11Extract of Ellen W. Randolph (Coolidge) to Martha Jefferson Randolph, 18 August [1817], document 2 in a group of … (Jefferson Papers)
Cornelia will probably give Virginia a detail of our Journey to the Natural Bridge —for me it was a complete chapter of accidents—my misfortunes began the day I left home and have not yet ceased, for a cold caught I believe in crossing the blue ridge settled upon my face and has kept me in almost constant agonies—I have not been free of pain one moment for the last eight and forty hours and...
12Thomas Jefferson to Martha Jefferson Randolph, 14 August 1818 (Jefferson Papers)
I wrote to you by our last mail of the 8 th having been now here a week & continued to bathe 3 times a day, a quarter of an hour at a time, I continue well, as I was when I came. having no symptom to judge by at what time I may presume the seeds of my rheumatism eradicated, and desirous to prevent the necessity of ever coming here a 2 d time, I believe I shall yeild to the general advice of a...
13Extract of Ellen W. Randolph (Coolidge) to Martha Jefferson Randolph, [after 29 August 1817], document 3 in a group of … (Jefferson Papers)
Johnny’s arrival gave us great pleasure as we began to be very anxious to hear from you, and I thank you very much for having spared time to write such a long letter. the head of Christ is really a great curiosity, Grand-papa is almost as much pleased with it as we are, and considers it extremely ingenious & original. it is certainly a very fine face and the character is so decided that I...
14Extracts from Ellen W. Randolph (Coolidge) to Martha Jefferson Randolph, 28 July 1819 (Jefferson Papers)
Grand papa and myself are in the habit of sitting, some time after dinner, in conversation, upon different subjects, and it was but the other day, that, speaking of education, & the influence exerted by mothers over their children, he paid to his grandchildren the compliment of all others the most valuable, that of alluding indirectly to what he considers their excellences, and ascribing them...
15Benjamin Vaughan to Martha Jefferson Randolph, 23 June 1819 (Jefferson Papers)
I presume to send you the inclosed, the writer of which seems to wish to put the religious party on his side.— A new attack has been made on vaccination by a certain D r Brown in Scotland ; but the sum total of it is, want of candor in argument, & the use of spurious kine pox in practice. D r Jenner , D r
16Extracts from Ellen W. Randolph (Coolidge) to Martha Jefferson Randolph, 24 August 1819 (Jefferson Papers)
In spite of the desperate condition of Col. N ’s affairs , I cannot help hoping that my dear Grand-father will escape, or at least that he will receive some indemnification. the 20,000 $ as you observe would still leave a large estate behind, if it was simply a loss of 20,000$, but in times like these, to raise such a sum, you must sell property perhaps to the value of 100,000 or even more....
17Extract of Ellen W. Randolph (Coolidge) to Martha Jefferson Randolph, 14 April 1818 (Jefferson Papers)
Grandpapa has been taking such a long nap, my dear Mother that I began to despair of getting ink in time to write to you, but he has at last made his appearance, and as I have very little to tell you, I shall in spite of my fatigue, make an effort to write. we did not stop at Warren the first night as we intended, but after dining with M rs Patterson got on to M rs Gibson’s who received us...
18Extract from Ellen W. Randolph (Coolidge) to Martha Jefferson Randolph, 13 September 1820 (Jefferson Papers)
We have reached our journey’s end my dear Mother, in safety, not without some disagreable adventures, such as being confined one whole day by the rain— at Flood’s tavern . we left Uncle Eppes ’s before sun-rise monday —the morning was lowering, and it was dropping rain before we set out, but you know Grand-papa —he was morally certain we should have “a cool agreable cloudy day for our journey,...