1888 CLEVELAND TN Tennessee Promo Letter BRADLEY COUNTY

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~ 1888 CLEVELAND TN Tennessee History Letter BRADLEY COUNTY ~ A rare original promotional flyer by the Office of the Bureau of Immigration of Cleveland from 1888, with handwritten letter on back side. #1: the front side is an enthusiastic description of the all-around advantages and specific amenities of Cleveland, county seat of Bradley, at that time home to 4,000 people, many former residents of northern states. This would be a nice item to reproduce for a Cleveland paper or historical publication, as it discusses the city's pleasant climate, freedom from serious epidemic diseases, accessibility by named railroads & their state of development, educational opportunities such as The Cleveland Female Institute and the Centenary Female College, denominations of churches, types of manufacturing businesses, and price range for agricultural acreage. "The county is out of debt, the taxes light, and markets convenient." This was probably written by Dr. Edwin Clinton Anderson, a local physician who within a few years became an important doctor and professor at the medical college in Chattanooga. Printed by the Banner-News, Printers, Cleveland. #2: the one-sided letter written on the back side is dated "Cleveland, July 19, 1888," from a new resident to his named brother-in-law back in New York State. Although unsigned, the writer was a long-time resident of Michigan, is trying his luck in Cleveland and renting a home, and has a tenant working his home farm back up north. His wife (the named sister of the recipient) is with him and she's taking in workers as boarders. They had to take out a $3.00 license to have boarders. The writer states prices that several farm products are going for in Cleveland. Some excerpts: "Our house is not inviting but comfortable & handy & we feel at home at 7.00 per month" ... "There has been quite an amount of building, while is now a little slack. The college addition is nearly done, also 2 nice stores near the Bank. A family of 6 come here from Mich last week & rented a house and Mr. Swift's coming back when he can I hope." The letter isn't signed but I know who the writer and named wife are, and will email to the winner only information about the writer and man it was addressed to, as well as my transcription of the letter. CONDITION & DESCRIPTION: this promotional flyer was found without an envelope among the recipient's family's papers, from an estate just a few miles from where the recipient resided in NYS. It measures 11" x 8 1/2", printed on a crisp off-white paper. As you can see, it hasn't survived "minty" after 123 years, and has typical glitches of old paper, but is clean, with no specks or chews. There are random edge folds & creases, tiny separations at edges of upper fold lines, a few rusty color marks at upper section, and typical small "breaks" where the vertical and horizontal fold lines meet. This is in non-delicate condition, has no old paper smell or mustiness, will not make your hands dirty, and comes from a smoke-free home on my watch. If my photos and detailed written description don't adequately convey expected condition to you so that it's "exactly as described" to your satisfaction, be sure to ask any other questions about condition before bidding. Sorry, but to reserve for the exclusive use of the winner, I don't make any form of copies. If you look for unusual old ephemera for the city of Cleveland or Bradley County, this is a very nice and most interesting piece. Possibly one-of-a-kind now, at least in private hands. It'd make a welcome contribution to a historical society or historian in Bradley County, Tennessee. If this fits in with your personal or institutional collecting interests, just place that sincere bid to win now or be back in your chair next Thursday evening, March 31! As always, thank you for your interest and good luck to you! Satisfaction Guaranteed! This is the ONLY item I have for Cleveland and I don't expect to come by anything else again. TERMS & PAYMENT: PAYMENT TO BE RECEIVED BY ME WITHIN 7 DAYS... read more

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