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Hannah Whitman Heyde to Walt Whitman, 22 September [1891]

About This Item

  • Title: Hannah Whitman Heyde to Walt Whitman, 22 September [1891]
  • Date: September 22, [1891]
  • Creator(s): Hannah Whitman Heyde
  • Whitman Archive ID: loc.00668
  • Source: Hannah Louisa Whitman Heyde Papers, 1853–1892, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. Transcribed from digital images or a microfilm reproduction of the original item. For a description of the editorial rationale behind our treatment of the correspondence, see our statement of editorial policy.
  • Contributors to digital file: Kelsey Barkis Madison Perrin Maire Mullins Stephanie Blalock Kassie Jo Baron Amanda J. Axley
  • Cite this page: Heyde, Hannah Whitman. "Hannah Whitman Heyde to Walt Whitman, 22 September [1891]." The Walt Whitman Archive. Gen. ed. Matt Cohen, Ed Folsom, & Kenneth M. Price. Accessed 11 May 2025. <http://www.whitmanarchive.org>.
  • Source File: loc.00668.xml (TEI)
 loc.00668.001.jpg Burlington Vt Sept 221 1891

Dearest Brother your letter came2 Wedns.​ . I keep thinking of you, and pray your eyes may get better,—Your goodness to me is beyond words & Walt dear. I will not say anything, only you have been, are so kind that you are every thing​ in the world to me

I want so much to write (have so long wanted to) I have no doubt my dear I shall say lots of bothersome things am only a trouble to you, & wish I need not be, you can not​ know how much I wish I was not I sat here alone last night an hour or two thinking  loc.00668.002.jpgof you—you are my one great comfort. what​ I should do,—or should have done in my sick times—without you to think of & how it would have been without all the money comforts. youv'e​ been the means of my having I can not​ now even immagine​ , & I have money & plenty if I am sick, I will write more about it dear Walt, next time I write—but never can say what I feel—If I dont​ get sick, will write again soon—you writte​ to me when you are sick & know dear brother get all your letters & money (last Wedn.​ & all) come safe I alway​ open my letters am always here not strong enough to go out much—I have often thought you could not know just how it was, but still was good enough to write—I have been sick a great deal & cant​ do as I would like. gratefull​ that I can do a little, three weeks  loc.00668.003.jpgago my left hand was hurt3 just now begin to use it a little & it has worn on me some.—but all my ailments dear dear brother seem so trivial to what you have to bear—I think of you so much, I am alone much, hardly any one​ comes here, its​ just as well, am not strong enough to talk much, or long, most days feel well & work,—Prize all the Magazines & papers youve​ sent. often​ look at your picture in, May New England Mag'n​ ,4 glad you sent it.—like Warrens5 too he looks good—Glad Dr​ Bucke6 got home

Lou7 wrote me a real good letter not long since) & sent $5, & has sent loc.00668.004.jpg good kind letters & money before several times, will you tell her, Walt dear, that I am gratefull​ to her & to George8 if I can only keep well a little longer will write to her—she is so good to write, when I have not been able to write her, wish you could read her last letter.

So hope you feel pretty well to day​ & eyes better. think​ so very much of the letters youve​ written me, meant to keep them long as I lived, Charly9 had taken them, & I have destroyed all that he had, & he will not get hold of any more, I made myself sick for a day or two, but all is right now, would not speak of it dear. If I thought C.10 had not dont​ let anything I say  loc.00668.005.jpgbother you. I take so much more comfort when you are pretty well glad to know when you go out, think you are better,—I have never written to dear Jessie,11 I was taken badly sick the day I heard of dear brother Jeffs​ death12 —

Wish I could think of something good to say, but I cant​ ,—send lots & lots of good wishes my darling

Tuesday Afternoon

Dear Brother you know about the money youve​ sent you have sent me enough to last I feel afraid you send more than you can spare

 loc.00668.006.jpg

C. is hearty well & strong quite able to work, (painting) but he does not—he of course benefits on the money you send. it does not seem right, he sold a picture recently & paid his taxes—

Do take care of your own self Walt dear, wish I could see you.—send much love & thanks for all Han

give​ my love to George13 & Lou,14 please & to Jessie if you write

Correspondent:
Hannah Louisa Whitman Heyde (1823–1908) was the fourth child of Walter and Louisa Whitman and Walt Whitman's youngest sister. Hannah was named for her paternal grandmother, Hannah Brush Whitman (1753–1834), and her mother, Louisa Van Velsor Whitman (1795–1873). Although Walt Whitman had a close relationship with his younger brother Jeff Whitman, Hannah was his favorite, most beloved sibling. Until she married, Hannah lived at home with her parents and her brothers. Educated at the Hempstead Academy, Hannah taught school in rural Long Island. On March 23, 1852, Hannah married Charles Louis Heyde (ca. 1820–1892), a landscape painter. It is possible that Walt introduced Hannah to Charles. In August 1852 the Heydes departed for Vermont. The first decade of their marriage was marked by constant moving from boarding houses to hotels, mostly in rural Vermont, as Heyde sought out vantage points for his landscape paintings. In 1864 the Heydes settled in Burlington, purchasing a house on Pearl Street. After Hannah's marriage and relocation to Vermont, Mother Whitman became Hannah's faithful correspondent; Walt also kept in touch, sending letters and editions of Leaves of Grass after publication. Hannah faced several health crises during her marriage, partly due to the ongoing trauma of emotional, verbal, and physical intimate partner violence that she experienced. In the 1880s and 1890s Heyde increasingly had difficulty earning enough to cover household expenses; in addition, he may have become an alcoholic. He repeatedly asked Whitman for funds to cover their expenses. Whitman sent both Heyde and Hannah small amounts of money. After Heyde died in 1892, Hannah remained in Burlington, living in their house on Pearl Street until her death in 1908. For more information, see Paula K. Garrett, "Whitman (Heyde), Hannah Louisa (d. 1908)," Walt Whitman: An Encyclopedia, ed. J.R. LeMaster and Donald D. Kummings (New York: Garland Publishing, 1998).

Notes

  • 1. The Canadian physician Richard Maurice Bucke wrote the year "1891" in red ink, completing the date at the top of the first page of this letter. Bucke's date is confirmed by Whitman's letter to Hannah dated September 14, 1891, in which he mentions troubles with his eyesight: "one of my greatest botherations is the dimming of eye sight—incipient blindness." It is likely that Hannah started writing this letter in the morning and finished it later in the afternoon, as she notes on page five. [back]
  • 2. Hannah is referring to Whitman's letter of September 14, 1891. [back]
  • 3. The exact nature of the injury to Hannah's left hand is not clear. The thumb on Hannah's left hand had been amputated in December 1868. [back]
  • 4. Horace Traubel's article, "Walt Whitman at Date," was published in the New England Magazine 4.3 (May 1891): 275–292, with a frontispiece engraving of Whitman based on Frederick Gutekunst's 1889 photograph. [back]
  • 5. Frank Warren Fritzinger (1867–1899), known as "Warry," took Edward Wilkins's place as Whitman's nurse, beginning in October 1889. Fritzinger and his brother Harry were the sons of Henry Whireman Fritzinger (about 1828–1881), a former sea captain who went blind, and Almira E. Fritzinger. Following Henry Sr.'s death, Warren and his brother—having lost both parents—became wards of Mary O. Davis, Whitman's housekeeper, who had also taken care of the sea captain and who inherited part of his estate. A picture of Warry is displayed in the May 1891 New England Magazine (278). See Joann P. Krieg, "Fritzinger, Frederick Warren (1866–1899)," Walt Whitman: An Encyclopedia, ed. J.R. LeMaster and Donald D. Kummings (New York: Garland Publishing, 1998), 240. [back]
  • 6. Richard Maurice Bucke (1837–1901), a Canadian physician and psychiatrist, was the Head of the Asylum for the Insane in Ontario, Canada, and a close friend of Whitman. Bucke had been visiting Whitman in Camden the first week of September. Bucke returned to Canada on September 10. See Whitman's letter to Hannah Heyde, September 8, 1891. [back]
  • 7. Louisa Orr Haslam Whitman (1842–1892), called "Loo" or "Lou," married Walt's brother George Whitman on April 14, 1871. They moved to Camden in 1872. Walt Whitman lived with them from 1873–1884. For more information, see Karen Wolfe, "Whitman, Louisa Orr Haslam (Mrs. George) (1842–1892)," Walt Whitman: An Encyclopedia, ed. J.R. LeMaster and Donald D. Kummings (New York: Garland Publishing, 1998). [back]
  • 8. George Washington Whitman (1829–1901) was the seventh child of Walter and Louisa Whitman. George learned to read and write as a pupil under his older brother Walt (who briefly served as a schoolteacher) in Long Island, and worked as a carpenter prior to his military service during the Civil War. When the war ended, he became a pipe inspector for the City of Camden and the New York Metropolitan Water Board. For more on George's life, see Martin G. Murray, "Whitman, George Washington (1829–1901)," Walt Whitman: An Encyclopedia, ed. J.R. LeMaster and Donald D. Kummings (New York: Garland Publishing, 1998. [back]
  • 9. Charles Louis Heyde (ca. 1820–1892), a landscape painter from Pennsylvania, was Hannah's husband. Heyde often claimed to have been born in France. For more information about Heyde, see Steven Schroeder, "Heyde, Charles Louis (1822–1892)," Walt Whitman: An Encyclopedia, ed. J.R. LeMaster and Donald D. Kummings (New York: Garland Publishing, 1998). [back]
  • 10. This is Hannah's abbreviation for her husband, Charles (Heyde). [back]
  • 11. Jessie Louisa Whitman (1863–1957) was the youngest daughter of Thomas Jefferson "Jeff" Whitman and Martha Mitchell "Mattie" Whitman, Walt Whitman's brother and sister-in-law. Jessie and her older sister Manahatta ("Hattie") (1860–1886) were both favorites of their uncle Walt. [back]
  • 12. Thomas Jefferson Whitman (1833–1890), "Jeff," was the eighth child of Walter and Louisa Whitman. Walt's favorite brother, Jeff played the piano and had a lively sense of humor. He married Mattie Emma Mitchell on February 23, 1859. Jeff and Mattie moved in with Mother Whitman shortly after their marriage, and remained with her until 1867, when Jeff accepted a position as chief engineer and superintendent of waterworks in St. Louis, Missouri. Jeff died unexpectedly from typhoid pneumonia on November 25, 1890. See Randall Waldron, "Whitman, Thomas Jefferson," Walt Whitman: An Encyclopedia, ed. J.R. LeMaster and Donald D. Kummings (New York: Garland Publishing, 1998). [back]
  • 13. George Washington Whitman (1829–1901) was the seventh child of Walter and Louisa Whitman. George learned to read and write as a pupil under his older brother Walt (who briefly served as a schoolteacher) in Long Island, and worked as a carpenter prior to his military service during the Civil War. When the war ended, he became a pipe inspector for the City of Camden and the New York Metropolitan Water Board. For more on George's life, see Martin G. Murray, "Whitman, George Washington (1829–1901)," Walt Whitman: An Encyclopedia, ed. J.R. LeMaster and Donald D. Kummings (New York: Garland Publishing, 1998. [back]
  • 14. Louisa Orr Haslam Whitman (1842–1892), called "Loo" or "Lou," married Walt's brother George Whitman on April 14, 1871. They moved to Camden in 1872. Walt Whitman lived with them from 1873–1884. For more information, see Karen Wolfe, "Whitman, Louisa Orr Haslam (Mrs. George) (1842–1892)," Walt Whitman: An Encyclopedia, ed. J.R. LeMaster and Donald D. Kummings (New York: Garland Publishing, 1998). [back]
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