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Helen Peck
Gender:
Female
Born:
July 16, 1802
Died:
Unknown
Home Town:
Litchfield, CT
Biographical Notes:
Helen Peck, born July 16, 1802, was the daughter of Virgil and Mary Wallace Peck of Litchfield, Connecticut. From 1814-1818 Helen studied at the Litchfield Female Academy, as her sister Mary and brother Virgil did as well. Helen's life was cut short however, and she passed away while a student.
Quotes:
"Many of her female companions had convened . . . Her voice, tho' feeble, seemed angelic & she seemed desirous to commence on Earth the music of heaven. She joined in singing 'Vital Spark of heavenly flame' & She fully believed herself to be dying, & desirous to Spend every moment She had to live, in warning & counseling others. This continued until sometime after sunrise when She was persuaded to desist & take a little repose. Such a weeping Auditory, I never beheld, & I will only add that it seemed as if the Impression could never be effaced." - Col. Benjamin Tallmadge, upon attending to Helen Peck's death bed -Letter, Tallmadge to John Paine Cushman, 28 May 1822 (Litchfield Historical Society - Tallmadge Collection).
Additional Notes:
Helen's paternal grandfather Timothy Peck was a subscriber to the Litchfield Female Academy in 1798.
Education
Years at LFA:
1814,1816-1818
Immediate Family (Why only immediate family?)
- Mary Peck Mansfield
Sister
LFA (1811-1816) - Mary Wallace Peck
Mother - William Virgil Peck
Brother
LLS (1824-1826) - Virgil Peck
Father - Abel Catlin (1770-1856)
Father
Related Objects and Documents
In the Ledger:
The Citation of Attendance provides primary source documentation of the student’s attendance at the Litchfield Female Academy and/or the Litchfield Law School. If a citation is absent, the student is thought to have attended but currently lacks primary source confirmation. Records for the schools were sporadic, especially in the formative years of both institutions. If instructors kept comprehensive records for the Litchfield Female Academy or the Litchfield Law School, they do not survive. Researchers and staff have identified students through letters, diaries, family histories and genealogies, and town histories as well as catalogues of students printed in various years. Art and needlework have provided further identification of Female Academy Students, and Litchfield County Bar records document a number of Law School students. The history of both schools and the identification of the students who attended them owe credit to the early 20th century research and documentation efforts of Emily Noyes Vanderpoel and Samuel Fisher, and the late 20th century research and documentation efforts of Lynne Templeton Brickley and the Litchfield Historical Society staff.
CITATION OF ATTENDANCE:
Helen is mentioned in Caroline Chester's 1815-1816 diary (Vanderpoel, Emily Noyes. Chronicles of A Pioneer School From 1792 to 1833. Cambridge, MA: The University Press, 1903).
She is also mentioned in Mary Wilbor's 1822 diary (Vanderpoel, Emily Noyes. Chronicles of A Pioneer School From 1792 to 1833. Cambridge, MA: The Univeristy Press, 1903).
"Rules of the School and Family" and Names of the Young Ladies belonging to Miss Pierce's School in the Summer of 1814 (Litchfield Historical Society - Litchfield Female Academy collection).
1816 Litchfield Female Academy Catalog (Vanderpoel, Emily Noyes. Chronicles of A Pioneer School From 1792 to 1833. Cambridge, MA: The University Press, 1903).
"Catalogue of the Ladies Academy in Litchfield" 1818 by J.A. Shepard (Litchfield Historical Society - Litchfield Female Academy collection).
She is also mentioned in Mary Wilbor's 1822 diary (Vanderpoel, Emily Noyes. Chronicles of A Pioneer School From 1792 to 1833. Cambridge, MA: The Univeristy Press, 1903).
"Rules of the School and Family" and Names of the Young Ladies belonging to Miss Pierce's School in the Summer of 1814 (Litchfield Historical Society - Litchfield Female Academy collection).
1816 Litchfield Female Academy Catalog (Vanderpoel, Emily Noyes. Chronicles of A Pioneer School From 1792 to 1833. Cambridge, MA: The University Press, 1903).
"Catalogue of the Ladies Academy in Litchfield" 1818 by J.A. Shepard (Litchfield Historical Society - Litchfield Female Academy collection).
Contact Us
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If you have family papers, objects, or any other details you would like to share, or if you would like to obtain a copy of an image for publication, please contact us at curator@litchfieldhistoricalsociety.org.