Biography/History:

Samuel Davidson McPherson was born in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, on November 21, 1831. He was the son of Reynolds and Elizabeth Brown Henderson McPherson. Samuel Davidson McPherson received his early education at Milnwood Academy, Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania. He began attending Jefferson College, Washington, Adams County, Mississippi, around 1855. McPherson graduated in 1857 and was briefly employed as a professor of Greek and Latin at Jefferson College. He became principal of the preparatory department of Oakland College, Claiborne County, Mississippi, on December 9, 1858. McPherson worked for the United States Treasury Department around 1864. He was a representative of New York- and New Orleans-based publisher Bradstreet and Son from 1866 to 1875. McPherson died in San Francisco, California, on June 6, 1875.

Scope and Content:

This collection consists of the correspondence of Samuel Davidson McPherson of Shippensburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, and two miscellaneous items. Dating between 1855 and 1859, the correspondence was penned while McPherson was living in Mississippi. A March 11, 1855, letter was written while McPherson was a student at Jefferson College. The letter was addressed to a brother and sister, probably John Williamson and Martha Elizabeth McPherson, his brother and sister-in-law, expressing sympathy for the loss of their son, Willie. McPherson also describes the typical day of a student on the Jefferson College campus.

McPherson wrote two letters to his mother, Elizabeth Brown Henderson McPherson, in January 1857. He comments on riverboat travel to Natchez, Adams County, Mississippi, and offers detailed descriptions of the city, including Natchez-under-the-Hill, in a January 1, 1857, letter. McPherson also discusses current job prospects and his attempt to contact Jefferson College trustee Judge Charles L. Dubuisson. He mentions being hired as a Jefferson College professor in a January 8, 1857, letter.

The remaining letters were written to McPherson’s younger brother, Theodore Horatio Nevin McPherson. He briefly discusses the health of their mother, offers advice on his brother’s studies and choice of companions, and relates news of family and friends. McPherson announces his appointment as principal of the preparatory department of Oakland College in a December 9, 1858, letter.

The two miscellaneous items consist of a letter and a slave bill of sale. The 1807 letter was written by Mary McMillan to William Rodgers of Shippensburg, Pennsylvania. It concerns family news and the bequest of Mrs. Clark’s farm to Jefferson College (probably the one located in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania). The January 21, 1860, slave bill of sale is for a sixteen-year-old female and a four-month-old child who were purchased by Henry H. Middleton of Adams County.

Series Identification:

1. Correspondence. 1855-1859. 2 folders.

   Box 1, folders 1-2

2. Miscellaneous Items. 1807; 1860. 1 folder.

   Box 1, folder 3