Torbert-Ellegood collection

The Torbert-Ellegood collection, spanning 1759-1889, with the bulk of the papers dating 1820-1840, consists of 1.3 linear feet of legal papers, land records, accounts, receipts, correspondence, and other documents, many of which relate to the Torbert and Ellegood families of Delaware. It is unclear, however, how these two families relate to each other and how this collection of papers was assembled. John Torbert (1775-1842) and Joshua A. Ellegood (1789-1845), the central figures in each group of family papers, were both active in Delaware business and civic life. John Torbert served as a Justice of the Peace in New Castle County from 1812 to 1814, and Joshua A. Ellegood was appointed Justice of the Peace in Sussex County in 1827. Through their business transactions and public offices, it is possible that both men came in contact with many individuals and families represented in this collection. As detailed below, the collection documents the personal and professional lives of John Torbert and Joshua A. Ellegood, but the overall research value may be in its broad representation of early nineteenth-century economic and legal affairs in Delaware.

The personal papers related to the Torberts include family correspondence (Series II) and two notebooks kept by William W. Torbert containing poetry and engineering notes (Series III). The estate papers, accounts, deeds, receipts, bills, and other papers that relate to John Torbert (Series I) reflect his professional involvement in banking and manufacturing, as well as his position as a Justice of the Peace for New Castle County. John Torbert spent his adult life in Wilmington, Delaware, and his papers mostly pertain to New Castle County activities. Series I also contains business papers of William W. Torbert.

The Ellegood family papers (Series VI) are actually rather similar in content to the Torbert papers. They mainly consist of legal papers, land records, accounts, receipts, letters, and other documents related to Joshua A. Ellegood and his work as a Justice of the Peace, as a Land Commissioner for Sussex County, and as a constable. Joshua’s brother, William A. Ellegood, and other family members are also represented in the collection, particularly in family land transactions and other legal documents. Most of the Ellegood family papers relate to activities in Sussex County, where the family resided.

Additional series that have been created relate to the Timmons family of Sussex County, Esther Yarnall, John Lee Bayley, and the merchant firm W. G. Phillips and Brothers. The connections between these series and the Torbert and Ellegood families are often vague. Other series demonstrate a more direct link to the Torberts and Ellegoods, including papers related to the estates of Alexander White and James McClyment, which were administered by Joshua A. Ellegood and John Torbert, respectively.

Because of its varied content, Torbert-Ellegood Collection offers a wide range of sources to a variety of scholars. It will be of foremost interest to genealogists interested in the Torbert and Ellegood families, as well as the Timmons family, Alexander White, and James McClyment. There is extensive documentation regarding their land holdings and financial affairs, while the Torbert correspondence conveys a more personal family history.

The collection also provides a wealth of sources to historians of material culture. The collection is replete with miscellaneous receipts and accounts for cloth, sugar, molasses, wine, snuff, tools, wood, and other supplies and services. These receipts are located throughout Series I, VI, and XI, and particularly in Series XIII. A wastebook, kept by an anonymous merchant, records the sale of fabric and other items to women and African-Americans (F42). Of additional interest to material culture studies are the inventories of goods and chattel that can be found in Series VI and XII. Similar information is available in the estate records in Series IV, VIII and X. The extensive documentation on the administration of these estates may also be useful to historians interested in probate proceedings.

Torbert-Ellegood collection offers many other research possibilities. The papers may be constructive to researchers interested in economic history and personal debt, as both Joshua A. Ellegood and John Torbert were professionally involved in settling financial disputes. Both of their papers contain receipts, accounts, and court documents related to settling outstanding accounts and enforcing legal judgments related to debt. The collection also contains many Delaware land records and property surveys, documents related to dozens of early- nineteenth-century businessmen in New Castle and Sussex Counties, and papers related to banking and the milling industry. Additional documents of note include seven land grants to Robert H. Griffith signed by President Martin Van Buren in 1838 (F25); several political leaflets, party tickets, and published election results for Delaware elections, 1858-1884 (F 51, 53); and broadsides related to the Civil War and the passage of the fifteenth amendment (F51).