Fast Family papers

Collection

Identifier: MS-0330

Staff Only

Collection Overview

Scope and Contents

The bulk of significant information in the Fast Family Papers may be found in the three folders of correspondence, although this information is sketchy at best. The letter of Dec. 6, 1885 is most notable for its account of William's experiences at the prison camp at Cahawba and survival of the explosion of the Sultana. The family correspondence and the Coons correspondence centers mostly around William Nicholas Fast, but there are letters between brothers John, Isaac, and Christian Fast, whose relationship to William is not known. The Amos Ewing correspondence is devoted singularly to his friendship with Bertha Fast, the wife of Harry C. Fast. Also personal in nature, the letters provide a chronology of his rise in Oklahoma politics.

Secondary information on William Fast may be found in the legal documents which highlight his army career with the 102nd O.V.I. during the Civil War. Also, the printed material includes several programs from annual reunions of the 102nd Regiment, with one announcement of a reunion of Sultana Survivors.

One unrelated printed item of interest is an admission card for the execution of Wesley Johnson on May 29, 1884 in Napoleon, Ohio, only the second hanging in the history of Henry County. The ticket is one of just two hundred issued by the sheriff.

Dates

Creation: 1853-1933

Extent

0.46 Cubic Feet (1 legal manuscript box)

Creator

Biographical / Historical

The Fast Family Papers do not provide any particular descriptions of their family members. However, it is known that William Nicholas Fast, married to Amanda E. Fast, was mustered into the 102nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Company K, on September 6, 1862 in Covington, Kentucky. Captured in action in Athens, Alabama on September 24, 1864, William spent some time in a prison camp in Cahawba, Alabama. He was exchanged on April 22, 1865, and mustered out on May 20, 1865. He received a disability pension of $12 per month for contracting rheumatism, which led to a heart condition.

Bertha Snyder Fast, the wife of Harry C. Fast, maintained a correspondence with Senator Amos Ewing of Oklahoma. While the nature of the relationship is uncertain, there is evidence he worked for Bertha's parents, Mr. and Mrs. Simon Snyder, as a boy in Ohio.

Conditions Governing Access

No known access restrictions

Conditions Governing Use

Researchers using this collection assume full responsibility for conforming to the laws of libel, privacy, and copyright, and are responsible for securing permissions necessary for publication or reproduction.

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The records were donated and transferred to the Center for Archival Collections in September 1983 through the cooperation of Kathryn Fast Doerzbach of Napoleon, Ohio.