Page 1 of 6 Guide to the John Carter family papers 1769 1917 (bulk 1769-1844) Box 1894 Brown University Providence, RI 02912 Tel: (401) 863-2725 email: JCBL_Information@brown.edu Published in 2013
Page 2 of 6 Collection overview Title: John Carter family papers Date range: 1769 1917, (bulk 1769-1844) Creator: Extent: Abstract: Language of materials: Repository: Collection number: Carter family Carter, Amey, 1744-1806 Carter, Benjamin Bowen, 1771-1831 Carter, Huldah, 1787-1842 Carter, James, 1780 approximately 1812 Carter, John, 1745-1814 Carter, John, 1774-1815 Carter, William, 1785-1821 0.5 linear foot Correspondence and other papers related to Providence printer and newspaper publisher, John Carter (1745 1814), and his family. English Carter papers Scope & content The collection consists primarily of the correspondence of John and Amey (Crawford) Carter and their nine children, including Dr. Benjamin Bowen Carter, a supercargo for the Brown family s China trade vessels and Ann (Carter) Brown, wife of Nicholas Brown (1769 1841). Letters between other family members, including the interrelated Brown, Danforth, and Jenckes families, and with associates, including William and Mary Katherine Goddard of Philadelphia, are also represented. The collection also contains a limited number of deeds, legal settlements, and other business related material. The majority of the material concerns family news, particularly as John Carter s sons embarked on their various maritime adventures. The bulk of material spans from 1769 to 1844, and is calendared with a card file index. After 1844, the material primarily consists of correspondence by Carter s sons-in-law Nicholas Brown and Walter Raleigh Danforth (1787-1861).
Page 3 of 6 Arrangement The John Carter family papers are arranged chronologically. Biographical/Historical note Printer and journalist John Carter was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1745. After an apprenticeship with Benjamin Franklin, Carter moved in 1767 to Providence, Rhode Island, and began work with the Providence Gazette, the weekly newspaper operated by William Goddard with his sister, Mary Katherine Goddard, and their mother, Sarah Goddard. When William Goddard moved to Philadelphia to begin publishing the Philadelphia Chronicle in 1768, Carter purchased the Gazette, producing the paper until near his death in 1814. From 1773 to 1779, Carter partnered with William Wilkinson, and the press operated under the name Carter and Wilkinson. From 1772 until 1792 Carter served as the first Postmaster of Providence (commissioned by his former employer, Benjamin Franklin, who was Postmaster-General). During the Revolutionary War, he served on the Committee of Correspondence. In 1769, John Carter married Amey Crawford (1744-1806), daughter of Captain John Crawford of Providence. They had twelve children, nine of whom survived into adulthood. Ann Carter, their eldest daughter, married Nicholas Brown of Providence; they were the parents of John Carter Brown. Their eldest son, Benjamin Bowen Carter, studied under Dr. Benjamin Rush and practiced medicine for a short time in Connecticut. He spent most of his career as a doctor and supercargo for the Brown family on many China trade voyages, on the ship Ann & Hope. Carter s other sons, James, Crawford and William, were also involved in maritime trade. Children of John Carter and Amey Crawford: Brown, Ann, 1770-1798 (Married to Nicholas Brown) Carter, Benjamin Bowen, 1771-1835 Carter, John, 1774-1815 Carter, Crawford, 1775-1779 (Son) Carter, March 20-21, 1777
Page 4 of 6 Jenckes, Rebecca, 1778 1837 (Married to Amos T. Jenckes) Carter, James, 1780 ca.1812 Carter, Crawford, 1782-1868 Carter, (Daughter), June Sept. 1783 Carter, William, 1785-1821 Carter, Huldah Maria, 1787-1842 Danforth, Elizabeth Ann, 1790 1876 (Married to Walter Raleigh Danforth) Access & use Access to the collection: Use of materials: Preferred citation: All researchers must register and submit two forms of photographic identification, one of which must be government issued. Students and unaffiliated scholars must also have a written endorsement of their project from an advisor or other faculty member. Researchers are advised that express written permission to reproduce, quote, or otherwise publish any portion or extract from this collection must be obtained from the. John Carter family papers, Carter papers, John Carter Brown Library Contact information: Administrative information About the collection Aquisition: Box 1894 Brown University Providence, RI 02912 Tel: (401) 863-2725 email: JCBL_Information@brown.edu
Page 5 of 6 Custodial history: The collection was deposited at the John Carter Brown Library through William Greene Roelker, by Mrs. Maurice K. Washburn of East Greenwich, Rhode Island, a descendant of John Carter, in 1938. About the finding aid Author: Encoding: Descriptive rules: Additional information Related material: Finding aid prepared by Kim Nusco This finding aid was produced using the Archivists' Toolkit 2013-12-13 Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS) Material pertaining to members of the Carter family can be found in the Brown family business records at the. Related collections at other institutions include: Carter- Danforth Papers, Rhode Island Historical Society http:// www.rihs.org/mssinv/mss336.htm Alternative guide: This collection was calendared by Ms. Florence Clapp in January 1954, and a card index exists for the papers from 1769 to 1844. Search terms Names: Subjects: Types of materials: Occupations: Carter family Maritime Letters--18th century--rhode Island Letters--19th century--rhode Island Printers--Rhode Island Supercargos
Page 6 of 6 Inventory