Will V. Batchelder Correspondence Collection
PI
Version: 4 (current) | Updated: 12/9/2025, 9:37:39 PM | Created: 12/9/2025, 7:24:29 PM
Added description
Description
Will V. Batchelder Correspondence Collection (1890)
Overview
The Will V. Batchelder Correspondence Collection is a small, digitized set of three handwritten letters written by Will V. Batchelder to Elizabeth Alice Austen on 10 November 1890. The collection is housed at the Alice Austen House Museum in Staten Island, New York, and is presented as a trio of scanned images (JPG) accompanied by typed transcriptions (TXT). All materials are in English and reflect the social milieu of late‑Victorian Staten Island.Background
Will V. Batchelder was a resident of Rosebank, Staten Island, and a contemporary friend of photographer Alice Austen. The letters were composed while Batchelder was living in Rosebank and refer to his travels to Slater Island. The correspondence was preserved by the Alice Austen House Museum as part of its broader effort to document Austen’s personal network and the social context of her life and work. The collection was created in 1890 and later digitized for archival access.Contents
- Three scanned letters (1890 Nov 10 1–3) showing the original handwriting, ink, and paper.
- Three typed transcriptions that render the full content of each letter for easier reading.
- The letters discuss a range of topics:
Scope
The collection covers a single date (10 November 1890) and focuses on personal, informal correspondence between two friends in Staten Island’s upper‑middle‑class society. It does not include broader business or photographic records, but it provides a snapshot of the social networks, health concerns, and leisure activities that framed Alice Austen’s personal life during the late 19th century.Raw Cheimarros Data
@alice_austen:person {full_name: "Elizabeth Alice Austen", birth_year: @date_1866, death_year: @date_1952, occupation: "photographer", residence: @staten_island}
@will_v_batchelder:person {full_name: "Will V. Batchelder"}
@alice_austen_house_museum:organization {name: "Alice Austen House Museum", location: @staten_island}
@staten_island:place {type: "borough", city: "New York City", state: "New York", country: @united_states}
@rosebank:place {neighborhood: "Rosebank", borough: @staten_island}
@slater_island:place {island: "Slater Island", location: @staten_island}
@bs_club:organization {name: "B.S. Club", type: "social club"}
@mrs_hazard:person {full_name: "Mrs. Hazard"}
@will_v_batchelder_correspondence_collection:document {title: "Will V. Batchelder Correspondence Collection", creator: @will_v_batchelder, institution: @alice_austen_house_museum, created: @date_1890_11_10, description: "A collection of correspondence from Will V. Batchelder to Alice Austen, discussing personal matters, social events, and family health."}
@file_pinax -> documents -> @will_v_batchelder_correspondence_collection:document
@letter_1890_11_10_1:document {date: @date_1890_11_10, from: @will_v_batchelder, to: @alice_austen, location: @rosebank, excerpt: "Home November 10th 1890. My dear Miss Alice, I wish them joy..."}
@file_1890_nov_1001_will_v_batchelder_jpg -> contains -> @letter_1890_11_10_1:document
@letter_1890_11_10_2:document {date: @date_1890_11_10, from: @will_v_batchelder, to: @alice_austen, location: @rosebank, excerpt: "had his eyes operated for cataracts... I expect to join the B.S. Club's sociables... Mrs Hazard wrote asking me to join the Dancing Class..."}
@file_1890_nov_1002_will_v_batchelder_jpg -> contains -> @letter_1890_11_10_2:document
@letter_1890_11_10_3:document {date: @date_1890_11_10, from: @will_v_batchelder, to: @alice_austen, location: @rosebank, excerpt: "Miss Alice Austen. Rosebank. Staten Island."}
@file_1890_nov_1003_will_v_batchelder_jpg -> contains -> @letter_1890_11_10_3:document
@will_v_batchelder -> wrote -> @letter_1890_11_10_1:document
@will_v_batchelder -> wrote -> @letter_1890_11_10_2:document
@will_v_batchelder -> wrote -> @letter_1890_11_10_3:document
@letter_1890_11_10_1 -> addressed to -> @alice_austen
@letter_1890_11_10_2 -> addressed to -> @alice_austen
@letter_1890_11_10_3 -> addressed to -> @alice_austen
@letter_1890_11_10_2 -> mentions -> @bs_club
@letter_1890_11_10_2 -> mentions -> @mrs_hazardMetadata
Files (3)
OCR Text
Home November 10th 1890. My dear Miss Alice, I wish them joy. They are a jolly little pair. Now don't be woofy and drop me a long letter to Mio &c. I am not clos'mn trying to make love saying you are not altogether angry with me, my presee with her, and am compelled to desrible and ere long You will see my attenuald form Strid' past a few lines to you long across your Lawn to the effect; that though with outstretched hand in lost-to-night; as it were friendly greeting, and never while believe me You are thil to memory Your sincere friend dear, and sue for forgive ness for my apparent neglect. My father has
OCR Text
had his eyes operated for cataracts, and while the operation was successful, the cure has been very slow, inflammation having supervened, and I have remained with him all the time I could for d after business hours, hence my not having been to see you. I hope very soon to be at Slater Island again, and you may rest assured you will be a moving the first step when I will inflect my society. I expect to join the B.S. Club's sociables, and hope you will permit me to be your escort to at least one or two of them. From the present outlook they bid fair to be very pleasant; and I think the boys are to be congratulated on their enterprise. Mrs Hazard wrote asking me to join the Dancing Class, but I am not yet sure whether I can do so or not. Still I am considering it. We
OCR Text
Miss Alice Austen. Rosebank. Staten Island.
Version History (4 versions)
- ✓ v4 (current) · 12/9/2025, 9:37:39 PM
"Added description" - v3 · 12/9/2025, 8:23:53 PM · View this version
"Added knowledge graph extraction" - v2 · 12/9/2025, 7:46:36 PM · View this version
"Added PINAX metadata" - v1 · 12/9/2025, 7:24:29 PM · View this version
"Reorganization group: Will_V_Batchelder_Correspondence"
Parent
No children (leaf entity)