Letters of Rev. Joseph W. Cook, Missionary to Cheyenne, to Rt. Rev. R.H. Clarkson, D.D., Rt. Rev. Geo. M. Randall, D.D., together with extracts from Mr. Cook’s Diary, kindly furnished by his daughter Miss Charlotte Everett Cook, April 12th, 1916
Scope and Content Note
A typed transcript of letters written and journal kept by Reverend Joseph Witherspoon Cook during part of his time as a missionary to Cheyenne, Dakota Territory, 1868-1869. The letters describe his journey from Philadelphia to Cheyenne, the process of setting up a mission in the settlement, the inhabitants of Cheyenne, and the living conditions in the area.
There is one bound volume containing the letters written by Cook. They are addressed to Rev. R.H. Clarkson and Rev. Geo M. Randall, are punctuated by selected entries from Cook's diary. The letters describe his journey from Philadelphia to Cheyenne, the process of setting up a mission in the settlement, the inhabitants of Cheyenne, and the living conditions in the area.
Three lithographs of contemporary scenes laid into the volume: Crossing the Platte Mouth of Deer Creek, Fort Laramie, and Scene in the Black Hills. Each bears the credit "Ackerman, Lith 379 Broadway, N.Y."
Dates
- Creation: 1868-1869
Creator
- Cook, Joseph Witherspoon, 1836-1902 (Person)
Language of Materials
Materials entirely in English.
Access Restrictions
The collection is open for research.
Terms Governing Use and Reproduction
Use of materials from this collection beyond the exceptions provided for in the Fair Use and Educational Use clauses of the U.S. Copyright Law may violate federal law. Permission to publish or reproduce is required from the copyright holder. Please contact Special Collections, University of Delaware Library, http://library.udel.edu/spec/askspec/
Biographical Note
Reverend Joseph Witherspoon Cook was born February 2, 1836 in Bethel, Vermont. He attended Greenway Boarding School in Springfield, Ohio, and Kenyon College in Gambia, Ohio, from which he graduated, class of 1860. Cook also attended General Theological School, New York. He married Ellen Everett Hicks on July 9, 1878 in Grace Church, Brooklyn, New York with whom he had a daughter, Charlotte Everett Cook.
Cook traveled from Philadelphia to Cheyenne, Dakota Territory, in January 1868 to serve as the first resident Episcopal missionary in the settlement. In 1870, he established St. Paul's Mission at the Yankton Sioux agency, South Dakota. Cook translated religious texts into the Dakota language and served as missionary to the Sioux until his death in 1902.
2006. Indian Missions of the Interior States. http://www.accessgenealogy.com/native/mission/interiorstates.htm (accessed July 2, 2007).2007. The Hicks/Hix Database - Northeast Connections. http://worldconnect.genealogy.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=j-m-hicks&id=I08198 (accessed July 2, 2007).Project Canterbury. Diary and Letters of the Reverend Joseph W. Cook, Missionary to Cheyenne, Arranged by the Rt. Rev. N. S. Thomas, S.T.D. http://anglicanhistory.org/usa/thomas_cook1919.html (accessed July 2, 2007).
Extent
1 volume (116 pages) ; 29 cm
Abstract
A typed transcript of letters written and journal kept by Reverend Joseph Witherspoon Cook during part of his time as a missionary to Cheyenne, Dakota Territory, 1868-1869. The letters describe his journey from Philadelphia to Cheyenne, the process of setting up a mission in the settlement, the inhabitants of Cheyenne, and the living conditions in the area.
Source
Purchase, 1960.
Shelving Summary
- Item 0016: Shelved in SPEC MSS 0097
Processing
Processed and encoded by Evan Echols, January 2009.
- Title
- Letters of Rev. Joseph W. Cook, Missionary to Cheyenne, to Rt. Rev. R.H. Clarkson, D.D., Rt. Rev. Geo. M. Randall, D.D., together with extracts from Mr. Cook’s Diary...
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- University of Delaware Library, Special Collections
- Date
- 2009 January 8
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the University of Delaware Library Special Collections Repository