Conditions Governing Use

Before publishing quotations or excerpts from any materials, permission must be obtained from the Curator of Manuscripts and Rare Books, and the holder of the copyright, if not Swem Library.

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open to all researchers. Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, such as the Virginia Public Records Act (Code of Virginia. § 42.1-76-91); and the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (Code of Virginia § 2.2-3705.5). Confidential material may include, but is not limited to, educational, medical, and personnel records. If sensitive material is found in this collection, please contact a staff member immediately. The disclosure of personally identifiable information pertaining to a living individual may have legal consequences for which the College of William and Mary assumes no responsibility.

Custodial History

The letters were removed from Wise's Faculty-Alumni File in 2016 and processed and described as thier own collection

Preferred Citation

Richard A. Wise Letters, Special Collections Research Center, William & Mary Libraries

Biographical / Historical

Richard Alsop Wise was born in Philadelphia on September 2, 1843 and was the son of Virginia Governor, Henry A. Wise. He attended private schools in Richmond and attended William & Mary for two years. He served in the Confederate army, graduated from the Medical College of Virginia in 1867, and returned to William & Mary as a professor of chemistry from 1869-1880. He served as superintendent of the Eastern Lunatic Asylum from 1882-1884.

Scope and Contents

The Jan. 9, 1861 letter was written to his father, Henry. Wise mentions the organization of students into a military company under "Old Buck" (President Benjamin S. Ewell) and describes both the uniform and the arms. He also mentions that mail delivery service between Williamsburg and Norfolk has been changed.

His Aug. 26, 1880 letter is to the Board of Visitors, resigning his position as professor of chemistry.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• College of William and Mary--History--19th century
• College of William and Mary. Board of Visitors.
• Ewell, Benjamin Stoddert, 1810-1894