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J & J Darlington Brothers Papers
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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
Jesse Darlington (1762-1842) settled in Midddletown Township in Delaware County about 1797. He married Amy Sharples at Middletown Meeting (Chester Monthly Meeting) in 1787, and they had ten children. Jesse Darlington was a dairy farmer, and his youngest son, Jared Darlington (1799-1862), went into partnership with his father in the business of farming and butter making. They labeled the butter as "The Darlington" and "The Cornucopia." Two of Jared's sons, Jesse (1841-1912) and Jared (1844-1902) assumed the farm as J and J Darlington. They were succeeded in the business by two of Jesse's sons, Jared Worrall Darlington and Paul Darlington. At it peak, Cornucopia Dairies served hotels in New York and Washington, D.C., but their dairy became a casualty of the Great Depression.
Jared Worrall Darlington (1875-1934) married Hannah Mary Sharples in 1899. Both attended Swarthmore College. Jared was appointed postmaster of the Darling post office in 1898, and after his death, he was succeeded by their daughter, Martha Darlington. She had graduated in 1930 from Penn State College's program in Architecture.
Business records of the historic Delaware County, Pennsylvania, dairy farm and creamery of J and J Darlington, as well as the business records of the Darlington/Darling Post Office, about 1879-1922. The rural branch of Postal Service was established about 1879 and officially closed in 1976. The name was changed to Darling Post Office in 1896 to avoid confusion with a Darlington in Beaver County, Pennsylvania. The collection also contains some family papers - specifically, designs by architecture student Martha S. Darlington.
The records were roughly sorted and boxed for storage. Some materials are dirty and damaged.
Subscription list to erect a building in the borough of West Chester for a preparative meeting house, 1896.
Letter, Samuel Darlington, Jr., Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to his father Samuel S. Darlington. March 30, 1851. [Samuel S. Darlington was the son of Jesse and Amy Sharples Darlington, elder brother of Jared. His son, Samuel, Jr., (1832-1861).
People
Subject
- Dairy farmers -- Pennsylvania
- Quakers -- Pennsylvania -- Delaware County -- History -- Sources
- Quaker businesspeople
Place
- Publisher
- Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College
- Finding Aid Author
- O'Donnell and Morikawa
- Finding Aid Date
- July 2020
- Access Restrictions
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This collection is available for research use, but it is only partially processed and contains many dusty, dirty papers.
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All or part of this collection is stored off-site. Contact Friends Historical Library staff at friends@swarthmore.edu at least two weeks in advance of visit to request boxes.
Collection Inventory
Includes records of money orders, special deliveries, receipts, postmaster accounts, etc.
Student architectural design and drawing projects by Martha S. Darlington, who earned a B.S. from Penn State College in 1930. She went on to spend 45 years as post mistress of the Darling post office
Physical Description2 folders
Poetry on death themes, probably a commonplace album.