When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
We combine shipping when buying multiple items.
1882 Handwritten Letter DeLand Florida – Payment & Request for Evaporated Milk & Cream
Approximately 5" by 8"
Original 1882 handwritten letter from DeLand, Florida, addressed to Messrs. Ferris & Smith. Dated November 17th, it includes a note from A. Pinkham enclosing a check for $23.36 to settle a bill dated November 6th. The writer requests the shipment of 2 gallons of evaporated milk and 2 gallons of cream. A great example of 19th-century Southern business correspondence with clear penmanship and period-specific content. Ideal for collectors of Florida history, antique ephemera, or vintage dairy-related items.
While specific details about Alfred Putnam’s birth, early career, or life outside DeLand are limited in historical archives, records suggest he was originally from Utica, New York, and was part of a wave of Northerners who migrated to Florida in the 1880s during the state’s real estate and citrus booms.
His arrival in DeLand aligns with the early development of the town as a resort and agricultural center, driven by the vision of Henry Addison DeLand, the city’s founder.
🏨 Purchase and Renaming of the Grove House
In 1885, Alfred Putnam purchased the DeLand Grove House, one of the town’s most prominent early hotels. The Grove House had been originally built by Henry DeLand to attract winter visitors and potential settlers.
Putnam renamed it the “Putnam House” (sometimes also referenced in later documents as the Putnam Inn), reflecting his ambition to expand and modernize the facility. Under his management, the inn served as a centerpiece of DeLand’s hospitality industry and helped cement the town's reputation as a seasonal destination.
🧱 Legacy: Putnam Hotel
After Putnam’s tenure, the hotel was eventually sold to Gardner Dyer Gould, who continued to operate it under the Putnam Inn name. Tragically, the original wooden structure burned down in 1921.
However, the Putnam name lived on: In 1923, a grand, fireproof Hotel Putnam was built on the same site — a three-story Mediterranean Revival structure that stood as a DeLand landmark for over a century.
This modern hotel retained the “Putnam” name, solidifying Alfred Putnam’s legacy in the town’s architectural and civic history.
ABOUT 
