Scope and Content Note
The papers of the Francis Lewis Cardozo Family, a prominent African-American family in South Carolina and Washington, D.C., span the years 1864-1968, with the bulk of the material dated between 1868 and 1932. The papers include correspondence, genealogical material, certificates, commissions, degrees, notes, and a typescript of a novel. Francis Lewis Cardozo (1836-1903) was born in Charleston, South Carolina, and served as secretary of state and state treasurer. Cardozo received a law degree from the University of South Carolina in 1876 and was admitted to practice law before the state supreme court in the same year.
The papers include correspondence of Francis Lewis Cardozo, Jr., W. Warrick Cardozo, William Cardozo, and Margaret Cardozo Holmes. Much of the correspondence relates to the ancestry of the African-American and Jewish family. Of particular interest is a typed manuscript of a novel entitled "Folks' Ways," written by Francis Lewis Cardozo, Jr., under the pseudonym F. Elsee, which is based on his father's life. Also in the papers are commissions, degrees, and certificates related to Francis Lewis Cardozo and genealogical material relating to the Cardozo family.