Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar was born in Putnam County, Georgia, on September 17, 1825. He was the son of Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus and Sarah Williamson Bird Lamar. The younger Lamar married Virginia (Jennie) Lafayette Longstreet on July 15, 1847. She was the daughter of the Reverend Augustus Baldwin and Frances Eliza Longstreet of Georgia and Oxford, Lafayette County, Mississippi. The Lamars had four children: Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus, Jr. (b. 1854); Frances E., later Mrs. Edward Mayes; Sarah Augusta, later Mrs. F. Hugh Heiskell; and Virginia L., later Mrs. William H. Lamar. Virginia Lafayette Longstreet Lamar died on December 20, 1884, and was interred at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church Cemetery in Oxford. Lamar married his second wife, Mrs. William Holt of Macon, Bibb County, Georgia, in December of 1886. He died while returning to his home in Oxford on January 23, 1893. Lamar was interred at Riverside Cemetery in Macon, Georgia, and was later reinterred in St. Peter’s Episcopal Church Cemetery in Oxford.

Lamar’s education and career in public service began in Baldwin and Newton counties in Georgia. He continued his education at Emory College (now Emory University) in Atlanta. Lamar graduated from Emory College, began studying law in Macon, Georgia, in July of 1845, and was admitted to the bar in 1847. He moved to Oxford, Mississippi, where he established a law practice. Lamar also taught mathematics at the University of Mississippi for a year. He moved to Covington, Newton County, Georgia, 1852 and was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives. Lamar returned to Mississippi in 1855 and was elected to the United States Congress. He served from 1857 until 1860, when he resigned and became a member of the Secession Convention. As a member of the convention, Lamar drafted the Ordinance of Secession of Mississippi. He helped organize the Nineteenth Regiment, Mississippi Infantry, and served as a lieutenant colonel until 1862, when he was appointed by Confederate president Jefferson Davis as a diplomatic envoy. Lamar traveled to England, France, and Russia in that capacity. Returning to politics after the war, Lamar served as a delegate to five Mississippi constitutional conventions (1865, 1868, 1875, 1877, and 1881). He was again elected to the United States Congress and served from 1873 until 1877. Lamar was subsequently elected to the United States Senate and served from 1877 to 1885. President Grover Cleveland appointed Lamar as Secretary of the Interior in 1885, a post he held until 1888. Lamar was confirmed as an associate justice of the United States Supreme Court on January 16, 1888, and served until his death.

This collection consists of two letters written by L. Q. C. Lamar to his niece, Linda B. West, the first on November 27, 1882, and the second on October 11, 1890. Both letters are of a personal nature, reflecting on family matters and expressing appreciation for West’s kindness. The 1882 letter is written on United States Senate stationery. The 1890 letter is written on United States Supreme Court stationery.

1. Letters. 1882; 1890. 0.10 cubic ft.