Raum, John. Letters, 1832-1856 | Illinois History and Lincoln Collections

This collection contains letters written to John Raum of Golconda, Illinois.

Raum was born in Hummelstown, Pennsylvania in 1796 and then moved to Illinois in 1823. He lived for three years in Shawneetown before moving to Golconda in 1826. He served as a brigade major in the Black Hawk War and also served in the Illinois Senate in the Eighth General Assembly, elected in 1832. He was also an active civil servant in his local community, serving in positions such as Postmaster of Golconda and County Clerk of Pope Country.

The letters in this collection deal with a variety of personal and political matters. There are three letters from John Reynolds, who served as Governor of Illinois until 1834 and then a member of the House of Representatives from 1834 to 1837. These letters deal primarily with claims of service members from the Black Hawk War. Also included are two copies of a letter from Peter Hagner, United States Treasury Auditor. Other letters discuss state and national politics, including a letter from Henry Eddy on the election of William Henry Harrison in 1840 and another from George W. Waters regarding Mormons in 1842. The collection also includes two letters to Raum from his uncle, James M. Cogswell.

This collection was acquired by the Illinois Historical Survey, the predecessor to the Illinois History and Lincoln Collections, sometime before 1956.