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The University of Michigan Thomas, George Albert, b. 1819 Papers |
George Albert Thomas, a graduate of the Portland Academy and a member of the Bowdoin College class of 1841, was born and raised in Portland, Maine. Two of his brothers, Edward T. (1831) and Charles W. (1834) also attended Bowdoin. George Thomas studied law in Portland in the offices of Judge Howard and was admitted to the bar, though he never actively practiced law. Joining the gold rush to California in 1850, he worked in the mines, before returning in 1855 to supervise his estates. Never married, Thomas was known locally for his musical talents. In the late 1840's, Thomas served as a chorister at the 3rd Presbyterian Church in Portland.
The Thomas Papers consist largely of letters written to George A. Thomas by his brothers, Charles, Edward and John, by a sister, Charlotte, and by college mates, along with a few letters written by George. The Thomas family and their friends were strongly interested in the pursuit of education and the cultivation of the mind, and their correspondence revolves around the currents of the intellectual life and the social bonds among the educated elite. There are interesting discussions of the state of national and regional politics, of education (at Bowdoin and elsewhere), and current events. The few extant letters of George Thomas were written largely during the period that he was studying law in Portland, and describe his studies and his interest in his new career. Charlotte Thomas' letters are more focussed on family matters and her schooling, but are uniformly enjoyable and interesting. There are 11 letters written by Samuel Longfellow, brother of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, 1833-36, while a student at the Portland Academy, and 17 school essays and one poem, possibly written by George Thomas at Bowdoin.
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