Unfinished Business: Letters from a Father to His Son,1922–1928

Abstract

This article examines how one father in the early 20th century transmitted generational information to his son. In 1908, New York laborer C. E. Heinrich was left a widower with five children. Unable to care for the youngsters on his own, he was forced to send them to a Roman Catholic orphanage. After the children reached maturity, Heinrich initiated a regular correspondence with his youngest son, Stephen. His letters to Stephen between 1922 and 1928 vividly portray the pain of a dying father who was denied the opportunity to raise his family. Through his writings, Heinrich completed the “unfinished business” of his life by providing the advice and guidance that a father would typically offer over the course of a lifetime.