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Title: |
Josiah Dexter Cotton Family Collection |
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Repository: |
Marietta College Library
Phone: 740-376-4545 http://library.marietta.edu/spc |
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Creator: |
Cotton, Josiah Dexter; Cotton, Ann M. (Steece); Cotton, Ella; Cotton, Mary; Cotton, Willia D. |
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Dates: |
1848-1921 |
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Bulk dates: |
1848-1868 |
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Quantity: |
.25 linear feet (1 mss box) |
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Abstract: |
The Cotton Collection contains letters written in southern Ohio, between the years of 1848 and 1921, most from 1848 to 1868. The majority of the correspondence is between Ann (Steece) Cotton (1828-1911) and her husband, Dr. Josiah Dexter Cotton (1822- 1903), of Marietta. Ann traveled frequently to visit family and friends, and the couple stayed in touch by mail. The letters are rich in the detail of daily life as experienced by a small-town physician's family during the middle of the nineteenth century. Also included is a diary kept by the couple's daughter, Mary Cotton, during the 1870s. |
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Identification: |
Unknown |
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Language: |
The records are in English |
Josiah Dexter Cotton was born in Marietta, Ohio, May 19, 1822. The son of Dr. John Cotton and Susan (Buckminster) Cotton, he graduated from Marietta College in 1842 and obtained his medical degree from the University of Louisville in 1847. Dr. J. D. Cotton practiced medicine in Marietta for many years, and he served as a surgeon in the 92nd Ohio Infantry Regiment of the Union army during the Civil War. He died August 6, 1903, in Marietta.
Ann M. Steece married Josiah Dexter Cotton, July 6, 1848, in Lawrence County, Ohio. She was born in Adams County, Ohio, September 5, 1828, the daughter of George and Polly (Burkitt) Steece. Her father was an iron manufacturer with the firm of Campbell, Ellison & Co. Ann (Steece) Cotton died in Marietta, May 17, 1911.
Josiah D. Cotton (called "Dexter" by the family) and Ann (Steece) Cotton were the parents of eight children, four of whom (John, Anna, Alice, and Maud) did not live to adulthood. The oldest child, Ella (1849-1908), married Major C. H. Conrad, who became a victim of the Spanish-American War. Ella died in New York City, May 13, 1908. Mary Cotton (1854-1881) married Fred E. Sterns of Rapid City, South Dakota, and died shortly after her marriage. George Dexter Cotton (1861-1927) moved to Holt County, Nebraska, in 1884, where he homesteaded. He died at his farm on August 11, 1927. Willia Dawson Cotton (1868-1942), an 1898 graduate of Marietta College, remained in Marietta and became the first librarian of the Washington County Public Library. She was active in preserving local history and was instrumental in the founding of Campus Martius Museum. Willia Cotton died in Marietta, June 7, 1942.
The collection contains 95 letters written in southern Ohio, between the years of 1848 and 1921, most from 1848 to 1868. The majority of the correspondence is between Ann (Steece) Cotton and her husband, Dr. Josiah Dexter Cotton. The letters are rich in the detail of daily life as experienced by a small-town physician's family during the middle of the nineteenth century. Also included is a 192-page journal written in Marietta by daughter, Mary Cotton, 1870-1875. Daughter Willia Cotton was the family genealogist, and several folders contain fragments of her research notes.
The Civil War correspondence between Josiah Dexter Cotton and his wife Ann is held by the Library of Congress as the Josiah Dexter Cotton Papers. The letters are between Cotton and his wife during his service as surgeon of the 92nd Ohio Infantry Regiment and of Turchin's Brigade, and describe his care for sick and wounded soldiers.
There are no restrictions on accessing material in this collection. Copyright restrictions may apply to materials. Permission to publish materials must be obtained from the repository and from the copyright holder.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Josiah Dexter Cotton Family Collection, Marietta College Library