Not only are there pictures but there are also letters between different family members ranging from the late 1800s to the late 1900s. Here is a repository of many of them
Leigh in the pandemic
Leigh McLain went to Carnegie Tech in Pittsburgh, PA in 1918. He joined the Army and as Carnegie had a military training camp during the First World War, was in the military before he started his classes. Fortunately for him he was never deployed but he was involved in the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic where he worked in a lab and as an orderly, social distanced and lived in a tent. Here are his letters describing what that was like.
Only part of the text has been transcribed.
Dear Mother! –
I have a few moments to write or I think I have. You can never tell on this job whether you have a minute or an hour. Have not had to work very hard the last two days. Several of the fellows are getting well enuf to wait on themselves and so saves me a lot of work. Five from this ward left last night and we got four new ones. Have twenty seven here now. Seventeen of them are pretty sick but the rest are almost well. There has been no deaths in this ward since I have been in but several have from the hospital. A fellow I know (Bowman) who is working here as orderly had one die while he was holding him the other A.M. He did not eat anything the rest of the day.
The fellow who had this ward just got back this afternoon from Detroit.
….
Don’t have any days off here, work Sunday and every day. Heard today it would be four weeks before quarantine was lifted. Am getting as Elliot says he is, “don’t believe anything until it happens for you’re in the Army now.” The rifles we got were ones being made in this country for the Russian Army before the revolution and weren’t sent across after that. Have no ammunition in this country that will fit them but we couldn’t fire them anyway as we have no place.
….
With love to all, Leigh
Pandemic – working as a ‘chemist’, living in a tent
Dear Stuart ..
Have been changed again. Am working in the lab now. Am some chemist, but as we say anybody who can wash test tubes is a chemist in this joint. Roming, a fellow who volunteered as a chemist has a job of sharpening the knifes and helping clean
(page 2 see left) up downstairs when they have an autopsy, which they have on all those who die. Have had two sicne I went to work there Monday morning. It is an easy job at that. Start about 7:30. Have to clean up two rooms and than at 8:30 collect the specimens of urine and help with the exam of them. Examined eight of them alone this afternoon and spilled some acid on myself. DIdin’t do much hurt, except to clean off the dirt. I was dishes and sit around. Quit about 5:30 and have an hour and a half off at noon.
(page 2 still) Have had one of the shots for flu and will get another tomorrow afternoon. They also took about 30 cc of blood out of me to test the first day I worked there.
Can’t go anywhere at night now, but one thing I don’t spend so much money anyway. Have a football to kick around and so helps pass away the time.
How much do you weigh…
We got quite a bunch of stuff from Red Cross. Especially fruit and jelly. Got some of both last night.
….
This life is just about the same every day now and there is not much to write about
….
Well good luck and love to all, Leigh
Buying a watch and a camera and the end of WW I with celebrations in Pittsburgh
Dear Mother,
Well am not working this afternoon and so will write some letters. Can’t leave the lab until sometime in the future. They all left here so I and Gesler came up and washed some clothes. Have only one shirt and breeches. I am wearning my bathrobe while I was them. They are hanging on a radiator to dry but I don’t whether they will be for supper or not. If they are not I will be out of luck. Then, too, some of the doctors have come up to work extra and two of them are women. Well, I should worry anyway.
…
As far as work is concerned, this week has been about as usual but other things have happened. Scott bought me a watch on approval and took it. Only paid $12.50. It shows up in the dark and so far has run and kept good time. Can sell it any time to a jewler for almost what I paid for it. I think…..
made another purchase, this time it was a Kodak. Got a No. 1 for $11.50. Does not take up much space and takes a fair sized picture. ..
Suppose you had the same excitment out there as we did here over the end of the War. Whistles started blowing here at 1 in the afternoon and was still blowing at 2 AM… We soon found out the news and Dr. Klotz declared a holiday. We promptly got a pass and went down town.
The streets were jammed and scraps of paper and confetti was flying. Streets looked as if it had snowed. Everybody was blowing horns and little parades were going on everywhere. Sure did feel nice to have a uniform on. But we were yelled at a dozen times going a block. That is when I got my Kodak. Gesler and I went up to his aunt’s for supper. His cousin has a camera and we took a couple of flashlights.
Thomas Elliot’s journal
Thomas Elliot was John Elliot’s older brother. He was born in Northern Ireland in 1825 and was a devoted diarist. He left a diary behind and it spans from when he was 26 to 30. Thomas never married and moved from Genesco, NY to Leicester in 1853, presumably with his parents.
His diary is a really hard read! He’s guilt laden and vehmently Protestant – he’s got lots of pretty awful things to say about Papists and other non-Presbyterians. He also suffers from ‘tremendous’ pain in his breast (which sounds like a heart problem), and frequent headaches and doesn’t seem to enjoy the company of others. He views parties as wasted time, time that might be better used in self-reflection.
Thomas Elliot on the McLains in 1855
I forgot to mention that Thos (???) McLain came here late in the evening nearly 9 o’clock. J Halls came with him from Mt Morris (???) and brought Jane along with him. Staid all night (I meant night) where I said yesterday Fulton has been very sick with fever for several weeks, is getting better now able to sit up some, has had very poor luck this winter, lost most if not all his winter’s work and something besides. I think he should quit working where he makes nothing. Thos seems to be a Wild Boy, cares little for anyone or even for himself I fear. I was at home all day, finished letters which I began yesterday. One to Fulton which I destroyed when I heard from him as it was not suitable under the existing circumstances.
Fulton McLain must be Fulton McLain II (1828-1874) as Fulton McLain I (1770-1847) was already dead. Fulton II and Thomas Elliot must have known one another from New York as the McLain’s lived their before moving to Michigan at some point.
Jane may or may not be Fulton’s wife Jane Jack. But clearly Fulton was having a bad year in 1855 (when he was 27) but he seems to have rallied eventually.
This also opens up some questions.
Who is Thomas McLain the Wild Boy? He can’t be Fulton (II)’s full brother because Fulton II only has one sister. He also cannot be one of Fulton II’s sons because Fulton and Jane didn’t have any children until after 1855.
Did Fulton McLain I remarry and have more kids? His first wife (Fulton’s mother, Nancy) died in 1832, 17 years before Fulton I did. Did Fulton McLain I have an illegitimate kid? We can’t find a record of a Thomas McLain in New York (or Michigan)
Henry's boys 