Main content
Logan family papers
Notifications
Held at: Stenton [Contact Us]4601 North 18th Street, Philadelphia, PA, 19140
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Stenton. 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
"The Logan family was a prominent Philadelphia family dating back to 1699, when James Logan, the family patriarch, arrived in Philadelphia to serve as the first secretary of the Pennsylvania colony. Through work in agriculture and politics, Logan and his descendants were intimately involved in the development of the Pennsylvania colony and, later, the fledging United States. James Logan's prominence resulted in connections, both professional and familial, with other prominent colonial families, including the Norris and the Dickinson families. Together these families affected and influenced the formation, progress and development of the city of Philadelphia, the colony of Pennsylvania, and the United States of America.
"James Logan, the first secretary of the Pennsylvania colony under William Penn, was born on October 20, 1674 in Lurgan, Ireland, the son of Patrick and Isabel Hume Logan. His father was a scholar and an Anglican minister until his conversion to Quakerism. James was educated in his father's school, the Friar Meetinghouse School in Bristol. His early careers included working as a linen draper in 1687, as an assistant schoolmaster to his father from 1690 to 1693, and as the schoolmaster of the Friar Meeting house from 1693 to 1697. From 1697 to 1698, James Logan unsuccessfully worked in the linen trade. In 1699, he obtained the position of secretary for William Penn, who was about to sail for his province of Pennsylvania.
"Upon arriving in Pennsylvania, James Logan began his service as secretary of Pennsylvania. Subsequently he served as receiver-general of Pennsylvania, member of the Provincial Council, mayor of Philadelphia, chief justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, president of the Provincial Council and acting governor. At the same time, he gained wealth through commerce, trade with Native Americans and land purchases...
On December 9, 1714, Logan married Sarah Read, the daughter of Charles and Amy Child Read. James and Sarah became the parents of Sarah (1715-1744), William (1718-1776), Hannah (1720-1762), and James (1728-1803). Three other children, James, Rachel and Charles, died as children. Sarah Read Logan died on May 16, 1754 and James Logan died on October 31, 1751 at the age of 77 in his country home, Stenton, which he built near Germantown, Pennsylvania.
Bibliography:
Quoted text from: Finding aid to "Logan family papers, 1638-1964 (Bulk, 1670-1872), Collection 0379." The Historical Society of Pennsylvania. June 28, 2011. Accessed October 8, 2013. http://www2.hsp.org/collections/manuscripts/l/Logan0379.html
This collection consists of scattered documents related to the Logan family and their home, Stenton (Germantown, Philadelphia, Pa.). It includes letters, deeds and estate papers, and various other documents. A partial inventory is provided below. Not included in the inventory are three cookbooks, several daguerreotypes, and some ephemera.
Gifts of various Logan descendants.
Summary descriptive information on this collection was compiled in 2012-2014 as part of a project conducted by the Historical Society of Pennsylvania to make better known and more accessible the largely hidden collections of small, primarily volunteer run repositories in the Philadelphia area. The Hidden Collections Initiative for Pennsylvania Small Archival Repositories (HCI-PSAR) was funded by a grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
This is a preliminary finding aid. No physical processing, rehousing, reorganizing, or folder listing was accomplished during the HCI-PSAR project.
In some cases, more detailed inventories or finding aids may be available on-site at the repository where this collection is held; please contact Stenton directly for more information.
People
Subject
- Quakers
- United States--History--Colonial period, ca. 1600-1775
- United States--History--Revolution, 1775-1783
Place
- Publisher
- Stenton
- Finding Aid Author
- Finding aid prepared by Celia Caust-Ellenbogen and Faith Charlton through the Historical Society of Pennsylvania's Hidden Collections Initiative for Pennsylvania Small Archival Repositories
- Sponsor
- This preliminary finding aid was created as part of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania's Hidden Collections Initiative for Pennsylvania Small Archival Repositories. The HCI-PSAR project was made possible by a grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
- Access Restrictions
-
Contact Stenton for information about accessing this collection.