Correspondence, 1870-1911 and undated

This series consists primarily of letters and postcards addressed to Charles S. Burns from family members, especially Burns's mother Lydia, his former guardian Michael Ritter, brothers Calvin, Amos, Simon, and George, and sisters Ida Phair and Sophia Carrick. Among his other correspondents are his close friend, Andrew W. Stephen of Westminster, and C. H. Moore, J. P. Hasby, and George F. Prechteh. Family news, tragedies, illness, the condition of crops, and inquiries about Burns's life make this series particularly rich documentation of daily life in Maryland at the end of the nineteenth century. Several letters relate to his teaching career in Sandy Spring, including official correspondence from the Office Board of School Commissions, Montgomery County, as well as several letters from students. There are also letters concerning night classes at Baltimore Business College and the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA). Many of the postcards contain brief notices and receipts from the Sun Mutual Aid Society of Baltimore and from the Order of the Golden Chain, Druid Lodge No. 29. Other postcards were received from Burns's family and friends. Also included are three letters from Charles S. Burns to his second wife.

The arrangement of the collection is by format: letters precede postcards. Within these groups, the letters to Burns are in chronological order. Also in chronological order are the postcards in the three groupings 1876-1911 and undated, Order of the Golden Chain, and Sun Mutual Aid Society.