John Anderson, Cincinnatti, to His Sister Fanny, Donegal.

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Document ID 212205
Date 11-09-1857
Document Type Letters (Emigrants)
Archive Anderson
Citation John Anderson, Cincinnatti, to His Sister Fanny, Donegal.;Copyright Reserved by Andrew S Anderson; CMSIED 212205
32020
$$H166 Part of the Andrew S Anderson Collection $$H

Letter Five: John Anderson, Cincinnatti, to his sister Fanny
(Frances)
in Donegal, County Donegal, dated 11th September 1857.

Cincinnatti
11th September 1857

My Dear Fanny
                     When I came to enquire about my passage
to Galveston I found that I could come to Cincinnatti from
New-York by Railway and take the steamer here for New-Orleans
and go across from thence to Galveston by steamer for the same
expense as going direct to Galveston from New-York, besides I
can by coming this way stop a few days or perhaps a week in
New-Orleans with Mrs Boals and be there two weeks sooner which
is some consideration as I go to work on my arrival there.
New-Orleans never was so healthy as it is this summer, there
is no sickness of any kind there. I could have stopped on in
New-York and earned as much as would keep me by drudging. The
Grocery trade is about the meanest in New-York and I think this
is a first rate chance for me to get out of it. I shall only be
able for the first six months to save about as much as will pay
my expenses in going there and as much as would bring me back
to New-York if I wanted, moreover I don't believe I shall as I
am quite sure at the end of my engagement I will get a thousand
or 1200 dollars a year. Mr Boals thinks he can get me a
situation
in New-Orleans if he can I would rather stay there  however I
shall not spend longer than a week there as I want to get to
work
to be making a little money. I saw Mr Wilson, Mr Boals's
Cousin and clerk in New-York last week, he is a very nice quiet
young fellow. I have got a written agreement with me ensuring me
the place if I am in Galveston any time before 1st November and
he
has given me the chance if I can get any thing better in
New-Orleans
to take it, I could not ask for any thing fairer.  I left
New-York
by the New York and Erie Railroad on Tuesday Evening at five
o'clock
and arrived here at Eight on Thursday morning a distance of 700
or
800 miles. We passed through some 400 or 500 miles of forest
without
any Inhabitants only a little narrow strip on each side of the
Railroad. We passed through about 20 or 30 Towns on our way some
of
them very large. Erie is a large town, we stopped an hour and a
half
in Cleveland where we changed C--? [Cars?], it is built on the
very
edge of Lake Erie from what I see of it it might be about as
large
again as Derry. Cincinnatti is a very large place it contains
about
200,000 Inhabitants about six times the number of Derry. John
Mills
of the City House is living here he is in business for himself.
I
saw him a month ago in New-York. He was down there buying goods
I
am going up to see him today, his cousin William who ran away
from
the City House during the time I was there is living in
New-Orleans,
we sail tomorrow but in the meantime I am at no expense as I
took
my passage yesterday an hour after I arrived and came on board
at
once, we get the very best of living that could be had at the
best
Hotel in the United States, the River Boats here are fitted up
in
the most magnificent style far exceeding any of the steamers in
England and every two of us has a State Room to ourselves with
separate beds.
I was very much disappointed in not getting a letter from either
you or James before leaving New-York, if you be writing, direct
as usual to Andrew McGuigan he will forward them to my address,
you need not expect to hear from me for more than two months as
there is no use in writing for a couple of weeks after I get
there and it will take a month to bring a letter to England, I
expect you will let me hear every thing that is going on in the
old sod, Remember me to Anthony McLoone and Jenny Farrell.

Your affectionate Brother
John Anderson


The name of the Boat I go by is the C. Bealer. We will go there
in
about 8 or 9 days. I expect it will be a very pleasant sail as
we
have a whole lot of Ladies and Gentlemen on Board, we go down
the
Ohio River to Cairo about 500 miles where it falls into the
Mississippi.
I don't know how far it is from there but it must be 12 or 15
hundred
miles. I forgot to mention that I have spent every Sunday since
I came
with Aunt Sarah and very kind and friendly her and the boys have
been.
Robert went out two weeks ago to Chicago, he has been idle for 4
or
5 months, I don't think very much about him but William and
Finley
are very steady wise fellows and are conducting themselves very
well,
they are about two of the smartest fellows in New-York. I wish
you
could send me William Anderson's address if you have heard from
him.

                                    John

I wrote to William before leaving N.York.


Transcribed by  Andrew S Anderson