Duplin County, NC - Jesse Grimes Letters ----¤¤¤---- ST # 25, Old Washington C.H., Ala. January 1st 1852 Jesse. Upon the advent of a new year, I have concluded to send you my greetings on this sheet with whatever else I may think ofas I progress onward. I need not tell you that we had a dry summer and fall. That was a general thing throughout the South- western States. I believe this immediate neighborhood has as little cause to complain as any place I have heard of. There is corn enough to supply our necessity and none over. The cotton crop is equal perhaps a little better than that of 1850. The people are very little in debt. Officers have but little to collect except taxes which are pretty high and must continue so until our State debt is paid off. This will soon be done if the present policy is persued. The old state banks are winding up their business very rapidly. Two more years will probably close up that unfortunate system of banking in our State and I think our people will never be guilty of the same error again. I suppose you know that Alabama is waking up on the subject of internal improvements particularly that of rail and plank roads. Of the later, there is quite a number in successful operation and no few progressing & projecting. Of the former there is three in progress. The first from Montgomery eastward to the Georgia line will soon be completed,is of great importance to the travelling east & west will soon be met by the Georgia road and when the road now in rapid progress from Columbia, S.C. to Charlotte, N.C. will afford an inland passage from Canada to New Orleans. The next of our great railroads to be completed in that from Selma on the Alabama River to the Tennessee at Old Fort Deposite. Page 2 The work commenced on this road at Selma about 15 months since. There is about forty five miles nearly ready to receive the iron. A part of the tract is finished and a splendid engine on it and people all in good spirit of soon finishing the entire road. This is looked upon as a road of great importance to Mobile. It will certainly do an extensive business in bringing the products of that country which this road is intended to tap to our seaport. But the road which is as yet progressing slowly with great caution and-I believe with certainty is that directly from Mobile to Cairo on the Mississippi and thence to Chicago on Lake Michigan. They have been at work on this end of that road two years and have only graded 33 miles. They are now laying down the track on that part. Have received the iron for that much of the road and have also received one very large engine and several passenger cars which is intended to be used on this 33 miles next summer. At the terminus is to be a summer villa named Citronelle. It Is a beautiful level open pine woods high, dry & sandy with plenty of bold free stone springs. As this road will pass through Miss, Tenn. & Ky., it was necessary to enlist them in the great enterprise. This is done and the only thing now to delay the work on the whole line is the assurance that 176 miles commencing at Mobile can & will be built by Ala. 66 miles from Mobile strikes the line of Miss. thence 110 m. to Kemper County. And here lies the doubt. Each county, thence to Cairo is believed to be able to grade its portion of the road and the States have made appropriation probably sufficient to furnish the iron. The friends of the road everywhere seem to be certain of the ultimate success of this great undertaking. It is contemplated to put the grading of the remaining part of the road to Kemper co. under contract very soon. It is said that when this is done the balance of the line will also be put under contract without delay.It is hoped that when these roads get into operation, Mobile will become what nature seems to have Intended, a large commercial city. page 3 The Bigby River has been too low for steamers only of the lightest class for the last4 months until now. Some of the large size have gone up to tryit. Unless a further rise some of them will be apt to stay up a while. I have heretofore told you about our mineral springs, particularly the Bladon Springs. You would be surprised to see that place. To see the improvements made there within, the year just closed. There is a neat little village, houses all of the same proportions, painted white, arranged with great skill and taste, making a very comfortable and pleasing appearance. The Free Masons have a fine prosperous lodge there, erected last summer, of which I am a member in the upper chamber. Several more of my folks will start at the foot of the ladder soon with strong hopes of climbing to its summit. Last summer another set of springs at the Harrell old place, one mile on this side of Bladon, was sold by a poor old man, who had only just entered the lands and partially oppened some half dozen springs of different qualities of water, all on 1/8 of an acre, to one, Charley Cullum a celebrated hotel keeper 8f Mobile, who was burned out 12 months ago, for the neat little sum of $3900, after having rec'd $300 for three acre lots and reserving 20 acres for his own use, having at first only 120 acres. These springs have the name of their present proprietor and has just commenced opperations there; gives a public dinner today of which I am in a hurry to get to and I fear will not be able to finish the whole sheet before I shall be compelled to start. A good many strangers have of late been looking at this section of country and trying to suit themselves with land. Some few have bought places and others are expected to do so. The aspect of things about here are changing and for the better of course. Society is Improving too but we are yet in a low condition as regards schools at this time. There is none in reach of me. I have sent all except Martha as much as I expect to. Though not as much as I wished. Ann ought to go 6 months longer. Page 4 I was at brother James's the last of October. Saw his wife for the first time and think he made a good selection. She is an industrious decent woman and as he told me very agreeable. His daughter (Sally Ann) has been here ever since July till the week before Christmas. She is one of the best girls I ever knew and passable in appearance. William and Ann went home with her and returned Christmas eve. Left all well except colds. His son William is to marry tonight. The name is McCann and a close relative of Hugh McCann of Duplin. He is a good steady boy and industrious. James has fine land and plenty cleared for all his purposes. He shows age and hard usage tho he has plenty and I believe lives well,enjoys his friends and is very independent in money matters. My own health is fine. Asha is always complaining but benerally on foot. She is declining so fast and has been for a few years that unless a change she will not hold out much longer. Louisa married Samuel M. Russell, the son of a Baptist preacher living not far from the Hugh Tinnen old place. He is a smart active young man with a pretty good share of common sense. He has settled near his father on Pooscoos Creek. They will both work. The rest are with me. William made a crop to himself again last year and done much better than I did, in corn particularly. I have not ginned my own cotton yet. I planted 20 acres of new ground that I think made a bale per acre. I am not quite done picking. There has been so much bad weather and other business to attend to of late that I have done but little. Two weeks ago was the coldest weather that has been here for years past. I expect this will reach Anderson about the time you will get home from Austin. Then give me all the news, even tell me what Albert and Frank are doing, as they can not condescend to write themselves. They (are) a couple of strange fellows and I do not wish to disturb there state of repose. Wm. Grimes. __________________________________________________________________ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm This file was contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by Sharon Timmons ___________________________________________________________________