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Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], George A. Baxter Family Papers, WLU Coll 0003, Washington and Lee University, University Library
Special Collections and Archives, Lexington, VA.
In some cases the citation format may vary. Please contact Special Collections staff to verify the appropriate format.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
This collection was a gift of Mary Coulling, Martha Coulling, and Sidney M. B. Coulling.
Dr. George Addison Baxter was born in Rockingham County, Virginia in 1771. He attended Liberty Hall Academy, now Washington
and Lee University, and received his diploma in 1796. Baxter was licensed to preach in 1797 and was elected president of
Washington and Lee, when it was named Washington College, in 1799. He held that post until his resignation in 1829. Afterwards,
he served as a professor at the Union Theological Seminary in Prince Edward County, Virginia until his death in 1841.
The George A. Baxter Family papers begin in 1797 and trace the history of three generations of the Baxter family in Virginia.
The collection contains both correspondence and newspaper articles saved by the family.
The letters written by George Baxter primarily describe his ministry from 1798-1840. He writes with concern for both his
family and the churches to whom he ministered. The collection also contains many of his sermons which were reproduced in
assorted newspapers. Thirteen letters written in 1805 to Anne deal with the affairs of Washington and Lee University, when
it was named Washington College.
Also included is a partial biography of Baxter written by his daugher, Louisa. It describes his time at Washington College,
his church ministry, and his selection to the faculty at Union Theological Seminary.
Another large portion of the collection is the correspondence of Baxter's children. Sydney Baxter was an attorney whose practice
covered a large portion of Virginia. His letters concern his children, who were primarily cared for by his family after the
death of his wife, Anna. Two of his sons fought in the Civil War and both died during or soon after. He describes experiencing
their deaths.
Baxter's other children maintained a steady correspondence between themselves. Joseph follwed his father into the Presbyterian
ministry and died at a young age. His wife, Susan, continued corresponding with family members. Louisa, Elizabeth, Nancy,
and Mary also contained active correspondence with one another.
The family papers reflect the social life of 19th century Virginia, including a personal recipe book, as well as a folder
on the genealogy of the Fleming family and a letter to Louisa Baxter from a missionary's wife in China. Other correspondents
include Alexander Tedford Barclay, Louisa Baxter, William Brown, William Henry Foote, Edward Graham, Samuel L. Graham, Hugh
Blair Grigsby, and William Swann Plumer.
Folder includes letters written by Charles S. M. See to his aunt Louisa Baxter during the American Civil War. Includes description
of early war situation in Tucker (W. Va.) and Augusta County, Virginia. One letter details the death of his brother George
Baxter See in a Confederate hospital in 1864. Another details Charles' capture and confinement in both the old Capital Prison
in Washington D.C. and Johnson's Island Prison in Ohio. This letter also mentions President Abraham Lincoln's assassination
and the surprisingly cordial relations of Unionists and Secessionists in the immediate post war period in Tucker County, West
Virginia.
