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West River Quaker Burial Ground Records

Notifications

Held at: Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College [Contact Us]500 College Avenue, Swarthmore, Pennsylvania 19081

This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College. 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

Call Number:
RG4.114
Repository:
Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College
Extent:
1.5 linear ft. (3 boxes)
Language:
English
Preferred Citation:
[Indicate the cited item or series here], West River Quaker Burial Ground Records, RG4/114, Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College
Date:
1862-1994 (inclusive)
Creator:
Trustees of the West River Quaker Burial Ground
Abstract:
Although Thomas Hooker devised a small plot of land to Friends in 1684 and Ann Pemberton deeded adjacent ground in 1833, the State of Maryland confirmed a 1867 deed when it incorporated Trustees for the "Quaker Burial Ground" in Galesville in 1888. This latter group of Trustees was made up of individuals whose families were interred in the ground, not necessarily all Quakers. However, in 1994, their successors petitioned Chesapeake Quarterly Meeting to take responsibility for the site; the Quarterly Meeting approved and appointed three Friends and one of the previous Trustees to a new Board. Collection includes records of the West River Quaker Burial Ground, 1862-1994. Consists of Minutes of the Trustees, General Records, Correspondence, Financial Records, and Miscellaneous. Financial materials include records of lot owners and sale of lots. Historical information is found in Miscellaneous

In 1656, Elizabeth Harris, an English Friend, visited Maryland and converted a number of early residents; George Fox and William Edmundson attended a meeting at West River in 1672. Minutes of the monthly meeting which included West River survive from 1677.

Although Thomas Hooker devised a small plot of land to Friends in 1684 and Ann Pemberton deeded adjacent ground in 1833, the State of Maryland confirmed a 1867 deed when it incorporated Trustees for the "Quaker Burial Ground" in Galesville in 1888. This latter group of Trustees was made up of individuals whose families were interred in the ground, not necessarily all Quakers. However, in 1994, their successors petitioned Chesapeake Quarterly Meeting to take responsibility for the site; the Quarterly Meeting approved and appointed three Friends and one of the previous Trustees to a new Board.

Records of the West River Quaker Burial Ground, 1862-1994. Consists of Minutes of the Trustees, General Records, Correspondence, Financial Records, and Miscellaneous. Financial materials include records of lot owners and sale of lots. Historical information is found in Miscellaneous.

Organized into five series:

  1. Minutes
  2. Correspondence
  3. General
  4. Legal & Financial Records
  5. Miscellaneous

Donor: West River Quaker Burial Ground

Date: 1995

Accruals: 1996

Original order preserved. Refoldered and labeled and deposited in Record Group 4.

(10) folders with photocopies of correspondence and related materials on the family genealogies of Cathell, Coale-Thurston, Franklin, Johns, Lazenby, Murray, Orrick, Richardson, Thomas, and Taylor, 1935-1995, transferred to the appropriate PG7 folders.

Subject

Publisher
Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College
Finding Aid Author
FHL staff
Finding Aid Date
2007
Access Restrictions

Collection is open for research.

Use Restrictions

Some of the items in this collection may be protected by copyright. The user is solely responsible for making a final determination of copyright status. If copyright protection applies, permission must be obtained from the copyright holder or their heirs/assigns to reuse, publish, or reproduce relevant items beyond the bounds of Fair Use or other exemptions to the law. See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/UND/1.0/.

Collection Inventory

Archival Resource Key. Minutes, 1867-1894; 1896-1937.
Box 1
Scope and Contents

Volume includes Memoranda relating to the burying ground, a history of the Burial Ground before 1867 and a description of the lot (pp.1-6), minutes, 1867-1937 (pp.6-41), and Treasurer's Accounts, 1868-1937 (pp.60-127). Also includes photocopy.

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Minutes (copy), 1979-1994.
Box 1
Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Incorporation, February 15, 1888.
Box 1
Scope and Contents

Photocopy of Act to Incorporate Trustees of the West River Quaker Burial Ground, as printed in Laws of Maryland, 1888.

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Trustee Appointments (copy), 1882, 1937-1978.
Box 1
Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Administration change to Baltimore Yearly Meeting, 1990-1994.
Box 1
Scope and Contents

Photocopy of correspondence related to the transfer of oversight in 1994.

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Correspondence of Trustee President (copy), 1937-1974.
Box 1
Scope and Contents

Includes legal papers, insurance, workman's compensation, burial ground regulations, lot purchases, maintenance, history

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Correspondence of Trustee President (copy), 1978-1994.
Box 1
Scope and Contents

Cost of lots, sale of perpetual care lots, burial rates, lot locations, appeal letters, maintenance, genealogy, approach to Baltimore Yearly Meeting to resume oversight of burial ground

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Correspondence of Secretary-Treasurer (copy), 1948-1993.
Box 1
Scope and Contents

Annual care payments, lot locations, genealogy. Arranged alphabetically. Includes index of correspondants.

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Correspondence of Secretary-Treasurer (copy), 1951-1959.
Box 1
Scope and Contents

Due bills, requests for perpetual care lots, unauthorized grave openings, need for burial rules.

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. General Records (copy), 1867-1942.
Box 1/2
Scope and Contents

Folders: 1867-74 & 1882-1906; 1933-34; 1/1935-7/1935; 8/1935-10/1935; 11/1935; 12/1935; 1/1936-3/1936; 4/1936-12/1936; 1/1937-9/1937; 10/1937-5/1939; 6/1939-5/1942. Includes property deeds, financial accounts, correspondence, tire insurance, annual care payments, sale of lots, maintenance, historic markers, genealogy

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Legal ("Principle") Papers (copy), 1683-1936.
Box 2
Scope and Contents

Wills, deeds. Indexed

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Financial Reports (copy), 1868-1936.
Box 2
Scope and Contents

Photocopies of financial records in book of minutes, 1867-1894; 1896-1937 (See: Series 1)

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Financial Reports (copy), 1936-1957.
Box 2
Scope and Contents

General Accounts

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Cost of lots (copy), 1867-1993.
Box 2
Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Sale of lots (copy), 1883;1868-1929; 1868-87; 1882-1944; 1911-36.
Box 2
Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. "Lot owners", 1950-1960.
Box 2
Scope and Contents

One volume account book with annual care payments by lot owners, 1950-1960; includes, in back of book, a list of lots sold from 1882-1956; file includes photocopies.

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. "Lot owners", 1960-1979.
Box 2
Scope and Contents

One volume account book with annual care payments by lot owners, 1960-1979, and financial reports, 1960-1979.

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. "Lot owners" (copy), 1974-1984.
Box 2
Scope and Contents

Annual care payments

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Receipts for lot purchases and related correspondence, 1869-1906.
Box 2
Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Vouchers, 1928-1937.
Box 2
Scope and Contents

Bills for grave markers and maintenance expenses; file also includes a set of photocopies.

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Annual care payments, 1957-1967.
Box 3
Scope and Contents

One volume of annual care payments, 1957-1967, with a 1973 notation that the cost of lot care was raised from $4. to $8.

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Annual care payments (copy), 1947-1994.
Box 3
Scope and Contents

Original receipt (1947) and photocopies of records of annual care payments, 1947-1994.

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Perpetual care requests and receipts (copy), 1960-1970.
Box 3
Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Perpetual care records (copy), 1960-1984.
Box 3
Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Annual care delinquent accounts (copy), 1988-1990.
Box 3
Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Annual appeal letters (copy), 1935-1990.
Box 3
Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Annual appeal mailing lists (copy), 1935; 1979.
Box 3
Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Contributions (copy), 1963-1994.
Box 3
Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Tax information (copy), 1963-1979.
Box 3
Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Maintenance: employees (copy), 1993.
Box 3
Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Maintenance: the wall, 1948-1962.
Box 3
Scope and Contents

Original contract and photocopies of correspondence related to the retaining wall; also includes copy of blueprint of grounds.

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Maintenance: the fence, 1935-1936; 1983; 1987.
Box 3
Scope and Contents

Originals and photocopies of correspondence related to the fence; also includes photographs and drawings

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. 1813 Deed (ms. copy) and Ensor Street Documents, 1936 & n.d.
Box 3
Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Burial lists, 1936.
Box 3
Scope and Contents

Photocopies of lists of burials in West River from 1911-1935 by T.A. Hardesty & Son, 1936, and recorded by Reginald Claytor, 1928-36.

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Form letters (copy), 1959-68 & n.d.
Box 3
Scope and Contents

annual care dues, rules for opening graves, records updating, diligent dues, certificate of perpetual care

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Burial regulations, 1894-1950 & n.d.
Box 3
Scope and Contents

Original and photocopies of burial regulations, 1894-1950 & n.d.

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Burial ground directory (copy), 1982-1983.
Box 3
Scope and Contents

Two lists of interments, alphabetical and by plot number, 1982

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Burial ground plot, 1982.
Box 3
Scope and Contents

Pencil sketch of burial ground showing plot numbers.

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Other cemeteries (copy), n.d.
Box 3
Scope and Contents

Literature from local church and private cemeteries

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Stationery, n.d.
Box 3
Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Celebrations: 250th anniversary of founding of Baltimore Yearly Meeting May 1922, 1922.
Box 3
Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Celebrations: Tercentenary Celebration, Galesville, Maryland August 16-17, 1952 (copy), 1952.
Box 3
Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. News clippings (copies), 1922-1994.
Box 3
Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Historic road markers (copy), 1935.
Box 3
Scope and Contents

Proposed text and related correspondence relative to historic markers.

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Historic trees, Galesville, Maryland (copy), 1992 & n.d.
Box 3
Scope and Contents

Correspondence and news article on oak trees adjacent to the burial ground

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Published historical accounts (copy), 1896-1967.
Box 3
Scope and Contents

Photocopies of articles relative to Maryland Quakers.

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Lists of births, deaths, marriages on the Western shore of Maryland, 1658-1780 (copy), 1972-1974.
Box 3
Scope and Contents

Photocopies of articles with vital record information by John J. Brinkley, published in the Maryland Genealogical Society Bulletin from 1972 to 1974.

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Sufferings of Eastern and Western Shore (copy), 1972, 1984.
Box 3
Scope and Contents

Photocopies of articles from the Maryland Genealogical Society Bulletin (1972) by John J. Brinkley, and The Maryland and Delaware Genealogist (1984) by LaVerne Forbush on early Quaker sufferings.

Physical Description

1 folder

Archival Resource Key. Private family cemeteries: Cedar Park, Tulip Hill, Sudley, Lothian (copy), n.d.
Box 3
Scope and Contents

Lists of burials.

Physical Description

1 folder

Print, Suggest