The envelope says:
          An
George Duhte Blakriver
  Lorain County Ohio
      Nordamerika
          Erhalten d 20ten
           Jannawar (?) anno (?) 1847

The  postmark  seems to say 31 Dec.  "Erhalten d 20ten  Jannawar"
means "Received  the 20th  of January".   It  may be written in a
different hand,  and I  have no  idea why  it's in  German. Other
things  scrawled on the envelope are:  "An George Dute  Amhorst",
(Emhorst?) "Brownhelm  Lorain  Co",  "Bailiy",  "George Moeller",
"George, James", "Bailey", and "Edwa"(? short  for  Edward?).  It
was postmarked at Portsmouth, O.
     Part  of  this  letter is written in ink and part of  it  in
pencil. The  ink part  is to George Dute, from George Brandau. It
goes:

     Centre Farms den 15te Dezember 1846.

Lieber George Dute, ich muss Dich um etwas
Dear George Dute, I must ask you for something,

bitten, mir zu wissen, zu thun, ob Dain Schwager
        let me know,   if your brother-in-law

Heinrich Hahsenfluch diess Fruehjahr bei dir ankommen
Heinrich Hahsenfluch came to you this spring

ist oder nicht. Und wenn er bei dir ankommen ist,
    or not.     And if he did come to you,

so gruessen wir ihn alle Vieltausendmahl mit seiner
we all greet him many thousand times with his

ganzen Vamilie, und er moechte mir doch antwort
whole family,   and he should certainly write me

schreiben, u. ist er nicht bei Dir ankommen, so sei so
an answer, and if he hasn't come to you,     then you be so

gut, und schreib du mir antwort wieder. Nun will
good, and write me an answer back.      Now I want

ich dir weider schreiben, u dich deine (?) g--zen Vamilie
    to write to you further, and greet your whole family

Vielmahl gruessen, den 17ten Juni, sind wir alle
many times,        on the 17th of June, we all

klueklich bei dain (?) George Apel u Martin Claus hier
got here safely to your (?) George Apel's and Martin Claus's

ankommen, u. sein diesen ganzen Sommer nicht
          and have been unhealthy this whole

Gesund gewesen, u haben nichts Koennen (?) verdienen
summer,         and have been able to earn nothing,

und will Dir u Deinen beiden Schwager zu wissen
and want to let you and your two brothers-in-law know,

thun, dass meine Frau den 25ten Saptember
      that my wife went to eternity the

ist in die Ewigkeit gefahren.
25th of September.
                     --------------------------------

Nun weider muss ich Dich noch um etwas bitten,
Now must I ask you something further,

mir zu schreiben, wie es dort bei euch ist, ob es eine
to write to me,   how it is there where you are, whether it's a

Gesunde Gegend ist, hier bei uns ist es keine Gesunde
healthy region,     here where we are it's not a healthy

Gegend. Wir haben im Sinn uns an zu kaufen, George
region. We have in mind to buy ourselves, George

Apal u. Martin Claus, wir klauben, dass ihr nicht wei-
Apal and Martin Claus, we think, (so) that you won't

von uns seid,   Und einen Gruss von Martin Claus, u er
be far from us, And a greeting from Martin Claus, and he

moechte doch gern wissen, ob Heinrich Hahsenfluch seinen
would certainly like to know, whether Heinrich Hahsenfluch hasn't

Schwager Martin Roesinger nicht Gedroffen hat, u. wen
met with his brother-in-law Martin Roesinger,  and if he knows

er in weis,  so solt er im die Atrese Schreiben.
where he is, then he should write him (?Martin Klaus) his
                                                    address.


At the bottom of page 1 are written the names James, George, and
another less  readable one. The top part of Page 2 is all in ink,
and it's hard to tell if it's connected to page 1. Since the last
thing on p. 1 is the end of a sentence, you would expect the
first letter on p. 2 to  be capitalized; and maybe it is, it's
hard to tell:


weider weissen wir nichts zu schreiben, schreibt
again we know nothing (more) to write, write

uns eilig wieder.
back to us soon.

             Wier grussen euch Vieltausend mahl
             We greet you many thousand times

              wi- ich dord seid


                      u bleiben eu-e
                      and remain your

                              getreue Freuende
                              loyal Friends

                           George Brandau.

          Die Atress an uns ist.
          The adress for us is:

        George Apal Centre farms (?) Lorens
        Counte Ohio franklin Posto-fis.

          Lawrence County Ohio
           Franklin Post Office


Notes: I gather that George Brandau, George Apal, and Martin
Claus are interested in buying some land near George Dute, if the
climate is healthy. They have just come across the  ocean, and
they've been sick all summer, and Brandau's wife died.
     Heinrich  Hahsenfluch must be George  Dute's  brother-in-law
John Henry Hasenpflug (whose daughter married Andreas Brandau -
judging by their birthdates they were probably married sometime
around when this letter was written.) We learn that he may  have
come to Ohio in the spring of 1846. George Dute's two brothers-
in-law must have been Hasenpflug and Doellefeld.
     Martin Roesinger is mentioned as apparently being  the
brother-in-law of Martin Claus. In the undated letter we have
from Anton Dute, he mentions a cousin named Roesinger. There
seems to have been a Martin Riesinger who settled in Medina Co.
(see "History of the Western Reserve", p. 1596).
     Lawrence County is the southernmost county in Ohio - there's
a Centreville near there, and a Franklin Furnace.
     George Brandau's spelling is not too good. He says
"Saptember" for "September", "dain" for "dein", "weider" for
"wieder". He spells "Hasenpflug" wrong, and he gets his voiced
and voiceless stops mixed up, but for all I know that may be
normal for the dialect of German he spoke.






The part in pencil, starting on p. 2:

Da nun schon 2 Jahr Verfl-fen sind und wier keine antword,
                                    erhalden haben so fuende (?)
Since now 2 years have flown by and we have received no answer


                             ---l
ich mich getrungen, noch an e--h liebe- Leute zu schreibe-
so I find myself ??, still to you dear people to write

und Wier Moechten gerne die Uhrsach Wissen Warum
and we would much like to know the reason why

wir keine anttwortt erhalden haben den 20ten Mai kamen
we have received no answer         On May 20 we came

wier in Ne-jork (?) an den 31 Mai- -amen Wir Gesund
into New York       on May 31 we came healthy (to?)

George Dute und den Selben Tag --ch
George Dute and the same day also

       Bruder
bei Meinen- und Kinder  da Koentt ihr euch
to my brother and children so you can imagine

den-en dass g--s- freute Wahr   in 10 Tage
how happy we were               in 10 days

haben wier uns L--d gekaufd 61/1/2 Aker (?) 1 Boh- (?)
we have bought ourselves land 61 1/2 acres 1 plank- (?)

haus,  Frehm Scheuger mitt der ganze Ernte
house, frame barn     with the whole harvest

schoene Obst Baum fuer 705 Doeler und Wier Wohnen
beautiful fruit tree for 705 dollars and we live

in. 1. gesunter gegend krank sind. Wir noch
in  a  healthy (place?) rather than being sick. We not

nicht gewesen, als die Kinder    Etlich Tage
yet            when the children several days

und wier befinden un- in ziemlichen (?) Wohl
and we find ourselves rather well

stand.
financially.

Wier Wohnnen 32 Meils Von Gliefeland-West
We live 32 miles from Cleveland-West (?)


More  notes:  This part of the letter seems to have been  written
later than the ink part. It looks like it's in a different
handwriting, even though the spelling isn't much better. It's
written to  George Brandau, but what it's doing in a letter
addressed to George Dute is hard to say. Whoever wrote it
(probably George  Brandau's brother; see below) seems to have
gotten himself 61 1/2 acres of land 32 miles west of Cleveland
(just about where Amherst is), with a fruit tree, house and barn
for $705. He also seems to say that they got to New York on about
the 20th  of May,  and then got to George Dute and his brother on
the 31st, which leaves only 11 days to go about 400 miles.
       Also in pencil on p. 2, upside down relative to the last
section, after the word "Brownhelem":

und den Marthin Claus, George Apal,
and Martin Claus, George Apal,

Leter (Beter? Peter?) Sauger nebst Frau und Kinder
?Peter               ?Sauer  along with wife and children


den 22ten Jaunar 1846 (?) Lieber George Brandau un Kindes, wir
                                         Gruesen Euh Viele maal
the 22nd of January 1846 (?) Dear George Brandau and children, we
                                        greet you all many times


wenn Euch unser wenig Schreiben noch alle gesund antriffd so soll
                                        es uns her-- (?herzlich)
if our little writing finds you all in good health it would make


frein (?freuen)  was uns betrifd so sind wir Gott sey dank noch
                                                     alle gesund,
us happy         concerning us we are all thank God healthy,

Lieber Brandau Eugern (?) Brief den ihr am 15ten De-ember 1846
an
                                               Dute geschrieben
Dear Brandau   your (?) letter that you wrote to Dute on the 15th
                                               of December 1846


hab-- wir den 25ten Jaunar 1847 erhalden
we received on the 25th of January 1847

             uns
Wo rueber wier alle sehr freuten dass euch auch die liebe
over which we were all very happy that the love of God has

Gottes hatt ueber dass g-rose See getragen hatt da wier aber
carried you, too, over the great sea            but when we

lasen dass schon unsere Wase      Annacatrina in die Ewigkeitt
read  that already our cousin (?) Anna Catherina went to eternity

gegangen ist so Wurde So bald, unsere freude in trau-
             therefore so soon our happiness changed

richkeid Verwand aber allein Gott mach euch und uns
into sadness     but only God can console you (pl.) and us all

alle troesten - wier ha-en aus eugerem Brief er sehen dass ihr
                we have learned from your letter that

krank wahrd (?) aber Werfd euger Vertraugen nicht Weg, ich und
you (pl.) have been sick but don't throw your trust away,

mein Bruder sein Sohn Anton Andereas Brandau und Martin
I and my brother his son Anton Adreas Brandau and Martin


Riesinger (?) Wier haben euch so bald, den 22ten Januar (?), 1847
                                                      geschr--
Riesinger we have written (?) to you as long ago as January (?)
                                                      22, 1847.


George Dute hatt auch 1 Brief geschrieben und haben
George Dute has also written a letter and have (sic)

keine nachricht erh-lden wie oft habe ich mich nach Euch (?)
received no news         how often have I looked for you

um gesehen, wen ich auf der strase Wahr und sah
            if I was on the street and saw people

leute die Reisten aber Vergebens
who were travelling but in vain


More  notes:  This seems to be written in the same hand as the
other pencil part. It starts in the middle of a sentence, but it
doesn't seem to be a continuation of any  other  part  of  the
letter, so there's  probably a page missing (see notes to the ink
part). It's written  to George Brandau,  and it mentions George
Dute, George Apal, Martin Claus, Anton Andreas Brandau, and
Martin Riesinger (who must be the Martin Roesinger above), so it
wasn't written by any of them. Anton  Andreas  Brandau,  who is
probably the one who married Catherine Elizabeth Hasenpflug, is
called the son of the writer's brother, so the writer must have
been a Brandau. There must have been three Brandau brothers: the
Brandau who wrote this; George Brandau, who just came across the
ocean and to whom this pencil part is written; and the father of
Anton Andreas Brandau. The writer appears to have gotten to Ohio
before his brother George.
     The Anna Catherina who went to eternity is probably George
Brandau's wife, the one who died on September 25th (see above).
She is called "unsere Wase", which should probably be "unsere
Base", our female cousin. That would mean the writer's cousin
married the writer's brother. Go figure.
     In this pencil part, the writer refers to "your letter that
you wrote to Dute on the 15th of December 1846". This the ink
part above. I guess that came to ? Brandau first, who then wrote
the pencil part and forwarded it to George Dute. But this doesn't
explain why the pencil part addresses George Brandau.
     Some peculiarities in his German:  he seems to write "Euer"
as "Euger", and "Vertrauen" as "Vertraugen".