Life On the Ohio Frontier

These letters tell the story of Mary Phillips Lott and describe the sadness and tribulations of life on the Ohio frontier. Since Mary Lott's grave is unknown and documentation of her life almost non-existent, the book marks her memory and place in history.

Readers will be struck by her courage and inner strength in a time of hardship and adversity, the strong religious faith she expressed, her expressions of family longing, and the ultimate fact of facing her future alone.

After Mary's husband died, an inventory of possessions was taken and included, incongruously, one red fan. A memento from a happier time and place perhaps, it evokes a vision of a woman filled with hopes and dreams moving forward into the future.

Mary Lott's life should be considered a proud tribute to all the women who went before and came after clutching and cherishing their own red fans.

Life On the Ohio Frontier includes illustrations, maps, ancestral charts, and many references to family and friends in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York. The book received an Honorable Mention Award in the Anna Ford Family Book Contest (Heart of America Genealogical Society & Library, Kansas City, Missouri).

"For the genealogist, Mary's letters show clearly the 'chain' migration of many nineteenth-century pioneer families, portraying the rhythms of frontier life, the vulnerability to the elements, the often unrelenting loneliness, the importance of a helping hand from the community in times of need, and ultimately our ancestors' faith in God to see them through." --Ralph J. Crandall

"These letters from Mary Lott of Delaware County, Ohio to her long separated older brother in Pennsylvania tell of daily life on the frontier--the poverty, the hardship, the poor health that prevailed and the longing of Mary to visit her family in Pennsylvania, always prevented by lack of money, suitable traveling companions, and poor transportation. Although some genealogical information and many clues are included this is not intended to be a family history. The letters of Mary Lott will be of interest to students of pioneer Ohio and women's studies." --Ohio Genealogical Society Report