| Scope and content |
Collection consists of a photocopy of Nicholas W. Schenck's journal, which was written around 1905 with a few later additions, as a memoir of his life, particularly years spent in Wilmington, N.C. Journal contains a detailed genealogy of the Fanning family. Other genealogical information concerns William McKenzie, John Sharpless and Jane Moore, Schenck family, Remseu family of New York, and Mallett Family of North Carolina. Schenck genealogy contains recollections of the British occupation of Long Island during the American Revolution. Schenck describes his schooling in Wilmington at Miss Laura Rankin's School, Jesse Mulock's School for Boys, and the Classical Department of the Odd Fellows Society School. Schenck's Civil War-era entries focus on his experiences after the fall of Fort Fisher until the end of the war. He describes the pursuit of Confederates by African American Union forces, food supply issues, and the destruction of railroad tracks and bridges. He writes of his attempt to return to Wilmington at the conclusion of the war and includes comments on his time in the Chapel Hill area, mentioning tales of Union terrorism, lack of gold, and encounters with Union soldiers. Subsequent entries describe train travel, African American troops at Goldsboro, Union officers and clerks in Wilmington, and moving his family to New York City by steamer. Schenck provides detailed descriptions of street blocks along the Wilmington Cape Fear Riverfront (1830-1860), including the location of buildings and each building's use and occupants. A 1906 entry concerns the Second Annual Cotton Convention at New Orleans and the yield and price of cotton. |
| Access restriction | No access restrictions. |
| Cite as |
Nicholas W. Schenck Journal (#342), Special Collections Department, J. Y. Joyner Library, East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina, USA. |
| Terms of use | Literary rights to specific documents are retained by the authors or their descendants in accordance with U.S. copyright law. |
| Acquisitions source |
Joyner- Gift of Mrs. Raymond F. Spohrer. |
| Biographical note | Nicholas W. Schenck (1830-1916), son of Eliza Ann Fanning and William Schenck, moved from his native Brooklyn, N.Y., to Wilmington, N.C., in 1836. Schenck, a bookkeeper, remained in Wilmington until 1865. In later years, he lived in New York City, Wilmington, Hickory, Cronly, Brooklyn, and Charlottesville, Va., where he was treasurer of the Virginia Realty and Insurance Company. During the Civil War, he served as an assistant to Captain Henry M. Drone and in 1863 was appointed as captain of the Assistant Commissary of Subsistence in North Carolina. |
