JAMES DELLET FAMILY PAPERS, 1775-1907 Finding aid Call number: LPR47 Extent: 10 cubic ft. (19 archives boxes and 2 oversized boxes.) To return to the ADAHCat catalog record, click here: http://adahcat.archives.alabama.gov:81/vwebv/holdingsInfo?bibId=3940 Alabama Dept. of Archives and History, 624 Washington Ave., Montgomery, AL 36130 www.archives.alabama.gov JAMES DELLET FAMILY PAPERS LPR47 Finding Aid Table of Contents Page Biographical Notes 3 Series Descriptions with Container Listings I. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES, undated 4 II. CORRESPONDENCE AND LETTERS, 1807-1907, undated 4 - 13 A. James Dellet correspondence and letters, 1807-1849, undated 4 - 12 B. Harriet Dellet correspondence and letters, 1834-1849 12 C. Emma Dellet Gibbons correspondence and letters, 1838-1880 12 D. Lyman Gibbons correspondence and letters, 1856-1879 12 E. Charles J. Torrey correspondence and letters, undated 13 F. Helen “Dolly” Gibbons Torrey correspondence and letters, 1867-1894 13 G. Gladin Gorin correspondence and letters, 1848-1857 13 I. Miscellaneous letters, undated 13 III. FINANCIAL RECORDS, 1807-1903 and undated 14 - 22 A. James Dellet financial records, 1807-1849, undated 14 - 20 B. Emma Dellet Gibbons financial records, 1848-1894 20 C. Lyman Gibbons financial records, 1840-1880, undated 20 - 21 D. Charles J. Torrey financial records, 1854-1901 22 E. Gladin Gorin financial records, 1844, 1848 22 IV. LEGAL RECORDS, 1775-1879 and undated 22 - 25 A. James Dellet legal records, 1775-1848, undated 22 - 24 B. Lyman Gibbons legal records, 1858-1879 24 - 25 C. Dellet Family legal records, 1788-1809, undated 25 V. NOTES, undated 25 VI. PRINTED MATERIAL, 1827-1879 and undated 25 - 26 A. James Dellet printed material, 1827-1844, undated 25 - 26 B. Lyman Gibbons printed material, 1844-1879, undated 26 VII. JAMES DELLET SPEECHES, 1844 and undated 27 VIII. PHOTOGRAPHS, undated 27 - 28 IX. DIPLOMA, 3 Dec. 1810 28 2 LPR 47 James Dellet Family Papers: Biographical Sketches James Dellet was born in 1788 at Philadelphia, Pa. His family moved to South Carolina while he was still a baby and it was there that he grew up and went to college, graduating with honors from South Carolina College in 1810. Dellet then studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1813. In 1819 Dellet moved to Claiborne in Monroe County, Ala.., where he became a circuit court judge. He quickly became involved in the politics of the new state and was elected as a representative of the county in the first general assembly. Once at the assembly, Dellet was elected speaker of the house of representatives. In the ensuing 12 years he served as a representative; was speaker of the house again in 1821; and also served as chairman of the judiciary committee. Dellet made a bid for congress in 1833 as the representative from the Mobile District. At that time he was defeated by Gov. John Murphy. In 1838 Dellet ran again, this time defeating Murphy for a seat in the Twenty-sixth Congress. As a congressman Dellet, who was a member of the Whig party, dealt with the issues of slavery, tariff laws, nullification, and manifest destiny. Dellet was re-elected in 1843 and continued to serve as a congressional representative until health problems forced him to retired from public life. After his retirement, Dellet devoted himself to managing his plantation in Claiborne. James Dellet was married twice. His first wife was Harriet Willison of South Carolina. They had one child, a daughter, Emma Eugenia Dellet. Harriet Willison Dellet died in 1840. In 1842 Dellet married Mary Wormley from Tennessee, a cousin of his former wife. Dellet died on Dec. 21, 1848 in Claiborne, Ala. Lyman Gibbons was born June 3, 1808, at Westerlo, New York. He moved to Alabama in 1833, when he became a member of the faculty of Spring Hill College in Mobile. He forged his first connection with the Dellet family when he moved to Claiborne, Ala., and established a law parnership with James Dellet. In the ensuing years, he practiced law in Mobile from 1838-1845; read civil law in Paris 1845-1847; and practiced law in New Orleans and Mobile, 1847-1851. In 1851 he began serving as a circuit court judge and in 1852, Gov. Collier appointed him a supreme court justice, a position he resigned in 1854 to become a planter in Monroe County. His last public position came in 1861 when he represented Monroe County in the 1861 constitutional convention. In 1853 Gibbons cemented his Dellet family connections by marrying Dellet’s daughter, Emma. They had one daughter, Helen “Dolly” Gibbons. Lyman Gibbons died in 1879; his wife Emma died in 1894. Helen “Dolly” Gibbons married Charles J. Torrey. Torrey was a native of Claiborne, Ala., who was born on April 25, 1850. Admitted to the bar in 1873, he was soon appointed register in chancery for Monroe County. He resigned the position a few years later and moved to Mobile, where he joined the law firm of Pillans, Torrey and Hanaw. In 1889 he was elected city attorney of Mobile, an office he held for several terms. He died July 14,1917 in Mobile. They had no children. 3 LPR47 JAMES DELLET FAMILY PAPERS Series Descriptions with Container Listings Collection number: LPR47 I. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES, n.d. This subgroup includes biographical sketches and notes about James Dellet, Emma Dellet, Lyman Gibbons, Charles John Torrey, Helen Gibbons Torrey, and Gladen Gorin. Unarranged. Box 1, Folder 1 II. CORRESPONDENCE AND LETTERS, 1807-1907, undated This subgroup is divided into eight series further detailed below: A. James Dellet correspondence and letters, 1807-1849, undated; B. Harriet Dellet correspondence and letters, 1834-1849; C. Emma Dellet Gibbons correspondence and letters, 1838-1880; D. Lyman Gibbons correspondence and letters, 1856-1879; E. Charles J. Torrey correspondence and letters, undated; F. Helen “Dolly” Gibbons Torrey correspondence and letters, 1867-1894; G. Gladin Gorin correspondence and letters, 1848-1857; and H. Miscellaneous letters, undated A. JAMES DELLET, CORRESPONDENCE AND LETTERS, 1807-1849, undated This series is divided in to nine subseries further detailed below: 1. Correspondence and letters, 1807-Apr. 1828; 2. Correspondence and letters, May 1828-Dec.1830; 3. Correspondence and letters, Jan. 1831-Feb. 1833; 4. Correspondence and letters, Mar. 1833-Feb. 1835; 5. Correspondence and letters, Mar. 1835-May 1837; 6. Correspondence and letters, June 1837-May 1839; 7. Correspondence and letters, June 1839-Apr. 1842; 8. Correspondence and letters, May 1842-Dec. 1847; 9. Correspondence and letters, 1848-1849, undated. 1. Correspondence and letters, 1807- Apr. 1828 This subseries reflects James Dellet’s work as an Alabama lawyer and businessman. Topics discussed in the correspondence and letters debt settlements; the threat of loss of property by individuals whose debts were not paid; receipts of payment on debts, such as court expenses and business expenses; lawsuits; business transactions; the purchase and sale of slaves; runaway slaves; purchasing and selling of cotton and lumber; purchasing of goods from Brazil, Egypt, and India; deposits in banks by bank cashiers; a will contested in court; lists of claims; and a petition from the St. Stephens Steam Boat Co. Some of the letters that deal with financial matters come from circuit court clerks, the State Bank in Alabama (Tuskaloosa), branch banks in South Carolina (Charleston), and the Tombeckbe Bank in St. Stephens, Alabama. One of the correspondents is J.B. Cook, 4 LPR47 II. CORRESPONDENCE AND LETTERS, 1807-1907, undated (continued) A. JAMES DELLET CORRESPONDENCE AND LETTERS, 1807-1849, undated (cont.) 1. Correspondence and letters, 1807- Apr. 1828 (continued) who was a cashier of the State Bank at Tuskaloosa during the 1820s. Arranged chronologically. Box / Folder 1 2 1807-1819 1 3 1820 1 4 1821 1 5 1822 1 6 1823 1 7 1824 1 8 1825 1 9 1826 Jan. - June 1 10 1826 July - Dec. 1 11 1827 Jan. - June 1 12 1827 July - Dec. 1 13 1828 Jan. - Apr. 2. Correspondence and letters, May 1828 - Dec. 1830 This subseries reflects James Dellet’s work as an Alabama lawyer and businessman. Topics discussed in the correspondence and letters include debt collections; lawsuits; receipts of notes; claims against debtors; sale of property to pay debts; Dellet’s personal debt; estates; settlement of accounts; family illnesses; slavery (purchase and sale of slaves); sale of cotton, sugar, coffee, and salt in Liverpool, England; runaway slaves; and business affairs with Mobley and Co. and M. Sorkey Hagan and Co. Some of the letters that deal with financial matters come from circuit court clerks and the Branch Bank of South Carolina in George Town. Arranged chronologically Box / Folder 2 1 1828 May-Dec. 2 2 1829 Jan.-May 2 3 1829 June-Aug. 2 4 1829 Sept.-Dec. 2 5 1830 Jan.-Feb. 2 6 1830 Feb.-Mar. 2 7 1830 April 2 8 1830 May 2 9 1830 June-July 2 10 1830 Aug.-Sept. 2 11 1830 Oct.-Dec. 5 LPR47 II. CORRESPONDENCE AND LETTERS, 1807-1907, undated (continued) A. JAMES DELLET CORRESPONDENCE AND LETTERS, 1807-1849,undated (cont.) 3. Correspondence and letters, Jan. 1831 - Feb. 1833 This subseries reflects James Dellet’s work as an Alabama lawyer and businessman. In addition to similar political financial, and legal matters discussed in the previous two subseries, these papers discuss lawsuits; certificates of deposit with the Bank of the United States in Mobile; bonds; runaway slaves and slavery; Mr. Jose de Garcia of the Masonic brotherhood (in a letter by Dellet to Governor John Murphy); Dellet’s speech before the Alabama House of Representatives; family matters; a request to the state legislature to establish “The Planters Bank of Mobile”; Dellet’s slave Jefferson and the death and possible murder of Jefferson’s wife Polly; the court case of “James Dellet vs.