Biography/History:

Francis (Frank) E. Sutter was born on March 28, 1866. He was the son of Frederick and Jane Kilty Sutter of Pass Christian, Harrison County, Mississippi. The Sutter family also included siblings Mary (b. ca. 1855), Nannie C. (b. ca. 1860), Frederick, Jr. (b. ca. 1862), and John (b. ca. 1870). Frederick Sutter, Sr., was employed as a carpenter.

Frank Sutter was engaged in the building trades in Pass Christian and Biloxi. He was awarded a contract to build a new city hall and council chamber in Pass Christian in 1885. Sutter was also active in the state militia, obtaining his commission as a first lieutenant on November 17, 1889. He and his wife, Mary, were married around 1899, and they had four children. The Sutters were separated by 1920. Sutter and his surviving children, Frances E. (b. ca. 1901), Lois G. (b. ca. 1905), and Minor (b. ca. 1912), resided with his sister, Nannie C. Sutter, in Pass Christian. He was elected as mayor of Pass Christian in 1919, a position he held until his death. Sutter died on May 26, 1922, and was interred in Harrison County.

Scope and Content:

This collection consists of an account book, the center portion of which functions as a letter book. It belonged to Frank Sutter of Pass Christian and Biloxi, Harrison County, Mississippi. Dating between 1889 and 1890, the account entries are recorded in the front and back sections of the letter book. Some entries contain names, hours worked, and wages paid to employees of Sutter. Other entries include client names, street names, lists of items, and prices. Most entries are marked paid and appear to have been individual jobs completed by Sutter. The entries also indicate that Sutter was engaged in pipe-fitting or plumbing work.

The letter book portion consists of handwritten drafts or copies of personal letters written to various acquaintances of Sutter, as well as unsigned essays and quotations in his handwriting. Two items are dated 1890 and 1893, but most are undated. All of the drafts note the recipient at the top of each page and contain occasional bits of local news or news of mutual acquaintances. Sutter also records the weather. Several drafts are addressed to “Miss A” or “Miss Anderson” and are flirtatious in tone. Intermingled with the drafts are unsigned essays and quotations. The essays bear such titles as “Olga,” which was also the name of Sutter’s first yacht, and “What is Death?”

Series Identification:

1. Account Book. 1889-1893. 1 bound volume.

   Box 1