Papers of the Speights family consist primarily of correspondence of Lamon Speights and his son Stephen Anderson Speights. The letters concern the health of family members, the state of the cotton crop and other crops, cotton prices at market, drought and other weather conditions, and financial hardships resulting from crop losses. Also included are letters written to Stephen Speights from friends William J. Bogan and Charles G. Oates, who describe agricultural conditions, the cotton crop, and the marriages and activities of friends and relatives. One letter from Oates to Stephen Speights, dated June 16, 1846, rebukes him for his willingness to volunteer in Texas in the Mexican-American War. Another letter written by Eliza S. Lee, Stephen Speights' sister, describes the new home she has made with her husband near Fort Jackson, La., heavy river traffic on the nearby Mississippi, and the extent and lumber yield of her land. The papers also include a scattering of Speights family genealogical notes and marriage, birth, and death records transcribed from a Bible owned by Rev. J.D. Slay. Also found among the papers are two Civil War letters written by James J. Speights to his brother Stephen Speights while the former was serving as a soldier in the Confederate Army. The first, dated Dec. 31, 1861, describes the makeup of his regiment and its valorous response to a false battle alarm. Written on May 3, 1862, shortly after the Battle of Shiloh, the second letter tells of the poor health of Speights' regiment, the relentless advance of Union troops, and the likelihood of another bloody battle. Except for two letters, all papers are handwritten transcriptions of the originals. Several letters from the papers are also available as photocopies.
