September 16, 1863: Henry and Mary Warner to John Warner

Henry and Mary Warner lived in Allegheny City, Pennsylvania, now part of Pittsburgh. They are the great-grandparents of poet Marianne Moore.  By the 1860s they had three surviving children:  John, Henry, and Anne. Their letters to John, a Presbyterian minister living in Gettysburg, are preserved as part of Marianne Moore’s family papers.

Transcript:

Allegheny City Wednesday September 16^th 1863 2 P.M.

Our Dear Children—Supposing that Jennie, Babe, John and Henry are at Gettysburg seeing ‘the sights’, and that you are all in good health, as this is Wednesday we thought we would pen you a letter to let you know Robert and the old couple are in excellent health—Robert steady attending to business

This day we received a letter from Anne from Ravenna, Her and the children are in excellent health & spirits, says she will be home on next Tuesday 22^nd—

As we have every reason to suppose, a letter from us by mail and the hard trunk per Express reached Gettysburgh on last Saturday evening—we expected a line by this morning’s mail at least, but we were not so favoured—Wishing you all health & happiness

We remain your affectionate father & mother Henry & Mary Warner

P.S. Mother says, The last we heard from John was three weeks last Monday—you said Jennie & Babe were unable to be brought home, You have been in Chambersburgh since we heard, Why did you not tell us how they were? or if you had got home, indeed it seemed very indifferent to keep us so long in suspense—we think you might have said whether you received the Sword and the trunk or not—Have you heard, or do you know any thing, about Henry’s Company being sent to ‘the field’, if you have, let us know, as Mother has heard something about it, which has made her somewhat uneasy

Citation: Henry and Mary Warner, autograph letter signed to John Riddle Warner. Allegheny City [Pittsburgh], 16 September 1863. Moore VI:05:23