Here's a transcription of the letters in the images below. If you see an error, please email me to note the change.  The images I will add below.

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Mullins, S.C.
July 1, 1963

Dear Cousin Claiborne,

Right after your nice letter came, our daughter and her two little girls came. They had not been in a year and it was so good to have them. Of course, they took up my entire time. I do hope you forgive me for waiting so long to answer your letter.

Our daughter, Helen, lives in Louisville, Kentucky. They like it very much out there. Her husband is with Travelers Insurance Co. As they promote their men, they move them from one big city to another so I am afraid they may not be left there many more years. If they could just come back this way it would be wonderful.

They left on the 8th to return home. We've missed them very much.

I was so pleased to get the write-up of your 50th wedding reception. It was such a lovely affair and the many nice things it said about you and cousin Helen made me proud of my McDonald cousins. I just wish for you many more years of married happiness.

Since I wrote you last, a cousin of ours out in California died. You will find his name listed among the children of Aunt Margaret Edens and Angus McDonald's children. He was my double first cousin. Jack (or John Howard which was his real name) died June 6, 1963. You might add this to the list I sent you. He was buried out there beside his mother.

The tobacco market opens here August 2nd. This is always a busy season for us as Mullins is the largest tobacco market in S.C. The farmers are gathering and curing and getting ready to market their crop. We certainly have one of the best tobacco crops this year that we've had in a long time. This year for the first time we will have loose leaf sales for the first five days. A good deal of our tobacco has been going to Georgia where they do have loose leaf sales so they are trying to hold some of that tobacco here. We wonder how it will work out.

I am really at a standstill so far as my research on family data goes. We've had a good bit of company and too the weather has been pretty warm so I have not been able to add anything new. My neighbor and I plan to go to Lumberton soon. I've been told they have many books in their public library on N.C. history and genealogy. I hope to get some leads there. I have been wondering if my own grandfather, John McDonald could have been the one who lived in Bennettsville for a while. He did marry Mary Douglas who was from up there, you know. It gives us something to think about, doesn't it? I wish I could find out who Angus' father was. It seems to me there would be a record at the port of entry where he landed when they came over here. Could it have been at Wilmington or thereabouts? I'm not sure there was a Wilmington at that time. So far I am very confused and uncertain about everything. Any way we can keep trying, can't we?

Hope all of you are well and are having a very pleasant summer.

Let me hear from you sometime.

Very sincerely,
Estalea McDonald Goodyear.

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