The story of Asaph Perry

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THE STORY'S CONTEXT
Opening Why Asaph Technological Change The 20th Century

Why tell the story of Asaph Perry? As a normal or "average" person, does Asaph warrant our attention? The answer to these questions is as much rooted in a place as the person who occupies our attention. We would suggest that Asaph's story is interesting because he represents the convergence in a single place of two dramatically different ways of life. Simply conceived these ways of life might be thought of as rural and urban. Asaph lived at the edge of a change that was and still is emblematic of Canton, Georgia, the place he called home. Much of that change related to technology.

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Learning the story

In places the letters speak to a different age, when visits were protracted and communication over distance was only done by letter. One thing students should consider is the role of letter writing in 17th and 18th century life. Children may grow up and never write a single letter outside of a school assignment. Of course, technology has enable new forms of communication, but these more instantaneous forms are much removed from the epistolary traditions of another time.

All of the letters, but one, are hand written. A single letter, typed in blue ink, sits in stark contrast to these handwritten letters, almost flaunting its distinctiveness. The letter, dated December 3, 1906, is from Ethel's cousin John. It is a product of one of numerous technological advancements made during Aspah's life. Consider the effect the typewriter and, later the computer, would have had on letter writing. Also, think about what documents historians 50 years from now might use to try to understand your life.