Letter to Mrs. Mary Denham from Joseph May
date: label: Date
content: 1842
name: label: Written by
content: Joseph May, Nigerian, 1817 - 1891
label: Received by
content: Mary Denham, British
notes: label: Description
content: This letter was written in Freetown, Sierra Leone, May 8th, 1842 by Joseph May to a Mrs. Mary Denham in London, England. From the Wesleyan Mission House, May writes of his sea and land travels to and throughout Western Africa. He recounts the weather, the towns he preached Christianity to, having taken over a school, and his plans to establish a Methodist school. The wove paper letter has several folds in addition to its main vertical crease, and spans approximately 1500 words across three pages. A significant remnant of the original red wax seal is present in one of the many folded squares of the paper. The fourth leaf (blank) of the letter reads: [Joseph May / Sierra Leone / 20/ [?/?] / Mrs. M. Denham / Tailor / 100 Bermondsey Street / Boro. London]. A large ‘8’ is ink blotted over part of the addressee’s surname, and another large ‘8’ is written in the free space beside it.
label: Transcription Center Status
content: Transcribed by digital volunteers
place: label: Place made
content: Freetown, Sierra Leone, West Africa, Africa
label: Place used
content: London, England, Europe
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Africa
label: Topic
content: Children
label: Topic
content: Christianity
label: Topic
content: Correspondence
label: Topic
content: Education
label: Topic
content: Men
label: Topic
content: Methodist
label: Topic
content: Religion
label: Topic
content: Slavery
label: Topic
content: Travel
label: Topic
content: Women
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Slavery and Freedom Objects
label: Classification
content: Documents and Manuscripts
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2018.46.9
objectType: label: Type
content: documents
label: Type
content: letters (correspondence)
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: No Known Copyright Restrictions
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: wax and ink on wove paper
label: Dimensions
content: H x W (spread): 16 5/16 × 16 1/4 in. (41.4 × 41.3 cm)
label: Dimensions
content: H x W (folded): 12 13/16 × 8 1/8 in. (32.5 × 20.6 cm)