Jesup-Sitgreaves Family Papers, 1846-1919 (bulk: 1883-1902) 

Held by The Filson Historical Society 

Creator:  Jesup-Sitgreaves family 

Title:  Papers, 1846-1919 (bulk: 1883-1902) 

Rights: For information regarding literary and copyright interest for these papers, contact the Collections Department. 

Size of Collection:  1 cubic foot 

Location Number:  Mss. A J58 

Scope and Content Note 

Includes correspondence from the four daughters of General Thomas Sidney Jesup: Lucy Jesup Sitgreaves, Mary Jesup Blair, Jane Jesup Nicholson, and Julia Clark Jesup, and their children Mary Jesup Sitgreaves, Violet Blair Janin, and Jesup Blair. This correspondence discusses family and personal news as well as Mammoth Cave business affairs; the four sisters each inherited a portion of the Cave estate from their uncle Dr. John Croghan. Bulk of the collection is correspondence from Mary Jesup Sitgreaves to her mother Lucy, relating Mary’s social activities and travels. Also includes miscellaneous correspondence to Mary and Lucy, Mammoth Cave financial reports and other material, genealogical correspondence regarding the Jesup family, and unidentified photographs. See finding aid for a full list of subject headings. 

Biographical Note 

General Thomas Sidney Jesup (1788-1860) married Ann Heron Croghan (1797-1846), daughter of Lucy Clark and William Croghan. Six of their children lived to adulthood: Lucy Ann Jesup (b. 1823), Mary Serena Eliza Jesup (1826-1914), Jane Findlay Jesup (b. 1827), William Croghan Jesup (1833-1860), Charles Edward Jesup (1835-1861), and Julia Clark Jesup (b. 1840). 

Lucy Jesup married Lorenzo Sitgreaves (1811-1888), an Army captain who fought in the Mexican War; he was also a topographical engineer and surveyor. They had one child, Mary Jesup Sitgreaves (b. ca. 1858), who never married. The Sitgreaves family lived in Washington, D.C. (on N Street in the 1880s and Lafayette Square in the 1890s) until late 1902, when Lucy moved to Beacon Street, Chestnut Hill, Boston. 

Mary Jesup married James L. Blair (1819-1853) and they had at least two children, Violet Blair Janin (1848-1933) and Jesup Blair (1852-1902). Jesup Blair never married; Violet Blair married Albert Janin in 1874 and the couple apparently had no children. 

Jane Jesup married Major Augustus S. Nicholson (1830-1911) and the couple had at least one child, a son named Jesup (ca. 1853-1893) and possibly a daughter named Charlotte (Lottie). 

Julia Jesup never married. She lived in Italy for many years. 

The four Jesup sisters (Lucy, Mary, Jane, and Julia) each inherited a portion of the Mammoth Cave estate from their uncle, Dr. John Croghan. The following nine Cave beneficiaries (his nieces and nephews) were named in Dr. Croghan’s will, 1 Jan 1849: 

• George Croghan 
• Angelica Croghan Wyatt 
• Serena Croghan (Rodgers) 
• William Jesup 
• Charles Jesup 
• Lucy Ann Jesup (Sitgreaves) 
• Mary Jesup Blair 
• Jane Jesup (Nicholson) 
• Julia Clark Jesup 

This partial genealogy shows the familial relationship among the Mammoth Cave beneficiaries, with the original beneficiaries’ names in bold: 

Lucy Clark (1765-1838) m. William Croghan (1752-1823) 

• Dr. John Croghan (1790-1849) 
• George Croghan (1791-1849) m. Serena Livingston 
• Mary Angelica Croghan m. the Rev. Christopher Wyatt 
• William E. Wyatt 
• George Croghan (d. 1861) m. Cornelia Ridgeley 
• Serena Livingston Croghan (?-1926) m. Augustus F. Rodgers (1829-1908) 
• Ann Heron Croghan (1797-1846) m. Thomas Sidney Jesup (1788-1860) 
• Lucy Ann Jesup (1823-) m. Lorenzo Sitgreaves (1811 – 14 May 1888) 
• Mary Jesup Sitgreaves (ca. 1859-) 
• Mary Serena Eliza Jesup (1826-1914) m James L. Blair (1819-1853) 
• Violet Blair (1848-1933) m. Albert Janin 
• Jesup Blair (1852-1 April 1902) 
• Jane Findlay Jesup (1827-) m. Major Augustus S. Nicholson (1830-1911) 
• William Croghan Jesup (1833-1860) 
• Charles Edward Jesup (1835-1861) 
• Julia Clark Jesup (1840-) 

Folder List 

1. Correspondence from Jesup Blair, ca. 1900-1901 and undated, 7 items 
2. Correspondence from Mary Jesup Blair, 1900, 34 items 
3. Correspondence from Mary Jesup Blair, 1901-1902, 47 items 
4. Correspondence from Violet Blair Janin, 1860, 1898, 1900, 33 items
5. Correspondence from Henry G. Jesup, 1880-1887, 38 items.
6. Correspondence from Julia Clark Jesup, 1900-1919, 8 items
7. Correspondence from Jane Jesup Nicholson, 1898-1904, 17 items 
8. Correspondence from Lucy Jesup Sitgreaves, 1884-1902 and undated, 19 items 
9. Correspondence to Lucy Jesup Sitgreaves, 1879-1901 and undated, 30 items 
10. Correspondence from Mary Jesup Sitgreaves, 1863-1883, 45 items 
11. Correspondence from Mary Jesup Sitgreaves, 1884, 38 items 
12. Correspondence from Mary Jesup Sitgreaves, 1886-1888, 32 items 
13. Correspondence from Mary Jesup Sitgreaves, 1891-1893, 37 items 
14. Correspondence from Mary Jesup  Sitgreaves, 1895, 41 items 
15. Correspondence from Mary Jesup Sitgreaves, 1896, 32 items 
16. Correspondence from Mary Jesup Sitgreaves, 1898-1900, 41 items 
17. Correspondence from Mary Jesup Sitgreaves, January-July 1902, 29 items 
18. Correspondence from Mary Jesup Sitgreaves, September-December 1902, 41 items 
19. Correspondence from Mary Jesup Sitgreaves, 1903-1904, 23 items 
20. Correspondence from Mary Jesup Sitgreaves, undated, 18 items 
21. Miscellaneous correspondence, 1846-1919 and undated, 13 items
22. Penmanship exercises, drawings, and compositions from Mary Jesup Sitgreaves, 1862-1872, 31 items 
23. Mammoth Cave financial reports, petitions, and copies of letters, 1903 and undated, 10 items
24. Miscellaneous material, 20 items
25. Photographs, undated, 13 items