With the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861, Turner joined the Confederate Army as a surgeon. In September that year, he was on the staff of the General Hospital at C.S. Fort Nelson in Norfolk, Virginia. He was later assigned to the Confederate Navy in Richmond. By 1863, he was serving aboard the C.S.S. Chicora, a Confederate gunboat stationed at Charleston, South Carolina. However, he was eventually captured and spent the last months of the war in a prisoner of war camp.
After his parole, he resumed the practice of medicine in Philadelphia, where he became a regular contributor of poetry, prose, and medical literature to local publications, including Saturday Night. He also authored several dime novels for the Beadle & Adams publishing house. Turner died in 1877 at the age of forty-two.
Personal letters between Dr. Turner and his future wife, Hannah Ford. In one letter, dated Aug. 1, 1853, Mrs. Ford discusses an overnight stay in a Virginia hotel and her brief talk with a slave, who appeared to be happy with his/her lot in life.
Personal letters to Dr. Turner from his wife, Hannah, while he was in prison camp. Hannah discusses the death of Lincoln (April 26, 1865).
Includes two short letters from Dr. Turner to his son.
Regarding publishing of poetry.
Mounted newspaper and magazine clippings.
In good condition; mounted and contained (3.5" x 3").
In poor condition; mounted and contained (2.5" x 3").
Wearing Confederate uniform.
In poor condition; mounted and contained (4" x 6").
Inventory enclosed. Family and carte-de-visite photographs.
Nature and war scenes in pencil. Includes sketches of several Conferederate and Federal warships.
The collection consists of personal letters written to William Mason Turner (1835-1877), along with family and carte-de-visite photographs, legal documents, poetry, a sketchbook, and newspaper clippings of Turner's verse, family obituaries and other items of interest. Of particular note are the remnants of a sketchbook with fine pencil sketches of various Civil War sites as well as numerous Union and Confederate gunboats.
Researchers are advised that express written permission to reproduce, quote, or otherwise publish any portion or extract from this collection must be obtained from the Brown University Library. Although Brown University has physical ownership of the collection and the materials contained therein, it does not claim literary rights. It is up to the researcher to determine the owners of the literary rights and to obtain any necessary permissions from them.
William Mason Turner papers, Ms. 77.1, Brown University Library.
The collection is divided into 5 series by type of manuscript and then arranged
chronologically within each series.
The items in the collection are not in good condition. The paper on which the letters are written is brittle, the binding of the sketchbook has disintegrated, and on several of the encased daguerrotypes the image has degraded due to previous breakage or environmental problems. These materials may not be handled except by special permission of the curator.
The William Mason Turner Papers were given to Brown University by Randolph H. George, a grandson of William Mason Turner, in August 1977. Mr. George had previously received these materials from another of Turner's grandchildren, Mrs. Harold E. Hamblen.
The title page image of William Mason Turner is from a photostat of a daguerreotype located in Series 5 (Portraits, photographs and sketchbooks) of this collection. The daguerreotype is loose within its frame and the glass is cracked. The frame of the daguerreotype is extremely fragile.
Brown University Library catalog record for this collection:
The Brown University Archives maintains a biographical file on Turner which contains additional information on his studies at Brown and his post-Brown career, including a bibliography of his publications and a presentation copy of his book on the Middle East.
For further information on Turner's writings, see "The House of Beadle and Adams," an
online database compiled by the Northern Illinois University Libraries (DeKalb, Ill) and the
author page for Turner, with biographical information:
The Smithsonian Institution Libraries have a web exhibit on American travelers in Egypt,
entitled "Nile Notes of a Howadji," that includes Turner on its timeline:
Turner's Civil War service in Richmond is documented on the Civil War Richmond Inc.
website:
Materials originally in Series 6 of this collection have been separated (2 monographs and 1
title page). The monographs were cataloged separately: