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fully credited with the source. Permission for publication of this material, in part or in full, must be secured with the
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Conditions Governing Access
This collection is available for research use.
Preferred Citation
Preferred citation: [Identification of item], Alexander Lockhart Nelson Papers, WLU Coll. 0303, Special Collections and Archives,
James G. Leyburn Library, Washington and Lee University, Lexington, VA
In some cases the citation format may vary. Please contact Special Collections' staff to verify the appropriate format.
Alexander Lockhart Nelson was born in Augusta County, Virginia in 1827. He was of Scots-Irish and Presbyterian ancestry.
He was raised in Augusta County, Virginia and attended Washington College – predecessor institution to Washington and Lee
University in Lexington, enrolling in 1846. Upon graduating from Washington College, he spent time advancing his degree and
teaching at University of Virginia before becoming a full professor at his alma mater. He had a long career at WLU and was
designated Professor Emeritus in 1906.Nelson died on August 31, 1910.
On July 5, 1855 he married Miss Elizabeth Harvey Moore of Lexington, Virginia. Together they raised a family of three daughters
and one son: Bessie Nelson,who later married Mr. Albert W. Gaines of Chattanooga, TN; Julia Nelson, who married Mr. Walter
S. Forrester of Anchorage, KY; Frank A. Nelson; and Miss Evelyn Moore Nelson.
The Alexander Lockhart Nelson Papers consist of materials related to Nelson's life as mathematician at Washington and Lee
University; Nelson, Guy, Matthews, Archer, and Rennick family genealogy; an address by Nelson on his teaching experience during
Robert E. Lee's presidency of Washington College; some family and miscellaneous correspondences; and photographs. Included
and, perhaps, the primary aspect of the collection is Nelson's notebook used during his time as both student and professor
of mathematics during the mid through late 19th century. The notebook also contains a range of content unrelated to his career
as mathematician such as an extensive family tree, a journal/day book which includes details about weather from December 1880
through March 1881 in Lexington, Va.; a pencil drawing of his property and its improvements in downtown Lexington; and notes
about payments made to a hired laborer for his Lexington home and grounds. There is an albumen photograph of a group of young
girls of the Ann Smith Academy in Lexington – including an image of Nelson's daughter Evelyn. The collection is in two series
– each formerly a unique accession from unique sources and different dates. The collections have recently been combined. Each
series includes a control folder explaining its provenance. Series two includes a letter from WLU student Jack C. Desha in
1871 to his father Lucius Desha of Kentucky. In the letter Jack shares his travel experiences from Cincinnatti, Ohio to Lexington,
Va., including an overnight visit in Washington DC. Series two also includes student Randolph Preston's (WLU class of 1902)typescript
reminiscence of his Washington and Lee University student experience fifty years earlier.
Synopsis and Analysis of A. L. Nelson Math Journal by Elizabeth Wolf including transcription of the non-math portions of the
journal; a brief summary of an announcement in the Religious Herald section of the Lexington Gazette, Nov 21, 1889; a copy
of an article from the online West Virginia Cyclopedia about mining in Royal, WV; a copy of the Miley carte de visite of A.
L. Nelson.
Text box: 1 folder: 2
Genealogy
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 2
Math Problem 1
1880-06English.
Text box: 1 folder: 2
Notice of Death
1882-08-05English.
Text box: 1 folder: 2
Letter from Margaret M. Ratcliffe to A. L. Nelson
1893-12-11English.
Text box: 1 folder: 2
Letter from R. M. Guy to A. L. Nelson
1903-11-16English.
Text box: 1 folder: 2
Biographical Notes on A. L. Nelson and Wm. Nelson
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 2
Letter from "your cousin" Belle M. Guy to A. L. Nelson
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 2
Genealogy Notes -- John Mathews and James Lockhart
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 2
Genealogy Notes -- Matthews family
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 2
Genealogy Diagram -- Matthews Family
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 2
Genealogy Diagram -- Guy, Henry, Moore, Nelson Families
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 2
Genealogy Notes -- Myers and Nelson Families
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 2
Genealogy Diagram -- Robert Guy Family
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Math problems
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Letter from E. A. Armistead to A. L. Nelson
1906-04-20English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Pledged Math Paper, F. N. Snead
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Pledged Math Paper, F. R. Crawford
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Math Problem 2
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Example in Integral Calculus, No. 6, Page 131
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Math Problem 4
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Math Problem 6
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Examination, Intermediate Math
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Math Problem 7
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Working of Proof (2), page 111, Byerly's Int Cal
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Math Problem 8
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Math Problem 9
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Math Problem 10
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Math problem III (3)
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Exam, Math II
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Math Problem 11
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Ex (1) and 146 Brierly Int Calculus
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Math problem V (5)
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Math Problem 12
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 3
Mathematics II, H. R. Morse
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 4
Misc materials
English.
Text box: 1 folder: 4
Math Problem 13
1882-12-22English.
Text box: 1 folder: 4
Nelson's Receipts for Clothing: Vest, Coat, Trousers