Berta Boardman Maxcy:

An Inventory of the Collection at the Texas State Archives, 1841-1926, undated

Biographical Sketch

Though the Berta Boardman Maxcy Collection provides information on a number of individuals, the principal subject of the collection is Doctor George Thomasson Boardman. Boardman was born in London, England, April 14, 1827, and emigrated to the United States in 1841. He became a dentist, receiving his professional education at Cincinnati Dental College. In 1850, Dr. Boardman moved to Austin, Texas, where he married Frances E. Goodrich on November 10, 1859. Four children, Mary Goodrich, John Sterling, Anna Thourton, and Berta Kate, were born of this union.

On March 15, 1862, Dr. Boardman enlisted in the Confederate Army. He served in the 16th Texas Infantry and participated in the Trans-Mississippi campaign. Dr. Boardman returned to Austin in May 1865 and resumed his dental practice there. He died in Austin January 18, 1884 and is buried at Oakwood Cemetery.

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Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Berta Boardman Maxcy Collection contains materials concerning members of the Boardman and Maxcy families, both residing in Austin, produced between 1841 and 1926, with some undated material. The most important part of the collection is George T. Boardman's five-part diary which chronicles his three years of service in the Army of the Confederate States of America (March 1862 - May 1865). The collection also contains photographs, correspondence, and newspaper clippings which document the history of the Boardman and Maxcy families with particularly strong coverage for the period 1890 - 1900. These are the family papers held by Miss Maxcy at the time of her death in 1978.

The core of the collection is the soldier's diary kept by Berta's grandfather, Dr. George T. Boardman, between March, 1862 and May, 1865. The diary, in five parts, recounts Dr. Boardman's experiences as a private soldier and as brigade dentist in the Trans-Mississippi Campaign. As a soldier Boardman served in Company G of the 16th Texas Infantry, George Fournoy's Regiment, William Read Scurry's Brigade, William Walker's Division. With his regiment, Boardman marched through East Texas (Houston, Navasota, Tyler, Palestine) and into Arkansas (Arkadelphia, Little Rock, Pine Bluff) in the spring of 1862. In April, 1863 the 16th Texas entered northern Louisiana and passed the duration of the war there (Shreveport, Alexandria, Grand Ecore, Delhi, Monticello, Minden, and Mansfield). Personal references in the diary center on Boardman's comrades-in-arms, his captain, Fred Moore, and private soldiers M. L. McFarland, Ed Christian, Wilcox Powell, Zac Walker, Jack Smith, Ben Goodrich, T. J. Campbell, and I. F. Hutchins, all of Austin and Travis County. The majority of the entries are Boardman's comments on camp life, on the countryside, and on his sentiments about the war. The back pages of each part contain accounts of Boardman's expenses.

The collection also contains family correspondence, photographs, and newspaper clippings generated by or dealing with the Boardman and Maxcy families in Texas, Tennessee, California, and Illinois. The correspondence is dispersed with five items spanning the period 1841 to 1926. Three pre-Civil War items give a view of activities of the Boardman family before it settled in Texas. The photographs are of Berta Boardman Maxcy's relatives in the period 1870 - 1890. Newspaper clippings contain family obituaries and accounts of Anna Maxcy's career as an actress in Austin's local theater in 1891 and 1892.

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Restrictions

Restrictions on Access

None.

Restrictions on Use

Under the Copyright Act of 1976 as amended in 1998, unpublished manuscripts are protected at a minimum through December 31, 2002 or 70 years after the author's death. Researchers are responsible for complying with U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17 U.S.C.).

Researchers are required to wear gloves provided by the Archives when reviewing photographic materials.

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Related Material

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

(Identify the item and cite the series), Berta Boardman Maxcy Collection. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

Accession Information

Accession numbers: 1979/031, 1981/149

The collection was donated to the Texas State Archives on November 2, 1978 and April 29, 1981 by Mamie B. Ward, a friend of Berta Boardman Maxcy.

Processing Information

David Block, April 1981

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Detailed Description of the Collection

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