Elizabeth Winston Collection, PC.1359
Abstract
Malcolm McNeill (1796-1875), originally from Person County, North Carolina, was the
son of Henry and Dorothy McNeill. After 1817, he settled in Christian County, Kentucky.
These are the papers of the McNeill family, including documents related to Malcolm's
parents, an uncle, siblings, and his children and their in-laws.
The collection includes correspondence referencing family in Scotland (1798), travel
in Europe (1828-1829), and other family matters. Many documents reflect the family's
business interests and investments. Materials related to slavery include bills of
sale (1824-1852), a letter concerning a group of children and an enslaved person held
in jail in Louisville after an escape attempt (1864), and an undated letter from a
formerly enslaved individual.
Descriptive Summary
- Title
- Elizabeth Winston Collection
- Call Number
- PC.1359
- Creator
- McNeill family
- Date
- 1760-1892, 1967
- Extent
- 2.200 cubic feet
- Repository
- State Archives of North Carolina
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], PC.1359, Elizabeth Winston Collection, Private Collections, State Archives of North Carolina, Raleigh, NC, U.S.A.
Collection Overview
Papers of the family of Malcolm McNeill (1796-1875), originally of Person County,
North Carolina, and later of Christian County, Kentucky (after circa 1817). The collection
includes family correspondence and business records related to McNeill's parents,
Henry and Dorothy McNeill; his uncle, Hector McNeill of Petersburg, Virginia; and
his brothers Pryor, John P., and Alexander, who lived in Kentucky, Mississippi, and
Louisiana. Other correspondents include family friends, such as Daniel Mayes of Kentucky,
and in-laws of Malcolm McNeill's children.
Topics covered in the correspondence include: family in Scotland (1798); student life
at the University of North Carolina (1813); European travel (1828-1829); land and
cotton prices; river flooding; banking; and the domestic slave trade in Mississippi
(1825). Other letters reference slave prices in North Carolina (1830), McNeill's property
and business interests in Tennessee, Mississippi, and Louisiana, the 1840 presidential
campaign, and plantation management after the Civil War.
A substantial portion of the collection relates to Malcolm McNeill's real estate investments
in Chicago (1853-1874), including letters from his agent, maps, contracts, deeds,
and other supporting documents. Letters from Chicago and Boston businessmen (1860-1865)
frequently comment on current events, the postal service, the effects of military
action on commerce, and the presidential election. Some letters refer to McNeill's
efforts to assist Confederate prisoners of war held at Camp Douglas and Alton, Illinois,
and to retaliation for the mistreatment of Union prisoners.
The collection also contains an 1864 letter describing a group of children and an
enslaved person held in jail in Louisville after an escape attempt, and an undated
letter from a formerly enslaved individual. Land records span North Carolina (1760-1831),
as well as Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Arkansas. Additional
documents include bills of sale for enslaved individuals (1824-1852); bills from merchants
and teachers; and the wills of Malcolm, Eliza, and Pryor McNeill.
Contents of the Collection
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• CorrespondencePC.1359.01-02
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• Correspondence 1865-1892 and undated; Business Records 1771-1859PC.1359.03-04
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• Business RecordsPC.1359.05-06
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• Business Records (1869-1874, 1892); Deeds, Bonds, Powers of Attorney, Wills, Bills of Sale, Agreements, Miscellaneous (1782-1870)PC.1359.07-08
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• Land Records, Estates, Genealogical Material, Memo Book, Plans for Apt., MiscellaneousPC.1359.09-10
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• Addition of 2018PC.1359.11