Date Original
1827-1933
Description
This collection contains correspondence written by Clarissa "Clara" Dickson Dunlap, Mary Elizabeth Gildersleeve Boddie, and Cornelia Dickson, all of Ouachita County, Arkansas, and correspondence written to Ralph Leland Goodrich. Other materials in the collection include business papers, advertisements, programs, and newsclippings related to Goodrich.
Biographical/Historical Note
Fred J. Herring (1885-1975) was a civil engineer and worked for many organizations in that capacity, including the Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department. He was born in Bremen, Indiana, to Nathaniel A. and Lucy E. Wright Herring. He married Marguerite Francis Strangways and had two daughters, Marguerite Francis and Elizabeth. After he relocated to Arkansas, he lived in Pulaski, St. Francis, and Ouachita counties. Ralph Leland Goodrich was born in 1836 in Owego, New York, to Silas and Mary Ann Goodrich. He was the fifth of seven children. His siblings include J. Augusta, Sarah Ann, James, Rachel, Mary, and Stephen. He attended Hobart Free College, Geneva, New York, where he was involved in the fraternity Theta Delta Chi. After graduation in 1858, he studied law under Nathaniel Davis and Willoughby Babcock, but failed the bar exam in November 1859. Embarrassed, he soon left New York and taught school in South Carolina and Florida before settling in Little Rock, Arkansas. From September 1861 to March 1862, Goodrich served in Company A, 6th Arkansas Infantry, known as the "Capital Guards." He saw little action, and spent most of his time in a Memphis, Tennessee, hospital. After he was medically discharged, he went back to his home in Little Rock, where he was a school teacher. Later, he served as a clerk of the United States Circuit Court and the United States District Court for many years. He was a 32nd Degree Knight Commander of the Court of Honor Mason. Goodrich married three times. His first marriage was to Serena Jennie Connett (1850-1870) on August 24, 1869. He and Jennie had one daughter, Edith. Shortly after Edith was born, Jennie died on September 14, 1870, and Edith was raised by his mother and sister in New York. His second wife, Isadora "Dora" Beebe (1843-1891) was the daughter of Hiram A. and Mary C. Ellis Beebe of Owego, New York, where Hiram was the senior editor of the Owego Gazette. They married in a lavish wedding on August 17, 1875. They had no children, and she died April 21, 1891. His third wife, Juliette Churchill (1861-1941), was the daughter of former Arkansas Governor Thomas J. Churchill. They married on September 7, 1897, but he died less than a month later on October 6, 1897. Goodrich is buried at Mount Holly Cemetery, Little Rock, Arkansas. George Boddie (1821-1882), son of Thomas Boddie and Clarrissa Lanier, married Mary Elizabeth Gildersleeve (1824-1900), daughter of John and Martha Jones Gildersleeve of North Carolina. They were the parents of John Rumph, Willis Thomas, George Gildersleeve, Mary Elizabeth, Caroline Frances, and Robert Lee that survived childhood. They made their home in Ouachita County, Arkansas, after moving from Alabama. Carolina L. Dickson (born in 1825), daughter of Thomas Boddie and Clarrissa Lanier, married Addison C. Love (born in 1812) of North Carolina in 1843. They made their home in Autauga County, Alabama, where they raised their children, Irene, Thomas, Mary, Addison, Fannie, Will, Ada, Wynona, Virginia, Bessie, George, and Crawford. Clarrissa (Clara) Dickson, born in 1836, was the daughter of Colonel Samuel H.N. Dickson and Clarrissa Lanier Boddie of Alabama, and the half-sister of George Boddie. After her marriage to John Franklin Dunlap (1828-1898), they moved to Ouachita County, Arkansas, where they had three children, Lula, Cora Lee, and John. Cornelia Dickson (born in 1838), also the daughter of Colonel Samuel H.N. Dickson and Clarrissa Lanier Boddie of Alabama and half-sister of George Boddie, remained unmarried and taught school in Ouachita County, Arkansas.
Physical Description
Document, 8.5" x 11"
Geographical Area
Ouachita County (Ark.)
Language
English
Identifier
MS.000791
Resource Type
Text
Collection
Fred J. Herring collection, MS.000791
Publisher
Arkansas State Archives
Contributing Entity
Arkansas State Archives
Recommended Citation
Fred J. Herring collection, Arkansas State Archives, Little Rock, Arkansas.
Rights
Use and reproduction of images held by the Arkansas State Archives without prior written permission is prohibited. For information on reproducing images held by the Arkansas State Archives, please call 501-682-6900 or email at state.archives@arkansas.gov.
Disciplines
United States History
