About
The Henderson Family Papers contains correspondence, school papers, and memorabilia related to four family members who lived in Burlington, Vermont: Lucy Benedict Henderson (1861-1896), her husband William J. Henderson (1857-1926), their son Albert Tuttle Henderson (1883-1925), and, to a lesser extent, Mrs. Henderson's sister, Jessie Benedict Middlebrook (1868-1948). The bulk of the collection consists of Lucy Henderson's correspondence with close family and friends, including while she was a schoolgirl in the late 1870s and while she was staying at private hospitals in Burlington, Massachusetts, and New York City in the 1890s. Mrs. Henderson's struggles with chronic illness and morphine addiction, as well as her interest in drama and the French language, are referenced in her correspondence. Letters from Mrs. Henderson's young son Albert chronicle daily life as a child in Burlington. The collection also contains two folders of condolence letters received by William and Albert Henderson after Mrs. Henderson committed suicide in 1896.