James Adger Letterbook
Collection — Box: 1
Identifier: Mss-0220
The collection consists of the original letterbook and a copy of a typescript transcription of the letterbook done in 1936 as part of Works Progress Administration Project 65-33-118, sponsored by the University of South Carolina and supervised by Dr. Anne K. Gregorie and Flora B. Surles; it was copied by Lula May McNinch. The letterbook contains copies of business correspondence concerning orders and the shipping of orders from Adger to various firms mainly in Augusta and Savannah, GA, New York City, Philadelphia, PA, and Great Britain. Most of the correspondence seems to relate to his hardware and commission and factorage businesses. It also includes, at the back and inverted, the May 2, 1809, constitution of the Charleston Independent Greens, a militia company; the constitution is signed at the end by thirty-nine men, including James Adger.
James Adger was born November 2, 1777 in Moneynick, Antrim County, Ireland, the son of James Adger and Margaret Crawford. He immigrated to New York City in late 1793 or early 1794. Adger learned the carpenter's trade while in New York. In 1802 he moved to Charleston, South Carolina. He married Sarah Elizabeth Ellison on September 6, 1806; they had nine children.
He bagan his business career in Charleston as a cotton buyer for the Bones and Adger Company, then founded James Adger and Company, a hardware business. Other business interests included the commission and factorage firm of Adger and Black, the Charleston & Columbia Steamboat Company (board member 1821 and director 1824) and the Bank of South Carolina (director 1822-1828). He also served as the Charleston agent for the Brown Brothers Bank of London and helped found the first steam packet line between Charleston and New York City; one of the packet was named the James Adger. He served in a number of municipal posts in Charleston and served one term (1826-1828) in the State House of Representatives. He was a member of the Charleston Chamber of Commerce, the Hibernian Society (vice president 1837-1838, 1846-1858 and president 1839-1842) and the corporation of the Second Presbyterian Church (a founder in 1809 and president 1823). He died Spetember 24, 1858 in New York City and was buried in Charleston.
2 item(s)
English
Accession 80-3.
Part of the Clemson University Libraries Special Collections and Archives Repository