Call Number:

SC.238

Repository:

Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College

Extent:

.1 linear ft. (.1 linear feet (4 folders.))

Preferred Citation:

Cite as: Moses Pierce correspondence with George F. White, SC/238, Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College.

Date:

1839-1926 (bulk 1842-1846) (inclusive)

Creator:

White, George F., 1789-1847 and Pierce, Moses, 1816-1886

Abstract:

The collections contains correspondence between George F. White and Moses Pierce in which Pierce asks White to clarify his views on abolition, temperance, and peace. White does not agree with abolitionists who want an immediate end to slavery, and he thinks that Great Britain's Abolition of Slavery Act was a ill-conceived. He notes the wretched conditions of factories and mines in England and Scotland as other forms of slavery. Pierce, in copies or drafts of the letters he sent, argues that the Society of Friends should take a stand against all slavery and disputes White's statistics. While the Discipline of the Society of Friends condemned slavery, the letters reflect opposing perspectives on how to confront the problem. The collection also includes a copy of White's travel minute to Great Britain and a letter from the Howard Pierce, donor of the collection.

George F. White (1789-1847) was a sometimes controversial New York Quaker minister. A birthright Quaker, he was the son of John and Elizabeth White of New York Monthly Meeting. He was disowned in 1820 after failing in business, but in 1832 rejoined the Society of Friends. In 1839, he received a certificate from New York Monthly Meeting (Hicksite) to travel in the ministry to Great Britain and Ireland, but did not go. He spoke widely in the United States. Moses Pierce (1816-1886), a Quaker farmer and member of Chappaqua Monthly Meeting, was the son of Joseph and Hannah Pierce. He heard White's sermon at Chappaqua Quarterly Meeting in 1842 and wrote to White to obtain clarification on his positions on slavery and other concerns.