Temporary record

The Whittemore-Low Family Papers is an extensive collection of family and military correspondence comprising the papers of at least five generations of several related families. The collection may be categorized as 1) of genealogic interest; 2) papers pertaining to military (specifically naval or Marine Corps) affairs; 3) family correspondence; and 4) photographs and scrapbooks.

The correspondence of several individuals forms the foci of this collection. Chronologically, these are:

• Capt. Elisha Peck, a career Navy officer from Connecticut who served in the Civil War (0.5 lin. feet);
• Capt. William W. Low, sr., son-in-law of Peck and a career naval officer as well. An important series of approximately 1.5 linear feet of Low's papers documents his activities from his days as a midshipman in the 1840's through his post war career with the navy in the Pacific fleet. The bulk of the collection pertains to his Civil War service as commander of the Gunboat Octarora, serving in the West Caribbean Bloackading Squadron, and his service in the western Caribben immediately after the war during which time he was a key figure in an incident involving a pirate ship near Guayquil, Mexico. Low's papers include a large number of long letters home, some including excellent descriptions of his activities in the blockading squadron, manuscript stories written for his children, and official orders and other documents relating to his command.
• Henry Low, twin brother of William W. Low. The Henry Low series includes only letters written to Low, mostly by his nephews William and Theodore, and his niece Grace. Henry Low was a businessman, and most letters contain news of friends and family.
• William W. Low, Jr., and Theodore Low, Marines, and sons of William Low, Sr. William Low appears to have been an avid photographer (or collector of photographs), and therefore there is a large number of excellent quality photographs of Japan, Hawaii, China, Philippines, Puerto Rico, and other Caribbean countries from ca.1880-1916. His correspondence includes some interesting accounts of his service during the Boxer rebellion, Philippine insurrection, and the invasion of several Caribbean countries in 1907-1908. William was killed by revolutionaries in Santo Domingo in 1916. Theodore also served in China, the Philippines, and the Caribbean, and although his correspondence spans a much greater period of time, his military career was somewhat shorter than his brother's. Theodore was court martialled in 1907 (apparently for embezzling from the post exchange in Puerto Rico), and was granted a medical discharge (for hemorrhoids) the following year. Theodore's later correspondence is all addressed to his sister, Grace, and provides details on his work as an inventor (receiving a patent for a bottle opener) and his travels.
• Grace Low's correspondence (ca.1 lin. foot) consists primarily of family news. The primary recipients of her letters include her uncle, Henry, aunt, Anna, and brothers, Theodore and William. The series is a valuable resource for studying the evolution of Low family relationships across more than 50 years (ca.1880-after 1930).

The Parmalee family material includes a diary, photographs and a few letters from Henry Parmalee, who served in the Union Army during the Civil War. The bulk of the series, however, consists of photographs of the Parmalees and the wealthy family's yacht and houses, as well as a small collection of letters from various Parmalees.

The Whittemore family material consists of 1.5 lin feet of material that was used by William Whittemore in the 1850's to construct a genealogy of the family. There are approximately 40 letters from miscellaneous Whittemore family members, most notably Gen. James Whittemore (brother-in-law of William Low, Sr.), a West Point graduate, and a small series of correspondence of Amos Whittemore from the 1790's.

M-2440

Subjects

Bonticou Family
Bonticou, Joanna
China--History--Boxer Rebellion, 1899-1901
Dominican Republic--American Invasion, 1907
Graves Family
Low, David W.
Low, Evelina Peck
Low, Grace Bonticou, b. 1867
Low, Henry, b. 1823
Low, Mary Parmalee
Low, Theodore H.
Low, William Whittemore, 1823-1877
Low, William Whittemore, ca.1869-1916
Low Family
Parmalee, Henry S.
Parmalee Family
Peck, Elisha, 1790-1866
Peck, Grace Bonticou
Peck Family
Philippine Islands--History--Insurrection, 1899-1901
Pirates
Russell, Talcott H.
Spanish-American War, 1898
United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865
United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Blockade
United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Naval operations
United States. Marine Corps
United States. Navy
United States. Navy. West Caribbean Blockading Squadron
Whittemore, Anna Peck
Whittemore, James M., 1836-1916
Whittemore, William
Whittemore Family

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