| Scope and content |
Collection consists of Mills family correspondence. Pre-Civil War correspondence describes conditions in Concord, Salisbury, and Lincolnton, N.C., and includes letters from Charles Frederick Fisher, president of the North Carolina Railroad, to Richard W. Mills concerning railroad financial matters. Civil War correspondence concerns the war in North Carolina and Virginia. Letters describe Camp Hill near Garysburg, N.C., and the camp of the 4th North Carolina Infantry Regiment near Manassas Junction, Va., after the First Battle of Manassas. Other topics include the battles of Malvern Hill, Fredericksburg, and Gettysburg; the fall of Forts Hatteras and Clark; medical care; and the western North Carolina home front. Post-war correspondence reflects economic conditions in North Carolina and the migration of people from the state. Letters describe opportunities in Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Florida, Texas, Oregon, the Arizona Territory, and Washington. Other topics include the lives of women in the late 19th century and North Carolina and Statesville politics. Spanish-American War correspondence describes Camp Cuba Libre in Jacksonville, Fla., and J. F. Mills's experience being court-martialed while serving in Cuba. The bulk of correspondence from the early 20th century is written by or about Quincy Mills, a reporter for the New York Evening Sun. Other 20th century correspondence discusses New York City politics, social conditions in the city, and the effects of the Depression. |
| Biographical note | The Mills family of Iredell County, N.C., first settled in North Carolina when Charles Nathaniel Mills, a physician and druggist, migrated to western North Carolina from Maryland in 1794. He settled in Iredell County where he practiced medicine and farmed. Subsequent generations have been involved in medicine, railroading, brick-making, mercantile activities, and farming. |
