About

In 1878, Dr. Anthony L. Manning stated in his Last Will and Testament that "I desire that my poems and my prose life shall be published together, and suitably illustrated in book form, one copy to be made a present to each of the following libraries: the Peabody, the Mercantile, the Maryland Institute, and the Maryland University school of Medicine libraries; all of Baltimore City, Maryland, and the Smithsonian Institute library of Washington, D.C. and the remaining copies to be sold as deemed best, and the proceeds if any therefrom the five thousand copies, to go to my sister Mrs. Eugenia S. Thomas".  Also in the Will, Dr. Manning entrusted "the revising and corrections of my poems to my brother-in-law Dr. James H. Thomas who is my sister's husband, and my respected old school mate, before they go to the press for publication."

The Will also instructed the creation of a large monument of polished scotch granite of a reddish hue in East New Market cemetery etched with Dr. Manning's self-written epitaph.  (See image above).  It is not clear if Eugenia followed through with her brother's instruction to produce 5,000 copies of his Poetry & Prose book and donate a copy to each the five libraries.   

What happened to Dr. Manning's book?   Eugenia Thomas's estate was sold in 1917 by her executor and nephew Francis H. Vincent.  The estate inventory included 19 pages of items that were sold along with the names of buyers.  There were a large number of items labelled as "books" and  "boxes & contents" or "baskets & contents".  However, it is not clear if any of the items listed in the estate sale were Dr. Manning's book. 

Through research, thirteen of Dr. Manning's poems have been found.  Ten were been found published in newspapers.  Another poem was tucked behind a small pendant with a photo of his ex-wife Sarah E Mackey.  One short poem was included in a letter he wrote to his father.  And of course Dr. Manning's self-written epitaph was written as a poem. 

The images and items presented on this website and YouTube are public domain (published before 1930) or color photos taken by the project author, Frank S. Colllins.   The project was created to highlight and preserve the memory and writings of Dr. Anthony Lafayette Manning (1831-1878).   SUNO AI was used to create the songs/music for each poem.  Lyrics were by Dr. Manning.  Style, arrangement, and chorus development was created by the project author.    Gemini, ChatGPT, and Grok were used to create additional images and clips that were used in two of the YouTube videos.  Special Thanks are extended to Karen Nicholson, Arlington, VA who provided many of the letters and poems and some of the photos featured on this website project.

The author of this project, Frank S Collins, is a distant cousin to Dr. Anthony L. Manning.  In the early 1990s, Frank Collins began researching local history and genealogy, and teaching people about the treasures of local history.  A recognized local historian in both Maryland and Tennessee, he is also a genealogist, web-designer, and now an AI music creator.  He has been featured in newspapers, magazines, books, and various online venues and has conducted many local history presentations.  He currently serves as the Chairman of the Historic Zoning Commission in Jonesborough, the oldest town in Tennessee and is a Board member of the Heritage Alliance of Northeast Tennessee.