Ford, Roelker, Turle family papers

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Description: The Ford, Roelker, and Turle families were united by intermarriage and resided in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Staten Island. The members of these families include the descendants of Gordon Lester Ford (1823-1891), a prominent businessman and lawyer, and Emily Fowler Ford (1826-93), well-known poet, novelist, and granddaughter of lexicographer Noah Webster (1758-1843).This collection spans multiple generations and consists of family papers, photographs, and genealogical research papers of the Fords, Roelkers, Turles and related families in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Names: Cooper, Madge Huntington (Addressee); Ford, Emily, 1850-1930 (Creator); Ford, Gordon Lester, 1823-1891 (Contributor); Roelker, Bernard, 1816-1888 (Correspondent); Webster, Noah, 1758-1843 (Creator); New York Genealogical and Biographical Society Collection (Former owner)
Dates / Origin: Date Created: 1811 - 1984
Library locations: Manuscripts and Archives Division; Shelf locator: MssCol NYGB 18248
Topics: Authors; Lawyers; Brooklyn (New York, N.Y.) -- History -- 19th century; Germany -- Genealogy; New York (N.Y.) -- Genealogy; New York (N.Y.) -- Historiography -- 19th century; New York (N.Y.) -- Social life and customs -- 19th century; Rhode Island -- Genealogy; United States -- Emigration and immigration
Genres: Documents; Clippings; Photographs; Sketchbooks
Notes: Biographical/historical: The Ford, Roelker, and Turle families were united by intermarriage and resided in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Staten Island. The members of these families include the descendants of Gordon Lester Ford (1823-1891), a prominent businessman and lawyer, and Emily Fowler Ford (1826-93), well-known poet, novelist, and granddaughter of lexicographer Noah Webster (1758-1843). Gordon and Emily had seven children and their oldest daughter, Kathleen (1856- 1932), married Robert Hobbs Turle (1846-1905), an Englishman who relocated to the United States and became a self-made businessman. They had three daughters and one of them, Millicent (1888-1967), married Alfred Roelker (1875-1953), who's father, Alfred K.F. (1837-1915), came to the United States from Germany in 1852. He was 15 years old at the time, and was taken care of by his uncles, who emigrated to the United States in the 1830s. Alfred K.F. married Catherine Greene Lawton of Newport, Rhode Island and they had Isabella (1870-1890), Anna (1871-1965) and Alfred Jr. (1875-1953). The younger Alfred went to Columbia law school, specialized in real estate law, and eventually settled in Staten Island. He also served in WWI and was a firm believer in compulsory military training. Alfred and Millicent had three daughters, Roberta, Katrina, and Hildegarde.; Content: This collection spans multiple generations and consists of family papers, photographs, and genealogical research papers of the Fords, Roelkers, Turles and related families in the 19th and 20th centuries. Alfred K.F. is used to refer to Alfred Sr. who came to the United States from Germany, and Alfred is used when referring to Alfred K.F.'s son, who was born in the United States. Papers are filed alphabetically by family name or location name. Most of the family papers belong to the Roelkers. Some items of interest include Alfred K.F.'s letters to and from family in Germany in the mid-19th century, which document his arrival at the age of 15 in the United States; Alfred K.F.'s sisters Isabella and Anna's sketchbook and book of poems, respectively; and Alfred's son Alfred's letters from the U.S.S. FDR to his wife Millicent in 1950 regarding Cuba. Other items of interest in the family papers include Kathleen Ford Turle's memoirs of Brooklyn Heights, a signed letter by Noah Webster to the Hartford Times in 1840, and the journal of the Turle Family European trip in1898. The photographs are separated into two sub-series, files and daguerreotypes. The files contain portraits of family members, locations, and residences. Some particular points of interest are photographs of Emily Fowler Ford and Gordon Lester Ford; interior photos of the Ford home in Brooklyn Heights, New York; photographs of the Lawtons and their residences in Rhode Island; and photographs of Alfred K.F. Roelker from the mid-19th century. The Roelkers and Lawtons are well-represented in the daguerreotypes. They span in date from the mid-to-late 19th century. The genealogical research papers contain the combined research of multiple family members, including Madge Huntington Cooper, Anna E. Roelker, Charles Platt, Jr. (who wrote a comprehensive genealogy of the Roelkers), and others. Some items of interest include copies of correspondence between Bernard Roelker and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow; transcriptions of Emily Fowler Ford's notebook regarding her children; and photocopies of Kathleen Ford Turle's diary. Genealogical materials related to Alfred K.F. Roelker and Catherine Lawton Roelker include references to family domestic arrangements in the early 19th century in Osnabruck, Germany and Newport, Rhode Island.
Physical Description: Extent: 2.35 linear feet (8 boxes)
Type of Resource: Text; Still image
Identifiers: NYPL catalog ID (B-number): b18668092; MSS Unit ID: 18248; Universal Unique Identifier (UUID): af5315f0-3943-0138-4ccb-0f7aefff05c7

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Ford, Roelker, Turle family papers

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