Gunn family papers
Descriptive Summary
- Title
- Gunn family papers
- Date
- 1816-1926
- Extent
- 0.27 Cubic feet
- Subjects
- Clergy--Kentucky.
- Engineers--Kentucky.
- Family archives--Kentucky.
- Soldiers--Kentucky.
- United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865.
- Arrangement
- Collection is arranged by format.
- Preferred Citation
- 73M28: [identification of item], Gunn family papers, 1816-1926, University of Kentucky Special Collections.
- Repository
- University of Kentucky
Collection Overview
- Biography / History
- William Gunn was born in North Carolina in 1797. He became a travelling preacher for the Methodist Episcopal Church's Henderson, Kentucky, circuit in 1819 and then, married Frances Adams, the daughter of a Shelbyville, Kentucky, Methodist minister, in 1826. Their children included William A. Gunn, Thomas Morris Gun, John Tevis Gunn, and James Gunn. William A. Gunn was an engineer and inventor. During the Civil War, he served as chief engineer of the U.S. Military Railroad and constructed several forts in Kentucky. After the war, he built the bridge at Clay's Ferry, Kentucky, and invented the "H" form of column for steel construction. His brothers, Thomas Morris Gunn and John Tevis Gunn served in the Union Army with the 21st Kentucky Volunteers. Thomas acted as army chaplain during the Civil War and later became a Presbyterian minister. James Gunn followed in his father's footsteps by working as a Methodist minister. He also taught at Transylvania University.
- Scope and Content
- The Gunn family papers comprise the correspondence, legal papers, speeches, and family tree of the William Gunn household. The correspondence series contains letters discussing theological matters and church problems debated at Methodist conferences as well as a number of Civil War epistles between Frances Gunn and her sons. The various legal papers in the collection consist of land deeds, receipts, a will, and marriage licenses from wedding ceremonies presided over by William Gunn, a Methodist Episcopalian minister. The speeches in the collection were made by Reverend Gunn at the 1851 commencement of Shelby College and at the Farmer's Club tenth anniversary. A family tree traces the history of the Gunn family with details from a biographical account and research by William A. Gunn, Reverend Gunn's son.
Restrictions on Access and Use
- Conditions Governing Access
- Conditions Governing Access note Collection is open to researchers by appointment.
- Use Restrictions
- The physical rights to the materials in this collection are held by the University of Kentucky Special Collections.
Contents of the Collection
Correspondence, 1816-1926
, 1816-1849
, 1851-1861
, 1862-1863
General correspondence, 1860, 1863, undated
Correspondence, genealogy, biographical materials, 1910-1926
Copies of correspondence, undated
Family tree, undated
Legal papers, 1821-1859
Researchers are required to have an SCRC Researcher Account in order to request or order digital copies of materials. Research Account set-up and use instructions can be found at: http://libguides.uky.edu/SCRCaccount
If you are visiting the Breckinridge Research Room, please request materials at least 48 business hours in advance of your arrival.
For all other questions, contact us at: https://libraries.uky.edu/ContactSCRC.
Researchers are required to have an SCRC Researcher Account in order to request or order digital copies of materials. Research Account set-up and use instructions can be found at: http://libguides.uky.edu/SCRCaccount
If you are visiting the Breckinridge Research Room, please request materials at least 48 business hours in advance of your arrival.
For all other questions, contact us at: https://libraries.uky.edu/ContactSCRC.
