Gold Rush Letters of Henry A. Parker

San Francisco Sept 14th 1852

My Dear Mother, Brother & Sister.

I once more take the pleasure to inform you of my circumstances in this western world. I still enjoy good health & I hope you do the same. By way of a letter written by Mrs Fredk Walton [Mrs Fredrick Walton] to William I heard that you were all alive & well the first of August last, but that you began to feel anxious about me as you had not then heard from me after I left home but you have probably in this recd two or three letters from me since my arrival informing you of my safety & good health. I sold out my store last week on account of being dissatisfied with Fishs managements of affairs. The capital being mostly mine he did not seem to take that interest which I thought he ought to do under the circumstances, but on the contrary he was off nights &c & I found he was not worth one cent to do business & can do nothing but tend Bar to any advantage & when I told him that I wanted to get rid of the store he was not willing to help me to do so but on the contrary hindered my doing so but we finally got rid of it & got our money all back between us but I have got his note for $274.00 which will be good when he pays it but I am now sorry that I ever came out here with him for I have had to pay his expenses ever since he has been here as he had but $8.00 when he first arrived here & as I said before he is just like Orin -- has always been

shifting about but has never got ahead any. Still I am in hope that he will pay me bye & bye as then an no hard feelings between us & he is now tending Bar for $80 pr month & found. For my part I am going to commence work for Wm Shipley [William Shipley] this afternoon & work a few days till I can do better which I think I can do soon, as I have written to Mr Tucker for goods & when I recieve [receive] them I can make money & I wish you would speak in favor of his sending them. What I have written above please keep every word of to yourselves as I have written Mr Tucker all I wish him to know about the matter & if you should see O. W. Fisk or write him do not hint a single word but what every thing is all right as far as you knows.

Samuel Tucker came down here from up country last week monday night having met with rather poor success & he has not as yet decided what to do but will now soon make up his mind. We were pleased to see each other & he told me a great deal of news about P. which I had not heard of before. He is well but like myself, feels anxious to hear from some of you folks as he is no better off than I am as he has not as yet recieved [received] a single letter from his folks since he arrived here although there is one here for him now somewhere but he has not got it yet as it was sent up country to him so that he just missed it.

There has been a splendid ring manufactured here which is to be presented by three or four gentlemen of this city to Genl Frank Pierce [General Frank Pierce] of N.H. the democratic Nominee for President. It is of solid gold & weighs a

pound & one half & cost $1,000. It is beautifully engraved & the top opens & displays to view nine different specimens of native gold taken from different parts of the country & all in all it is a splendid ring.

For 3 or 4 days past the weather has been very hot here much hotter than it was ever known to be before but today it is again cool & pleasant. As this is the fifth letter I have written you since I received one from you. I hardly know what to write as I have already written about every thing that I thought would interest you so I believe I will close. Please give my love to all my friends & write me as often as you can & oblige.

Your Son & Brother H. A. Parker [Henry A. Parker]

P.S. Please find out whether Wm Shedd [William Shedd] & the Chapin Boys are out here or not & where they are also write all the news about the town of Pepperell & vicinity & about your farm work schools &c. Remember me to Uncle Bradley & Aunt Betsey & tell them that I will write them soon.

Samuel Tucker [Samuel P. Tucker] sends his best respects to you all & says he will send you a specimen of gold unless he comes & brings it himself, but he has not decided as yet which way to get it to you but says you may expect it at any rate.

To Mrs. Ann Parker East Pepperell Mass

San Francisco, Sunday, Sept. 26th/52

My Dear Mother,

I received your kind & welcome letter of the 18th Aug. last Thursday morning & I cannot describe in words nor can you imagine the pleasure it gave me to once more hear from you -- to hear that you were all still living in the enjoyment of health & happiness.

I was exceedingly glad to hear that you had enjoyed good health during the summer better than you did the summer previous although you wrote that you were quite thin, but still if you enjoy good health & feel smart you will probably care but little whether you are fleshy or not. I was very sorry to hear that poor Sister had been so unwell through the summer & had had so hard a time when she was so desirous to attend school but I was glad to hear that she had in a measure regained her health & was able to attend school quite regularly & I trust that under your kind & gentle treatment that she will be better as she grows older & that her constitution will grow stronger & be better able to stand fatigue & the changes of climate. I was also pleased to hear that Charles was well & was so attentive to you & so good in every respect, so regular to school & church, so smart at work &c & in fact the accounts from all of you were much better than I an-

over

ticipated hearing as so long a time had passed that I had not heard one word from any of you that I feared that when I did hear again that I should hear that some of you were sick or that something unusual had taken place, but thank Heaven I was happily disappointed & while reading your letters I felt happy, hardly realising [realizing] that I was so far separated from my dear friends & situated in a distant land among strangers -- but so it is but I hope that I may yet live to meet you all once more & to be a blessing to you in your declining years thereby partly atoning for the ill manner in which I have treated you in times past of which I have already bitterly repented. I still continue to enjoy good health & was never so fleshy as I am at the present time. I have been to work the past two weeks for Wm. Shipley Painting, Paper Hanging &c & I think I shall continue to work for him for the present at least until I see a chance to do better. I wrote you in my last that we, (Fisk & myself) had sold out & that I did not think he hardly returned my kindness, as he landed here with but 8.$ in the world & I paid his board & washing bills, travelling Expenses &c to the amount of $100. before we went into business & I afterwards advanced $174. more for him & took his note for the whole amount $274. which he now owes me & perhaps always will Still, I think if there is anything about him characteristic of a man that he will eventually pay me every dollar. So I wrote you (I believe) before after we had been in business a short