The Thomas A. Edison Papers Digital Edition

[This folder has not been completely edited. Eleven documents have recently been added, and these documents do not have images or complete database information. In addition, the information in the folder target (editorial description) may not be up-to-date.]

These documents, which cover the years 1885-1901, consist of correspondence written by and addressed to Mary Valinda Miller (1830-1912), the mother of Mina Miller Edison. The first letter, from January 1885, is addressed to Mina and is co-written by Mary Valinda's eleven-year-old son John, who notes that "this is the first letter I have written." The second letter, dated December 21, 1887, is addressed to Mary Valinda's infant niece Margaret, who was celebrating her first Christmas. The last letter was written by Mina on the third anniversary of the death of her brother Theodore, who died as a result of wounds sustained at the Battle of San Juan Hill during the Spanish-American War. In addition to reminiscing about her brother and his namesake Theodore Miller Edison, who was born just two days after his uncle's death, Mina also describes the celebration of her thirty-sixth birthday and mentions the presents given her by various family members.