Shindler-Palmer Family Papers

Collection

Identifier: A-0082

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

This collection consists entirely of photocopies of the original items usually accompanied by photocopies of a typed transcription of the original. Occasionally only the typed transcript is in the collection.

Dates

Creation: 1715-1951

Creator

Shindler, Robert Doyne (Person)
Shindler, Mary Dana (Person)

Language of Materials

This collection is in English.

Conditions Governing Access

Open for research.

Biographical or Historical Information

Robert Doyne Shindler (1814-1874) was a native of Virginia and a graduate of Kenyon College in Ohio in 1835. He was associated with the Protestant Episcopal Theological Seminary of Virginia in Alexandria during 1835 and 1836. Mr. Shindler became principal of Cheraw Male Academy in Cheraw, South Carolina in 1837. During 1838 and 1839, he tutored children in the home of Judge Josiah J. Evans. He was ordained as a deacon on May 9, 1841 and a priest on Dec. 1, 1844 of the Protestant Episcopal Church in South Carolina. In 1848, he married Mary S. B. Palmer Dana. They moved to Maryland in 1850 and afterwards to Shelbyville, Kentucky, where Mr. Shindler held a professorship in ancient languages at Shelby College in 1851. Mr. Shindler preached on occasion at Calvary Church in Charleston, South Carolina in 1857. He became principal of Ripley Female Institute in Tennessee in 1859. Letters of recommendation indicate that he was competent to teach languages, mathematics, chemistry, and natural philosophy. During the Civil War, Mr. and Mrs. Shindler were parted at times. After the surrender, they moved to Texas. Mr. Shindler received letters in Nacogdoches in 1867, 1870, and 1873 and in San Augustine in 1866, 1868, and 1870. He preached at Christ's Church in San Augustine in 1868. Relatives of Mr. Shindler mentioned in the collection include a sister, Eliza Hebb; a brother, James I. Shindler of Noney Wood Mills, Berkeley County, Virginia; a brother, George Washington Shindler; and his mother, Elizabeth Shindler. Correspondence, certificates, diplomas, legal documents, and scientific writings of Robert D. Shindler are included in the collection.

Mary Stanley Bunce Palmer Dana Shindler was born at Beaufort, South Carolina, on February 15, 1810 and died Feb.8,1883. She was the daughter of Mary Stanley Bunce Palmer and Benjamin Morgan Palmer, pastor of the Congregational Church in Beaufort. In 1814, she and her parents moved to Charleston, where she became a pupil in the school conducted by the daughter of Dr. Ramsey, the historian. Her education was afterwards continued at various seminaries for young ladies in Connecticut and in New Jersey. In 1835, she married Charles E. Dana of New York. In 1839, Mr. and Mrs. Dana, with their young son, Charlie, moved to Bloomington, Iowa. In August of 1839, Mr. Dana and Charlie became ill and died within two days of each other. Mrs. Dana returned to her parents in Charleston and turned her attention to literary work. After both her parents died in 1847, Mrs. Dana married Robert Doyne Shindler. Their son, Robert C. Shindler was a resident of Nacogdoches and may have owned a general merchandise store on the public square in Nacogdoches in 1880. Mrs. Shindler corresponded with her sister, Sarah L. B. Palmer Lanneau, and a niece, Hallie. Mrs. Shindler was the author of The Southern Harp, 1841; The Northern Harp; The Parted Family, and Other Poems; Charles Morton, or The Young Patriot, 1843; The Young Sailor; Forecastle Tom; and Letters to Relatives and Friends, 1845. She wrote poems and songs such as "Flee as a Bird to Your Mountain," "Sparkling and Bright," and "Passing under the Rod." The collection includes correspondence, clippings, legal documents, and creative writings of Mrs. Shindler. Also, extracts from Life and Letters of Benjamin Morgan Palmer by Thomas Cary Johnson and other papers about the Palmer family history are included. The collection includes a copy of Mrs. Shindler's journal from 1835 through 1845.