Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- 1755-1815 (Creation)
Level of description
Extent and medium
17pp
Context area
Archival history
Title and typed transcript text by Professor Kerby A. Miller. The journal was published in full as: Jones, E. Alfred, ed. (1921). The Journal of Alexander Chesney, a South Carolina Loyalist in the Revolution and After, Columbus, Ohio: The Ohio State University Bulletin 26, no. 4.
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Content and structure area
Scope and content
Transcript of the first 38 pages of the diary of Alexander Chesney (1755-1843), a native of Ballymena, County Antrim who emigrated with his family to Winnsboro, South Carolina in 1772. Chesney remained loyal to Britain during the American Revolutionary War and fought in the British Army. Following the defeat of Britain and the November 1781 death of his wife, Chesney returned to Ireland in 1782. The journal is transcribed in full until 1 March 1783, by which time Chesney had returned to Ireland. Per Professor Kerby A. Miller: 'By his official appointment and remarriage, Chesney has successfully reintegrated into Irish life, and so his career as an emigrant effectively ended. The remainder of his journal is summarized'.