Search

Start Over Record Source Other PACSCL Partners Form Business records Form Financial records

Main content

Friends Neighborhood Guild records, 1903-2004 (inclusive)

Extent:
19.0 linear feet (24 containers)
Abstract:
The Friends Neighborhood Guild social settlement was founded by Quakers in the Northern Liberties section of Philadelphia in 1879; its mission, “...to serve and respond to the needs of the people in its community, particularly those people who are less able to help themselves,” (FNG, p.3). Throughout its more-than-hundred-year history, this mission has guided the Guild’s programs, which have evolved to meet its ever-changing constituents’ needs. At different times, its work has focused on education, Americanization, recreation, housing, community organization and other areas of social need. The Friends Neighborhood Guild records date from 1903 to 2004, with the bulk of materials dating from the second half of the twentieth-century. The records evidence the social programs and activities of the Guild, as well as its relationships with other agencies, such as the Greater Philadelphia Federation of Settlements, Philadelphia Housing Authority and the United Way. In addition to general...(see more)

Held at: Temple University Libraries Special Collections Research Center [Contact Us]

Main content

Leary and Company (Leary's Bookstore) archives, 1840s-1969

Extent:
21.0 boxes and and 91 volumes
Abstract:
William A. Leary, was a small-time book seller in 1836 when he journeyed to Philadelphia to establish a sidewalk book stall on North Second Street. As business prospered, Leary moved to several different locations, finally settling at 138 North Second Street which was right next door to the Camel Tavern, a landmark in Philadelphia. Leary’s Book Store specialized in selling inexpensive, second—hand books. Because of its large inventory and cheap prices, Leary’s developed a national reputation. In addition to selling and buying books, Leary expanded his base of operations by venturing into the publishing business in the 1850s. William A. Leary, Jr. took over the book store in 1865. Stuart and Charles Mann purchased the store from the Leary Estate in 1876. Under the Stuart’s management, Leary’s became one of the largest old book dealers in the world. As more people moved to and shopped in the suburbs, Leary’s customer base declined. Leary’s went out of business on November 20, 1968....(see more)

Held at: Temple University Libraries Special Collections Research Center [Contact Us]

Main content

Thomas Leiper and family business records, 1771-1947 (inclusive)

Extent:
47.0 volumes
Abstract:
Thomas Leiper (1745-1825) was introduced into the business of tobacco shortly after his arrival in Virginia in 1763. Within several years, he moved to Philadelphia where he opened a tobacco shop. During the Revolutionary War, Leiper became the principal tobacco provider in Philadelphia. In 1776, Leiper purchased land in Delaware County that included a mill at a waterfall on the Crum Creek. He established snuff mills and later purchased a stone quarry. The Thomas Leiper and family business records include correspondence, country estate records, and business and financial records of the family's paper, lumber and wood working businesses, quarry business, and tobacco business dating from 1771 to 1947.

Held at: Library Company of Philadelphia [Contact Us]

Main content

George Sproule papers, 1884-1944 (bulk) 1784-1947 (inclusive)

Extent:
4.16 linear feet (3 boxes, 17 volumes)
Abstract:
George F. Sproule (1867-1928), known as an authority on the Port of Philadelphia, served on the Board of Port Wardens of Philadelphia from 1884 to 1907, as Secretary of the Board of Commissioners of Navigation for the Delaware River from 1907 to 1920, and as Director of Wharves, Docks and Ferries from 1920 to 1928. His son, Samuel Jackson Sproule served as Port Representative for the United States Shipping Administration, Recruitment and Manning Organization during World War II. This collection documents the professional life of George F. Sproule in the Philadelphia shipping and maritime industry in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the history of the Port of Philadelphia, and the World War II career of his son. The collection includes clippings, correspondence, appointment books, a scrapbook, business records, photographs, ephemera, and writings. The collection also includes a large number of maritime-related newspaper clipping volumes dating from 1891 to 1928.

Held at: Independence Seaport Museum, J. Welles Henderson Archives and Library [Contact Us]

Main content

Cope family financial records, 1789-1883 (inclusive)

Extent:
0.4 linear ft. (4 volumes)
Abstract:
The Cope family's financial records include an account book, a Pennsylvania bank account book, and two family cash books. The collection includes both business and personal financial records.

Held at: Haverford College Quaker & Special Collections [Contact Us]

Main content

Germantown Settlement records, 1946-1994 (inclusive)

Extent:
62.3 linear feet (63 containers)
Abstract:
Germantown Settlement was founded in 1934, when two existing social welfare agencies, Morton Street Day Nursery and Working People's Aid, Inc. and Germantown Community Center merged. Like most settlements, it provided wide-ranging services to its community, including child care, educational and vocational instruction, and classes in art and music. In the 1950s and 1960s, it also worked closely with city agencies to facilitate urban renewal in the Morton neighborhood, while at the same time encouraging community participation and empowerment. The Germantown Settlement collection houses the records of this social welfare organization from 1946 to 1994, with a majority of the material dating from 1970 to the early 1990s. The collection contains business records, correspondence, financial documents and program files. Taken together, the records evidence Germantown Settlement’s efforts to assist and generally improve the lives of Germantown residents, particularly the youth and elderly...(see more)

Held at: Temple University Libraries Special Collections Research Center [Contact Us]

Main content

Read family papers, 1792-1896 (bulk) 1736-1896 (inclusive)

Extent:
70.0 linear feet and
Abstract:
The Read family consistently played an important role in American government and politics from the time that George Read, a Delaware resident, signed the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Throughout the 17th to 19th centuries, the Reads served as lawyers, judges, politicians, generals, consul-generals and foreign ministers. This collection contains the papers of four generations of the Read family of Philadelphia, consisting of John Read, Judge John Meredith Read, General John Meredith Read, and Harmon Pumpelly Read. The materials date from 1736 to 1896, with the bulk dating from 1792 to 1896, and include extensive correspondence, bills and receipts, genealogical notes, legal documents, newspaper clippings, photographs, scrapbooks and ephemera. The majority of the collection consists of General John Meredith Read’s papers relating to his family history and genealogy, correspondence, and political materials. The collection is particularly valuable in illustrating...(see more)

Held at: Library Company of Philadelphia [Contact Us]

Main content

Joseph B. Smith and Sons Funeral Home records, 1872-1975 (inclusive)

Extent:
4.0 linear feet
Abstract:
The Joseph B. Smith and Sons Funeral Home in West Chester, Pennsylvania was established in 1870, when Joseph B. Smith purchased the existing Hoffman Undertaking and Furniture Business. Smith’s firm, which was in business until 1994, was owned and operated by four successive generations of Smith men: Joseph B. Smith; his son, William B. Smith; his grandson, Ashton B.T. Smith; and his great-grandson, Ashton B.T. Smith, Jr. It ranked as one of the oldest funeral home businesses in Chester County. The Joseph B. Smith and Son Funeral Directors records houses the records produced by that funeral home from 1876 to 1946. In addition, there is a small cache of Smith family papers dating from 1883 to 1975. The bulk of the collection is made up of funeral home records. Included in the funeral home records are account books, funeral registries, bills, funeral home ephemera, and undertaker and coroner licenses. The Smith family papers section of the collection has very little to do with the...(see more)

Held at: Chester County Historical Society [Contact Us]

Main content

Taylor, Harris, Roman, Frazer, and Smith families papers, 1683-1980 (inclusive)

Extent:
8.0 boxes
Abstract:
The families in the Taylor, Harris, Roman, Frazer, and Smith family papers, 1633 to 1980 (bulk 1685 to 1851) are all related by the marriage of Marianne Smith to Dr. Stephen Harris on April 14, 1833. Both sides of the lineage represented in this collection immigrated to Pennsylvania because of religious persecution in England and Ireland. As Presbyterians and Quakers, they no longer wished to live under a series of laws which forced non-Anglicans out of public office, schools and the church as well as prohibiting meetings for non-Anglican worship. These newcomers contributed to the establishment of the government and religious expression in early Chester County. The documents, covering topics such as land surveying, Native Americans, the Revolutionary War, astronomy, publishing, the iron industry, and religious persecution, provide a broad picture of early Chester County and its residents as they interacted with each other at home and in Philadelphia through business, religious, and...(see more)

Held at: Chester County Historical Society [Contact Us]

Main content

Joseph W. Thomas and Sons nursery records, 1884-1990 (inclusive)

Extent:
5.0 linear feet
Abstract:
The Joseph W. Thomas and Sons Nursery in Chester County was one of the oldest and longest running horticultural enterprises in the state of Pennsylvania. It operated from 1853 to 1990, and was owned by three successive generations of the Thomas family. The Thomas nursery actually began in 1828 as a small farm and orchard called “Maple Farm,” which was owned by Charles and Ruth Thomas. It was their son, Joseph Williams Thomas, who formally established the nursery on a small portion of the farm around 1853. He named his burgeoning business, Chester Valley Nursery. Later, he changed the company’s name to Joseph W. Thomas and Company. Around 1888, Joseph’s sons, Edwin and Charles Lincoln, joined him in business and the name of the firm was changed once more to Joseph W. Thomas and Sons, reflecting the new partnership. The Joseph W. Thomas and Sons Nursery records contains documents created by that business from 1884 to 1993. Researchers will find financial records; general business...(see more)

Held at: Chester County Historical Society [Contact Us]

Limit your search

more »

more »

more »

more »

more »

more »

Current results range from 1676 to 2004

View larger »