Journal of Meta Morris Grimball

Archive

-

Historic Charleston Foundation

Name/Title

Journal of Meta Morris Grimball

Entry/Object ID

ELIZABETH.048.5.3

Scope and Content

Transcription of the "Journal of Meta Morris Grimball [Mrs. John Berkeley Grimball], South Carolina, December 1860-February 1866" (electronic edition, from UNC Chapel Hill's "Documenting the American South" website.) Includes entries about visits to and from the Aikens. Margaret Ann "Meta" Morris Grimball was born in 1810. She was a descendent of Lewis Morris, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. In 1830, she married John Berkley Grimball (1800-1892), who owned a rice plantation near Adam's Run, South Carolina. They had nine children, whom they brought up at the plantation and in Charleston. During the Civil War, the family sought safety in Spartanburg, South Carolina. The plantation was confiscated by federal troops but returned to the family in 1866. The Grimballs were unable to continue mortgage payments and lost the house in 1870. Meta died in 1881. Meta kept a diary before, during, and immediately after the Civil War. In it she records the major events of the day and their effect on her family's life. Grimball juxtaposes common domestic concerns with larger issues related to the Civil War, including slavery, personal safety, and religion. The journal closes with an entry describing some of the family's hopeful plans for survival.

Collection

Aiken-Rhett House

Acquisition

Accession

ELIZABETH.048.

Source or Donor

48 Elizabeth Street (Aiken-Rhett House)

Acquisition Method

Collected by Staff

Lexicon

Nomenclature 4.0

Nomenclature Secondary Object Term

Journal

Nomenclature Primary Object Term

Book

Nomenclature Sub-Class

Other Documents

Nomenclature Class

Documentary Objects

Nomenclature Category

Category 08: Communication Objects

Search Terms

Aiken-Rhett House (Charleston, S.C.), Aiken-Rhett family, Grimball, Margaret Ann Meta Morris, 1810-1881, Women--South Carolina--Diaries, Women--Social life and customs, South Carolina--Social life and customs, Plantation life--South Carolina--History--19th century, Slavery--South Carolina, Charleston (S.C.)--History--Civil War, 1861-1865, Colleton County (S.C.)--History--Civil War, 1861-1865, Confederate States of America, Army--Military life, Refugees--South Carolina, Refugee camps--Confederate States of America, United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865

Archive Details

Date(s) of Creation

1860 - 1866

Archive Size/Extent

62 pages

Archive Notes

Date(s) Created: 1860-1866 Associated Material: See ELIZABETH.048. for materials in other repositories. Level of Description: Item

Location

Location

Container

Box

Shelf

ARH Shelves

Room

Margaretta P. Childs Archives

Building

Missroon House

Category

Permanent

Date

February 7, 2023

Relationships

Related Person or Organization

Person or Organization

Aiken Family

Person or Organization

Rhett Family

Related Entries

Notes

Related Units of Description: Various items in HCF Archives. See ARH collection record (ELIZABETH.048.) and related materials.

General Notes

Note

Notes: From Valery Perry, Mgr. of the Aiken Rhett House Museum, 1/15/2016: Meta Morris Grimball was a neighbor of the Aikens. She and her husband owned the Grove which was adjacent to Jehossee. She mentions the Aikens in the journal. Also when I lead a field trip to Edisto and discuss the Aikens during the Civil War I quote from her diary. It's quite poignant. She also discusses ornaments on the Christmas tree 1860 and what they ate.

Created By

admin@catalogit.app

Create Date

August 20, 2007

Updated By

kemmons

Update Date

June 18, 2019