MenuInventory of the Joseph Starke Sims papers, 1819-1903 and undated
Collection Overview
Correspondence, financial records, legal documents, clippings, account books, commissions, addresses and speeches, and a diploma. Correspondence concerns chiefly cotton growing, trade and prices; slaves who worked in cotton fields; financial matters; Washington, D.C. politics, with references to Henry Clay and John Calhoun; state and national politics; descriptions of newly settled areas of Mississippi and California; and a cholera outbreak in Charleston (1832). Civil War letters detail problems at Fort Sumter (1861), and often refer to economic difficulties and shortages in South Carolina. Other Civil War letters are also written from Manassas, Alabama, and Mississippi. One letter from Mississippi details the desperation of women left alone and unable to flee before the advancing Union Army. Post-war letters reveal the problems of Reconstruction in South Carolina. Many of the letters are to Sims' wife Jane Emily Sims (Farnandis).
Includes an autobiographical letter from J. K. Paulding, author and statesman, and an essay by the same, entitled "The history of Uncle Sam and his boys." Some of Sims' addresses and one of the legal documents concern Nullification, which Sims' strongly supported. Other documents include an obituary for Franklin H. Elmore, plantation and general account books, and some material on Sims' student days at South Carolina College (ca. 1817-1819), which includes a letter to his brother in 1819 "in defence of General Jackson," and his "treatment of the Indians."
Descriptive Summary
- Repository
- David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University
- Creator
- Sims, Joseph Starke.
- Title
- Joseph Starke Sims papers, 1819-1903 and undated
- Language of Material
- English
- Extent
- 2.4 Linear Feet, 295 Items
- Location
- For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the Library's online catalog.
Administrative Information
A majority of collections are stored off site and must be requested at least 24 business hours in advance for retrieval. Contact Rubenstein Library staff before visiting. Read More »
Access Restrictions
Collection is open for research.
However, collection may contain materials to which the Acknowledgment of Legal Responsibilities and Privacy Rights form applies. Patrons must sign this form before using this collection.
Also, all or portions of this collection may be housed off-site in Duke University's Library Service Center. Consequently, there may be a 24-hour delay in obtaining these materials.
Please contact Research Services staff before visiting the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library to use this collection.
Use Restrictions
The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to Duke University. For more information, consult the copyright section of the Regulations and Procedures of the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library.
Contents of the Collection
Browse List of Series
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Expand AllHistorical Note
Joseph Starke Sims was a Civil War Confederate officer, cotton grower, and South Carolina senator.
Subject Headings
- Paulding, James Kirke, 1778-1860.
- Elmore, F. H. (Franklin Harper), 1799-1850.
- Clay, Henry, 1777-1852.
- Calhoun, John C. (John Caldwell), 1782-1850.
- Sims, Jane Emily.
- South Carolina College--Alumni and alumnae.
- Confederate States of America. Army. South Carolina Infantry Regiment, 9th.
- Confederate States of America--Officers--Correspondence.
- Plantations--Records--South Carolina.
- Cotton growing--South Carolina.
- Slavery--South Carolina.
- Legislators--South Carolina--Correspondence.
- Cholera--South Carolina--Charleston.
- Nullifcation (States' rights)
- Secession.
- Fort Sumter (Charleston, S.C.)--Siege, 1861.
- United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865.
- South Carolina--Politics and government--1775-1865.
- South Carolina--History--Civil War, 1861-1865.
- Charleston (S.C.)--Social life and customs.
- Mississippi--History--Civil War, 1861-1865.
- Alabama--History--Civil War, 1861-1865.
- California--Description and travel.
- Account books.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Joseph Starke Sims papers, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.
Provenance
The Joseph Starke Sims papers were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library as a gift in 1978-1991. This collection forms part of the Harry L. and Mary K. Dalton Collection, 1695-1955 and undated.
Processing Information
Processed by Rubenstein Library staff
Encoded by Kimberly Sims, March 2011
Descriptive sources and standards used to create this inventory: DACS, EAD, NCEAD guidelines, and local Style Guide.
This finding aid is NCEAD compliant.