THE PRUDEN FAMILY LETTERS

The Pruden letters come from the descendants of Peter-1. The actual line:

Ludlow-6, Daniel-5, Isaac-4, Joseph-3, John -2, Peter-1.

Letter Family Tree

Only members who wrote letters are included in this extremely abbreviated family tree. They are highlighted in red so their identity is clearer.

First Generation

Ludlow Pruden(1804-1869) m. Euphemia Kitchel(1809-1874)

(Ludlow's brother was Halsey (1799-?),his cousin Amzi(n.d.) and his uncle Ebenzer (1776-?)

Second Generation

Ludlow(1835-1904)

Ford(1840-1921)

Albert (1846-1889)

There are 162 Pruden family letters.

• Euphemia ,the matriarch,Rockaway, New Jersey, 86 letters 1859-1873 Most of her letters are written to her daughters Emma and Phebe.

• Euphemia's letters are a rich source of details about everyday 19th century life in a small New Jersey town.

• She lived her whole life in one place, Rockaway, New Jersey; outwardly her existence was uneventful. This suited her."Let us endeavor to fill the station Providence assigned without envy or discontent" Her letters tell of the ordinary events of life of a busy housewife and caring mother-housecleaning, taking care of the garden and cows, church meetings and services, going to weddings, concern over Ludlow, attending the birth of a grandchild, coping with the deaths of her daughter and husband . adjusting to widowhood.

• See Others for a list of letters to Euphemia or husband from Buel,Clark, Green, Paren, Shorter, Wells in Inventory-Pruden.

• Ludlow Pruden, her son, 53 letters 1850-1876 Most of his letters are written to his parents.

Ludlow's letters are a good source for details about some important 19th century events-
the Kansas slavery conflict, gold mining and the Civil War. His letters from the Midwest give us details about wages, the cost of goods and the cost of living.

1850(7)1851(3) About boarding school life- Mount Retirement School, many details about curriculum,activities etc.

1852(1) apprenticeship as a carpenter in Newark, N.J.

1855 (3) life in Illinois where Ludlow, Aged 20, had gone to seek his fortune.

1856(10) More letters from Illinois and Iowa. Many details about daily life, especially about costs. Ludlow was working for $1.50 a day as a carpenter and construction worker.

About the middle of 1856, he went to Iowa, where he almost immediately became ill, almost dying from typhoid. His landlord wrote:" I take this opportunity to let you know that your son Ludlow H. Pruden is laying very low with the tyfoid fever, there is not much hope for him to get well. It is his request to be taken home to be buryed if he should die; he has been sick for two weeks and is about run out of money. You can use your pleasure about comeing out."

Recovering , he had many medical bills and no money, so his family had to help him out

In 1857-1858(7) he was in Kansas, experiencing the violent political upheavals over slavery."When I first came here, there was a short time of quiet, comparatively. But the excitement has been increasing. In my opinion nothing sort of a revolution will allay it. But the administration can never force slavery upon the people of Kansas." See Bloody Kansas

In 1859-1860 he went to Colorado as a gold miner, apparently estranged from his family who were frantically trying to locate him. An 1860 letter from a fellow miner reassures them and also gives many interesting details of the gold mining life. See Gold Mining in Colorado

1862(1) Ludlow writes his mother to tell her he has enlisted in the Union army in one of the most dramatic of the family letters. A Union Soldier Enlists.

1863-1864(10) Civil War letters. Ludlow fought in the battle of Val Verde, New Mexico, where he was wounded and was sent back to Colorado to guard prisoners.

1867(3)1868(7)1870(1) Ludlow suffered terribly after the Civil War from post war nervous syndromes and from severe intestinal problems. These letters tell of his illness and hospitalization in a New York sanitarium

1873(1)1874(1)1876(1) Life in Colorado where he returned and bought a ranch.

Albert, Euphemia's son,Nashville, Tenn, Newark ,N.J.two letters 1864,1868 He is writing to his mother.

• The first tells of his Civil War service; he had joined a civilian group of engineers in Tennessee; the second a sad letter about the death of his wife.

Charles,Euphemia's son,four letters 1874,1879, to his mother and to Phebe.

• The 1874 letter tells of events in Henry Kitchel's household in Newark. Three 1879 letters are business ones to his sister Phebe about property.

Ford, Euphemia's son, one letter 1869 To Ludlow Pruden Jr.

• About his father's last illness.

Other Relatives

Halsey-Saline Township, Pulaski County, Arkansas Territory 14 letters 1819-1838 Mainly to his brother Ludlow Sr.

• Halsey was the brother-in-law of Euphemia . He is mainly writing from Arkansas, a "frontier" area in the early 19th century. The letters are interesting for details on ordinary life in this area- farming, religion, neighbors.

• .Many letters concern the brothers' difficulties in obtaining the inheritance they were supposed to receive from the estate of their middle brother , Daniel, who died in 1831 . This was delayed owing to the dishonesty of their uncle Ebenezer.
  There a miniature story in the letters about this struggle with a happy ending- the brothers were finally able to get their money.

Ebenezer, Halsey's uncle, Cincinnati, Ohio,one letter 1831,writing to his nephew, Ludlow Sr.

• This is a business letter telling of the inheritance. From what we know later of Ebenezer's dishonesty, this letter seems hypocritical.

Amzi, Ebenezer's son, Cincinnati, Ohio,one letter 1831,writing to his cousin, Ludlow Sr.

• This letter tells of the death of Daniel Pruden-a sanctimonious account-also discusses inheritance.

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