John N. Tucker, born in 1838, was the son of John S. Tucker, a planter from Madison County, Mississippi. He attended school (possibly Mississippi College) in Clinton, Hinds County, Mississippi, and then worked as a farmer near Camden in Madison County before joining the Eighteenth Regiment, Mississippi Infantry, on June 4, 1861. Tucker was wounded in the First Battle of Bull Run, Virginia, on July 21, 1861, and he died on August 4, 1861.

Catherine L. Tucker, elder sister of John N. Tucker, was born in 1836. She married Mexican War veteran John W. Kirk of Mississippi in 1856. He later fought in the Civil War. During all of his military service, Kirk was never wounded.

One of the granddaughters of John and Catherine Tucker Kirk, Thaddie Kirk, was born in July of 1894. She later married Clark Screws, a railroad depot agent from Mississippi. The Screwses lived at Flora in Madison County and at Bentonia and Yazoo City, both in Yazoo County, Mississippi. Three of their sons served in World War II: Buford J. Screws in the Navy, Carroll S. Screws in the Marine Corps, and John T. Screws in the Army. The latter two sons remained in the military. In the late 1950s, Carroll S. Screws held the rank of sergeant first class, at Oahu, Hawaii, and John T. Screws held the rank of sergeant at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

This collection contains two letters, one postcard, and a three-page handwritten genealogy. The first letter, dated February 5, 1857, is from C. W. Edmond in Canton, Mississippi, to his brother-in-law, John W. Kirk. Edmond discusses a wedding he has just attended and news of another family wedding, the weather, and various family members. The next letter, dated February 22, 1857, is from John N. Tucker in Clinton, Mississippi, to a "Dear Friend," whom he later addresses as Billie, a female cousin. Tucker admonishes Billie for not inviting him to her wedding, discusses the wedding of their mutual cousin, Matt, and relates news about a scarlet fever epidemic at his school. The last piece of correspondence is a postcard dated April 7, 1940, from Louise Joyner in Yazoo City, to her aunt, Thaddie Kirk Screws, in Flora, Mississippi. Joyner discusses numerous family members, the recent burning of the Screwses’ home, and the postcard itself. A genealogy written by Thaddie Kirk Screws explains the connections between all of the letter-writers and recipients.

1. Correspondence. 1857; 1940.
2. Genealogy. ca. 1960.