A letter from Abigail Cornell in Far Rockaway, New York discussing the details surrounding the days leading up to and the eventual death of John Ball. The letter states that John Ball arrived at the Cornell house to lodge and was under the care of Dr. Martin. His symptoms were a cold, head pain, blisters on his neck and temple, a fever and swelling of the head. Cornell details how she sat with John Ball reading to him and asking him questions about death and God.
A letter from Hyde Park Plantation overseer Jesse Coward to John Ball in Charleston discussing the recovering enslaved persons, and two enslaved persons sick with dropsy or consumption.
A handwritten, four-page letter from Joseph Alston to his father, Charles Alston, in which he tells him of his experience in a skirmish with a Union gunboat and updates him on the movement of other Confederate troops. He also discusses the spread of edema among enslaved people and them escaping to Union soldiers. In addition, he mentions the conditions at his residence and the spread of fever there.
Receipt book belonging to Mary Motte Alston Pringle containing recipes, methods and remedies for food, housekeeping, and medicine from family, friends, articles and world travelers. Pringle often notes on effectiveness and provides personal anecdotes. Pages numbered 74 through 97 in Pringle's book are blank and therefore omitted. The table of contents can be found at the end of the book.
