urn:taro:utexas.cah.00887 A Guide to the Amelia Edith Huddleston Barr Papers, 1861-1916 Original EAD encoding by Jessi Fishman according to TARO 2 EAD 2002 Editing Instructions. April 2008 Finding aid written in English. Descriptive Summary Barr, Amelia Edith Huddleston Amelia Edith Huddleston Barr Papers 1861-1916 Materials are written in English. 11 items Center for American History,The University of Texas at Austin Picture and letters of Barr (1831-1919), novelist, concern her personal and professional activities and contain descriptions of events in Austin in 1861, in Galveston during Reconstruction, and in New York at the turn of the century. Biographical Note

Amelia Barr, writer, daughter of William Henry and Mary (Singleton) Huddleston, was born in Ulverston, Lancashire, England, on March 29, 1831. Her father was a Methodist minister. She was educated in music and literature and taught in a girls' school before she married Robert Barr, an accountant, of Glasgow. After Barr lost his fortune, the couple sailed for America. They lived briefly in Chicago and Memphis and in 1856 settled in Austin, Texas, where Barr found employment as an auditor for the state of Texas. During the ten years in which Austin was their home, Amelia Barr took an active part in the social life of the frontier capital and wrote in her diary vivid pictures of many Texans and local events and scenes. Her reputation as a novelist was firmly established with the publication in 1885 of Jan Vedder's Wife. Remember the Alamo, the novel for which Texans know her best, was published in 1888. From 1885 to 1911 a single firm published forty-two novels by Amelia Barr. Other publishers launched additional books, and countless shorter pieces flowed from her pen. Her literary success brought her comfort, security, and considerable means, as well as fame. Mrs. Barr died in New York on March 10, 1919, and was buried in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery.

Information taken from Handbook of Texas Online entry on Barr.

 Scope and Contents

Picture and letters concern her personal and professional activities and contain descriptions of events in Austin in 1861, in Galveston during Reconstruction, and in New York at the turn of the century. With the exception of two originals, the letters are photostats, some with transcripts.

 Access Restrictions

Unrestricted access.

 Index Terms Subjects Barr, Amelia Edith Huddleston. Austin, Texas. Galveston, Texas. Civil War - Civilian life. Confederate States of America - Women. Reconstruction. Preferred Citation

Amelia Edith Huddleston Barr Papers, 1861-1916, Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin.

 Detailed Description of the Papers Inventory 2B38 Letters: 2B38 February 1861-November 1916 and undated 3S105 Halftone reproduction of photograph of Amelia Barr