Poe receipt dated 1852 (Frances and John Finley Collection)

My translation of this receipt follows: 

 This document, undated and unsigned, I assume was written after 5 Jun 1852 and its author would have been Andrew Martin Poe, the eldest son of Thomas and Elizabeth Hephner Poe.   Andrew Martin managed the family affairs while his father and brothers worked on the river away from home.  Never a packet captain, Andrew Martin did work as a mate on several of his brothers’ boats. 

The document also suggests that the Poes had an interest in the str Columbian.   The str Columbian was built in Brownsville in 1848, for Capt William Dean who sold it to Capt Thomas Greenlee in 1850.  Listed in Way’s Packet Directory numbered 1252, Capt Way made no mention of the Poes or any other Georgetown owners in his packet biography.  The boat was off the lists in 1855.  From this thin thread of evidence, one word on this document, I claim one of the Poe brothers owned the Columbian in 1852.

I have not yet been able to interpret the words “Caton Bot(t)ing” and “S Hiat”.

Tags: george poe, georgetown, jacob poe, joseph calhoon, steamboat

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