Records of ante-bellum southern plantations - LexisNexis

Fervor over religion continued to grow as well. Eliza, on 28 July 1845, described a camp
meeting just south of Drummond Town that drew over 1,000 participants. In a letter, dated 16
February 1846, to Cropper’s wife, Rosina, Ann Savage discussed the conflict brewing between
the county judge and the Methodist Episcopals in Accomack County. Religious conflicts reached
within the family as well. In late 1846, Eliza and Ann quit communicating because of a religious
disagreement (see letter of 27 December 1846). Eliza wrote in March blaming the illness of Ann
Savage’s daughter, Lizzie, on religious overexcitement.
On 26 April 1847, Eliza reported anger among local Methodists over the county court’s having
banned the Methodist Advocate because of its abolitionist leanings. She also reported that the
debate over having Northern preachers in the church was sharply dividing the people. The
“question everywhere,” she wrote, “is are you North or South.” The family’s relationship with Ann
Savage also worsened. Savage wrote on 2 May 1847 that she had little to do with her relations
because of their implication of the church in Lizzie’s illness and her brother Coventon’s drinking.
As 1847 wore on, the situation in the county deteriorated. On 1 September 1847, Catharine
Gibb described an armed mob in Drummond Town that had attempted to kill Judge Thomas H.
Bayly on court day over the North versus South issue. He, his wife Evelyn, and their daughter,
Nannie, had to be locked in the county jail to protect them. Little information appears on politics
after 1847. One letter, dated 1 June 1848, from Coventon mentions the Tory party (in which he
placed Thomas) and the Whig convention, and one letter, dated 10 August 1848, from Eliza
concerns her husband’s attendance at a meeting of the Sons of Temperance, which he had
joined in 1847. Almost all the letters in 1848 are from Coventon and discuss improvements he
was making to the house and mill at Edgehill.
In addition to politics and religion, Cropper family letters frequently discuss farming activities
(especially Coventon Cropper’s), family illnesses and deaths, marriages, visits, local events, and
fears for Thomas’s safety at sea. Several letters are of interest, including one of 5 July 1841, in
which Catharine Gibb described a local 4th of July celebration. Ann Savage wrote from Gargotha
on 8 March 1843 mentioning Thomas Cropper’s engagement to Rosina Mix. Two letters appear,
written on 3 and 5 March 1844, from friends congratulating Cropper on the birth of his daughter,
Catharine (Kitty). News of note in other letters are Eliza’s move to Metompkin Island in March
1845, where her husband opened a school; smallpox aboard the New York in 1845; local boat
races; Thomas Cropper’s taking command of the West Point (see 1 September 1847); and the
running aground of a New Orleans bark, the Mauran of Providence, at Gargotha in December
1847.
A few letters appear from Judge Thomas H. Bayly in 1840 and 1843, written while he traveled
to Norfolk and Petersburg, from his home, Mount Custis, in Accomack County. He said little of
politics and focused instead on his wishes for Cropper to quit the sea, marry, and settle down in
Accomack County. His letters give news of eligible women and farms for sale in the area. T. T.
Cropper of Accomack County wrote on 10 April 1843 concerning the sale of Cropperville, a farm
Thomas Cropper was considering buying.
Family members and friends frequently mentioned in the letters include Catharine Cropper,
the Joynes family, the Bayly family, the Custis family, James Ailworth, and Kitty Bagwell.
Business letters concern mostly ship affairs, and include letters of introduction; notes
concerning packages shipped; requests for recommendations; requests for the procurement of
English goods; and inquiries about passengers and fares. Several individuals wrote concerning
seamen under Cropper’s employ. On 24 April 1840, A. Graham wrote seeking information on his
son, George, a sailor on the Columbus. In a letter of 16 April 1847, Fred Kellam of Pungoteague
sought information on his stepson, George Wise, who was a sailor on the New York. Two letters
appear in 1844 from John Ker in Eastville asking Cropper to take on his son as a sailor. Another
letter of note is from Bagwell Topping of Drummond Town, written 11 May 1848, concerning his
son, David, who had left Cropper’s employ.
Other items of particular note include a letter, dated 15 May 1843, from Charles H. Marshall,
concerning Cropper’s taking command of the New York; a letter of 4 August 1846, from Thomas
T. Cropper, concerning a lawsuit between John and Catharine Wise and Augustus Bagwell of
Accomack County; a letter, dated 18 May 1847, from Vespasian(?) Ellis of New York, seeking
capitalization for trade among Venezuela, the United States, and England; and a letter, dated 26
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