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Alexander and Lumpkin Families Collection

An inventory of the collection at Syracuse University


Finding aid created by: MRC
Date: 31 Oct 2011

Biographical History

The Alexander and Lumpkin families were two prominent Texas pioneer families. Thomas Crawford Alexander, born in Tennessee, served in the U.S. Army during the Mexican-American War and in the army of the Confederate States of American (CSA) during the American Civil War. According to Military History Online, Alexander "stood 5'7' tall with blue eyes, dark hair and dark complexion...[He] was a lawyer, teacher and devout churchman...[and] the oldest of 7 brothers." His daughter Laura married Simon Hiron Lumpkin who, according to the 1900 census, was a lawyer whose family came from South Carolina. They were related by blood or marriage with a number of other families including Hale, Bain, Trulove, Pickett, Chamberlain and Robertson.

Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Alexander and Lumpkin Families Collection consists of correspondence, photographs, genealogical and biographical material, and draft and published versions of an article about the families which appeared in the Syracuse University Courier, No. 31, 1969. The collection was presumably amassed by librarian John S. Mayfield, a relative.

Biographical material includes, among other things, a photocopy of an undated handwritten account of Thomas Alexander's military service, on letterhead of Bain Grocery. Of the two photographs, one is a portrait of a gentleman who is "thought to be William Pickett Lumpkin or Abram Pickett Lumpkin"; the other is a large group photo of 29 people taken at Meridian, Bosque County, Texas on 26 Dec 1895 and labeled, "Capt. T. C. Alexander's family." There are two originals and several modern reproductions of the photograph. All 29 people are identified on an accompanying typewritten sheet; in addition to Alexander and Lumpkin, other surnames represented in the photograph include Hale, Bain, Trulove, Pickett, Chamberlain and Robertson.

Arrangement of the Collection

Correspondence is presented first, followed by photographs, genealogical/biographical material, and material relating to the Courier article.

Restrictions

Access Restrictions:

The majority of our archival and manuscript collections are housed offsite and require advanced notice for retrieval. Researchers are encouraged to contact us in advance concerning the collection material they wish to access for their research.

Use Restrictions:

Written permission must be obtained from SCRC and all relevant rights holders before publishing quotations, excerpts or images from any materials in this collection.

Related Material

Other Earle Mayfield correspondence appears in the George W. Winningham Papers.

Subject Headings

Persons

Alexander family.
Alexander, Thomas Crawford.
Bain family.
Lumpkin family.
Lumpkin, Laura Alexander, b. 1852.
Lumpkin, Simon Hiron.
Mayfield, Earle Bradford, 1881-1964.
Mayfield, John S., 1904-1983.

Places

Bosque County (Tex.) -- History.
Meridian (Tex.) -- History.

Genres and Forms

Correspondence.
Genealogies (histories)
Manuscripts for publication.
Photographs.
Research notes.

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

Alexander and Lumpkin Family Collection,
Special Collections Research Center,
Syracuse University Libraries

Acquisition Information

Gift of John S. Mayfield, 1969.

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Inventory