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Start Over Repository Historical Society of Pennsylvania Language English Year 1940 to 1944

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Montgomery, Scott, and Wheeler families papers, 1675-2018, bulk 1840-1995

Extent:
60.6 linear feet (; 103 boxes, 142 volumes, 11 flat files)
Abstract:
This collection from the Montgomery, Scott, and Wheeler families, spanning 60 linear feet, documents the history of Ardrossan, an estate in Villanova, Pennsylvania -- one of the largest on Philadelphia's Main Line -- and its residents over the course of more than two centuries. In 1911, local investment banker Colonel Robert Leaming Montgomery (1879-1949) hired Horace Trumbauer to design the residence on the family's 800-acre plot, complete with a dairy farm and horse stables. The son of William Woodrow Montgomery and Rebecca Waln Leaming, Robert L. Montgomery would go onto to establish what is now the investment firm of Janney Montgomery Scott. He married Charlotte Hope Binney Tyler (1881-1970) in 1902, and the couple had four children: Helen Hope, Mary Binney, Robert Alexander, and Charlotte Ives. Their eldest daughter, Helen Hope Montgomery (1904-1995), became well known in Philadelphia's social circles, and she went on to marry Edgar Scott (1899-1995), grandson of Thomas A....(see more)

Held at: Historical Society of Pennsylvania [Contact Us]

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Gilbert And Joseph Cope genealogical research materials, 1908-1968 (bulk) 1729-1979 (inclusive)

Extent:
22.4 linear feet (; 49 boxes, 11 volumes)
Abstract:
Gilbert Cope (1840-1928) was a well-known Quaker genealogist and local historian who compiled comprehensive genealogical records of Pennsylvania families. Cope was one of the founders of the Chester County Historical Society and served it as secretary, director, and honorary director. He was a member of the Friends’ Historical Association and a corresponding member of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania and the New England Historic Genealogical Society. In 1912, he was elected an honorary member of the Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania and became one of its honorary vice presidents in 1924. Additionally, he served as president of the Pennsylvania Federation of Historical Societies from 1911 to 1912, overseeing 75 historical organizations in Pennsylvania. Gilbert’s son Joseph Cope continued his father’s work, augmenting the Cope family’s genealogy and those of other prominent families. Gilbert Cope’s collections were acquired by the Historical Society of Pennsylvania and the...(see more)

Held at: Historical Society of Pennsylvania [Contact Us]

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Stout collection, 1925-2003, undated (bulk, 1980-1990)

Extent:
5.3 linear feet (; 9 boxes, 6 volumes)
Abstract:
The Stout Collection consists of virtually all of Reverend Edmond Stout's efforts in researching the history of the Stout/Stoudt/Stoudt family that originated in Germany. The early research and German ancestry work in the collection was begun by Rear Admiral (RADM) Herald F. Stout, U.S.N. Retired, San Diego, California. The collection includes genealogical research and other information about many members of the Stout family. Materials include: listings of Stout family members; family charts and datasheets; correspondence; photocopies of clippings and primary sources; notes and extracts from marriage records, court records, church records and other sources; issues of the Stout family newsletter; bound, published family histories; copies of photographs, obituaries, churches, and other information related to various family members; and a small number of slides.

Held at: Historical Society of Pennsylvania [Contact Us]

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Smith family papers, 1680-1880 (bulk) 1660-1941 (inclusive)

Extent:
19.0 linear feet (, 14 boxes, 82 volumes)
Abstract:
The Smith family papers contain materials compiled and authored by John Jay Smith as well as several of his descendants. John Jay Smith (1798-1881) was librarian of the Library Company of Philadelphia from 1829 to 1851 and founder of Laurel Hill Cemetery. As a member of an influential Quaker family, Smith was the descendant of several prominent early Philadelphians including James Logan and Richard Hill. Much of the collection consists of deeds and other land transactions as well as correspondence and diaries originating with these ancestors. Smith’s own papers document his wide range of interests as well as his personal and professional relationships through correspondence, financial records, and memorabilia. The collection also contains materials originating from the families of two of Smith’s sons: Lloyd Pearsall Smith (1822-1886) and Horace John Smith (1832-1906). This collection is particularly rich in documenting the history of two prominent Philadelphia institutions, the...(see more)

Held at: Historical Society of Pennsylvania [Contact Us]

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Historical Society of Pennsylvania poster and broadside collection, 1777-circa 2005

Extent:
2.2 linear feet (; 7 boxes, 9 flat files)
Abstract:
HSP staff assembled this collection of broadsides, circulars, facsimiles, prints, blotters, photographs, newspaper clippings, and other material largely related to Philadelphia businesses and institutions. Subjects within the collection are quite varied and include auctions, banks, insurance companies, museums, printing establishments, the Civil War, labor strikes, Washingtoniana, Lincolniana (mostly remembrances of his assassination), and transportation. In addition to items documenting Philadelphia, the collection includes materials from several other Pennsylvania counties and states along the Eastern seaboard. The collection is divided into four categories: three according to location and one solely for advertisements. It is further arranged alphabetically within each category according to subject. Oversized items have been moved to flat files. A detailed inventory is available in the Historical Society’s library.

Held at: Historical Society of Pennsylvania [Contact Us]

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Work Projects Administration posters collection, 1933-1941, undated

Extent:
2.3 linear feet (7 boxes)
Abstract:
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) was created in 1935 and renamed the Work Projects Administration in 1939. Part of President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal, it was a federal agency to provide work to unemployed people. The Federal Art Project (FAP) was formed as a part of the WPA in 1935. The primary goals of FAP were to promote American art and artists; increase art education, especially for children; and research the history of American art and design. FAP subsidiaries were eventually formed in each state; in Pennsylvania the program was called the Pennsylvania Art Project (PAP). It employed artists such as Charles Reed Gardner (1901-1974), Dox Thrash (1892-1965), and Michael J. Gallagher (1898-1965), who created numerous works for the war effort; public buildings, displays, and exhibitions; and for the general support of American art and graphic design. At the beginning of the project, posters were created by hand. By the project’s final years, most posters were being mass...(see more)

Held at: Historical Society of Pennsylvania [Contact Us]

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Leon and Beatrice M. Gardiner collection, 1822-1979 (inclusive)

Extent:
1.5 linear feet (; 4 boxes, 1 volume)
Abstract:
The Leon and Beatrice M. Gardiner collection, though small in size, spans over one hundred and fifty years of African American history. Gardiner, a historian and postal worker, was from Atlantic City, New Jersey, but lived most of his life in Philadelphia. He was an avid collector of African American ephemera, clippings, and other memorabilia. He died in 1945 at the age of 47 and his wife Beatrice M. Gardiner continued his collection. In addition to a few folders of personal papers and correspondence, the collection contains ephemera, essays, and an 1881 notebook from one Julia Buchanan. There are also several folders of newspaper clippings that focus on African American people, institutions, events, and achievements, and many photographs.

Held at: Historical Society of Pennsylvania [Contact Us]

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Penn family papers, 1629-1834 (bulk) 1592-1960 (bulk 1629-1834) (inclusive)

Extent:
56.0 linear feet (51 boxes; 222 volumes)
Abstract:
The British colony of Pennsylvania was given to William Penn (1644-1718) in 1681 by Charles II of England in repayment of a debt owed his father, Sir Admiral William Penn (1621-1670). Under Penn's directive, Pennsylvania was settled by Quakers escaping religious torment in England and other European nations. Three generations of Penn descendents held proprietorship of the colony until the American Revolution, when the family was stripped of all but its privately held shares of land. The Penn family papers house the personal and governmental records of William Penn, the proprietor of Pennsylvania, and his family. This collection, which dates from 1592 to 1960 (bulk of materials dating 1629 to 1834), consists primarily of correspondence, legal records, governmental records, surveys, deeds, grants, receipts, and account books; there are also 19th and 20th century auction catalogs and other secondary materials. This collection documents the creation of the Pennsylvania colony through...(see more)

Held at: Historical Society of Pennsylvania [Contact Us]

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St. David's Church (Radnor, Pa.) records, circa 1706-2008

Extent:
15.0 linear feet (; 30 boxes, 34 volumes, 15 flat files)
Abstract:
The cornerstone for St. David’s Church was laid in 1715 by a group of Welsh settlers in what is currently Radnor Township. During the Revolutionary War, the parish faced turmoil and the absence of a minister for the parishioners. By 1788, the parish once again had leadership, and in 1792, Reverend William Currie incorporated the parish and drew up a charter. The parish continued to grow as railroad lines brought urban dwellers to areas like Radnor that surrounded Philadelphia. For the next century, the parish would erect buildings to accommodate its constituency, providing the parishioners with a new rectory, chapel, parish house, and education building. Currently, the church attends to the religious needs of over one thousand families and holds many events, including an annual fair and auction. The records of St. David’s Church span from 1706 to 2006 and offer insight into the activities of the parishioners and history of the church in Radnor, Pennsylvania. This collection consists...(see more)

Held at: Historical Society of Pennsylvania [Contact Us]

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Indian Rights Association records, 1830-1986, undated (inclusive)

Extent:
185.5 linear feet (476 boxes; 38 volumes; 1 flat file)
Abstract:
Beginning in 1882 the Indian Rights Association was one of the most important organizations establishing and influencing American Indian policy in the 20th century. The records of the organization span from its origins to the 1980s and include correspondence, research papers, administrative files, photographs, publications, and papers of Herbert Welsh, one of its founders.

Held at: Historical Society of Pennsylvania [Contact Us]

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