leicester-bromley_family_papers

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Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester Rush Rhees Library Second Floor, Room 225 Rochester, NY 14627-0055 [email protected] URL: https://www.library.rochester.edu/spaces/rbscp leicester-bromley_family_papers

Table of Contents

Summary Information ...... 3 Biographical/Historical note ...... 3 Scope and Contents note ...... 5 Administrative Information ...... 5 Controlled Access Headings ...... 6 Collection Inventory ...... 6

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Summary Information

Repository: Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester Creator: Leicester (Family : Rochester, N.Y.) Creator: Bromley (Family : Lancashire, England) Title: Leicester-Bromley family papers ID: D.223 Date [inclusive]: 1847-1870 Physical Description: 1 box Language of the English Material:

Preferred Citation

(Name of item, if applicable), Leicester-Bromley Family Papers, 1847-1870. Dept. of Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester.

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Biographical/Historical note

James and Joyce Leicester set sail from Liverpool, England for America with their young son Robert and James's parents on August 13, 1847. Sailing aboard the Glenmore, they arrived in New York City on September 14, 1847 after a thirty-one day passage. From New York they took a steamer to Albany, and then went on to Rochester where, as James put it, "we thought we had better stay if we could."

James and Joyce had seven children: Robert, William, Hannah, Elizabeth, Charles, Richard, and George. According to the Rochester city directory they first lived on Spring Alley, then in 1850 moved to Reynolds Street (in one of the letters James describes this house), then around 1866 to Smith Street. They also seem to have changed their name to Lester, which was probably easier for Americans to correctly pronounce and spell.

James found work as a pattern-maker and in 1870 went into business with a partner. The firm of Lester & Gillard survived until about 1880, after which James seems to have managed the business himself. Joyce died on October 31, 1874. She was predeceased by daughter Hannah, who died in 1873. After his

- Page 3- leicester-bromley_family_papers son William died in 1890, James moved to Plymouth Avenue to live with William's widow Gertrude. James died on November 2, 1904. He was survived, according to his obituary, by three sons: Robert, Charles, and George. None of these sons still lived in Rochesterâ€" Robert had moved to Boston, Charles to Chicago, and George to Denver.

When the Leicesters arrived in Rochester they faced the challenges and hardships of starting a life in a new land and eventually realized the American dream of financial success for themselves and their children. Unlike many immigrants to the United States, the Leicesters shared the same cultural background and spoke the same language as most Americans. Nevertheless, they were also strangers who had left their home, much of their family, friends, and security far behind in England. Their letters provide a rare opportunity to share the progress of an immigrant family in becoming Americans, and to glimpse life in Rochester during the mid nineteenth-century.

Other letters in the collection were written by and about Joyce Leicester's brother Thomas Bromley, who brought his family to the United States in 1850 only to have his wife and child die almost immediately in St. Louis from cholera. Shortly thereafter, Thomas went to New Orleans where he too died from a dose of medicine given him by a "botanical doctor" to cure his cholera. One letter written during the Civil War is from the Leicester's son Robert to his Uncle William in England. The letter is a lengthy, vivid account of his life as a soldier with the 14th New York Volunteers who saw action in Fredericksburg and Gettysburg.

James and Joyce had seven children: Robert, William, Hannah, Elizabeth, Charles, Richard, and George. According to the Rochester city directory they first lived on Spring Alley, then in 1850 moved to Reynolds Street (in one of the letters James describes this house), then around 1866 to Smith Street. They also seem to have changed their name to Lester, which was probably easier for Americans to correctly pronounce and spell.James found work as a pattern-maker and in 1870 went into business with a partner. The firm of Lester & Gillard survived until about 1880, after which James seems to have managed the business himself. Joyce died on October 31, 1874. She was predeceased by daughter Hannah, who died in 1873. After his son William died in 1890, James moved to Plymouth Avenue to live with William's widow Gertrude. James died on November 2, 1904. He was survived, according to his obituary, by three sons: Robert, Charles, and George. None of these sons still lived in Rochesterâ€" Robert had moved to Boston, Charles to Chicago, and George to Denver.When the Leicesters arrived in Rochester they faced the challenges and hardships of starting a life in a new land and eventually realized the American dream of financial success for themselves and their children. Unlike many immigrants to the United States, the Leicesters shared the same cultural background and spoke the same language as most Americans. Nevertheless, they were also strangers who had left their home, much of their family, friends, and security far behind in England. Their letters provide a rare opportunity to share the progress of an immigrant family in becoming Americans, and to glimpse life in Rochester during the mid nineteenth-century.Other letters in the collection were written by and about Joyce Leicester's brother Thomas Bromley, who brought his family to the United States in 1850 only to have his wife and child die almost immediately in St. Louis from cholera. Shortly thereafter, Thomas went to New Orleans where he too died from a dose of medicine given him by a "botanical doctor" to cure his cholera. One letter written during the Civil War is from the Leicester's son Robert to his Uncle William in England. The letter is a lengthy, vivid account of his life as a soldier with the 14th New York Volunteers who saw action in Fredericksburg and Gettysburg.Scope and Content Note: The Leicester- Bromley Family Papers consists of 19 letters the Leicesters wrote to their family back in England between 1848 and 1870. Most of the letters are to Joyce's parents, the Bromleys who lived at 24 Dover Street, Preston, Lancashire.Provenance: The letters remained in the family for 130 years, and when in the 1970s a Miss - Page 4- leicester-bromley_family_papers Bromley, perhaps the last living descendant of the Bromley family, died at Heaton Chapel, Stockport, Chesire. She bequeathed them to her neighbor who then gave them to her daughter-in-law, Mavis Darbyshire. Finding the letters to be of great interest, Mavis Darbyshire transcribed them and then decided that they should return to the place of their origin. She wrote to a Rochester newspaper seeking a home for them which the Rush Rhees Library responded to and Ms. Darbyshire donated the letters in 1990.

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Scope and Contents note

The Leicester- Bromley Family Papers consists of 19 letters the Leicesters wrote to their family back in England between 1848 and 1870. Most of the letters are to Joyce's parents, the Bromleys who lived at 24 Dover Street, Preston, Lancashire.

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Administrative Information

Publication Statement Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester

Rush Rhees Library Second Floor, Room 225 Rochester, NY 14627-0055 [email protected] URL: https://www.library.rochester.edu/spaces/rbscp

Restrictions on Access The Leicester-Bromley Family Papers is open for research use. Researchers are advised to contact the Rare Collections & Preservation Department prior to visiting. Upon arrival, researchers will also be asked to fill out a registration form and provide photo identification.

Immediate Source of Acquisition note The letters remained in the family for 130 years, and when in the 1970s a Miss Bromley, perhaps the last living descendant of the Bromley family, died at Heaton Chapel, Stockport, Chesire. She bequeathed them to her neighbor who then gave them to her daughter-in-law, Mavis Darbyshire. Finding the letters to be of great interest, Mavis Darbyshire transcribed them and then decided that - Page 5- leicester-bromley_family_papers they should return to the place of their origin. She wrote to a Rochester newspaper seeking a home for them which the Rush Rhees Library responded to and Ms. Darbyshire donated the letters in 1990.

Restrictions on Use In consultation with a curator, reproductions may be made upon request. Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from a curator. Researchers are responsible for determining any copyright questions.

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Controlled Access Headings

• Correspondence • Leicester (Family : Rochester, N.Y.) • Bromley (Family : Lancashire, England)

Collection Inventory

Title/Description Instances James and Joyce Leicester to Father Bromley, [August 1847] Box 1 Folder 1

James and Joyce Leicester to Bromley parents, September 26, 1847 Box 1 Folder 2

James and Joyce Leicester to Bromley parents, January 2, 1848 Box 1 Folder 3

James and Joyce Leicester to Bromley parents, April 30, 1848 Box 1 Folder 4

James and Joyce Leicester to Bromley parents, December 26, 1848 Box 1 Folder 5

James and Joyce Leicester to Bromley parents, August 22, 1849 Box 1 Folder 6

Thomas and Jane Bromley to Bromley family, [January 1850] Box 1 Folder 7

Thomas Bromley to Bromley parents, July 27, 1850 Box 1 Folder 8

James and Joyce Leicester to Bromley parents, August 1, 1850 Box 1 Folder 9

James Preston Smith to Father Bromley, December 22, 1850 Box 1 Folder 10

Margaret Peterson to James Leicester, December 30, 1850 Box 1 Folder 11

James and Joyce Leicester to Bromley parents, January 19, 1851 Box 1 Folder 12

James and Joyce Leicester to Bromley parents, February 6, 1853 Box 1 Folder 13

James and Joyce Leicester to Bromley parents, February 6, 1853 Box 1 Folder 14

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Robert Leicester to Grandfather Bromley, February 13, 1854 Box 1 Folder 15

Joyce Leicester to Father Bromley, November 4, 1863 Box 1 Folder 16

James Leicester (Lester) to Brother William?, April 5, 1863 Box 1 Folder 17

Robert J. Leicester (Lester) to Uncle William Bromley, October 31, Box 1 Folder 18 1863

Harry Bromley to Mother?, April 22, 1870 Box 1 Folder 19

Transcriptions of letters done by Mavis Darbyshire Box 1 Folder 20

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