7033----1850s Bernard Reid letters Clarion County PA - 1849 gold rusher

7033----1850S BERNARD REID LETTERS CLARION COUNTY PA - 1849 GOLD RUSHER PLEASE SCROLL DOWN BEYOND THIS DESCRIPTION FOR over 90 IMAGES Amazing collection of original 1850s letters attributed to Bernard J. Reid, well known attorney of Clarion County PA. Reid was the subject of a 1983 book published based on his personal Gold Rush diary which was discovered by a Reid relative in 1953. The title of that book is "Overland to California with the Pioneer Line, The Gold Rush Diary of Bernard J. Reid." The lot of (10) letters available for sale in this listing were correspondence between Bernard Reid and his future wife "Letitia Maria Farren" from 1852-1854. I acquired these at a local auction in 2018. I then purchased the book that I found online to learn more about Reid. (The book is not included with the sale of the letters) The letters contain much talk of  local news and acquaintances, religion, some business, etc.  There is no doubt these would be considered "love letters" from a couple about to be married.  Two of the letters do mention the upcoming wedding, most notably the letter of Jan 25, 1854, (the last before the wedding) which Letitia is deciding on a date. The couple remained married until the death of Letitia in 1902. Bernard died in 1904. Nine of the ten letters were mailed from Clarion PA or New Brighton PA. I have not read each letter in it's entirety, so I do not know if Bernard writes of his gold rush journey in 1849. I have uploaded the pages of each letter and in some cases enlarged views of various parts of each letter as well, so please take the time to review all. I have also added parts of the book below for your review as well. In addition I have added the 1860 and 1880 census records for Bernard + Letitia in Clarion County PA. The obit for Letitia is at the end. In total there are over 100+ photos so be patient. PLEASE NOTE:  The research items ARE NOT included with the sale of the letters. The letters are in EX condition, despite being about 170 years old. Remarkably, four of the letters still have their original covers. Three of the four with original stamps. I have organized the letters in a binder and of course will include this in the purchase. The letters are numbered 2 through 11. Each letter will be described below: --- Nov 7, 1853 -- From Letitia to Bernard - 5 pages (with cover) -- New Brighton PA to Clarion PA --- July 16, 1853 -- From Letitia to Bernard - 4 pages (with cover) -- New Brighton PA to Clarion PA --- July 22, 1853 -- From Bernard to Letitia -- 4 pages (no cover) -- Clarion PA to New Brighton PA --- July 29, 1853 -- From Letitia to Bernard -- 4 pages (one page appears to be missing) -- with cover - New Brighton PA to Clarion PA --- Aug 3, 1853 -- From Bernard to Letitia - 4 pages (no cover) -- Clarion PA to New Brighton PA this letter was very light so it was darkened for improved viewing --- Dec 31, 1853 -- From Letitia to Bernard -- 4 pages (no cover) -- New Brighton PA --- Dec 5, 1852 -- From Bernard to Letitia -- 2 pages (no cover) -- Clarion PA --- Jan 6, 1854 -- From Letitia to Bernard -- 4 pages (no cover) -- New Brighton PA first mention of wedding day --- Jan 25, 1854 -- From Letitia to Bernard -- 2 pages (no cover) -- mention of wedding - New Brighton PA --- "Fall of 1853" undated but marked on back of cover  -- From Bernard to Letitia - 2 pages -- Pittsburgh PA to Pittsburgh PA * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *