Catherine Wistar Bache (1770-1820) was the point of connection between two of Philadelphia's most illustrious families of the late eighteenth century. She married Benjamin Franklin's grandson Dr. William Bache (1773-1820) in November 1797.

Catherine Wistar Bache was born in Philadelphia in 1770, to Richard Wistar and Sarah Wyatt. Her brother was Caspar Wistar (1761-1818, APS 1787), a physician and professor of anatomy at the University of Pennsylvania

In 1797 Catherine married the physician William Bache, son of Richard Bache and Benjamin Franklin's daughter Sarah "Sally" Franklin. The following year yellow fever struck the city. In part because of fear of the epidemic, which killed William's brother Benjamin, and also because of the urging of their friend Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826, APS 1780), the couple decided in early 1799 to move from Philadelphia to Albemarle County, Virginia. In 1800, after a stay of several months at Monticello, they moved into their new house in Franklin, Virginia.

When the farm proved inadequate to support the family, they began to experience financial difficulties. As a result, William Bache sought a government appointment from President Jefferson. In 1802 he was appointed to care for sick American seamen in New Orleans. Meanwhile Catherine Wistar Bache and their children moved back to Philadelphia. They were reunited in 1803 when William was appointed Surveyor of the Port of Philadelphia, a position he held until his death in 1820.

Catherine Wistar Bache died in Philadelphia only three months after her husband, in November 1820. The couple had four children, Sarah Bache (1798-1820), Benjamin Franklin Bache (1801-1881), Emma Mary Bache (1803-1813), and Catherine Wistar Bache (1805-1886).

The papers of Catharine Wistar Bache consist of 114 letters written by and to Catharine Wistar Bache, wife of Dr. William Bache of Philadelphia. Bache's major correspondents include Mary Eddy Hosack (wife of the physician David Hosack), Elizabeth Trist, and Mary Trist Jones. Primarily personal in nature, these letters discuss family and husbands, and contain numerous references to Catharine's father, Caspar Wistar, as well as to Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. Other letters discuss yellow fever and other diseases, education at William and Mary College, the war, and politics, and one letter refers to Benjamin Franklin's "sticcado" (a musical instrument).

The Trists were intimate friends of Thomas Jefferson. As a representative to the Continental Congress, Jefferson lodged at the home of Mary House, whose daughter Elizabeth Trist took on the role of surrogate mother for Jefferson's daughter. After the death of her own husband, Trist moved to Monticello with her son.

Provenance

Acquired from Marian Carson, 1967.

Preferred citation

Cite as: Catherine Wistar Bache Papers, American Philosophical Society.

Processing information

Reformatted by rsc, 2003.

Related material

At the APS, see also the numerous collections related to Benjamin Franklin and to various members of the Bache family. The Department of Rare Books and Manuscripts at Princeton University houses a collection of Bache and Wistar Family Correspondence (call no. C0381).

The APS also houses the papers of Sarah Bache Hodge, daughter of Catherine and William Bache.

Early American History Note

This relatively small collection contains rich correspondence often directed to Catherine Wistar Bache, the daughter of prominent doctor Caspar Wistar and wife of Richard Bache's son. The collection is one of the many to the Bache-Franklin collections at the APS. This specific collection contains numerous letters from other women, often wives and mothers, to Catherine. There are a few letters to Caspar Wistar and William Bache (Catherine's husband), which often discuss current events, specifically Anthony Wayne's victory at Fallen Timbers in 1794 and the Whiskey Rebellion. The letters to Catherine discuss current affairs, such as the Yellow Fever epidemic and the War of 1812. More often, however, the letters relate family and personal matters. The letters primarily discuss husbands, family activities, children, and other such topics. Some of the early letters also touch upon gender relations and courtship. For instance, a male correspondent wrote Catherine that he has not received any letters from his "female correspondents" and was thus hoping "to renew the friendly intercourse," and Mary Eddy discussed flirtations. The correspondence in this collection spans more than thirty years, and therefore also provides insight on the changing concerns of Catherine as a young single woman, wife, and mother. William Bache was sent to Louisiana in 1803 in an official post overseeing a hospital. Discussion of moving to Louisiana is included in the collection, during which references to "Captain Lewis" are made, likely Meriwether Lewis. Because of her position in society, these letters often provide portraits and anecdotes of prominent figures.

• College of William and Mary

• Family Correspondence

• Bache, Catherine Wistar, 1770-1820
• Bache, William, 1773-1818
• Franklin, Benjamin, 1706-1790
• Hosack, David, 1769-1835
• Hosack, Mary Eddy, d. 1824
• Jefferson, Thomas, 1743-1826
• Jones, Mary Trist
• Kemper, Jackson, 1789-1870
• Madison, James, 1751-1836
• Trist, Elizabeth
• Wistar, Caspar, 1761-1818

• Early National Politics
• Marriage and Family Life
• Native America
• Philadelphia History
• Social Life and Custom
• United States -- History -- War of 1812
• United States -- Politics and government -- 1783-1809
• War of 1812
• Women's History
• Yellow fever -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia