Letter from Sarah Sim to Wealthy Hathaway, November 16, 1856

In this November 16, 1856 letter to her sister, Wealthy Hathaway, Sarah Sim gives the details of her new home, the land, and the health of her family. She mentions that though the land is filling quickly, there is still no church or school in her area, and that Indians lived on their land as recently as the past winter. She ends by expressing her thankfulness for several newspapers sent to her and the receipt of the rest of her long-delayed possessions.

Otoe Nebraska
Nov 16th, 56

Dear Sister

I received a letter a few days ago from Electa stating that she was with you and that you had a Daughter and was doing well. I hope this will find you quite smart. She said I could answer it to you and I embrace the present opportunity of so doing. I wrote a few lines to Electa some weeks ago and directed it to Middletown so that our folks could read it and if she was gone to Fair Haven they could send it to her. I suppose you think your baby is a hale Angel and I dare say you act quite Motherly. You must kiss it for me. I hope you will train it up in the right way. I should like to see it very much. I suppose that you have had a visit from Willis and his family. I wish very much that I could have seen them. He wrote to us that he thought some of coming to Neb in the spring. I hope he will. I suppose Margaret will be with you



[this] winter. I wonder how she and Stafford will make out poor fellow. I suppose he has the blues to a dreadful rate. It seems that Julia is determined not to go East by her going to Cleveland and Margaret going home without her. I wonder how she could like to go off alone perhaps she will keep on until she gets out here. I shall be glad to see her or any of the family. I suppose you would like to know how we get along here and how we like the country. We are getting along as well as can be expected considering all things as in a new country we cannot get things quite as well as we could in the East. We have got a very good farm with plenty of timber and water but the water is all very hard here and I am sorry for that but shall have to make cisterns. It will take us a little time to get started. We have got a yoke of oxen and a cow six pigs, and some hens so you see that we are getting things together a little. The country is very rolling and looks very pretty timber is not very plentifull [sic] . I should



[think] that in the spring the praries [sic] would look very beautiful. Strawberies [sic] grow in abundance plums and gooseberries grow wild here and hops. We have got some apple trees to set out in the spring and I hope that in a few years we shall have a good place but I don't think it will ever seem as much like home as Middletown. I should like to have some of our family settle near us very much. Some times I feel rather lonely but I suppose I shall get over that after while. The country is settling up very fast people come from all quarters. We nave neighbours not very far from us. There is no school nor chirch [sic] as yet in this place there is preaching once in three or four weeks at private houses. We live this winter where the Indians did last winter there are some of them camped about these parts now I beleive [sic] . I have not seen any yet. I hope they won't trouble me.

We are very well at present except Mr. Sim has been laid up a few days past with the bowel complaint, but he is some better.

the children have got pretty much over the whooping cough they are getting to he pretty well. The baby walks around by the chairs. It was no small job to move so far with them. When we got here they were about worn out. It was a long tedious journey. I have been very well since I came here. We received three papers from Mr. Hathaway for which we are very thankfull [sic] . We do not get many papers to read. We want all the news we can get. Please write as soon as you receive this write all the news you can think of. Our things arrived at last. I don't think of much more worth writing, so good night.

Your affectionate Sister

Sarah