
untill death,
Catherine P. Womack
Sent To: Mr. William Womack
Sangamon County -- Panter Creek Post Office
State of Illinois
Campbell County, Virginia
February 22, 1837
Dear Son,
I now with the help of kind
providence take this opportunity to write you a few lines.
I am not well, but am always poly, and am more so now than I was when you
left me. I
have been with your brother Joseph's family ever since the first of
August and Joseph and James joines with me writeing to you.
They have had bad coles but have got better of them. Your sisters and
younger brothers was well when I heard from them last. They are all living in
Lynchburg.
I hope dear William these few lines
will find you injoying good health and now I will try to inform you your
favoured letter came to hand perhaps about
the middle of september which informed us you had been veary sick with the ague
and fever. Mr. Little received your letter in town.
As I understood he was veary unwell I suppose at that time and was taken
veary shortly after that with the
severe fever and died the 25th day of September and was brought from near
Lynchburg Whare he lived to Goodmans Graveyard and was buried about ten days
before he was. Same lay veary low for a long time but has recovered.
Dear Son, when death parts loving friends we must submit, but when loving
children will take themselves far away in a distant land leaving all connections
behind for no cause, it is
grievious. William reflect on this-you are my flesh and
my bone and I cannot come to you but you can come to me.
If the Lord please, I hope I
shall see you this Spring if life and health permit.
James has bin veary anctious to wander as you have done,
but now he finds himself a doing veary well.
He is getting twelve dollars per month and has nearly got his trade and
says you can get more here to work
in plantation business than you get whare you are.
Joseph wishes you would come. He
wants to move to some part of the World whare he can do better for his family,
but I do not expect he will ever more many miles from whare he is.
They have three children- William Henry, Mary Ann Rebecah, and Elizabeth
Jane.
I hope son William you have no
inclination to have a family yet and if so I
do truly wish you to come immediately.
You can get work aplenty. James would be so glad for you to come and work
with him. He has been with Mr.
Austin Lane--this is the fourth year. He
gave him wages every year and has nearly got his trade and he would hire you at
a word if you would come. You must
come now. When you get this you
must sit down and write a few lines
that you will be here in a veary short time if the Lord permits and then collect
on what you have owing to you and start immediately, and it would please me
well. O
William don't let me be disappointed in my hope of seeing you once more
in this world. I expect to go to
Lynchburg veary shortly to stay with the guerls and when you write to me direct
your letter to Lynchburg Post Office. James
wants you to write to him and
direct his to Campbeel Courthouse. Be
certain to answer this as soon as possible, dear son.
I must conclude with our best love to you and all the best wishes that a
mother can afford, so farewell sweet William my son for this time.
I
remain your loving mother untill death.
Catherine Womack
Joseph P. Womack
James W. Womack
Sent to:
Mr. William Womack
Sugar Creek Post
Office
Sangamon County, Illinois
Letter # 3
LYNCHBURG, VIRGINIA AUGUST 16, 1842
My Veary Dear and Loving
Son,
I once more by the help of providence take the pen in hand to write you a few
lines. We received your letter dated the 14th ov November.
I do not mind exactly the time, but
it found us in tolerable health except your brother Larkin.
He was veary low at that time with the fever.
He lived untill the thirteenth day after he was taken without eating
anything except chicken water and some kind of tea.
Nothing else was allowed him untill the thirteenth day and then one
spoonful of veary thin mush and a half cup of milk.
You must expect my dear William that my dear Larkin was most gone and so he did
seem to be but he was willin to die, as
Mrs.____ told me, the lady whare he lives.
His and your sister Catherine nursed him in his sickness,
but I went severil times while he lay sick, which I think was about six weeks cinfinement to the house,
but the Lord was pleased to raise him from the bed of affliction and I
saw him last thirsday evening. He
was in good health of body and of soul too apparently.
He is a veary pious youth and if you hear him preaching the Gospel you
need not be at all alarmed. He
has commenced going to school and is free the 27th of next January and seems to
take such delight in the ways and worship of God.
And John is still going on in religious ways,
And O my William do you not think that a grate comfort to me?
And would it not be a greater one still to hear in your next letter you
embraced religion? You say in your letter you nor your wife had not profest
religion, and you have regular
meetings with the Methodists, Baptists,
and Presbiterians.
Well, my son, so you
and your wife attend to preaching and do you wish to get religion?
Then if you do get down on your knees and pray to God to have mercy on
you and show you your sinful state that you are in by nature for ye must be born
again or ye cannot see the Kingdom of God. Oh, my William.
read the bible a great deal and attend to preaching and if there is any
revival out with you write me word in your next letter and I pray you my dear
son and daughter in law, be you
both at the alter that the people of God may pray for your dear souls.
When you read this think on whom it is ritten these few lines once more. Tis
your dear old mother, and I pray
you remember what I say to you on this paper and let it sink deep in your minds. What doth it profit a man to gain the hole world
and lose his own soul? oh, my son,
try to save your precious ans never dying soul.
Lay not up treasures on
earth whare moth and rust doth corrupt and whare theves brake through and stele,
but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven whare neither moth nor rust
doth corrupt and whare theves do
not brake through nor steal, for whare your treasure is there will your heart be
also. let us all try to meet
in heaven.
Now I must inform you we are in common health at present as far as I know and
hope this will find you and all yours in good health.
I have not seen Joseph since before last Christmas.
He has gone to Halifax to live.
I saw James not long since. He
was in common health.
Now Dear Son, do you not think of
ever coming home to see us? We
would be so glad to see you and your little family.
John says he thinks you might come if you try rite.
And now William, try and
come and let us know in your next letter whither you intend to try and come.
So farewell, my William, for
this time. Your brothers nor
sisters Catherine is not preasent to joine with me in love to you and family but
you may except of it with mine.
I remain your loving
affectionate mother untill death.
Catherine A. Womack
Sent to:
Mr.
William Womack
Sugar Creek Post Office
Sangamon County, Illinois
Received at above Post
Office September 14, 1842, and forwarded to Galena, IL.
LETTER # 4
Lynchburg, Virginia February
28, 1843
My dear William,
I now joine with your brother Larkin. He
seems to wish you all the good he can for your soules salvation and so do I, and re-read his letter, my son,
untill you can understand it and meditate on it also.
Altho he is younger than you he is much improved in religion and expects
to joine the next conference. He
seems to be much respected for his piety and seems to delight in religious
worship very much. O my William, I
wish you and all my other children were as earnest in gaining your soul's
salvation as my dear Larkin is.
Dear Son, I have written a letter to you some months back.
I have not received any answer from it yet for which cause I expect you
have not received it, as we understand in Leroy's letter received from you that you
have moved three hundred miles from whare you was living. And why could you not
have come nearer to us as well as to go no farther from us? I may say farewell,
for my William I may never expect to see you any more in the land amongst
the living.
Well, dear son, answer
this as soon as possible and let us know whether you have embraced religion yet
and whither you are trying for that blessing and your dear companion with you.
O strive to get to heaven and teach your children to learn the way...
Dear children, excuse all amiss on
this paper. James and
Leroy is both married as we understand.
None of us was at the marriages. James was married when in Pitsylvaney to
a Miss Yancy.
I must conclude. Our
love to you and family. I am
your affectionate mother untill death.
Catherine A. Womack
Sent to:
Mr. William Womack
Jo Davis County
Galena, Illinois
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