Page 1 of 7 Guide to the John Carter family papers 1769-1917 (bulk 1769-1844) Box 1894 Brown University Providence, RI 02912 Tel: 401-863-2725 Fax: 401-863-3477 email: jcbl_information@brown.edu Published in 2010
Page 2 of 7 Collection overview Title: John Carter family papers Date range: 1769-1917, (bulk 1769-1844) Creator: Extent: Abstract: Language of materials: Repository: Collection number: Carter, John, 1745-1814 Carter family.5 linear foot Correspondence and other papers related to Providence printer and newspaper publisher, John Carter (1745-1814), and his family. English Ms. Carter 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 familyâ 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 Carterâ s sons embarked on their various maritime adventures. Material in the collection spans from 1769 to 1917. The bulk of the material was created between 1769 and 1844 and is calendared with a card file index. After 1844, the material primarily consists of correspondence by Carterâ s sons-in-law Nicholas Brown and Walter Raleigh Danforth (1787-1861).
Page 3 of 7 Arrangement The John Carter family papers are arranged chronologically. Biographical 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. Carterâ 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, 1775-779 (Son) Carter, March 20-21, 1777 Jenckes, Rebecca, 1778-1837 (Married to Amos Throop Jenckes) Carter, James, 1780-ca.1812 Carter, Crawford, 1782-1868 Carter, (Daughter), June-Sept 1783
Page 4 of 7 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: Contact information: The collections are restricted to use by qualified scholars, engaged in productive research, for whom access to a collection is essential for the advancement of their work. All researchers must register and submit at least two forms of identification, including a driver's license or passport with a photo. Students and unaffiliated scholars must also have a written endorsement of their project from an established college or university professor. 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. Although the John Carter Brown Library has physical ownership of the collection and the materials contained therein, it does not claim literary rights. It is up to the researcher to determine the owners of the literary rights and to obtain any necessary permissions from them. John Carter family papers, Ms. Carter, John Carter Brown Library Box 1894 Brown University Providence, RI 02912 Tel: 401-863-2725 Fax: 401-863-3477 email: jcbl_information@brown.edu
Page 5 of 7 Administrative information About the collection Aquisition: 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: Finding aid prepared by Kim Nusco. Encoding: Finding aid encoded by Kim Nusco 2010 September 22 Descriptive rules: Additional information Finding aid based on Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS) Related material: Carter-Danforth papers, 1722-1929. Bulk, 1790-1840, Rhode Island Historical Society Carter-Danforth papers, Mss. 336 Search terms Names: Carter family Carter, John, 1745-1814 Brown, Nicholas, 1769-1841 Carter, Amey (Crawford), 1743-1806 Carter, Benjamin Bowen, 1771-1835 Carter, Crawford, 1782-1868 Carter, Huldah Maria, 1787-1842 Carter, James, 1780-ca.1812 Carter, John, 1774-1815 Carter, William, 1785-1821 Danforth, Elizabeth Ann (Carter), 1790-1876 Danforth, Walter R. (Walter Raleigh), 1787-1861 Francis, Ann Carter Brown, 1795-1828
Page 6 of 7 Goddard, William, 1740-1817 Jenckes, Rebecca (Carter), 1778-1837 Subjects: Types of materials: Brown family Carter family Danforth family Jenckes family Goddard, Mary Katherine, 1738-1816 Hamilton, Alexander, 1757-1804 Printers--Rhode Island--Providence Saint Croix (V.I.) Letters (correspondence)
Page 7 of 7 Inventory