Dear cosen I will rit you a few lines to let you her from me this leaves me in common health I am at Ant Seleners1 today Rachel I will tell you about my children. I have to (2) living in the house with me both of them is married but one of their husbands is dead ben ded 2 years. She has one child the other one has 2 children her husband has bought just east of our place 4 ov my chilren lives in site of me one uv my children lives in this country but (?) they live in Texas County mosouria [Missouri] rachel I went to see them this spring I started in february and got home in June I think they can do better there than they can here. They had a bad drought 2 years ago and hit put them behind rachel I thought of you all I don’t know how fur I was from you I went one hundred miles through arkansas you look on the map an rit to me how fur I was from you look for Texas Missouri there is whair my children lives rachel Tom died in 1884 in April the 16th. Left me with 8 single children I have 13 children living and one ded rachel I won’t rit much this time you answer this an I will rit more next time I will close and let ant rit rachel I am 63 years old the 20th of september from Gilla Godfrey.
This letter written in 1897 by Abigail “Gilly” or “Gilla” James Godfrey [daughter of Sharud James, Jr. and Doria Maria Dunken] in Georgia to Rachel Fulton Caldwell in Arkansas.
1 Selina James Reid