This 1893 letter was found in a box belonging to the late Alice Whitaker Ray. It was folded inside a small Bible, along with a contract belonging to Benjamin Porter Whitaker. The letter references a brother who was killed in a logging accident. After doing research, it appears that the letter was written about Silas Lafayette Whitaker.

The 1880 census lists Silas Whitaker - father of Benjamin Porter Whitaker, the recipient of the letter - and there is a 12 year old son in the household named Silas Lafayette; If the person killed in the accident in Texas were him, he would be around 25 by 1893. The 1890 census was lost in a fire at the national archives, so there is no record of where he was in 1890. Online history of the area mentioned in the letter indicate it is part of Hardin County, TX now. Findagrave site shows three Whitakers buried in the Old Hardin Cemetery but no dates or info is included.

(For easy reading, the letter is transcribed below.)

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(Letterhead) Office of the Hooks Lumber Company, incorporated. Manufacturers of rough and dressed long leaf yellow pine lumber.

Aug. 31st 1893

Mr. B.P. Whitaker

Whitepath, Ga.

Dear sir, in reply to your letter of 27th, will say that I wrote you about all I know about your brother's death. I did not see him killed, but the men that worked with him in the woods saw the tree strike him. Max Zeller is the name of the man that was sawing with him. The man that he roomed with is named E. Leight. He was here only a month and I knew but little of his habits, though I think they were good, as the men have all seemed to like him. He did not complain as he was too badly hurt to talk. He spoke only 2 or 3 words. It seems that he tried to say something just before he died, but could not speak. We buried him in a nice homemade coffin at a graveyard about 2 miles from this place. Will send you his things as per your instructions.

Yours truly, The Hooks Lbr Co. (Illegible)