Letter from Gilbert J. Stark to His Family at Perry, Kansas (Part 1, November 1856)
Note: These old
letters are part of the Stark family heritage and were shared with us by Irene
Gordon of Ozawkie, a Stark descendant. The letters are 127 years old [in 1990],
written in long hand by Gilbert Stark to his family. As we copied them we typed
as nearly as possible the spelling and punctuation as he used it. A soldier in
the Civil War, Gilbert Stark paints a picture of his times, which we now share.
[Gilbert Stark was
born in Ohio in 1835. His parents moved to Perry, Kansas, in Kansas territorial
days. He traveled east in search of work in 1856, when he was 21 years old.]
Hamden, Nov. 16th / [18]56 
New Haven Co. Ct.
Dear Father and Mother,
I avail myself of this opportunity of writing a few lines to
you to let you know my whereabouts I am
wel as usual only I have got a hard cold I like this place very wel but the country as
a genral thing I dont’ like. Lant can tel you the circumstances of our being separated
I intended to have seen him again before
he went home but I could not if I went home with Mr. Cooper, it cost me 84
dolars to come here & I thought that I could never spend 4 dolars in a
beter way then to get a peep at New Haven I come home with Mr Coopr one Monday Night
& I hired out one thursday night and comenced work friday morning I am to work fore, Hail & Aling, Co. an
omnibuss line. They keep 9 horses & run an omnibuss to New Haven, 3 times a
day. I have only hired to them for one month fore shure & at the end of the
month if we booth like I have agreed to stay untill the first day of April for
18 dolars per month I drive team most of
the time or shal do so after a litle. I have drove omnibuss ever since I have
ben here. I shal have to haul one load of wood to town a day & then at
night drive a four hours omnibuss to town. The[y] has a man put one sone teams
opposition to the men that I work fore & as long as that last I shal have
to drive Night & day last night I
drove to town twice & did not get to bed untill after one o clock.
I dont know as I am making a living here but there is one
thing that I do know that is I wil try I
have bought me a new pair of boots fore 3 dolars, a pare of Gloves 1.22 & a
pair of over hauls for .50 cents so that I am pretty will drest. I think that I
shal stay here untill spring if nothing hapens & then if you want me to
come home & stay next sumer I will do so. I had rather stay to home than to
stay here in the sumer time. I want you to write just as soon as you get this &
let me know how you got along I shal
send you 20 dolars in this letter & I want you to write whether you got it
or not dont fail to write just as soon
as you get this fore it has ben so long since I have heard from home that I
should like to get a line. Gile Briggs wanted me to write what wages was tel him if he wil come down here in febuary
he can git big wages. I want you to pay Lant 50 cents for me, father I wish
that you would take that Harness of Chadbourns & get it fixxt & send it
home ther is a colar & bridle that
goes with it that little colare is the
one, it wants one new pipe, one hip strap wants fixxing & the chains want
fixxing. I ment to have done it before I come away but foregot it. I thought
that I had eat oyesters in Ohio but I never did until I come here. I want
Hariet and Lydia & Hellen & Frank & all the rest of you to write to
me & I wil answer as fast as I get time. I cant write any more at present.
I have not told you half of the news about the hills &
mountains that we crost I shal have to
put it of[f] until some other time. I am in a hury now & wil write soon
again. I want Mother to write & I want you to write fore it is lonesome —
here. If it was not fore Cooper folk I should dye but I go & see them often
they are good folks Good bye from your Afectionate son
Gilbert J.
Stark
(To be continued)
This story appeared in “Yesteryears” in October 1990.
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