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Addressed from 110 N. State St., Ann Arbor (Mich.)

Letter is typed and numbered (5 & 6). Handwritten copy not present.

Letter describes a difficult crossing of the English channel, excessive heat throughout Europe, the purchase of a straw hat in Germany, an amusing incident at the hotel, and Alfred's poor eyesight.

Author mentions Stewart’s, one of the first department stores, located at 280 Broadway, New York (N.Y.). Known as the "Marble Palace" for its stone pillars, this new concept helped make shopping fashionable for wealthy women. Fernando Wood served nine intermittent terms in Congress, beginning in 1841, and three terms as Mayor of New York City. The riots that Martha writes about in this letter stem from rival gubernatorial and mayoral appointments to replace the New York City Street Commissioner. (For an in-depth look at this crisis, see Jerome Mushkat, Ch. 5, “The Political Mayor, ” in Fernando Wood: A Political Biography (Kent, OH: Kent State University Press, 1990)) . Solon Robinson's "Hot Corn” vignettes of city life among the impoverished and immigrant communities were later collected in a book, entitled “Hot Corn Stories, ” which must have been known to Martha and to Anne either in serial or book form . The “little Katy” mentioned in the letter may not refer to a family member but rather to the title character of one of Robinson’s stories. However, hsc0022 mentions a girl named Katy staying with the Leeds family . Dictionary defines collodion as “a solution of gun-cotton in ether, forming a colourles gummy liquid, which dries rapidly in the air, owing to evaporation of the ether.” Collodion was used in photography to cover glass plates as well as in medicine to cover wounds . Tarleton muslin is a stiff, lightweight, finely woven cotton fabric.