Scope and Contents
The papers consist of Thomas Gilyard's journal, a farm ledger, and various poems and hymns, as well as some correspondence. In the first volume of the journal, preceding or interspersed with diary entries for 1828-1843, are copies of letters to and from Gilyard's family in England (1808-1818) and fifty-five pages of recipes for dyes. The other volume is almost entirely composed of diary entries, 1832-1853. Included are detailed accounts of family and neighborhood activities, local politics, legal cases in the vicinity, and much matter of interest for the history of the Methodist church. The small ledger dates mainly from 1833-1845, with a few later entries, and deals for the most part with farm activities and the sale of farm produce. Finally, there is also a volume of poems, hymns, and so forth, and a photostatic copy of a self-portrait of Gilyard.
The papers were the gift of David F. Gilyard in 1953.
Dates
- 1808-1853
Creator
Conditions Governing Access
The materials are open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
Unpublished materials authored or otherwise produced by the creator(s) of this collection are in the public domain. There are no restrictions on use. Copyright status for other collection materials is unknown. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of David F. Gilyard in 1953.
Extent
0.5 Linear Feet (1 box)
Language of Materials
English
Catalog Record
A record for this collection is available in Orbis, the Yale University Library catalog
Persistent URL
Abstract
Diaries, a farm ledger, poems, hymns and correspondence. The diary entries cover the years 1828-1853 and are interspersed with copies of Gilyard family letters from England (1808-1818) together with fifty-five pages of recipes for dyes. Many of the diary entries concern the Methodist Church of which Gilyard was a trustee for some thirty years. The farm ledger (1835-1845) records farm activities and the sale of farm produce.
Biographical / Historical
Thomas Gilyard was born in Leeds, England in 1786, son of Edmund Gilyard. He was brought to the United States in 1807 by General David Humphreys to assist the latter in the establishment of his woolen mill in Humphreysville, now Seymour, Connecticut. Gilyard was the first broadcloth finisher in this country. He married Lois French of Bethany, Connecticut in 1810, took the freeman's oath in 1819, and settled on a farm in Humphreysville. He was an ardent member of the Methodist church, of which he was a trustee for about thirty years, and something of amateur poet and artist. He died in 1853.
- Title
- Guide to the Thomas Gilyard Papers
- Status
- Under Revision
- Author
- compiled by Janet Elaine Gertz
- Date
- August 1981
- Description rules
- Finding Aid Created In Accordance With Manuscripts And Archives Processing Manual
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
Part of the Manuscripts and Archives Repository
Yale University Library
P.O. Box 208240
New Haven CT 06520-8240 US
(203) 432-1735
(203) 432-7441 (Fax)
beinecke.library@yale.edu
Location
Sterling Memorial Library
Room 147
120 High Street
New Haven, CT 06511