Beatty-Quisenberry Family Papers, 1796-1962
Held The Filson Historical Society
Creator: Beatty-Quisenberry Family
Title: Papers, 1796-1962
Rights: For information regarding literary and copyright interest for these papers, contact the Curator of Special Collections.
Size of Collection: 6 cubic feet
Location Number: Mss./A/B369
Scope and Content Note
Papers of Adam Beatty and his descendants in the Beatty and Quisenberry families. The papers of Adam Beatty include correspondence, legal papers, and business papers detailing agriculture, politics, slavery, the Episcopal Church, and other aspects of life in Kentucky from the turn of the nineteenth century through Beatty’s death in 1858. Correspondents include Robert J. Breckinridge, Leslie Combs, John J. Crittenden, Garrett Davis, Richard Hawes, Richard M. Johnson, Thomas Metcalfe, B. B. Smith, Thomas B. Stevenson, J. R. Underwood, Charles A. Wickliffe, Robert Wickliffe, and numerous other prominent political and religious figures. Letters from family members in California, Louisiana, Maryland, and Texas discuss life in those states. Also included are letters written to Beatty’s wife, Sarah, mostly concerning daily life.
A small group of Ormond Beatty’s papers contain material related to the Civil War, Centre College, the Caldwell Institute, and real estate in Danville, Kentucky. Letters from Ormond Beatty are included in the papers of his parents.
Ormond Beatty’s daughter, Pattie, grew up in Danville, following the Civil War. Her papers mostly concern social life in postbellum Kentucky, although they also include references to politics and major events. Correspondence to and from Pattie Beatty describes traveling and vacationing in numerous parts of the eastern United States. She was also involved with Presbyterian missionary groups and some related material is included in the collection. In 1882, she married John A. Quisenberry. His papers relate to agriculture, politics, social life, business, and real estate in Kentucky and Texas.
Thomas E. Quisenberry, the son of John A. and Pattie Quisenberry, moved to Evanston, Illinois. His papers reflect business, politics, social life, and other aspects of life in Illinois in the mid-twentieth century. Included are copies of his letters to politicians, including Franklin D. Roosevelt, offering Quisenberry’s opinions on various issues. The correspondence of his wife Quinlan Hanna Quisenberry (née Agnes Quinlan Hanna) details social life and travel.
The Filson purchased the Beatty-Quisenberry Family Papers in a number of lots, resulting in the collection having numerous accession numbers. They are 99z7, 99z11, 99z12, 99z13, 99z14, 99z16, 99z22, 00z5, 00z10, 00z16, 00z18, 00z21, 00z24, 001z14, 001z27, 001z32, 002z8, 002z11, 002z14, 002z20, 002z23, 003z3.
Related Collections
A group of Henry Clay’s letters to Adam Beatty is in the holdings of the University of Kentucky’s Special Collections.
Biographical Note
Born in Virginia in 1777, Adam Beatty immigrated to Mason County, Kentucky, around the turn of the nineteenth century. In Kentucky, Beatty was a circuit court judge and served at least one term in the state legislature. He also ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. House of Representatives in 1838. Beatty was a prominent member of the Whig Party and was a close friend and political ally of Henry Clay. On his farm, “Prospect Hill,” outside of Maysville, Beatty engaged in a number of agricultural pursuits. At different times, he raised sheep, tobacco, and hemp. He married Sarah Green (sometimes Greer) in the early nineteenth century. He died in 1858.
Ormond Beatty, the son of Adam and Sarah Beatty, was born in 1815. He studied at Yale in the mid-1830s and returned to Kentucky to take a position as a professor at Centre College. In the late 1850s, he became acting president of Centre and became permanent president shortly thereafter. He married Elizabeth O. Beatty (maiden name unknown) ca. 1839. He died in 1890.
Pattie Beatty, the daughter of Ormond and Elizabeth O. Beatty, was born in 1853.
She married John A. Quisenberry (b. 1851) in 1882. Quisenberry was a farmer and later a businessman in Danville. He died in 1930. Pattie Quisenberry died in 1934.
Their son, Thomas Edwin Quisenberry, was born in 1891. As an adult, he moved to Evanston, Illinois, where he engaged in numerous business pursuits. Around 1913, he married Agnes Quinlan Hanna (b. 1892), who went by Quinlan. They had five children: Martha (b. 1915), Patricia (b. 1916); Agnes (b. 1918); Helen (b. 1922?); John (5 April 1924-6 March 1995). Quinlan died in 1958, and Thomas died in 1964.
Genealogy
Beatty Family
1. William Beatty, Jr. (1738-1801) m. Mary Dorothea Grosch
1.1 William Beatty III (1758-1781)
1.2 Henry Beatty (1760-1840) m. Sarah Henning
1.3 Elizabeth Beatty (1762-1831) m. John Charlton
1.4 John Conrad Beatty (16 October 1764-1811)
1.5 Cornelius Beatty (b. 27 February 1766) m. Harriet Vorvell
1.6 Sophia Beatty (b. 1768) m. Nathanial Rochester
1.7 Mary Beatty (b. 1769) m. Daniel Stull
1.8 George Beatty (b. 1771)
1.9 Otho Beatty (1773-1803) m. Mary Logan
1.10 Eleanor Beatty (3 October 1774-1825) m. John B. Beall
1.11 Elie Beatty (b. 17 January 1776) m. Elizabeth Chew Dury/Deery, m2. Mary Yarnell
1.12 Adam Beatty (1776?-1858) m. Sarah Green [sometimes Greer]
1.12.4 Ormond Beatty (13 August 1815-24 June 1890) m. Elizabeth O. Beatty (b. 1825?)
1.12.4.1 Pattie Beatty (1853-1934) m. John A. Quisenberry (1851-1930)
1.13 John Michael Beatty (31 March 1779-1823)
1.14 Daniel Beatty (b. 1780) m. Ann Cox
1.15 William Assirby Beatty (1782-1802) m. Elizabeth Miller
1.16 Lewis Augustus Beatty (b. 20 March 1784) m. Gist, m2. Lady of Georgetown
Quisenberry Family
1. Thomas E. Quisenberry (1820-15 June 1871) m. Anna Price
1.1 Lucy Quisenberry
1.2 John A. Quisenberry m. Pattie Beatty
1.2.1 Thomas E. Quisenberry (b. 24 May 1891-1964) m. Agnes Quinlan Hanna (1892-1958)
1.2.1.1 Martha Quisenberry (b. 1915)
1.2.1.2 Patricia Quisenberry (b. 1916)
1.2.1.3 Agnes Quisenberry (b. 1918)
1.2.1.4 Helen Quisenberry (b. 1922?)
1.2.1.5 John Quisenberry (5 April 1924-6 March 1995)
1.3 Robert Taylor Quisenberry
Folder List
Folder 1: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1801-1817
Folder 2: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1821-1824
Folder 3: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1825
Folder 4: Adam Beatty Correspondence, January-June 1826
Folder 5: Adam Beatty Correspondence, July-December 1826
Folder 6: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1827
Folder 7: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1828
Folder 8: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1829-1830
Folder 9: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1831-1832
Folder 10: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1833
Folder 11: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1834
Folder 12: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1835
Folder 13: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1836
Folder 14: Adam Beatty Correspondence, January-February 1837
Folder 15: Adam Beatty Correspondence, March-December 1837
Folder 16: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1838
Folder 17: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1839
Folder 18: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1840
Folder 19: Adam Beatty Correspondence, January-May 1841
Folder 20: Adam Beatty Correspondence, June-December 1841
Folder 21: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1842
Folder 22: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1843
Folder 23: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1844
Folder 24: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1845
Folder 25: Adam Beatty Correspondence, January-June 1846
Folder 26: Adam Beatty Correspondence, July-December 1846
Folder 27: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1847
Folder 28: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1848
Folder 29: Adam Beatty Correspondence, January-March 1849
Folder 30: Adam Beatty Correspondence, April-July 1849
Folder 31: Adam Beatty Correspondence, August-December 1849
Folder 32: Adam Beatty Correspondence, January-August 1850
Folder 33: Adam Beatty Correspondence, September-December 1850
Folder 34: Adam Beatty Correspondence, January-June 1851
Folder 35: Adam Beatty Correspondence, July-December 1851
Folder 36: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1852
Folder 37: Adam Beatty Correspondence, January-June 1853
Folder 38: Adam Beatty Correspondence, July-December 1853
Folder 39: Adam Beatty Correspondence, January-May 1854
Folder 40: Adam Beatty Correspondence, June-December 1854
Folder 41: Adam Beatty Correspondence, January-May 1855
Folder 42: Adam Beatty Correspondence, June-December 1855
Folder 43: Adam Beatty Correspondence, January-April 1856
Folder 44: Adam Beatty Correspondence, May-December 1856
Folder 45: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1857
Folder 46: Adam Beatty Correspondence, 1858
Folder 47: Adam Beatty Correspondence, undated
Folder 48: Adam Beatty Legal Papers, “Forms in Criminal Cases,” 1803
Folder 49: Adam Beatty Legal Papers, 1796-1819
Folder 50: Adam Beatty Legal Papers, 1820-1840
Folder 51: Adam Beatty Legal Papers, 1852-1857, undated
Folder 52: Adam Beatty Certificates, 1803-1829, undated
Folder 53: Adam Beatty Business Papers, 1798-1806
Folder 54: Adam Beatty Business Papers, 1807-1808
Folder 55: Adam Beatty Business Papers, 1809-1810
Folder 56: Adam Beatty Business Papers, 1811-1812
Folder 57: Adam Beatty Business Papers, 1813-1815
Folder 58: Adam Beatty Business Papers, 1816-1818
Folder 59: Adam Beatty Business Papers, 1819-1821
Folder 60: Adam Beatty Business Papers, 1822-1824
Folder 61: Adam Beatty Business Papers, 1825-1826
Folder 62: Adam Beatty Business Papers, 1827-1828
Folder 63: Adam Beatty Business Papers, 1829-1830
Folder 64: Adam Beatty Business Papers, 1831-1833
Folder 65: Adam Beatty Business Papers, 1834-1836
Folder 66: Adam Beatty Business Papers, 1837-1839
Folder 67: Adam Beatty Business Papers, 1840-1842
Folder 68: Adam Beatty Business Papers, 1843-1846
Folder 69: Adam Beatty Business Papers, 1847-1850
Folder 70: Adam Beatty Business Papers, 1851-1852
Folder 71: Adam Beatty Business Papers, 1853-1858
Folder 72: Adam Beatty Business Papers, undated
Folder 73: Adam Beatty Literary Papers
Folder 74: Adam Beatty Essays on Law and Politics
Folder 75: Adam Beatty Essays on Agriculture
Folder 76: Adam Beatty – Papers related to William Beatty
Folder 77: Adam Beatty Newspaper Clippings
Folder 78: Adam Beatty Miscellaneous
Folder 79: Sarah Beatty Correspondence, 1835-1853
Folder 80: Sarah Beatty Correspondence, 1854-1858
Folder 81: Sarah Beatty Correspondence, undated
Folder 82: John G. Hickman Correspondence
Folder 83: Ormond Beatty Correspondence, 1862-1883
Folder 84: Ormond Beatty Essays
Folder 85: Ormond Beatty Surveying Notebook, 1865-1873
Folder 86: Ormond Beatty Land and Legal Papers
Folder 87: Ormond Beatty Receipts, 1866-1886, undated
Folder 88: Ormond Beatty Account Books, 1861-1865, 1872-1874
Folder 89: Ormond Beatty Account Book, 1884-1886
Folder 90: Ormond Beatty Insurance Forms, 1873-1874
Folder 91: Ormond Beatty Miscellaneous
Folder 92: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Correspondence, 1864-1868
Folder 93: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Correspondence, 1869
Folder 94: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Correspondence, 1870
Folder 95: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Correspondence, 1871
Folder 96: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Correspondence, 1872-1873
Folder 97: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Correspondence, January-September 1874
Folder 98: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Correspondence, October-December 1874
Folder 99: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Correspondence, January-April 1875
Folder 100: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Correspondence, May-December 1875
Folder 101: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Correspondence, 1876
Folder 102: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Correspondence, 1877
Folder 103: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Correspondence, 1878-1879
Folder 104: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Correspondence, 1880-1881
Folder 105: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Correspondence, 1882-1909
Folder 106: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Correspondence, 1926-1934
Folder 107: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Correspondence, partially dated, no year
Folder 108: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Correspondence, partially dated, day of the week
Folder 109: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Correspondence, undated
Folder 110: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Correspondence, incomplete
Folder 111: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Land & Legal Papers
Folder 112: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Tax Assessment Forms, 1910-1917
Folder 113: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Presbyterian Missionary Papers
Folder 114: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Presbyterian Missionary Receipts, 1885-1913
Folder 115: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Presbyterian Missionary Receipts, 1912-1917
Folder 116: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Essay
Folder 117: Pattie Beatty Diary
Folder 118: Pattie Beatty Receipts
Folder 119: Pattie Beatty Calling Cards
Folder 120: Pattie Beatty Quisenberry Miscellaneous
Folder 121: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1870
Folder 122: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1871-1872
Folder 123: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1873
Folder 124: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1874
Folder 125: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1875
Folder 126: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1876
Folder 127: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1877-1878
Folder 128: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1879
Folder 129: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1880-1889
Folder 130: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1890
Folder 131: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1891
Folder 132: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1892
Folder 133: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1893
Folder 134: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1894
Folder 135: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1895
Folder 136: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1896
Folder 137: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1897-1899
Folder 138: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1900-1901
Folder 139: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1902-1903
Folder 140: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1904-1905
Folder 141: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1906-1907
Folder 142: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1908-1909
Folder 143: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1910-1913
Folder 144: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1914-1922
Folder 145: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, Letterbook 1922
Folder 146: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1923-1928
Folder 147: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence from Pattie Beatty Quisenberry, no year
Folder 148: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence from Pattie B. Quisenberry, day of the week
Folder 149: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence from Pattie Beatty Quisenberry, undated
Folder 150: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence from Pattie Beatty Quisenberry, undated (2)
Folder 151: John A. Quisenberry Correspondence, undated
Folder 152: John A. Quisenberry Land & Legal Papers
Folder 153: John A. Quisenberry – Charles R. & L.C. Beatty Estate Papers
Folder 154: John A. Quisenberry Tax Assessment Lists, 1910-1918
Folder 155: John A. Quisenberry – Danville Fishing Club/Cumberland Club of Danville
Folder 156: John A. Quisenberry Receipts
Folder 157: John A. Quisenberry Checks
Folder 158: John A. Quisenberry Bank book
Folder 159: John A. Quisenberry – Centre College/Central University
Folder 160: John A. Quisenberry Miscellaneous
Folder 161: Thomas E. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1882-1929
Folder 162: Thomas E. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1931-1948
Folder 163: Thomas E. Quisenberry Correspondence, 1950-1962
Folder 164: Thomas E. Quisenberry Correspondence with James V. Hunt, 1938-1954
Folder 165: Thomas E. Quisenberry Correspondence, undated
Folder 166: Thomas E. Quisenberry Centre College
Folder 167: Thomas E. Quisenberry Latin Notes
Folder 168: Thomas E. Quisenberry – Howe, Quisenberry & Co. Minute Book
Folder 169: Thomas E. Quisenberry – Howe, Quisenberry & Co. Papers
Folder 170: Thomas E. Quisenberry – Interstate Commerce Commission Reports
Folder 171: Thomas E. Quisenberry – Congressional Reports
Folder 172: Thomas E. Quisenberry Land Papers
Folder 173: Thomas E. Quisenberry Travel Papers
Folder 174: Thomas E. Quisenberry Miscellaneous
Folder 175: Thomas E. Quisenberry Newspapers
Folder 176: Quinlan Hanna Quisenberry Correspondence, 1909-1913
Folder 177: Quinlan Hanna Quisenberry Correspondence, 1924-1958
Folder 178: Quinlan Hanna Quisenberry Account Book
Folder 179: Quisenberry Family Miscellaneous Papers
Folder 180: Miscellaneous Correspondence
Folder 181: Nannie Barbee Miscellaneous Papers
Folder 182: U.S. Supreme Court and Kentucky Court of Appeals decisions
Folder 183: Genealogy
Folder 184: Miscellaneous
Folder 185: Miscellaneous 20th century newspapers
Oversize:
Folder 186: Adam Beatty Broadsides and Newspapers
Subject Headings
African Americans – Kentucky
Agriculture
American Party
Antisemitism
Antislavery movements – United States
Beatty, Adam, 1777-1858
Beatty, Ormond, 1815-1890
Breckinridge, Robert J. (Robert Jefferson), 1800-1871
Broadsides
Buchanan, James, 1791-1868.
California – History
Centre College (Danville, Ky.)
Cholera – Southern States
Christianity
Clay, Cassius Marcellus, 1810-1903
Clay, Henry, 1777-1852
Combs, Leslie, 1793-1881
Courts – Kentucky
Crittenden, John J. (John Jordan), 1787-1863
Davis, Garrett, 1801-1872
Democratic Party (U.S.)
Diseases – Sourthern States
Draper, Lyman Copeland, 1815-1891.
Education – Kentucky
Episcopal Church – Kentucky
Fugitive slaves – United States
Governors – Kentucky
Harrison, William Henry, 1773-1841
Hawes, R. (Richard), 1797-1877
Hayes, Rutherford Birchard, 1822-1893.
Hemp industry – Kentucky
Hunter, R. M. T. (Robert Mercer Taliaferro), 1809-1887
Incest – Kentucky
Jackson, Andrew, 1767-1845
Johnson, Richard M. (Richard Mentor), 1780-1850
Kentucky – History – Civil War, 1861-1865
Kentucky – Politics and government – 1792-1865
Kentucky – Social life and customs
Kentucky. Constitutional Convention (1849-1850)
Kossuth, Lajos, 1802-1894
Lossing, Benson John, 1813-1891
Louisiana – Social life and customs
Metcalfe, Thomas, 1780-1855
Mexican War, 1846-1848 – Public opinion
Missionaries
New York (State) – Politics and government – 1775-1865
Oregon Territory – History
Polk, James K. (James Knox), 1795-1849.
Presidents – United States – Election – 1824
Presidents – United States – Election – 1840
Presidents – United States – Election – 1844
Presidents – United States – Election – 1848
Presidents – United States – Election – 1856
Presbyterian Church – Kentucky
Public works
Quisenberry, John A., 1851-1930
Quisenberry, Pattie Beatty, 1853-1934
Quisenberry, T. Edwin (Thomas Edwin), 1891-1964
Railroads
Republican Party (U.S. : 1792-1828)
Roosevelt, Franklin D. (Franklin Delano), 1882-1945
Ruffin, Edmund, 1794-1865
Sanders, Lewis, 1781-1861
San Francisco Earthquake and Fire, Calif., 1906
Sheepherding
Slavery
Slavery – Political aspects
Smith, B. B. (Benjamin Bosworth), 1794-1884
Southern States – Description and travel
Soviet Union
Stevenson, Thomas B., b. 1811?
Stowe, Harriet Beecher, 1811-1896.
Taylor, Zachary, 1784-1850.
Temperance – Kentucky
Texas – History – To 1846
Tobacco industry
Tyler, John, 1790-1862
United States – History – Revolution, 1775-1783
United States – Politics and government – 1845-1861
Webster, Daniel, 1782-1852
Whig Party (U.S.)
Wickliffe, C. A. (Charles Anderson), 1788-1869
Wickliffe, Robert, 1775-1859
Wilson, Woodrow, 1856-1924
Wool industry – Kentucky
World War, 1914-1918
World War, 1939-1945
