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Start Over Subject Genealogy Subject Quakers Place Delaware County (Pa.)

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Tyler family papers, 1681-1937 (inclusive)

Extent:
3.0 linear feet
Abstract:
Tyler Arboretum in Delaware County, Pennsylvania is one of the oldest arboretums in the northeastern United States. It began as a private horticultural collection developed in the mid 19th century by brothers Minshall and Jacob Painter, and was turned into a not-for-profit public garden by John J. and Laura Hoopes Tyler in 1944. John and Laura Tyler both descended via the Painter family from Thomas Minshall, a Quaker "First Purchaser" who acquired land from William Penn in 1681. The Tyler family papers, 1681-1937, consist of various papers from John J. Tyler and his wife Laura, the Painter Brothers (Jacob and Minshall Painter), and other members of the Painter and Minshall families.

Held at: Tyler Arboretum [Contact Us]

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Willits family papers, circa 1850-1971

Extent:
1.25 linear feet
Abstract:
Francis P. Willits (born 1856) was a farmer in Delaware County, Pennsylvania. He is credited as among the first to cultivate mushrooms in the United States, importing spores in 1892 to grow on his farm. The Willits family papers, circa 1850-1971, consist largely of family photographs, with additional materials including deeds, genealogical materials, and correspondence. Of special interest are a minute book of the Concord Mushroom Co., Inc. (1959-1971), and a typescript draft of A Quaker Forty-Niner: The Adventures of Charles Edward Pancoast on the American Frontier.

Held at: Concord Township Historical Society [Contact Us]