ABSTRACT
The Irvings wrote this letter from Kirkcudbright, to their brother and sister who had emigrated to the United States eleven years earlier. It is concerned mainly with family news, but the fear and anxiety they felt over not receiving any letters from America for over three years – while they themselves sent four – is palpable, and underscores the problems of postal systems and common gaps in communication at the time. Much of the letter contains family news and colourful accounts of life in this part of Scotland during this particular time.
