Benjamin W. Pendleton (1833 - 1889)

Born 27 Mar 1833 in Hopkinton, Washington, Rhode Island, United States

Ancestors

Descendants

Died 13 Apr 1889 at age 56 in Hopkinton, Washington, Rhode Island, United States

Benjamin W. Pendleton Papers- Farmer, Hopkinton, RI Family papers, 1812-1924; bulk 1852-1896 Size: 0.25 linear feet Catalog number: MSS 1086 Processed by: Karen Eberhart, January 2002 ©Rhode Island Historical Society Manuscripts Division http://www.rihs.org/mssinv/Mss1086.htm

Benjamin W. Pendleton and his family lived in the village of Hope Valley, in Hopkinton, R.I. He was the son of Captain Joshua and Hannah Larkin Pendleton, was born in Hopkinton on March 27, 1833 and died on April 13, 1889. He married Harriet Slocum (1827-1897), daughter of John and Sarah Whitehorne Slocum, on November 12, 1854.

The Benjamin W. Pendleton Papers were donated by James A. and Alice W. Houston in 2001. The Houstons had purchased the papers circa 1974 from descendants of the Pendleton family who were selling their ancestral family farm on Woody Hill Road, Hope Valley, Hopkinton, RI.

The Benjamin W. Pendleton Papers consist primarily of letters written to Benjamin W. Pendleton from family and friends. Of note are the letters received during the Civil War (1861-1865) many of which are from soldiers in the field who were friends or relatives of Benjamin. The remainder of the letters are from family and friends discussing daily activities. The financial materials are receipts received primarily by Benjamin W. Pendleton. They show what he bought and sold to various individuals. Benjamin's account ledger book details the accounts he had with a wide variety of individuals from late 1887 to early 1889. The poems are often short pieces, and many were written in connection with the delivery of a May basket. Most of the poems are not signed but it appears from the handwriting that many are by Harriet Slocum Pendleton for her husband Benjamin. Of particular note is an anonymous poem entitled "The Slave a Song" which is about a slave dreaming of his freedom.

Included with this inventory is a chronological listing of most of the letters which was prepared by the donors of the collection. In that list the city or town is the location of the writer of the letter.

The letters written by soldiers during the war are often very informative regarding the daily activities and opinions held by the men.

Letters in this collection included those written from Nancy Dyer Slocum Wells, Benjamin Edward Wells, Sarah Adelaide Wells Kenyon, Henry Aldrich Pendleton, Sarah Ann Slocum Segar, Jason P. Rathbone, & Charles P. Nye.

Sources

• Title: Captain George Whitehorne of Boston and some of his Descendants; Author: Robert Joseph Curfman, Publication: NEHGR, Volume 146, April 1992, p. 164-166

• Brian Pendleton and His Descendants, 1599-1910. by Everett Hall Pendleton. 1911. Pg 296 https://archive.org/details/brianpendletonhi01pend/page/296