![]() ![]() Eliza described the dispute in an 1817 letter to son Henry, declaring that the painting had been her companion, never out of her sight, for 7000 miles of travel and four years of separation, "and I have often fancied I wiped tears from its eye." Her daughter, she felt, merely wanted to display it "over her fine sideboard." But Mrs. Giles's most prized possession, a portrait of husband Aquila. The nature of Eliza's relationships with other family members is not readily apparent, except in the case of daughter Elizabeth Thorne, who married well and evidently took pride in showing off, which her mother resented. But Eliza pinned her hopes on son George, reminding him in 1817 that "your life and mine hang on the same hinge." and that his father, "tho' he provides for all your necessities, leaves me still the Guardian of your comforts and where will such true comforts be found as in an Honest Heart, and Virtuous Mind." She urges him to imitate his namesake, "the greatest man that ever lived," and become "an ornament to the World, an able Statesman and defender of your countrys Laws, and Rights." Fearing that George's temper may "blast my hopes in you or bring me in sorrow to the Grave," his mother begs him to learn restraint, and to look to God, so that he may seek her in heaven after she is separated from him, whom she regards as "heaven's last, best Gift" on this earth. It must have been difficult to descend from youthful romance into the harsh realities of a financially-pinched existence, enduring separation from family, the early deaths of most of her children, and estrangement from the two surviving daughters. I'll not endeavor to soften any misfortunes you bring upon yourself so I give you fair warning." Writing in 1780, as a flirtatious young woman enjoying the attentions of an army officer, she accuses her "pretty Major" of flirting with other women: "Upon my word tis a high joak, I should be very glad to know what right you have to dispose of your pretty Person in this manner?. Her 13 letters to Aquila and to sons Henry and George are literate and engaging, depicting a strong-willed woman who did not lose her spirit and sense of humor in the face of life's trials. The Giles family papers document an American family through various generations and locations, though the focus of the papers is on Elizabeth Shipton Giles.
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