The Pipe Family Letter Collection - Volume 1: The Promise of America in Their Own Words

＂This work may well prove to be the Rosetta stone into understanding the history of Yarcombe [Parish, Devon, England].＂

Steve Horner, Yarcombe historian

The Pipe family’s letter collection provides firsthand accounts into the challenges that they, and many European immigrants to the United States, experienced during the mid- to late 1800s. This two-volume set includes 105 letters, along with historic photos and maps, that span 63 years and four generations as the family transitioned from southwest England to mostly rural Wisconsin.

Volume 1 takes the family through 1863, just fifteen years after Wisconsin’s statehood and with an economy that had barely progressed beyond frontier status in rural areas. Historians on both sides of the Atlantic will appreciate the level of detail provided by these determined individuals.

Featuring images of the actual letters paired with easy-to-read transcriptions, the Pipe family comes to life through a story told through their own pens and in their own words. They share life events as they happened, and express their doubts and fears about the future. Modern-day readers will feel the joys, celebrations and tragedies while developing a personal relationship with individual family members.