Place: Fort Washington (Pa.) - Philadelphia Area Archives Search Results

Extent:: 2.75 linear feet
Abstract:: The Highlands Mansion was originally built for Anthony Morris (1766-1860), a lawyer and politician who served as speaker of the Pennsylvania Senate from 1793-1794. The estate was occupied by the Sheaff family from 1813-1917, when it was sold to the Sinkler family. The Sinkler family donated the remaining estate to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, which took ownership in 1970, and it is now administered by the non-profit Highlands Historical Society. The Highlands Historical Society photograph collection, circa 1900-2005, includes photographs taken or collected by the Highlands Historical Society. The vast majority depict the Highlands building and grounds in the 1970s and 1980s, but there are a few photographs from the Sinkler-Roosevelt era, as well as some photographs from the 1990s.

Held at: Highlands Historical Society [Contact Us]

Extent:: 2.0 linear feet
Abstract:: George Sheaff (1779-1851), a wine merchant in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, purchased the Highlands Mansion in 1813. Sheaff was interested in "progressive" agriculture and scientific farming, and the grounds blossomed under his hand. His family was the first to reside at The Highlands year-round, and members of the Sheaff family occupied the mansion for 102 years. The Sheaff family papers, 1797-1904, consist primarily of daily journals of the Sheaff family, which were kept from 1838 to 1904. The collection also contains property plans, wills and estate records, and newspaper advertisements for the property.

Held at: Highlands Historical Society [Contact Us]

Extent:: 6.0 linear feet
Abstract:: Caroline Sidney Sinkler (1860-1949) was born in South Carolina and purchased The Highlands from the Sheaff family in 1917. She left the property to her niece, Emily Wharton Sinkler Roosevelt (1884-1970). Emily Roosevelt, wife of Nicholas Guy Roosevelt, bequeathed the Highlands to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Since 1970, the Highlands has been owned by the Commonwealth and been administered by the non-profit Highlands Historical Society. The Sinkler and Roosevelt family papers, 1915-1957, include correspondence, property plans, newspaper clippings, a few photographic reproductions of paintings, and several copies of a family tree. Nicholas Roosevelt's correspondence (1892-1930) and Emily Wharton Sinkler's correspondence (1902-1916) make up the bulk of the collection.

Held at: Highlands Historical Society [Contact Us]

Extent:: 5.0 linear feet
Abstract:: The Highlands Mansion was originally built for Anthony Morris (1766-1860), a lawyer and politician who served as speaker of the Pennsylvania Senate from 1793-1794. The estate was occupied by the Sheaff family from 1813-1917, when it was sold to the Sinkler family. The Sinkler family donated the remaining estate to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, which took ownership in 1970, and it is now administered by the non-profit Highlands Historical Society. The Highlands Historical Society architectural drawings collection, 1917-1999, consists of blueprints and architectural drawings of The Highlands estate and grounds. The bulk of the collection is of the landscape/grounds of the property, and the vast majority were commissioned by the Highlands Historical Society, although some were commissioned by the Sinkler/Roosevelt family.

Held at: Highlands Historical Society [Contact Us]