Parrish, Stephen D. Papers, 1864-1938 | Eastern Kentucky University - Special Collections and Archives

The Stephen D. Parrish Papers consists of personal and professional correspondence, court case documents, and family scrapbook material. The first set of correspondence was culled from a scrapbook kept by Stephen Parrish in a Congressional Record book. These specific documents appear within the date range of 2 Aug 1880 - 21 Oct 1885. Although these documents have been arranged in chronological rather than original order, Stephen D. Parrish’s personal index containing both the names and the page number from which the documents originally appeared in the scrapbook may be found in the first folder. Please note that Parrish’s index is incomplete and, as such, some names that appear on the documents from the scrapbook do not appear in the index.

The documents from the scrapbook section primarily contain material from Parrish’s early law practice. Many of the documents are addressed to Parrish and another attorney, John Chenault, with whom Parrish had a joint firm,. The majority of the cases concern the collection of debts and fees as well as property disputes. There is also a great deal of information regarding the sale of land, land contracts, certificates and property negotiation. Finally, there are minor documents to be found pertaining to patent litigation as well as Parrish’s time spent as Madison County School Commissioner. Note that some of the documents from this section are damaged and are difficult to decipher.

The second set of correspondence primarily concerns the later years of Parrish’s law practice. Parrish took an avid interest in Constitutional history and law during this time and thus many documents associated with this interest may be found. The documents in this section would be of great use to Constitutional scholars and documents from the National Committee to Uphold Constitutional Government would be of excellent value to those researching New Deal opposition. Included in this section is a photograph of the interior of what appears to be a general store ca. 1931. All letters are considered addressed to Stephen D. Parrish unless otherwise indicated.

Also included in this collection is a family scrapbook kept by Stephen D. Parrish’s sisters, Mattie and Lula Parrish. The scrapbook was kept in a druggist account book which most likely belonged to Elijah Robinson, a druggist in LeRoy, KS, ca. 1860s. There are several documents from and regarding Central University as well as many newspaper clippings which include birth announcements, obituaries, general news topics and anecdotal passages. In addition to the Parrish content, the book contains record of the sale of medical supplies ca. American Civil War period. Further information regarding this scrapbook (including a selected index of entries) may be found at the end of this finding aid.