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Nancy Kennison Stevens
b. 9 July 1802-----d. 27 August 1876
m. Samuel Stevens on 3 July 1827
Born Kennebec, Maine
Died Mount Pleasant, Iowa
Married Morgan County, Ohio

Nancy Kennison was the sister of my GGreat Grandmother, Belinda Kennison.
Belinda and Nancy married two brothers, Thomas and Samuel Stevens. Both
the Kennisons and the Stevens had come to Morgan County, Ohio from
Kennebec, Maine. Nancy and her husband Samuel moved to New London,
Henry Co., Iowa first it appears. Some of the other family members followed
later. Samuel died in the Civil War in Memphis, Tennessee. This letter was
written to her children on 10th of June, 1874.
Dear Children
I will try to answer your kind letter, for which I am very
thankful. I have been very sick all winter with a very bad
cough, but I am better of that now. But I have had the heart
disease all winter and have it yet but not so bad as I did
through the cold weather. I was so bad that putting on my
dress would make me faint. I was here by myself and Daniel
come to see me and wanted me to go home with him, but I was
not able so he said he would come the next week. He came twice
before I was able to go. He met me at the depot with the sleigh
and took me to his house. I staid there five weeks and your
Aunt Thurza, James, Pattee and wife and child came and I
went home. They staid five weeks and then went back to
Farmington for they come from Kansas to Farmington and then
from Farmington down here and then back to Farmington and
back to Ohio. They had a team of mules and a light wagon.
Thurza is feeble and Belinda thinks she is weakly. Guess they
don't any of them work much. Thurza said Aunt Polly had a
very bad cough & thought real hard of me for not writing to her
when I was so well, but when she came and found me so feeble,
she wrote to Aunt and she told Nancy Elen and she wrote to
(?Samuel D. Cran mer?) he came the first of April, he wants
you to write to him he is at work by the month and comes home
Saturday nights. He says if I get able to go to Sidney he will
take me this fall. He has his team on pasture. I must rest a
while. well my dear children words cannot express my longing to
see you, but I am not able to come and now and I could not
raise the money to come with for I have been ill so long that I
have to run in debt so that my means are spent before I get it.
It is very hard times here and theso many that work by the day
they can hardly make a living for their families. I rent the old
house for three dollars a month they give me half of all they
raise on the lots. They are very poor but they are kind to me.
They do a great many chores for me and pay the rent sometimes
in a pound of butter or something of that kind which does well
as they can.I am in hopes that I shall get better of the Heart
Disease. I am a great deal better than I was last Winter.
Mrs. Cox is dead. She died the fifteenth of April. She had
been smarter than she had been for a good many winters, she
took the cramp and went into fits. She lived 36 hrs after she
was taken sick she died at Rachels in Mt. Pleasant. She went
there on a visit. I was to sick to go to the funeral. Julius Cox
married to a dutch girl by the name of Huldah, she is about
sixteen. Rebecca Cox is married in Oregon. Give my love to all
the children for I want to see you all if you could come to see
me I should be so glad.Write as soon as you get this and tell me
all about the children and write a letter to Samuel D. Crammer
for he thinks his folks don't care anything about him nor more at
present.
Remain your affectionate mother
Nancy W. Stevens