Research Find!

Today, April 17, we found an old letter from January 8, 1860. It turns out that a doctor from the Delta, OH area named Samuel Bell Finney wrote the lyrics to two (probably unpublished) abolition songs on this paper. The titles are, “The African’s Complaint” and “Give the Bible to the Slave”. At the time, he was married, and living in Nashville, OH in Holmes County. During the Civil War, he joined the 166th Ohio National Guard and ended up as one of the body guards for President Lincoln! After the war, he moved his family north to Fulton County, purchased a farm, and pursued his love of making herbal remedies. Eventually, he manufactured his own medicines, and shipped them throughout the world– becoming quite wealthy. What a valuable find! I plan on showing the artifact in the exhibit, and will reprint the lyrics in our commemorative pamphlet.