Adopt A Document: Eight letters by Eliza Hart Spalding, Presbyterian missionary to the Nez Percé

Eliza was one of four pioneering Presbyterian missionaries who journeyed west to Oregon Territory. Together with her husband, Henry H. Spalding (1802-1874), Marcus Whitman (1802-1847), and Whitman’s wife Narcissa (1808-1847), Eliza reached the South Pass of the Rocky Mountains on July 4, 1836. While the Whitmans settled among the Cayuse at Waiilatpu, in present-day Washington, the Spaldings took up residence in the Lapwai Valley, in present-day Idaho.

Eliza’s letters detail her struggles and triumphs as she and her husband established a mission and school for the Nez Percé, set up the first printing press in the Northwest, and introduced new farming techniques. They also reveal the growing tensions between the missionaries and Indians. In a letter dated April 28, 1843, Eliza eerily foreshadows the massacre that would later claim the lives of fourteen people, including the Whitmans: “I do not think well of bringing settlers, however good they may be, in contact with Indians.”

Eliza’s letters were donated to the Society by Dr. Clifford M. Drury—Presbyterian minister, navy chaplain, historian, and prolific author on the subject of Protestant missions in the Pacific Northwest. Drury purchased the letters from Henry’s daughter-in-law, Mary Spalding. Dating from 1833 to 1850, the letters had become brittle and torn in numerous places. Tape used long ago to mend the broken pieces had become acidic, leaving a dark residue behind.

In Fall 2014, staff at the Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts cleaned and deacidified the letters, removed the tape, and mended the tears. Because of our supporters, we were able to raise the funds to pay for this work. Thank you so much for your geneorsity!