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Start Over Repository Historical Society of Pennsylvania Year 1840 to 1844

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A. M. Elder ledgers, 1830-1869 (inclusive)

Extent:
0.2 linear feet (; 3 volumes, 1 folder)
Abstract:
A. M. Elder was a surveyor and farmer in Half Moon, Juniata County, Pennsylvania. Elder was evidently an accomplished surveyor and also recorded deeds and wrote contracts and agreements. Much of his work was paid for by barter; he seems to have been more of a trader of farm commodities than a working farmer, using his fees for surveys as an edge in the business. There is also a stock book of the Philipsburg and Glade Turnpike Company, 1853 - 1858, which records stock purchases and some expenses. Elder was treasurer for the company, and kept this record book. A route from Philipsburg to Glade goes across the grain of the Appalachian Mountains, a very difficult problem for transportation in 19th century Pennsylvania.

Held at: Historical Society of Pennsylvania [Contact Us]

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Valley Mutual Insurance Company records, 1900-1985 (bulk) 1831-1991 (inclusive)

Extent:
25.3 linear feet (; 42 boxes, 82 volumes)
Abstract:
The Valley Mutual Insurance Company was incorporated in 1963 in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania, and was formed as the result of the merger of five small farmers’ mutual insurance companies in the Cumberland Valley region: Centennial Mutual Fire Insurance Company, Cumberland Valley Farmer’s Mutual Fire Insurance Company, Lurgan Mutual Fire Insurance Company of Franklin County, Franklin County Mutual Insurance Company, and Friendship Mutual Fire Insurance Company of Franklin County. These companies provided property insurance to homeowners, farm owners, and rural communities in Cumberland and Franklin Counties and the surrounding region. The Valley Mutual Insurance Company records consist of the administrative and financial materials of that company as well as those of the five companies out of which it merged. This collection includes extensive information on the administrative activities and governance of the companies as well as some materials on policyholders and their properties. The...(see more)

Held at: Historical Society of Pennsylvania [Contact Us]

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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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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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