Carpenter and Turley families papers, 1845-1962 | Louisiana Research Collection

Scope and Contents: The collection consists primarily of correspondence between the Turley and Carpenter families of Tennessee and Texas. The events recorded by the correspondence are centered mostly in Travis County, Texas and paint a picture of family life in a Texas farm community. The first group of correspondence (1845-1882) consists of correspondence between James M. Turley, Austin and Mamchaca, Texas, from various relatives. The second group of correspondence (1893-1937) is primarily correspondence between Will and Edna Turley, James M. Turley's children, and S.T. Carpenter, who married Edna Turley. Also included are James M. Turley's land grants, bills and receipts, crop mortgages, recollections of Edna Carpenter, family records, genealogical notes, and newspaper clippings. Materials in this collection were used to produce the memoirs of Edna Turley Carpenter, Tales from the Manchaca Hills, and correspondence and notes from the book's editor, Jane Carpenter Hogan are included in the collection.