The correspondence of Hannah Whitman Heyde (1823-1908), younger sister of poet Walt Whitman, provides a rare glimpse into the life of a nineteenth-century woman. Married to well-known Vermont landscape artist Charles Louis Heyde (1820-1892), Hannah documented in letters to her mother, Louisa Van Velsor Whitman (1795-1873), and other family members, her lived experience of ongoing physical and emotional abuse at the hands of her husband.

Illustrations Preface and Acknowledgments Abbreviations Whitman Family Genealogy IntroductionThe Complete Correspondence 1 1852–1853: Letters 1–3 “I am afraid you will be plagued to read this. . . .” 2 1855: Letters 4–9 “I have more to regret than any of you. . . .” 3 1856: Letters 10–19 “I hope I shall not die in a hotel. . . .” 4 1858–1861: Letters 20–27 “I am afraid I have done wrong in telling you. . . .” 5 1862–1865: Letters 28–37 “Have you heard from George” 6 1866–1868: Letters 38–42 “. . . this is only a line. . . .” 7 1872–1873: Letters 43–51 “. . . try to not greive. . . .” 8 1879–1892: Letters 52–62 “. . . I only wish I could do something for you. . . .” 9 1905: Letter 63 “the birth place of my brother Walt Whitman” Appendix A: Biographical Sketches of the Whitman Family Appendix B: Obituary of Hannah Whitman Heyde Appendix C: List of Letters from Hannah Whitman Heyde: Dates, Recipients, and Manuscript Sources Bibliography Index