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Bartlett Family Papers

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Held at: Princeton University Library: Manuscripts Division [Contact Us]

This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Princeton University Library: Manuscripts Division. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.

Overview and metadata sections

Thomas Bartlett (1767-1857), a ship carpenter, was the second son of John Barlett ( -1783) of Maryland and Sarah Moore (1735-1810) of Pennsylvania. He had two siblings: Ann Bartlett (1770-1831), of Philadelphia, PA and Columbia, PA and Edward Bartlett (1766-1838), of Nova Scotia, Canada, as well as half-siblings Mary Ann Cockburn (1753-1810) and John Moore Cockburn (1755-1824) from his mother's first marriage. Thomas, Edward, and Ann were beneficiaries of their mother's will in 1810.

Thomas's father, John Bartlett, was a customs clerk at the Port of Philadelphia for the British government when the American Revolutionary War came to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He fled to New York City in 1778, and his property in Southwark was forfeited due to his service to the British government.

In 1807, Thomas's mother, Sarah (Moore) Bartlett, was listed as one of the heirs in the will left by her aunt, Susannah Swett. In the same year, Sarah's sister, Ann (Moore) Loudon, also left the majority of her large estate to Sarah and her daughter, Ann.

Beginning in the 1814 Philadelphia City Directory until 1822, Thomas Bartlett and his sister Ann begin to appear in the city directories together, living in Southwark, with her working as a seamstress. While living in Philadelphia, the Bartletts still owned property in Columbia, PA and in 1814-1815, Thomas Bartlett was considered a taxable freeholder of that town.

Consists of correspondence, accounts, receipts, and other financial and legal documents related to the settlement of the Bartlett family estate. The materials mainly concern the estates of Sarah Barlett and her sister, Ann Loudon; the property that was left to Sarah's children; the handling of that property for the legacies that were set up for Sarah's grandchildren; and the difficulties of handling the affairs when parties are located in various locations (Philadelphia, PA; Columbia, PA; Halifax, Nova Scotia). Of note are the materials that document the appointment and legal services of Mary Jones, who acted as Edward Bartlett's attorney in these legal matters in Pennsylvania while he resided in Canada. Other people who significantly contributed to managing the family's affairs include William P. Beatty and Samuel Miller, and to a lesser extent, Thomas Evans.

Materials are arranged in the order in which they were received.

Purchased from Carmen D. Valentino: American Historical Manuscripts in November 2022 (AM 2024-049).

For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.

This collection was processed by Amy C. Vo in April 2024. Finding aid written by Amy C. Vo in April 2024, incorporating some description provided by the dealer.

No materials were removed from the collection during 2024 processing.

Publisher
Manuscripts Division
Finding Aid Author
Amy C. Vo
Finding Aid Date
2024
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This collection is open for research.

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Collection Inventory

Bartlett Family Papers, 1776-1857 (1810-1834). 0.2 linear feet.
Physical Description

0.2 linear feet

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