Descriptive Summary

Tilghman Family Papers, 1493-1940

MS 2600

Maryland Historical Society

Baltimore MD 21201-4674

Captain William Gibson Tilghman was born and raised at Gross Coat. In 1808, he married Anna Polk by which he had seven children. He died in June 1844 leaving his estate to be divided up equally among his six remaining children but giving Grosses itself to his son Richard Lloyd Tilghman.

Born at Grosses in 1811, as a second son, Richard followed the life his father believed best for him and joined the Navy as a midshipmen at the age of 19. For the next thirty years, he remained in the Navy, moving up to a Lieutenant and participating in the Mexican War. During one of his leaves in 1843, he married Agnes [UNK] Owen. For the next ten years, their relationship consisted mainly of correspondence and a few visits home, as Richard was stationed around Mexico and the Pacific Coast. During this time he was assigned to several ships; the U.S. Cyane, the U.S. Congress, and his own vessel, the Perry. Agnes, meanwhile, lived in Baltimore and later Grosses. She travelled around to relatives and kept in close contact with Richard's family. She raised his eight children and remained loyal to him. Her love and admiration can be seen in every letter. Richard Lloyd Tilghman died in September of 1867 leaving Agnes and seven remaining children.

Charles Henry Tilghman, the second child and eldest boy of Richard and Agnes, was born in January of 1846 while his father was at sea. After studying medicine in the U.S., twenty-two year old Charles left to study abroad. In England, he discovered he admired the English way of life and enjoyed London's social whirl. A year later, he reluctantly decided it was time to move on and travelled to Paris. He did not like it as much and began to travel around Europe. In 1870, he joined in the Franco-Prussian War on the French side. Sometime after 1871, Charles returned home and continued his profession as a doctor. He married Elizabeth Donnell in November of 1881 with whom he had nine children. Charles Tilghman died at home in 1906.

His namesake and sixth child, Charles Henry, Jr., was born in 1890. At the beginning of World War I, he entered the army and was sent to Fort Niagara and Fort Meade for training. On graduating from these camps, he was appointed a captain in the National Army and in charge of a regiment on the front line. Here he was wounded in action, when he was hit in the eye, and thus received the Distinguished Service Cross for bravery. At the end of the war, he seved as a liaisoa officer in Poland and Germany. Upon returning home, Charles, Jr. married Carolyn Ward. He died in April of 1954.

The collection consists of the papers of the Richard Tilghman family, spanning five generations and including three major wars. The papers, mostly correspondence, are divided into subgroups of land papers, papers of the four principal family members, and finally miscellaneous papers.

1) Wills and Land Papers (1493; 1658-1821) - This section consists of the documents concerning the Tilghman estate “Grosses” (or Gross Coat as it was earlier known). Among them are deeds and surveys showing the additions to and the ownership of the plantation throughout the generations. Documents include surveys, deeds, wills, and indentures for such parcels of land as Gross Coat, the Adventure, Grosses Addition, Sawyer's Forest, Court Road and Dundee. Also included is a typed copy of the will of William Tilghman of London, dated 1493. (See also oversize.)

2) Captain William Gibson Tilghman (1831-1850) - His papers deal mainly with the division of his estate upon his death. They include correspondence between family and lawyers concerning the division, property lists for both Grosses and the Dundee farm, and a list of all his slaves including their age and value. Also included are the receipts and agreements of the final division showing the extent of each family member's acquisition. A letter from his son, Richard, describes Navy life in Norfolk, Virginia.

3) Lieutenant Richard Lloyd Tilghman (1830-1904) - The bulk of the collection falls into this section and consists of correspondence. The decade of correspondence between the Lieutenant and his wife, Agnes, gives a rich view of life for a young married women. Agnes writes of everyday life; her health; her children, including their illnesses; townlife; the farm; his family and the death of his brother, Charles; and the hardships of being alone. Richard, in return, discusses his life on ship and his different duty-stations during the Mexican War. He talks of news from home and his views on the management of Grosses. Mixed in these letters are correspondence from other naval officers commending Richard on his service. Also included are his will and Agnes' widow pension records.

4) Doctor Charles Henry Tilghman (1868-1887) - This entire section includes correspondence from Charles to his mother, Agnes, while he is in Europe. The letters begin in London where he has gone to study medicine and give a lively account of a variety of interests in nineteenth century London and America such as English society and fashions, English servants versus American blacks, farming techniques, hospitals, the condition of the United States after the war, yankee prejudice, and the expenses of living in London. A year later Charles moves to Paris where he continues to write home. Here he writes about the language, the differences of society, medical techniques, and his growing uncertainty about his profession. Probably because of this, he begins to travel writing of Germany, Baden-Baden, and his desire to go to Switzerland. Charles then joins the Franco-Prussiaa War in 1870-1871, describing in his letters the horrors of the war from the French side.

5) Captain Charles Henry Tilghman, Jr. (1917-1919) - The correspondence in this section deals with World War I and training of men before they were assigned to duty on the front line. Stationed in Fort Niagara, Charles describes life in an army camp: the daily routines, recreation, and the study of such techniques as handling hand grenades and learning trench warfare. His letters from Fort Meade give an adequate account of the building of this camp into an army training base. Later correspondence comes directly from the front live in Europe and from Basr Hospital #18, in France, after he was wounded. At the end of the war, Charles

writes of the hardships of bringing his regiment back across Europe and later, of his duties as liaison officer in Germany and Poland.

6) Miscellaneous (1753-1916, n.d.) - The remainder of the collection consists of miscellaneous items dated throughout the time span. Richard Tilghman's ledger (1790-1806) lists interesting and everyday expenses including documentation of family portraits by Charles Willson Peale (these portraits are owned by MHS). This section also includes the Tilghman family genealogy dating back to the Richard Tilghman of Henry IV's reign (see also oversize). More recent genealogical notes describe the ascendency of Halloway Court, the Tilghman's estate in Kent, England. It also details the branch that moves to America as the descendants of this family. Another noteworthy item is the draft to James Donnell Tilghman's Maryland: A Guide to the Old Line State. These notes include descriptions of places and events in Maryland history. They discuss colonial and Maryland architecture, a history of the National Pike and other interesting tidbits of Maryland history. James gives a description of places of interest on two Maryland tours.

BOX 1

Wills William Tilghman, 1493

Christopher St. Lee, 16 January 1702

Alice Lloyd, 6 April 1739

William Tilghman, 1761

Land Papers Land Surveys, 1658-1685

Tilghman Family Land Papers, 1684-1740

Tilghman Family Land-quit rents, 1744-1758

The Adventure - Land Papers, 1745, 1746, 1759, n.d.

Sawyer's Forest - Land Surveys, 1818, 1871

Miscellaneous Land Papers, n.d.

William Gibson Tilghman Richard L. Tilghman to William G Tilghman, 1 April 1831

Estate Papers - Correspondence about division of estate, ca. 1849-1850

Estate Papers - Receipts and agreements in division of estate, ca. 1849-1850

Estate Papers - Property Lists of Grosses and Dundee, ca. 1849-1850

Estate Papers - Lists of Slaves and their distribution, ca. 1849-1850

Richard Lloyd Tilghman James Biddle to Richard L. Tilghman, 19 May 1830

John D. Nicolson to Richard Lloyd Tilghman, 5 April 1833

P[hilip] F[alkerson] Voorhees to Richard L. Tilghman, 10 September 1833

William G. Tilghman to Richard L. Tilghman, 5 January 1839

Agnes R.O. Tilghman to Richard L. Tilghman, 1842-1844, n.d.

Richard L. Tilghman to Agnes R.O. Tilghman, [1842-1843]

Richard L. Tilghman to Agnes R.O. Tilghman, 1844

N.I. Gibson to Richard L. Tilghamn 28 October 1845

Richard L. Tilghman to Agnes R.O. Tilghman, 1845

Agnes R.O. Tilghman to Richard L. Tilghman, 1845-1846

Richard L. Tilghman to Agnes R.O. Tilghman, 1846

Richard L. Tilghman to Mary and Charles Tilghman, ca. 1846-1850

Mrs. Richard L. Tilghman (Agnes) - Correspondence concerning her husband, 13 February 1847

William Hrease to Richard L. Tilghman, 17 February 1847

Richard L. Tilghman to Agnes R.O. Tilghman, 1847

Agnes R.O. Tilghman to Richard L. Tilghman, 1847-1849, n.d.

BOX 2

Richard Lloyd Tilghman, cont. Correspondence concerning the Navy and the vessel “Perry”, 1847-1861

Richard L. Tilghman to Agnes R.O. Tilghman, 1848

Kennedy Owen to Richard L. Tilghman, 1849-1850

S.W. Polk to Richard L. Tilghman, 31 March and 8 July, 1849

Richard L. Tilghman to Agnes R.O. Tilghman, [1850], n.d.

Richard L. Tilghman to ____________________, 1858

William Logan to Richard L. Tilghman, 8 May 1861

Richard L. Tilghman - Will, 23 June 1861

Mrs. Richard L. Tilghman (Agnes) - Widow's pension records, 1887, 1904

Richard L. Tilghman to Agnes R.O. Tilghman, n.d.

Richard L. Tilghman to Agnes R.O. Tilghman, n.d.

Agnes R.O. Tilghman to Richard L. Tilghman, n.d.

S.F. DuPont toRichard L. Tilghman, n.d.

Charles Henry Tilghman Charles H. Tilghman to Agnes R.O. Tilghman, October-December 1868

Charles H. Tilghman to Sallie Tilghman, 1869

Charles H. Tilghman to Agnes R.O. Tilghman, 1869

Charles H. Tilghman to Agnes R.O. Tilghman, 1869

Connie Throbald to Agnes R.O. Tilghman-concerning Charles, 3 November 1870

Charles H. Tilghman to Agnes R.O. Tilghman, 1870

Charles H. Tilghman to Agnes R.O. Tilghman, 1871

Agnes R.O. Tilghman to Charles H. Tilghman, 1887

__________ Tilghman to Charles H. Tilghman, n.d.

Charles Henry Tilghman, Jr. Charles H. Tilghman, Jr. to Elizabeth D. Tilghman, 1917-1918

Elizabeth D. Tilghman- correspondence concerning Charles, Jr., 23 December 1918

Charles H. Tilghman, Jr. to Elizabeth D. Tilghman, 1918

Charles H. Tilghman, Jr. to Elizabeth D. Tilghman, 1919

BOX 3

Miscellaneous items List of Blacks inoculated, 1753

Richard Tilghman-bill, 1783

Richard Tilghman-Invoices for goods, 1786, 1787

James Tilghman to Tom [Tilghman], 1787

Richard Tilghman -Ledger, 1790-1806

Williams Family Correspondence, 1821-1829

Miscellaneous Correspondence, 1834, 1870, 1888

H. Boyle to Kennedy Owen, 31 October 1838

Albert Baer to Mr. [William] DeCourcey, 26 September 1893

Tilghman Family Genealogy, 14 September 1916, n.d.

James Donnell Tilghman - Drafts of Maryland: A Guide to the Old Line State, ca. 1940

James Donnell Tilghman - Drafts of Maryland: A Guide to the Old Line State, ca. 1940

Directions for knitting thread gloves, n.d.

Envelopes, n.d.

OVERSIZE

Indenture of Land, 1738

Survey of The Adventure, 1759

Harvard Degree of Charles H. Tilghman, 3 August 1831

Genealogy, n.d.

Genealogy, n.d.

Miscellaneous, n.d.

Architecture - Maryland

Baltimore, MD, 1830-1860

Basr Hospital #18, France, 1918

Blacks - compared to English servants

Blake, John Sayer (d. 1740)

Brigidine “Perry”, 1858-1861

Carroll, John (fl. 1868)

Chance, 1665

Court Road, 1685

Death -of a family member

Dundee, Talbot Co., MD, 1850

Eastern Shore, MD, 1850's

England - society, 1869

England - sevants, 1868-1869

England - political turmoil, 1869

Farms and Farming - Talbot Co., MD, 1840-60's

Farms and Farming - England, 1860's

Fort Meade, MD, 1917

Fort Niagara, NY, 1917

Franco-Prussian War, 1870

Gilmor, Charles (fl. 1775)

Gilmor, Elizabeth Tilghman (fl. 1848)

Grosses (or Gross Coat), Talbot Co., MD

Grosses - inventory of property

Grosses Addition

Gross, William (f. 1684)

Halloway Court, Kent, England

Johnson, Ned (fl. 1868)

Knave Standoff, 1684-1746

Knitting - directions for gloves

Lambeth, 1682

Land Transactions - Talbot Co., MD

Lloyd, Alice (f. 1739)

London, England, 1868-69

London, England - fashion, 1868-69

Maryland: A Guide to the Old Line State, ca. 1940

Maryland - Talbot Co., 1800's

Maryland Tours, ca. 1940

May, Fred (fl. 1869)

Meeregate, 1659

Mexican War - Navy, 1844-1850

Norfolk, Virginia, 1831

Oldfield, Mr. (fl. 1846)

Owen, Anna Maria Tilghman (fl. 1850)

Owen, Kennedy (fl. 1838-1850)

Paris, France, 1869

Pensecola, Florida - Mexican War, 1848

Reserve Officer's Training Camp, 1917

Roadway, 1674

St. Lee (Saintree?), Christopher (d. 1702)

Saintree, Nathianiel (d. 1845)

Sawyer's Forest, 1818, 1871

Servants - English, 1868-1869

79th Division, 1918

Slaves - age and value, 1849

Spear, Mr. (fl. 1840's)

Thrimby Grange, 1659

Tilghman, Agnes R.O. (b. 1830)

Tilghman, Anna Polk (fl. 1810-1850)

Tilghman, Catherine (fl. 1850)

Tilghman, Charles Henry (1846-1906)

Tilghman, Charles Henry, Jr. (1890-1954)

Tilghman, Elizabeth (fl. 1845)

Tilghman, Elizabeth Donnell (1859-1945)

Tilghman, James (fl. 1787)

Tilghman, James Donnell (b. 1899)

Tilghman, Louisa (fl. 1840's)

Tilghman, Mary (b. 1844)

Tilghman, Richard LLoyd (1811-1867)

Tilghman, Sallie (fl. 1840)

Tilghman, William (fl. 1493)

Tilghman, William (d. 1782)

Tilghman, William DeCourcey (b. 1895)

Tilghman, William Gibson (d. 1849)

Travel and Description - Europe, 1869

Trenchwarfare, 1917

United States Army, 1917-1918

United States Navy, 18301860

U.S. Fulton, 1856

Wickes, Lambert (b. 1735?)

Widow's Pension Records, 1887, 1904

Williams Family (fl. 1821-1829)

World War I, 1917-1918

Talbot Co., MD - Land Transactions