Inventory of the Leavenworth Family Papers, 1733-1927 and undated

The Leavenworth Family Papers cover 1733 to 1927 with the bulk of the manuscripts from the 1820s to the 1880s. The collection predominately consists of the sermons of Abner Johnson Leavenworth (1803-1869) as well as both his correspondence and that of his son, Frederick Peabody Leavenworth (1833-). Sermons date from as early as 1826 and extend through the Civil War period.

The correspondence of Abner Johnson Leavenworth deals largely with religious and missionary topics. Additional topics covered in both Abner and Frederick's correspondence include Civil War and Reconstruction in Petersburg, V.A.

The diaries of Frederick Leavenworth begin in 1857 with comments on the Minnesota Territory. Leavenworth was in St. Peter, Nicolett County, and visited St. Paul. He illustrated the diary with sketches of the Falls of Minnehaha; Mendota, Minnesota; the Indian Warrior, Iron Elk; and Fort Snelling. In 1860, Leavenworth went to Van Buren, Arkansas, and opened a school. He illustrates with a sketch of Van Buren and with a sketch of the C.S.S.Ponchartrain (p. 23). The diary has no entries between 1860 and February, 1862, when the Civil War reached Van Buren (p. 36) and refugees from Missouri were passing through Van Buren. Leavenworth refers to the Confederate officers, troops, and wounded in a general way. He became involved in the Quartermaster Corps and arrived at Fort Smith (p. 51) on March 26, 1862. Here he makes quarterly reports, has corn shelled, and refers to Confederate troop movements. He goes to Arkadelphia in June, 1862 (p. 66). Finally on August 1, 1862, he is commissioned Captain of Artillery and Ordnance, takes charge of the foundry at Shreveport, Louisiana, and establishes another at Jefferson, Texas. He describes briefly (pp. 108-109) the effect of the surrender of General Taylor as the Confederate forces disintegrate Confederate supplies are distributed. Captain Leavenworth turns over his Confederate property to the agent of the U.S. Treasury. By September, 1865, he is engaged to work as engineer in charge of inspection of materials for the Marshall Railroad.

Additional materials include an extensive geneaology of the Leavenworth family; a copy of Civil War letters to Mrs. E. A. Skelton; a letter dated July 13, 1864 concerning the death of James Addison Porter before Atlanta, Georgia, and the fighting near Atlanta; a few religious pamphlets entitled "Reasons to Not Be a Baptist" and "Condition and Character of Females in Pagan and Mohammedan Countries;" and a scrapbook, 1835-1868, compiled by Abner Johnson Leavenworth.

Chronology List of Abner Johnson Leavenworth

• Leavenworth, Abner Johnson, 1803-1869.
• Leavenworth, Frederick.
• Leavenworth family.
• Van Buren Female Seminary (Van Buren, Ark.)
• Presbyterian Church--Clergy--Correspondence.
• Presbyterian Church--Sermons.
• Seminarians.
• Women--Education--Southern States.
• Petersburg (Va.)--History--Siege, 1864-1865.
• United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Personal narratives, Confederate.

• Abner Johnson Leavenworth Papers (Manuscripts and Rare Books Department, Swem Library, College of William and Mary)
• Frederick Peabody Leavenworth Papers (Southern Historical Collection, The Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)

[Identification of item], Leavenworth Family Papers, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.

The Leavenworth Family Papers were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library as a gift in 1933-1970.

Processed by Rubenstein Library Staff, 1989

Encoded by Jane Metters, Meghan Lyon, and Carrie Mills, July 2011

This collection is minimally processed: materials may not have been ordered and described beyond their original condition.

Descriptive sources and standards used to create this inventory: DACS, EAD, NCEAD guidelines, and local Style Guide.

This finding aid is NCEAD compliant.