Guide to the Page-Southard Family Letters, 1847-1903

Collection number: MC 182
Size: 1 box (0.22 cu.ft.)

About Page-Southard Families

The Pages and Southards were old families in Haverhill, New Hampshire, near the Vermont border. John Page (1787-1865) was one of Haverhill’s most honored and respected citizens, serving as town clerk, selectman (fourteen times), representative to the General Court (three times), U.S. Senator (1836-1837), and finally Governor of New Hampshire (1839-1842). He was an active and influential member of the Democratic party until the Free Soil movement won his loyalty. He eventually became one of the organizers of the Republican party in New Hampshire. Page married Hannah Merrill (1779-1855) in 1812 and they had nine children.

John and Hannah’s third child, Henry Harrison Page (1816-1848), married Eliza Southard, who was the second child born to Aaron Finlay (1784-1857) and Jane T. Finlay Southard (1790-1875), on September 29, 1841. Nathaniel Merrill Page (1818-1889), their fourth child, cemented the connection between the two families when he married Ann Jane Southard (1820-1902). Stephen Royce Page, their fifth child, married Carrie Smith. Samuel F. Southard (1813-1893), the oldest of Aaron and Jane’s children, never married. Kate V. Page (1848-1882) was the only daughter of Henry Harrison and Eliza Page.

[From The History of the Town of Haverhill, New Hampshire by William F. Whitcher, 1919 Town.]

About the Page-Southard Family Letters

The collection primarily contains letters to or from members of the Page and Southard families of Haverhill, NH. Of special interest is the letter written to Kate V. Page from Nathaniel Westgate of Haverhill, New Hampshire, while he was stationed at Camp Stoneman, Washington, D.C. The collection also contains a 24 page historically-based patriotic speech written by Stephen R. Page and delivered by him on the Fourth of July.

Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

This collection is open.

Copyright Notice

Contents of this collection are governed by U.S. copyright law. For questions about publication or reproduction rights, contact Special Collections staff.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], [Folder number], Page-Southard Family Letters, 1847-1903, MC 182, Milne Special Collections and Archives, University of New Hampshire Library, Durham, NH, USA.

Acquisitions Information

Purchased: Charles Apfelbaum, Watchung, NJ, Aug. 31, 1999 (Accession number: 99.019)

Series 1: Correspondence

Box 1
Box 1, Folder 1	From Stephen R. Page to Samuel Southard From Natchez, Mississippi, September 18, 1847 (1 letter) From Natchez, Mississippi, January 8, 1848 (1 letter)
Box 1
Box 1, Folder 2	To Kate V. Page Nathaniel Waite Westgate, Camp Stoneman, Washington, DC, July 29, 1864 (1 letter) Harry Chandler, Haverhill NH, March 13, 1865 (1 letter) C.H. Atkinson, Newbury, VT, June 4, 1866 (1 letter) L[uther].C[olby]. Morse, Concord, NH, June 14, 1870 (1 letter) L[uther].C[olby]. Morse, Grand Rapids, MI, April 22, 1871 (1 letter) L[uther].C[olby]. Morse, Louisville, KY, Nov. 21, 1872 (1 letter)
Box 1, Folder 3	To various Page family members Invitation to Mrs. Eliza Page from Miss Hannah Page, Sept. 8, 1851 (1 letter) Letter to Mrs. [E.] Page from L[uther].C[olby]. Morse, Grand Rapids, MI, April 17, [1871] (1 letter) Calling card of Mr. and Mrs. Horace F. Carr to Mr. and Mrs. N. Page Calling card of Mr. and Mrs. W. L. Woodbury to Jane and Kate Page Envelope addressed to Miss Jane Page
Box 1, Folder 4	To various Southard family members To Aaron Southard from John H. Swasey, Boston, MA, Sept. 11, 1854 and Oct. 9, 1854 (2 letters) Four calling cards, two each, belonging to Hattie N. Morse and Mr. and Mrs. W.D. Fishe Calling card of Mr. and Mrs. L.W. Patridge Invitation to Mr. S. Southard and sister from Mr. J.N. Morse, April 16, 1859
Box 1, Folder 5	Miscellaneous Items: not apparently related to either the Pages or the Southards To Hiram Sleeper from Morse and Kelsco (?), North Haverhill, Sept. 5, 1856 (1 letter) To Mr. Lang from Jamie, New York City, Nov. 11, 1867 (1 letter) To Cousin Frank from Sadie Wilson, Post Mills, Nov. 27, 1902 (1 letter) To Silah from C.E. Follansbee, Littleton, MA, Jan. 7, 1903 (1 letter) To Frank from Grace, undated (1 letter) Rhyming account of “Our First Skating Party, ” written by “F.E.E.,” January 23, 1899