Manuscripts Collection
The Pond Family trace their roots to Litchfield County, Connecticut where their ancestor Elnathan Judson Pond was born at Woodbury on August 11, 1769. Elnathan was a son of Edward Pond (1742-1805) and Mary Judson (1743-1840).
Elnathan married Sarah Hollister (1773-1864 or 1865) on June 27, 1792. Sarah was a daughter of Gideon Hollister (1725-1812) and Patience Hurd (1740-1822). The couple were the parents of Mary (1797-1803), Rebecca Hollister (1800-1887), Jenet (1802-1892), Edward Judson (1806-1875), Samuel William (1808-1891), Gideon Hollister (1810-1878), Noah Sherman (1815-1892), and Frederick Phillip Pond (1819-1891). For many years family members made their home at Washington, Connecticut, also located in Litchfield County. Samuel and Gideon eventually made their way to Minnesota. Rebecca made her home at Washington, Connecticut.
Materials include photocopied and original correspondence, some with transcripts, photocopied and original diaries, photocopied and original sermons, addresses, real property records, poems, lexicons, a Dakota grammar, genealogies, an autograph album, reminiscences, account books, photocopied and microfilmed scrapbooks, and newspaper clippings.
The Pond family papers include the correspondence, diaries, accounts, newspaper clippings, sermons, and other materials written by or about various members of the Pond family. Among them are Gideon Hollister Pond (1810-1878) and Samuel William Pond (1808-1891), pioneer missionaries to the Dakota Indians. (For a fuller historical recounting, please see the essay written by Minnesota Historical Society curator of manuscripts Ethel B. Virtue, below).
The Pond family papers are partially organized into the following series: (1)
Correspondence and miscellaneous papers, (2) Correspondence (photocopies), and (3)
Transcripts of Pond diaries, narratives, and sermons. Correspondence and
miscellaneous papers (1) includes both handwritten letters and typescripts of
letters (the typescripts’ originating letters may or may not be included here).
Researchers are advised to check Correspondence (photocopies) (2), which includes
photocopies of some original letters appearing in the first series and others that
do not. Transcripts of Pond diaries, narratives, and sermons (3) includes
typescripts of Gideon Pond's diaries (1836-1856), a typescript of
Correspondence and miscellaneous papers includes letters between the Pond brothers
and members of their families in Connecticut, and other missionaries such as
Alexander G. Huggins, Jonas Pettijohn, Samuel Dentan, Daniel Gavin, Stephen R. Riggs,
Thomas S. Williamson, William T. Boutwell, and the American Board of Commissioners
for Foreign Missions. The papers also deal with the Pond brothers' missionary
activities at Lac Qui Parle and other places in Minnesota, describing the habits,
customs, and beliefs of the Dakota Indians and the brothers’ efforts to learn the
Dakota language. Of special interest are Dakota manuscripts dictated by Jack
Frazier. Some of the letters have been published in
Additional letters are addressed to Jennette C. Pond (1842-1867, Samuel W. Pond's daughter), Rebecca Cordelia Pond (1844-1912, Samuel W. Pond's daughter, who married William J. Dean), Jennette Cordelia Dean Krafft (1868-1940, William J. and Rebecca C. Dean's daughter, who married Edwin J. Krafft), Samuel W. Pond, Rebecca Pond (1800-1887, Samuel and Gideon's sister, who married Starr Titus, then Herman Hine), and Ruth Hine Pond (1838-1905, Gideon's daughter, who married Allen L. Goodrich). Among the letter writers are Samuel W. Pond, Samuel W. Pond, Jr., Cordelia Eggleston Pond (1815-1852, Samuel's first wife), Rebecca C. Pond (Samuel's daughter), George H. Pond (1843-1866, Gideon's son), Mary Margaret Poage Pond (1845-1932, Gideon's daughter, who married Philip Hynes), Ruth H. Pond, Allen L. Goodrich (Gideon's son-in -law), Jonas Pettijohn, F. H. Pettijohn, Fritz G. Hollister, Alfred Riggs, Anna Riggs, William J. Dean, Jennie M. Eggleston, Eliza Huggins, and Mary Huggins.
The subject matter is heavily concentrated on family affairs, since many of the correspondents were either related or enjoyed ties of common experiences as missionaries. There is also substantial data on the churches served, religious ideas and spiritual life, farming operations, the Civil War (especially the letters of Allen L. Goodrich, a private in the 6th Minnesota Volunteer Infantry Regiment, Company D), education (including Samuel W. Pond, Jr.'s attendance at the University of Minnesota, 1869-1870), the Crow Creek Agency, Fort Thompson in Dakota Territory, and travels to various parts of the United States.
Additionally, the Gideon Pond and Ruth Pond Goodrich letters cover family matters, Indian relations, church affairs, and especially daily life in (what became) Bloomington, Minnesota.
Correspondence and miscellaneous papers (1) also includes two genealogies (both found in the undated file); an advertising circular issued by C. A. Widstrand, music teacher and piano tuner, Minneapolis (filed in undated); a history of the Shakopee Church (filed in undated); newspaper clippings regarding the Pond family; poems; programs; and reminiscences.
Among the miscellaneous papers are a photocopied scrapbook (1890-1969) compiled by Rebecca Maybelle Pond (George A. Pond's daughter), newspaper clippings (undated and 1891-1958), and a list of gravestone inscriptions from cemeteries in Washington, Connecticut (1948).
Four microfilmed scrapbooks (undated and 1833-1967) contain information on many Pond family members, including brothers Samuel William and Gideon Hollister Pond; Samuel's sons Samuel William Pond, Jr. and Elnathan Judson Pond; and George A. Pond and his wife, Martha Crow Pond. George A. Pond, son of Elnathan Judson Pond, was a University of Minnesota professor of farm management. Dr. Fred H. Buck, author of "An Historical Sketch of the First Presbyterian Church of Shakopee," was a Shakopee medical doctor. The church was begun as a mission by Samuel William Pond in 1846 at the invitation of Shakopee, a Dakota chief.
The George H. Pond papers consist of student essays. George (1843-1866), Gideon H. Pond's second oldest son, was attending Marietta College (Marietta, Ohio), when he died of cholera in October 1866.
Through the courtesy of Mrs. Frances Pond-Titus of (908 North 18th Street) Boise, Idaho, the Society was permitted to make photostatic copies of about two hundred letters of Samuel W. and Gideon H. Pond, early missionaries to the Dakota Indians of Minnesota. The Pond brothers were of Puritan ancestry and residents of Washington, Connecticut, which was swept by an old-fashioned New England revival circa 1831. The brothers were both converted at this time and determined to devote their lives to the cause of spreading the gospel they had so recently experienced.
In accordance with this determination the elder brother, Samuel,
headed west in spring 1833 to find a suitable field for their missionary labors.
He followed the usual Ohio route westward to St. Louis and then up the
Mississippi and Fever rivers to the frontier lead mining town of Galena,
Illinois, where he spent the winter of 1833-1834. Here he learned by chance one
day from a former settler of the Lord Selkirk colony at Pembina of a wild and
roving tribe of Indians, who dwelt on the vast prairies to the northwest in
total ignorance of the true faith. He decided that these heathen people should
be the goal of his first mission and wrote of this decision to his brother,
Gideon, who joined him at Galena in the spring of 1834, when the brothers took
passage on the steamer
At the suggestion of Major Taliaferro, Indian agent, they built their first mission house near the Indian village of Cloud-man on Lake Calhoun’s east shore. When the Reverend Jedediah Stevens arrived in 1835, he persuaded the brothers to assist him in establishing a mission on the shores of Lake Harriet, and this station was occupied until the removal of the Indians from the lake in 1839-1840. During this period Samuel W. Pond spent the greater part of his time at the Lake Harriet mission making occasional hunting trips with the Indians for the purpose of learning their language and going on several visits to Lac qui Parle. In 1836 Gideon joined Dr. Williamson at the station at Lac qui Parle and remained there for three years. In the same summer Samuel returned to Connecticut to study for the ministry, was ordained in March 1837, and appointed a regular missionary by the American Board. In November 1837 Gideon was married at Lac qui Parle to Miss Sarah Poage, a sister of Mrs. Thomas S. Williamson and a teacher in the mission. The following November Samuel followed in his brother's footsteps, marrying a teacher at the Lake Harriet station, a Miss Cordelia Eggleston, a sister of Mrs. J. D. Stevens.
The year 1839 found the brothers again together at Lake Harriet. This year also marked a climax in the Ojibwa-Dakota warfare, and the Dakota about the lake became so fearful of their enemies to the north and the officials at the fort so harassed by their frequent raids that it was decided to remove the Indians from this locality. Reverend Stevens resigned from the service of the American Board about this time and the Ponds remaining by the lake several months after the removal of the Indians, in 1840 rented the Baker house in the vicinity of the fort residing there with their families until 1843, when a new station was built at Oak Grove. During this interval, however, Samuel Pond went to Lac qui Parle to relieve Dr. Riggs, who spent the year 1842-1843 in the East. Gideon meanwhile acted as farmer for the Indians and laid the plans for the new mission. Upon Mr. Riggs’ return in 1843, Samuel took charge of affairs at Oak Grove while Gideon visited relatives in Connecticut and supervised the printing of a Dakota catechism prepared by his brother.
A Dakota presbytery was organized in 1845 composed of the three missionaries Dr. Williamson, Dr. Riggs, and Reverend Samuel Pond. After the station at Oak Grove became well established, Reverend Samuel Pond began to look about for the site of another mission and in 1846 was invited by Chief Little Six, or Shakopee, to live with his band at Prairieville, or Tintatonwan. The invitation was accepted, and here at Prairieville (later called Shakopee) the elder Pond spent the remainder of his life as missionary to the Dakota until their removal in 1852 and then as minister to the white settlers until 1866 when he resigned his charge to live in quiet retirement until his death in 1891.
At Oak Grove, which was later organized as Bloomington, Gideon served the Dakota
Indians and then the white settlers, resigning his charge in 1873, just five
years before his death. During this time he farmed for the Indians, studied for
the ministry and was ordained elder in the Presbyterian church in 1848. He
represented his district in the first territorial legislature, which met in
1849, and in 1850 became the editor of
The Pond papers cover the entire period of the Pond brothers' ministry in Minnesota, beginning with Samuel’s letters written from Galena in 1833 urging his brother to join him in the mission to the Dakota and closing with a letter to his son, Samuel, written near the end of his life, telling of the first Dakota Indian who learned to read and write. The majority of the letters consist of those written during the period from 1833-1850 by the brothers to each other and to their relatives in the East and those received from the various missionaries at Lac qui Parle, Traverse des Sioux, Red Wing, Leech Lake and Pokegama. They relate the daily life and activities of the missions, the habits, customs and beliefs of the Indians, the progress made in teaching them the arts of reading and writing and farming, and the difficulties experienced in making them understand the tenets of the Christian faith. Much of the early missionaries’ time was spent in learning the Dakota language and reducing it to writing. Nearly every one of the early letters tells of the progress made in this difficult and tedious task, which began with the formation of the Pond alphabet in summer 1834 and continued with the compilation of the Dakota lexicon finally published by the Smithsonian Institution in 1852. A Dakota grammar was also compiled and various portions of the scriptures and many hymns translated into the Dakota language. Particularly do the letters of Dr. Williamson and Dr. Riggs to the Ponds deal with this subject.
The letters of this collection, together with a narrative of the brothers'
missionary labors written by Samuel Pond in later life (volumes 6-7 of this
collection), have been used by Samuel W. Pond, Jr. in his writing of
However, considerable material remains that has not been made use of, particularly in letters describing the activities of missions other than those of the Ponds and especially during the later period of their activity when the influence of the encroaching white settlements, the hostility of the Indians, and the payment of government annuities did so much to counteract all the missionaries’ efforts for the improvement of the Dakota. There are found some interesting and informing comments on the relation of the fur traders to the missions in the letters of the various missionaries in 1850. A letter written by Dr. Williamson at Kaposia in January 1849 suggests the possibility of the establishment of manual labor schools for the natives and the development of temperance societies among them. Writing in 1850, Dr. Riggs speaks of the educational policy for the Dakota and is hopeful for its embodiment in the coming treaty. A series of letters covering the period 1837-1848, written by David Greene, secretary of the American Board in Boston, constantly advises patience and economy in the prosecution of the work. The exhortation to patience was doubtless a much needed form of encouragement but the latter admonition would hardly seem necessary when Samuel W. Pond was receiving at the time of his marriage in 1838 an annual salary of $200. The letters of Alexander Huggins and Jonas Pettijohn, Indian farmers and assistants at Lac qui Parle, give a less religious and more secular view of life at that station and relate many interesting and amusing incidents. A few letters of interest from officials connected with the fort have been preserved. Among these are two from Major Taliaferro, the first one addressed to Samuel Pond while on leave of absence in Connecticut in 1836-1837. In this the major describes affairs at the fort and depicts a rather amusing picture of Reverend Stevens at the Lake Harriet mission. The second letter was penned several years later when misfortune had overtaken the former Indian agent in his home in Bedford, Pennsylvania.
These documents are organized into the following sections:
Access to the two-volume
Access to and use of reserve materials requires the curator's permission.
Researchers wishing to see restricted materials must apply for permission. Please consult the reference staff for more information.
Copyright in the transcripts of the diary and the trip log book of Gideon H. Pond and in the transcripts of the diaries of Hermon Hine Pond is reserved until February 23, 2035.
M21:
M187: Pond family scrapbooks (1833-1967), St. Paul, Minn. : Minnesota Historical Society, 1970?. 1 reel ; 35 mm.
Microfilm is available for sale or loan from the Minnesota Historical Society.
Accession numbers: 1778E21; 1819; 1839F; 2275; 2961; 3856; 4019; 4730; 5778; 6259a; 6266; 7011; 7565; 8448; 9087; 9677; 10,097; 11,134; 11,143; 13,654; 14,026; 14,890; 15,253; 16,146; 16,158; 16,772; 17,131; 17,914
The papers are a consolidation of several collections that existed in the manuscripts collection before 1967. They include the collection formerly titled the Gideon H. and Samuel W. Pond Papers, the Gideon Pond, Jr. Papers, and the Rebecca Cordelia Pond Papers, which were acquired by the Society in 1964 but not cataloged until 1967. The Rebecca Pond Hine Papers were acquired and added in 2023.
Catalog ID number: 990017317520104294
Includes typescript of two-volume
Copy made by Methodist missionaries.
Incomplete copy.
Includes Pond family genealogical data.
Reminiscence describing the principal events in the Pond brothers' lives from 1831 to ca. 1881. See also typescript of this same narrative.
Includes a register of Bloomington's Sabbath School (April 1856-April 1871) and H. H. Pond's accounts (1878-1880.)
Samuel W. Pond's 229-page typescript, which was published in
See also the original 317-page manuscript in this collection.
Known affectionately as Janet, Jennette Clarissa Pond (1842-1867) was Samuel W. Pond's oldest child.
Ages eight and nine.
Ages ten and eleven.
Ages eleven and twelve.
Age twelve.
Ages thirteen and fourteen.
Age fourteen.
Presumably a continuation of Janet Pond's diaries.
Entry on first page reads, "Joseph Frazier, Oct. 19,1840."
See Rabbi W. Gunther Plaut's article, "A Hebrew-Dakota Dictionary" in the American Jewish Historical Society's journal, volume 42, number 4 (June 1953), page 361.
A 209-page typescript.
See also volume 37:
This 349-page typescript is the source material for Samuel W. Pond, Jr.'s
Diary entries, including some by Pond's wife, cover social life and customs near Bloomington, Minnesota, the weather, the raising of bees, and the prices for farm products and household supplies.
Includes the Oak Grove Presbyterian Church's constitution of brotherhood.
A 109-page manuscript.
See also volume 25: typescript of
Materials include a manuscript entitled "An Incomplete Record of the Coming of S. W. Pond and his Brother to Minnesota and Their Early Living Here Among the Indians," by Samuel W. Pond; Samuel W. Pond's ordination certificate (1837); the subscription list for the First Presbyterian Church building of Shakopee, Minnesota; a paper written by Elnathan J. Pond entitled, "Revelation of Science," and a diary (March 26, 1891-February 4, 1892) he kept regarding the management of his farm and other events, including the death of Samuel W. Pond (December 12, 1891); a play script (1934) recalling Samuel and Gideon Pond's arrival in Minnesota; a biography of Peter Pond by Harold S. Pond (1970); and writings and addresses by Samuel W. Pond, Jr., Samuel W. Pond's great-grandson, Browne Barr, and George A. Pond, a professor emeritus at the University of Minnesota Institute of Agriculture.
Rebecca was George A. Pond's daughter and Samuel W. Pond's granddaughter.
A 317-page manuscript of Samuel W. Pond's work.
See also volume 11: the 229-page transcript.
Transcripts of letters from Gideon and Samuel Pond. The majority are to Preston Hollister (a maternal uncle), some are to their sister Rebecca Hine, and some are to other relatives. Most letters were written at St. Peter, Minnesota, and mailed at Fort Snelling. Letters relate description of life at the fort, of Indian communities, of the Pond's evangelizing work, and of Samuel's evolving faith.
Includes a blueprint map of the Pond property near Shakopee, Minnesota; land patents issued to Samuel W. Pond (1856-1857); successive deeds to the property (1877-1878, 1892-1893); and an abstract of title (1920).
Original four scrapbooks were loaned by Mrs. Martha Crow (George A.) Pond for microfilming. In microfilming, volumes 3 and 4 were transposed; the order of the volumes on the microfilm is 1, 2, 4, 3.
This volume consists of two sections. The first contains the Pond Family Association of Minnesota's articles of incorporation; typed copies of letters written by Samuel William and Gideon Pond (1833, 1849, 1872); a poem written by Samuel Pond (1886); obituary notices for Samuel Pond (1891); a gubernatorial campaign leaflet for William J. Dean (undated); and a transcript of the funeral for William J. Dean (1910). The second section contains Pond Family Association materials (1930 to 1948), including photographs, newspaper clippings, reminiscences, and obituary notices. Also included are an account of Minnesota's first Indian farm colony as told to Samuel Pond by Cloud Man, a Dakota chief; and a reminiscence of the "Battle Between Chippewas and Sioux near Murphy's Landing and Ferry, on May 26, 1858," written by Elnathan Judson Pond, who was an observer.
Contains mostly historical sketches and reminiscences by younger members of the Pond family recording their parents' lives. There is material on George A. Pond, including a copy of his "Pioneer Flour Milling in Scott County," an address read at a Ramsey County Historical Society meeting on June 18, 1960.
Materials relating to the history of the church, including photographs of Samuel Pond; a list of church members, 1855-1930; and histories of the church written by Samuel William Pond, Jr., Elnathan Judson Pond, and Dr. Fred H. Buck.
Photographs, newspaper clippings, and miscellaneous material relating to Mr. and Mrs. George A. Pond and their children, and to the agricultural research work of Mr. Pond, including a bibliography of his publications. There are a few photographs and other miscellaneous items concerning Salem, New Jersey, Mrs. Pond’s childhood home.
Gideon Hollister Pond was born June 30, 1810 at New Preston, Litchfield County, Connecticut to Elnathan Judson Pond and Sarah Hollister Pond. He came to Minnesota in 1834, and married Sarah Poage (1805-1853) in 1835. Widowed, he married Agnes Carson Johnson (1825-1915), a widow, in 1855. Gideon died January 20, 1878 at Bloomington, Minnesota, and is interred there.
Sarah was born to James Crawford Poage (1760-1820) and Mary Woods (1766-1830) Poage March 4, 1805 in Ohio. She died May 2, 1853 at Bloomington, and is interred there. Agnes was born September 15, 1825 at Greenfield, Ohio to William Carson Johnson (1801-1830) and Fanny M. Wilson Pinkerton (1804-1877) Johnson. Agnes died December 17, 1915 at Bloomington, and is interred there.
Includes multi-page List of books.
Written mainly to his sister Rebecca and his daughter Ruth.
Written mainly, but not exclusively, to her aunt and uncle, Rebecca and Hermon Hine, in Litchfield County, Connecticut. Includes letters by Gideon to his sister Rebecca and daughter Ruth.
File includes transcripts of documents, unless otherwise noted.
There is no transcript for this item.
There is no transcript for this item.
File includes transcripts of each document.
Recollections of the road from Fort Snelling to Shakopee.
Rebecca Hollister Pond was born June 23, 1800 at Woodbury, Litchfield County, Connecticut, to Elnathan Judson Pond and is wife Sarah Hollister Pond. She was the older sister of Jennet Pond Hine, Edward Judson Pond, Samuel William Pond, Gideon Hollister Pond, Noah Sherman Pond, and Frederick Phillip Pond. She married Starr Titus (1787-1820) in 1818, and Hermon Hine (1772-1865) in 1832. Children included Moses Starr Titus (1819-1878) and Rebecca Marilla Hine Sackett Brinsmade (1834-1880). Rebecca made her home at Washington, Connecticut, where she died on March 3, 1887. Rebecca and many of the family members are interred at Old Judea Cemetery, Washington, Connecticut.
The series consists mostly of letters received by Rebecca over the course of her adult life. A good number of them were written by her brother Samuel Pond. Most of the letters are accompanied by the envelopes in which they arrived. There are also some religious tracts, poetry, a number of writings of unknown authorship, and one small photograph of an unidentified house. In 59 numbered folders.
Includes a flier for a boarding school operated by D. Hine, B. A., principal.
2 letters on 1 leaf.
2 letters on 1 leaf.
2 letters on 2 leaves.
Cornwall Bridge, Connecticut. An enclosed modern envelope says "Addis Hollister."
Pages are numbered 8-10.
Notation on reverse: From Austin's wife after his death.
Includes some genealogical information.
May be 1847.
Transcript.
There is another Ansonia in Ohio.
There is another Ansonia in Ohio.
Includes an attached letter (Dear Mother) from Cordelia S. Pond (Lake Harriet) to Mrs. Sarah Pond (October 23, 1839).
Final leaf missing.
Final leaf missing.
Letters were mailed in one envelope. The second letter is addressed to Sister and is signed Your sister S. R. Pond (Susan Rebecca Pond, wife of Samuel W. Pond).
Includes three newspaper clippings: An In Memoriam tribute to Gideon H. Pond, a poem by S. W. Pond, and an unsigned article from the
On the letterhead of Deere & Company, 312 First Street North, Minneapolis.
On the letterhead of Deere & Company, 312 First Street North, Minneapolis.
Partial letter on the letterhead of Deere & Company, 312 First Street North, Minneapolis. Initial page is missing. A second partial letter on the reverse side is signed "your affectionate brother S. W. Pond." Initial page is missing. Accompanying envelope is addressed to Mrs. Rebecca Hine (Washington, Conn. ).
On the letterhead of Deere & Company, 312 First Street North, Minneapolis. A second letter (date and addressee unknown), on the reverse side of each leaf and in different colored ink, is signed "your affectionate brother S. W. Pond;" the preceding page is missing.
Susan Rebecca (Mrs. Samuel W.) Pond?
Includes letter from Niece Julia Pond (Shakopee) to Aunt on same leaf.
Moses Starr Titus, 1819-1878.
Rebecca Marilla Hine Sackett Brinsmade, 1834-1880.
Phebe H. Hollister (1813-1895) was the wife of Preston Sherman Hollister (Jr.)
Frederick (1819-1891) was a brother of Rebecca Hollister Pond Hine.
Preceding page (s) are missing.
Second page missing.
Verses about death on reverse side.
Some in Dakota language.
Have been separated from their letters. Senders of the letters are unknown. Cancellation marks do not feature dates, and many are illegible.
Perhaps a funeral eulogy.
Gideon Pond died in 1878.
Copied from Leslie Feen's autograph album, 1872-1874. Copied by Addie Hollister, 1940.
Presented to Addie Hollister by her teacher Martha A. Bronson.
Small illustrated card.
Inscribed by R. W. Raymond.
Essay; for Mrs. Rebecca Hine.
Unpaginated handwritten manuscript.
Includes text in pencil apparently written by N. S. Pond; religious in nature.
Hermon Hine Pond was a son of Gideon Hollister Pond.
Rebecca "Reby" Pond Hine (1800-1887) was a sister of Gideon H. and Samuel Pond.
Rebecca wrote from Washington, Connecticut, to her nieces living in Bloomington, Minnesota. Typical subject matter includes news of births, deaths, illnesses, and marriages among their circle of family and friends.
Elizabeth "Lizzie" Jane Pond (1847-1888) was a daughter of Gideon H. Pond.
George H. Pond (1843-1866) was a son of Gideon H. Pond. George would die of cholera several months after his last letter in 1866 while attending college in Ohio.
Letters written to sister and brother-in-law, Ruth Hine and Allen Goodrich, by George while attending college in Marietta, Ohio. Topics include the Civil War and his father's missionary work.
Ruth Hine Pond Goodrich (1838-1905) was a daughter of Gideon H. Pond.
Mainly letters from family members.
Mainly letters sent by Ruth from Minneapolis to her daughter, Sarah Lydia Goodrich Dow (1859-1943) living in Spokane, Washington.
Includes Ruth's poems as well as transcribed poems by other authors, mainly family.
Leander Allen (1886-1973) and Doris Stella Dow (1889-1966) were the children of Sarah Lydia Goodrich and John K. Dow (1862-1961) and the grandchildren of Ruth Hine Pond Goodrich.
Emma W. Ellison (1861-1943) was a daughter of William W. and Sarah Rebecca Pond Ellison and the granddaughter of Gideon H. Pond.
Edna Ruth (sometimes referred to as Ruth Edna) Pond Ellison Heistermann Snodgrass (1880-1959) was a daughter of William W. and Sarah Rebecca Pond Ellison and the granddaughter of Gideon H. Pond.
Mainly letters Edna sent to her first husband, John H. Heistermann (1878-1958). Includes a letter written in German by John's father.
Early letters are mainly from her fiancé (later husband), John Heistermann. Later letters date from her second marriage to Vernon L. Snodgrass (1902-1978).
Sarah Poage Pond (1805-1853) was the first wife of Gideon Hollister Pond and was Edna's grandmother.
Typescript biography of Sarah (Poage) Pond and family .
Includes miscellaneous accounts (1859-1876) at end of volume.
Includes mileage and financial data for Gideon's trip from St. Paul to Cincinnati, Ohio, and return (September-October 1853); includes brief financial entries for 1849 and 1850.