Biographical / Historical

The earliest member of the Boush family represented in these papers is Nathaniel Boush, 1809-1873. Nathaniel was a ship chandler in Alexandria, VA. His son Samuel was a forage master and fought for the Confederacy as a private in the 3rd Company, Washington Artillery, Major Walton's Battalion during the Civil War. Samuel married Mary (Mollie) May. Their daughter Nathalie married G. Gordon Asher and later married a McGowan after being widowed.

Content Description

Nathaniel's papers related to business and to the New York Life Insurance Company. There are also letters from Nathaniel to Samuel during the Civil War years. Letters to Samuel from relatives, including his sisters Effie and Fannie and his mother Jane, contain commentary on the Civil War. At different times during the war Samuel was in New Orleans, Manassas and Petersburg. There are Confederate passes among his papers. There is also an 1865 letter from Samuel to his mother about his return home. Samuel's correspondence from his friend Maurice Hurley mentions that Hurley was exiled to Canada to avoid taking the "oath to President Lincoln" in 1864. Correspondence of Nathalie Boush Asher and her husband G. Gordon Asher make up the remainder of the collection. There is also an 1893 Alexandria Female Institute report card for Nathalie. Most of her correspondence is personal letters, sympathy notes, and some letters on House of Representatives stationary. Her interest in politics is indicated by the latter plus newspapers that she saved relating to the candidacy of C.C. Carlin and E.B. White for the 1918 Virginia Eighth District election for the U.S. House of Representatives. There are several pieces of business and personal correspondence to G. Gordon Asher.

Related Material

Letters from Nathaniel to his wife Jane from the 1850s-1870s are in the Alexandria vertical file under "Biographies-Boush." This file also contains biographical material on Nathaniel Boush. The May Family Papers (MS233) relate to the family of Mary (Mollie) May Boush.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Asher, George Gordon, 1872-1915
• Boush, Mollie May
• Boush, Nathaniel, 1809-1873
• Boush, Samuel Coleman, 1842-1918
• Letters.
• McCowan, Nathalie May Boush, 1883-1961
• Politics and culture -- United States.
• Schools -- Virginia -- Alexandria.
• United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865