Correspondence, 1861-1994

Scope and content:

The family correspondence in the original accession was sorted and grouped by Kendrick and/or Randolph Few, sons of Dr. William and Mary Few. Correspondence from accession UA2016.0033 was preliminarily sorted by Dana Few Pope, daughter of Randolph Few. At processing, the letters were sorted by date within each grouping for easier patron access and use. Each grouping is a sub-series named for the creator of the correspondence, if applicable.

Mary Few's correspondence varies in content, depending on the recipient. The letters to her parents detail her life as an undergraduate at Trinity College in Durham, with references to her classes, professors, friends and social activities. She writes of her visits to Benjamin Duke's house to visit his daughter Mary and going "automobiling." Some of her social activities included traveling throughout North Carolina with college friends, joining her classmates for dinner at the home of James Southgate (Trinity College trustee), and attending religious meetings and theatrical productions. Of note are Mrs. Few's letters home regarding the 1905 visit of President Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt to Trinity College. Mrs. Few's letters continue through her time at Columbia University, Southern Seminary in Buena Vista, Va., and finally her return to Durham after her marriage to Dr. Few. The later letters focus largely on family matters, including her sons and Dr. Few's travels.

The letters exchanged between Dr. and Mrs. Few provide some insight into their long-distance courtship but largely focus on family matters. The remaining family-related correspondence also pertains to family matters but also business matters as well. The general correspondence subseries contains letters written mainly to Mrs. Few from various individuals about a wide array of topics, including business ventures and genealogy. One file contains letters to the Fews following the death of their son Yancy Preston Few in 1939.

The Correspondence series also includes letters between Mrs. Few and her son Kendrick Few during the 1920s-1950s; as well as letters and telegrams sent to the family after the death of Dr. William Preston Few in 1940.

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