Papers of the Pope and Carter families contain the letters, 1900-1939, of William Rivers Pope, officer in the United States Army, including a few letters dealing with his service in the Philippines, 1900-1901, and a large number of letters concerning his experiences in France in World War I from June, 1918, to June,1919, as commander of the 113th Infantry Regiment in the Meuse-Argonne offensive and commander of the military police in the area of the American Embarcation Center, LeMans, France.
World War I letters comment on the overall war effort, the peace, characteristics of soldiers, the role of the Negro soldier in the war, and the people and countryside of France. Letters, 1919-1939, deal for the most part with personal and family matters and refer to a few events of Pope's later military career, particularly his part in the stratosphere flight sponsored by the National Geographic Society and the Army Air Corps, 1934-1935.
The collection also contains letters, 1818-1821, to Dr. Benjamin Carter (1792-1865), a physician in Tennessee, from his brother John Conyers Carter (1793-1828), a lawyer in Camden, South Carolina, concerning family and professional matters, the panic of 1819 and other economic and political issues, internal improvements, and problems of the judicial system in South Carolina; and letters, 1831-1834, from his cousin John Carter, a lawyer and former congressman, pertaining to family affairs and life in Camden. Letters from members of the Clark family in Columbus, Mississippi, to members of the Pope family in Tennessee, 1827-1834, describe working on steamboats on the Mississippi and Ohio rivers, mercantile business in Columbus, and trading with the Choctaw Indians.
Correspondence, 1833-1834, between Gustavus Adolphus Pope in Mississippi and his family in Tennessee concerns the agricultural situation, prices for cotton and other crops, public land policy, and attitudes on slavery and religion. Correspondence, 1836-1855, among members of the family of William Rouse Pope, including Lesey Jane (Webster) Pope and William Leonidas Pope, concerns the settling of estates, family matters, and the prospects for settling in Texas, including farming conditions, opportunities for employment, land transfers, and social and religious life, Letters, 1853-1865, of Sarah Myra (Rodes) Rivers Trotter to her daughter, Cynthia (Rivers) Carter, discuss family gossip, travels, homemaking concerns, social events, and the impact of the Civil War. Other Civil War letters include those of Benjamin Franklin Carter to his wife, Cynthia (Rivers) Carter, and the letters of William Leonidas Pope and Gustavus Adolphus Pope.
Writings include a manuscript entitled "Recollections of the [Civil] War," by Cynthia (Rivers) Carter, 1899; "History of the Military Police Corps, American Embarcation Center, A. E. F.," 1919; and "Brief History of the Twenty-Ninth Division, 1921." Legal papers, 1796-1892, pertain mainly to the Carter family and contain land grants, deeds, indentures for land, wills, court decisions, and court authorizations for the sale of slaves.
Financial papers, 1791-1868, relate for the most part to the affairs of the Pope family in the 1820s and 1830s and include accounts, promissory notes, tax receipts, and receipts for purchases. Genealogical material in the collection includes Cynthia (Rivers) Carter's account of the family of her grandfather, Tyree Rodes, and a few items concerning the genealogy of slaves owned by the Carter family. Clippings, 1934-1935, pertain to the military career of William Rivers Pope, as do the newspapers and other printed material.
Volumes include the notebook of Dr. Benjamin Carter, 1827, mainly concerning money owed him; two account books, 1834-1837 and 1836-1845, of William Rouse Pope, and one account book, 1851-1876, of Gustavus A. Pope; diary and memorandum book of James R. Pope, containing an account of his participation in the battle of Shiloh, 1862; anonymous notebook, 1873-1900, containing copies of legal documents; publications; and maps of various areas of France, including LeMans, the MeuseArgonne, and Verdun.
