The William Henry Edwards Diaries

William Henry Edwards was the son of William Henry Edwards and Eleanor Schenck Mount. He was the brother of Seeber Edwards and Stephen Ostrom Edwards. He was born in 1850 in Glen, Montgomery County, New York. He was a teacher and a farmer. In 1884 he married Mary Elizabeth Lounsberry.He eventually settled in the house where he and his brothers and sisters were born. He remained there tilling the soil for the rest of his life. During his life William Henry left behind an extensive collecton of diaries.

The William Henry Edwards diary collection consists of 21 books (19 diaries & two ledgers). The diaries are from: 1877, 1878, 1883, 1909, 1910, 1911, 1912, 1913, 1914, 1915, 1916, 1917, 1918, 1919, 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923, and 1924. The two ledger books are from 1906 - 1909, and 1910 - 1911.

In early 2006 I was contacted by an antiques dealer, Paula DeFeyter. She was trying to find a descendant who would be interested in buying the whole collection. My father and I agreed to purchase the collection. And what a treasure it has turned out to be.

The diaries give us a real glimpse into the daily lives of our ancestors and first hand accounts of births, deaths and marriages. We are learning what it was like to be a farmer in the late 1800s and early 1900s. And we are learning more about the people from which we came.

To read the ongoing transcription of the diaries please visit the blog The Diaries of William Henry Edwards 1877-1924.

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