4 page letter addressed by multiple recipients from Wisconsin Territory to Benjamin M. Hill (1793-1881), corresponding secretary of the American Baptist Home Mission Society in New York, March & April, 1845. The correspondents are missionary Peter Conrad, and both Gaylord Graves and Nehemiah Osborn writing on behalf of pastor James Delaney. The portion by Conrad is the longest and most detailed, and includes his visit to the western portion of the territory at Sauk City, where he describes his encounter with Count Agoston Haraszthy.
The portions of the letter, by date, are as follows:
Gaylord Graves (1804-1889), whose portion of the letter is datelined March 29, 1845, from East Troy, Wisconsin, while serving as church secretary and writing on behalf of James Delaney, who was then serving the Baptist Church of East Troy. There is an excellent description of the town:
The location of this village is beautiful & attractive, sufficiently so at least to induce mechanics & others to settle here. There are now a grist mill, a saw mill, 2 stores, 2 taverns, several mechanics shops & private dwellings; besides some important public & private buildings that are to be put up the coming season. The surrounding country is rich, & pretty thickly settled. There are some backsliders, and many in the bonds of iniquity.
Nehemiah Osborn, whose portion of the letter is datelined April 6, 1845, from Sullivan, Wisconsin, while serving as church secretary and writing on behalf of James Delaney, discusses the Baptist Church in Palmyra, Wisconsin.
Peter Conrad, whose portion of the letter is datelined April 10, 1845, from Mukwonago, writes of his work as a missionary throughout Wisconsin territory:
As the Missionary of the Ws. Convention, I have explored some of the new parts of the Territory. I find encouragement in my labor. There are many destitute placesand some brethren + sisters I have found who have been years in the Territory and had never before during their residence here seen a Bap. Minister. And many I have found in the wilderness who read no religous news-paper, and were not aware that there were Churches and ministers in the the Territory. I have been to Prairie Du Sac, the county seat of Sauk Co. on the west side of Wisconsin River where Br. Miner constituted a Chruch of 10 members a little more than a year ago, + baptized give. I crossed the Wisconsin on the ice intending to spend 3 or four days, during that time the ice became unsafe to cross, and regarding myself shut up to the wrok of the Lord in this place I preached several successive evenings the interest soon became general among Christians and others. I spent in all a month here during which time some fifteen cases of hopeful conversion occured and I baptized eight persons while there. And delivered a Temperance address and found a Soc. of 47 members. The scenery in this region is exceedingly wild and romantic. The people are mostly from the State of New York, there are some from Europe. Count Harrasthey [Agoston Haraszthy] from Hungary has taken up risidence here, he was bred a papist but says he has no prejudice in favor of that religion. He came to hear me preach and when I left him he said, shaking my hand most cordially, "Now Mr. Conrad, I promise you I wll search the Scriptures honestly and thoroughly and when you come again I will tell you." I cherish the hope that while the Count is searching the Scriptures, God will open his eyes that he may behold wondrous things of his law.
Conrad goes on to provide further information about the meeting of the Wisconsin Board of the Baptist Church, along with the politics of the missionary convention.
The letter has a few slight taped repairs and provides excellent, multi-author description of various portions of Wisconsin during the territorial period.
