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Furman and Le Conte family papers
Descriptive Summary
Repository:
Georgia Historical Society
Creator:
Furman, Farish Carter, 1836-1883.
Creator:
Le Conte family.
Creator:
LeConte, Emma.
Title:
Furman and Le Conte family papers
Dates:
1810-1896
Extent:
0.45 cubic feet (3 folders, 3 volumes)
Identification:
MS 0488
Biographical/Historical Note
Emma Florence Le Conte Furman (1847-1932) married Farish Carter Furman (1846-1883) in 1869. They lived on the family
plantation at Scottsboro, near Milledgeville, Georgia. Her diary of Columbia, South Carolina before and after the devastation
by Sherman's forces was edited by E.S. Miers and published as When the World Ended (N.Y.: 1957). Farish Carter
Furman was probably a grandson of Dorothea McDonald Furman and the Rev. Dr. Richard Furman (1755-1825), Baptist
minister. Farish Carter Furman was apparently named for his grand-uncle, Farish Carter (1780-1861), the wealthy planter
and husband of Eliza McDonald. Another McDonald sister, Ann, first married a Mr. Martin and later married the Rev. Dr.
William T. Brantly (1787=1845), Baptist minister. The McDonald women were sisters of Governor Charles J. McDonald.
Emma Le Conte Furman's father was Joseph Le Conte (1823-1901). Her uncle was John Le Cont (1818-1891), a noted
physicist, chemist and teacher. Both John and Joseph Le Conte were physicians and scientists; they taught at the
University of Georgia, the University of South Carolina, and the University of California, Berkeley. During the Civil War, John
Le Conte was Superintendent of the Confederate Niter Works in Columbia, and Joseph Le Conte was the chemist for the
Confederate Niter and Mining Bureau. John Le Conte was President of the University of California for many years. Both
were contributors to scientific magazines in their fields. Joseph Le Conte was author of A Compend of Geology (N.Y.:
1884) and Autobiography, ed. by W.D. Armes (N.Y.: 1903). Joseph Le Conte's account of the last days of the
Confederacy, ' Ware Sherman, ed. by his daughter, Caroline, was published at Berkeley, California, in 1938.
Scope and Content Note
This collection consists largely of the letters of Emma Florence Le Conte Furman and Farish Carter Furman. Also included
are a letter of Dorothea Maria McDonald Furman, Farish Carter Furman's grandmother; letters of Mrs. Joseph L Conte,
Louis Le Conte, Joseph Le Conte, Jr., Jane Le Conte, and John Le Conte. Also included in the collection are legal papers
regarding the estate of George W. Murray, 1836 (Farish Carter was one of the executors), pamphlets and addresses both
by and about Joseph Le Conte, an account book containing the estate papers of Farish Carter Furman, 1883-1884, and a
ledger and account book of plantation, estate, and household accounts belonging to Emma Le Conte Furman, 1884-1885
and 1887-1896.
Index Terms
Decedents' estates.
Families--Georgia.
Furman, Farish Carter, 1836-1883.
LeConte family.
LeConte, Emma.
LeConte, Joseph, 1823-1901.
Legal documents.
Letters (correspondence)
Love letters.
Plantation life--Georgia.
Administrative Information
Custodial History
Purchased from Stuart Miller.
Preferred Citation
[item identification], Furman and Le Conte family papers, MS 488, Georgia Historical Society, Savannah, Georgia.
Acquisition Information
Purchased, 1960.
Restrictions
Access Restrictions
Collection is open for research.
Publication Rights
Copyright has not been assigned to the Georgia Historical Society. All requests for permission to publish or quote from
manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Division of Library and Archives. Permission for publication is given on
behalf of the Georgia Historical Society as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply
permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the researcher.
Sponsorship
Encoding funded by a 2012 Documenting Democracy grant from the National Historical Publications and Records
Commission.
Container List
Box Fldr
1
1
Items 1-14: Correspondence, 1810-1868
Correspondents: Dorothea Maria McDonald Furman (Mrs. Richard Furman) to her sister, Mrs.
Ann Brantly, 1810, part missing; Jane Le Conte to her brother William, 1832-1834 (3) regarding
family; R.E. martin (son of Ann McDonald Martin Brantly by her first marriage?) to his daughter,
Julia, 1844, regarding news of family and friends; W.R. Hall to Charles J. McDonald, 1853,
regarding Farish Carter; Julia Martin Brown to her father, R.E. Martin; love letters of Emma Le
Conte and Farish Carter Furman before their marriage, 1868 (7).
2
Items 15-35: Correspondence, 1869-1883
Correspondents: love letters of Emma Le Conte Furman and Farish Carter Furman, before an
dafter they were married, 1869-91882 (13); letters from Mrs. Joseph Le Conte to her daughter,
Emma L. Furman, 1869, 1878; Bessie to Emma Le Conte Furman, 1869; Louis Le Conte to
Emma Le Conte Furman, 1876, regarding his impending marriage; Caroline Le Conte to Kate
Carter Furman, with note by Joseph Le. Conte, Jr., 1877; John Le Conte to Emma Le Conte
Furman, 1883, on death of her husband; Rebecca Shand, 1883, letter of condolence.
3
Items 36-40: Legal papers and pamphlets
Papers regarding the estate of George W. Murray, 1836, of which Farish carter was one of the
executors: list of notes, amounts, dates, credits, money paid out and money received.
Pamphlets: Plato's Doctrine of the Soul, and Argument for Immortality, In Comparison with the
Doctrine and Argument Derived from the Study of Nature, by Joseph Le Conte, 1890; Address of
Professor Joseph Le Conte, President of the American Association for the Advancement of
Science, 1893; Joseph Le Conte, by Andrew C. Lawson, 1901.
Box
2
Item 41: Estate of Farish Carter Furman. Account book "A", 1883 September 14-1884
January 1
Item 42: Emma Le Conte Furman. Ledger "A", 1884-1885
Plantation, estate, and household accounts.
Item 43: Emma Le Conte Furman. Account book, 1887-1896
Plantation, estate, and household accounts.