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ENLARGE
In their letters back and forth, former U.S. Sen. Aaron A. Sargent once addressed his wife stiffly as “my dear friend.”
It apparently didn't go over well — his next letter includes an elaborate apology and calls her, “you dear, sweet, perfect little wife,” signed “your loving husband.”
The flirtatious exchanges are among the gems in the Searls Historical Library's new collection of records from Sargent. After nearly a year of sorting and archiving, the Nevada County Historical Society is unveiling 1,415 documents that piece together the life of the Nevada City resident, newspaper editor, attorney, politician and U.S. ambassador.
“It's the largest and most valuable personal collection we have,” said Searls Library Director Pat Chesnut.
Born in 1827 in Massachusetts, Sargent moved to Nevada City in 1850 and married his wife, Ellen Clark, in 1852. They lived at the intersection of Broad and Bennett streets and had two daughters and a son before leaving in 1861.
In Washington D.C., the Republican served six years in the House of Representatives and six years in the Senate, representing northeastern California, and two years as ambassador to Germany.
Ellen Clark Sargent, a friend of famous suffragette Susan B. Anthony, apparently had a major impact on her husband's politics.
Every year he served in Congress, he presented a women's suffrage amendment he'd written; it failed every year until 1920, when Sargent's own language became the Constitution's 19th Amendment.
Sargent died before seeing the victory.
“He was a great man, but he was never recognized for his great potential,” said Brita Rozynski, a Searls Library docent.
It apparently didn't go over well — his next letter includes an elaborate apology and calls her, “you dear, sweet, perfect little wife,” signed “your loving husband.”
The flirtatious exchanges are among the gems in the Searls Historical Library's new collection of records from Sargent. After nearly a year of sorting and archiving, the Nevada County Historical Society is unveiling 1,415 documents that piece together the life of the Nevada City resident, newspaper editor, attorney, politician and U.S. ambassador.
“It's the largest and most valuable personal collection we have,” said Searls Library Director Pat Chesnut.
Born in 1827 in Massachusetts, Sargent moved to Nevada City in 1850 and married his wife, Ellen Clark, in 1852. They lived at the intersection of Broad and Bennett streets and had two daughters and a son before leaving in 1861.
In Washington D.C., the Republican served six years in the House of Representatives and six years in the Senate, representing northeastern California, and two years as ambassador to Germany.
Ellen Clark Sargent, a friend of famous suffragette Susan B. Anthony, apparently had a major impact on her husband's politics.
Every year he served in Congress, he presented a women's suffrage amendment he'd written; it failed every year until 1920, when Sargent's own language became the Constitution's 19th Amendment.
Sargent died before seeing the victory.
“He was a great man, but he was never recognized for his great potential,” said Brita Rozynski, a Searls Library docent.
Sargent's great-grandchildren had been storing the collection and five years ago started thinking about a permanent home for it. They chose Nevada City, a place where Sargent held a gold claim and visited often, even after he moved away.
Rozynski and Chesnut have spent the past year reading through each of the English documents (Sargent sometimes wrote to his daughter in French while she studied in Paris, and he wrote in German while serving as ambassador).
The documents were indexed and filed in archival plastic sleeves and are ready for researchers to peruse.
Sargent's papers give insight into political battles of the late 1800s: A bill governing pork imports, tariff agreements with the king of Hawaii and the 19th-century equivalent of today's immigration debate — the Chinese Exclusion Act.
The collection includes a portrait of Sargent taken by famed Civil War photographer Matthew Brady.
But the letters home show the softer side of a man who nicknamed his family members “Muzz,” “Bug” and “Pink.”
“It's a very personal look into his life,” Chesnut said. “It's so apparent in his letters that he loved his family.”
To contact Staff Writer Michelle Rindels, e-mail mrindels@theunion.com or call (530) 477-4247.
Rozynski and Chesnut have spent the past year reading through each of the English documents (Sargent sometimes wrote to his daughter in French while she studied in Paris, and he wrote in German while serving as ambassador).
The documents were indexed and filed in archival plastic sleeves and are ready for researchers to peruse.
Sargent's papers give insight into political battles of the late 1800s: A bill governing pork imports, tariff agreements with the king of Hawaii and the 19th-century equivalent of today's immigration debate — the Chinese Exclusion Act.
The collection includes a portrait of Sargent taken by famed Civil War photographer Matthew Brady.
But the letters home show the softer side of a man who nicknamed his family members “Muzz,” “Bug” and “Pink.”
“It's a very personal look into his life,” Chesnut said. “It's so apparent in his letters that he loved his family.”
To contact Staff Writer Michelle Rindels, e-mail mrindels@theunion.com or call (530) 477-4247.
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