Although Fanny was born into a large family, only one of her siblings had children themselves: Will Jr. After marrying Jenny Watson in 1860, little baby Cornelia (called Nellie), was born in 1862. Will left town to fight in the Civil War shortly after her birth, and Jenny and Nellie soon followed him to live at Camp Nellie Seward. Will and Jenny had a son, William Henry III, in 1864, and a second daughter, Frances (Fan), in 1880.
Fanny would have only lived long enough to meet Nellie and Will III, and she wrote about Nellie’s development in her diary many times. She clearly enjoyed being an aunt and loved her little niece very much.
“Everybody agreed, what we of course thought, that she was remarkably large & pretty. She began to smile, & notice after a while–earlier than most children do.” September 22, 1862
“Remember me kindly to all your family. It does me a world of good to know dear Will is better — Give my best love to him & kiss the children for "Aunt Fanny"
Letter from Fanny to Janet, Jan 8, 1866 (University of Rochester, Seward Family Project Archives)
Left: Nellie and dog c. 1870. This image evokes a similar one taken of young Fanny and her dog, Bell, from around 20 years earlier.
Bottom left: Nellie and Fan c. 1883
Family picture in Seward House garden c. 1869 (3 years after Fanny’s death). Will Jr., Jenny, and a 6-year-old Will III can be seen on the far right.