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Harry T. Stephens Papers

Collection 103

 

AnchorIntroduction

The materials in this collection contain information about the activities of a closely knit and religious family. It discusses their activities in the Topeka area and the activities of family members elsewhere. They cover over three generations of the Stephens family. They also provide some insight into the activities of an insurance agent, a torpedo bomber pilot in World War II, soldiers in the Army of the Potomac during the Civil War, etc.

Scope and Content

The Harry T. (Harrison Tyler) Stephens papers are actually a collection of family papers relating to Thomas White Stephens, his wife Mary Elizabeth Tyler Stephens, and their eight children, including Harry T. Stephens. Thomas Stephens and his wife came to Kansas in 1867, homesteaded in the Pleasant Hill area, and moved to Topeka in 1903. The materials in the collection date from 1861 to 1952.

The collection contains some Civil War correspondence of Thomas, his brother Jimmie, and their father John. Thomas also wrote his reminiscences of the Civil War and these are included in the collection. Thomas and Jimmie served in the Army of the Potomac as members of Company K, 20th Indiana Regiment, Infantry. The family was close and very religious and the correspondence reflects these concerns.

The children of Thomas White Stephens remained close as they left Topeka and, as a result, developed a round-robin correspondence system handled by their unmarried sister Carrie (Caroline). Almost every Sunday from 1923 to 1952, Harry wrote a letter to Carrie and, after Carrie’s death, his sister Mary, that was then distributed to other family members. The correspondence deals with immediate and extended family matters, church activities, some business activities, and events in general. Harry T. Stephens kept a carbon copy of his Sunday letter, which was from time to time included in a bound volume of these copies.

Other correspondence in the collection includes general family correspondence; correspondence from or relating to Harry T. Stephens’ son Paul Ramsey Stephens, who was killed in the Pacific during World War II; and business correspondence. Other categories of material in the collection include genealogical correspondence and notes collected by Frank Fletcher Stephens, miscellaneous material relating to the Pleasant Hill Methodist Church, material relating to the deaths and funeral services of various family members, and assorted deeds, documents, etc. The collection also includes diaries kept by Harry T. Stephens for 1899, 1902, and 1903 describing his activities at Baker University; Kansas State Agricultural College, Manhattan; and after returning to Topeka. A series of business journals dating from 1909 to 1941 contain brief entries about Stephens’ travels and his expenses as the state agent for the Insurance Company of North America. The collection also includes day-by-day calendars dating from 1941 to 1952 that contain brief monthly accounts of income and expenditures, with only the calendars for 1942 and 1943 having any additional entries.

The materials in this collection contain information about the activities of a closely knit and religious family. It discusses their activities in the Topeka area and the activities of family members elsewhere. They cover over three generations of the Stephens family. They also provide some insight into the activities of an insurance agent, a torpedo bomber pilot in World War II, soldiers in the Army of the Potomac during the Civil War, etc.

P. A. M.
July, 1977

Contents List

Box 1
“Sunday letters” written by Harry T. Stephens 1923-1936

Box 2
“Sunday letters” written by Harry T. Stephens 1937-1952

Box 3
Family and genealogical correspondence 1861-1952
Correspondence from Paul Ramsey Stephens and, after his death
in 1945, family and military correspondence 1941-1947
Miscellaneous material relating to Paul Ramsey Stephens
Civil War Reminiscences of Thomas White Stephens
Material relating to the deaths and funeral services of various
family members
Stephens genealogical material – compiled by Frank Fletcher
Stephens
Material relating to Pleasant Hill Methodist Church
Miscellaneous material – deeds, documents, wills, newspaper
clippings, etc.

Box 4
Business correspondence – Insurance Company of North America-
1902-1936
Miscellaneous business materials
Letters received by Harry Stephens on his 25th anniversary as an
employee of the Insurance Company of North America – 1934
Business Diaries – 1909-1936

Box 5
Business Diaries 1937-1941
Diaries 1899, 1902, and 1903
Day by day diaries – a few entries in 1942 and 1943 –the rest contain
monthly accounts of income and expenses—1941-1953
“Genealogy of Thomas White Stephens and his wife Mary Elizabeth
Tyler” by Frank Fletcher Stephens