| | 1 | Author: | Jefferson, Thomas, 1743-1826 | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | Thomas Jefferson, letters to and from various persons, 1791-1840
| | | | Dates: | 1791-1840 | | | | Abstract: | This is a particularly rich collection of Thomas Jefferson's letters from his retirement years. The letters primarily cover the years 1813-1820s, although there are some from earlier. Most of the letters are outgoing, and L. H. Girardin is the primary recipient. The letters to Girardin often discuss Virginia's history and sometimes Jefferson's own recollections of events, including letters on Virginia during the American Revolution and a supposed attempt to create a dictatorship in Virginia in 1776. Some letters also convey information on contemporary events and offer a window into Jefferson's personal and family life. A few letters from 1791 discuss Jefferson's memory of Benjamin Franklin, including anecdotes of Franklin in France. One document is a draft of a profile of Baron Humboldt. A series of letters to Peter Du Ponceau discuss Thomas Jefferson's attempt to acquire a copy of William Byrd's "A Secret History of the Line" and, once acquired, his interpretation of it. Another portion discusses the journals of Lewis and Clark.
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| | | | Call #: | Mss.B.J35.Le | | | | Extent: | 63 item(s) | | | | Topics: | American Revolution | Colony and State Specific History | Exploration. | Native America | War of 1812 | | | | Genre: | General Correspondence | Political Correspondence | |
| 2 | Author: | Dawes, Elizabeth F.,collector. | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | Dawes Collection of Documents on American History
| | | | Dates: | 1681-1921 | | | | Abstract: | This is a collection of miscellaneous documents from early America. The earliest documents come from the early 18th century and the latest from the Civil War era. The collection contains a few documents from the revolutionary period, most of which are official governments documents or deal with business transactions. There is one long letter from Robert McPherson, a member of the Pennsylvania Flying Camp, that describes his experience. Perhaps reflecting her ancestral home, the collection contains a small but notable collection of materials from South Carolina, including a very early letter from Francis Le Jau and letters from the Marquis de Lafayette about an expected trip to South Carolina. There are a significant number of documents from Pennsylvania, especially legal documents, from the early republic. The letters from Clement Biddle, a former revolutionary war soldier, also provide insight on early national Indian relations Finally, there are also some significant autographs collected, including a Massachusetts legal form with the signature of John Adams, a letter from James Madison to the Mississippi Territory around the time of the Louisiana Purchase, and letters from Civil War era figures like John Calhoun (a rich letter in which Calhoun discusses his views on tariffs and nullification), James Buchanan, and William Seward.
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| | | | Call #: | Mss.973.D32 | | | | Extent: | 0.25 Linear Feet | | | | Topics: | American Revolution | Colony and State Specific History | Early National Politics | Native America | Pennsylvania History | | | | Genre: | Business Records and Accounts | General Correspondence | Miscellaneous | Official Government Documents and Records | | | | Subjects: | Publishers and publishing. | |
| 3 | Author: | Foulke, William Parker, 1816-1865 | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | William Parker Foulke Papers, 1840-1865
| | | | Dates: | 1840-1865 | | | | Abstract: | The William Parker Foulke Collection is one of the largest and richest collections at the APS. The collection, described and inventories in depth in MOLE, reflects the wide and varied interests of one of Philadelphia's most prominent 19th century citizens.
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| | | | Call #: | Mss.B.F826 | | | | Extent: | 3.75 Linear Feet | | | | Topics: | Law | Literature, Arts, and Culture | Native America | Pennsylvania History | Philadelphia History | Science and technology | | | | Genre: | General Correspondence | Legal Records | Literature | Manuscript Essays | Miscellaneous | Political Correspondence | | | | Subjects: | Abolition, emancipation, freedom | Advance (Brig) | Africa, West -- Description and travel | American Academy of Music (Philadelphia, Pa.) | American Colonization Society | Antislavery movements -- Pennsylvania | Archaeology -- Pennsylvania | Arctic Regions -- Discovery and exploration | Colonization, repatriation | Dinosaurs -- New Jersey | Eastern State Penitentiary (Philadelphia, Pa.) | Freemasons -- Pennsylvania | Geological Survey of Pennsylvania | Geology -- Pennsylvania | Haviland, John, 1792-1852 | Hayes, I. I. (Isaac Israel), 1832-1881 | Kane, Elisha Kent, 1820-1857 | Lancaster (Penn.) County Prison | Lyceums -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia | Mesmerism | New York Prison Association | Pennsylvania -- Description and travel -- 19th century | Philadelphia -- History -- 19th century | Philadelphia Society For Alleviating the Miseries of Public Prisons | Prison reformers -- Pennsylvania | Prisons -- Design and construction | Prisons -- New York (State) | Prisons -- Pennsylvania | Reformers -- Pennsylvania | Slavery -- United States. | Social conditions, social advocacy, social reform | United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 | Wilson, John Wall | |
| 9 | Author: | Barton, Benjamin Smith, 1766-1815 | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | Violetta Delafield-Benjamin Smith Barton Collection
| | | | Dates: | 1783-1817 | | | | Abstract: | The extensive Benjamin Smith Barton collection contains six sections: Correspondence, Bound Volumes (including notebooks), Subject Files, and Graphic Materials. The material includes numerous images, sketches, notes, printed material, and other correspondence. The collection also has numerous copper plates that were used to print images drawn by Barton. Although a collection this large touches on a variety of interesting and important subjects, the collection's strength is its wealth of data on nineteenth century medical, botanical, and Native American studies.
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| | | | Call #: | Mss.B.B284d | | | | Extent: | 10 Linear Feet | | | | Topics: | Business and Skilled Trades | Education | Language and Linguistics | Literature, Arts, and Culture | Medicine | Native America | Natural history | Printing and Publishing | Science and technology | Travel | | | | Genre: | Art | Family Correspondence | General Correspondence | Language Material | Notebooks | Political Correspondence | Sketchbooks | Travel Narratives and Journals | | | | Subjects: | Bartram's Garden (Philadelphia, Pa.) | Botanists | Botany -- Study and teaching -- 19th century | Botany -- Virginia | Chemistry -- 18th century | Cherokee Indians | Cherokee language | Choctaw Indians | Dysentery. | Electricity -- 18th century | Ethnobotany | Geology -- 18th century | Gout | Indians of North America | Indians of North America -- Agriculture | Indians of North America -- Languages | Kaigana Indians | Kaskaskia Indians | Mammals -- Classification | Mandan Indians | Mastodons | Materia medica | Medicine -- Practice -- 18th century | Medicine -- Study and teaching -- 18th century | Meteorology -- United States -- 18th century | Meteors | Mineralogy | Natural history -- 18th century | Natural history -- 19th century | Osage language | Physicians -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia | Physics | Rittenhouse, David, 1732-1796 | Seminole Indians | Seneca Indians | Tuscarora Indians | University of Pennsylvania -- Faculty | Venereal disease | Yellow fever | Yellow fever -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- 1793 | Zoology -- 18th century | |
| 10 | Author: | Vaux, George, V, 1721-1803 | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | Vaux Family Papers, 1690-1996
| | | | Dates: | 1690-1996 | | | | Abstract: | The George Vaux Papers is a massive collection which is focused on the business and financial interests of a prominent Philadelphia family. What follows is a list of some of the more notable parts of this expansive collection:
- Correspondence: There is a massive amount of correspondence, much of which is personal and familial in nature. Nonetheless, the letters often discuss politics, current affairs, and society. The earliest records date to 1701, although the great bulk are focused on the revolutionary era to the first quarter of the nineteenth century.
- Almanacs, 1790-1870: The collection contains a large collection of small pocket almanacs from Philadelphia. Some of the earliest ones contain records of financial transactions and diaries.
- Charles Thomson Correspondence: The collection has a series of letters from Charles Thomson, the Secretary of the Continental Congress. These letters are from the 1780s, after Thomson had largely retired from the political arena.
- Legal and Estate Documents: This portion of the collection is extensive and difficult to summarize. The family owned a huge amount of property throughout the state. These papers contain deeds, information on rents, surveys of land, and other transactions. Moreover, the Vaux family had ties through marriage and friendship to other prominent families, and some of their estate business is included in this collection. Among the notable papers are documents pertaining to John and Sally Norris Dickinson's properties and the estates of the Emlens and the Sansoms. One document complements the Jane Aitken Collection, as it has an accounting of the Bible that she printed.
- Travel Accounts: Most notably, George Vaux VII made a trip to "Indian Country" in 1802-1803. He wrote numerous letters home and kept a small and incomplete travel journal.
- Philadelphia City Affairs: The Vaux were active in civic life. The collection contains information on city improvements, with specific letters and records relating to the water supply. The collection has letters that discuss building the Water Works, records of a Committee on the Sewers, and an agreement between the city and Peale's Museum.
- Business Affairs: The record of the Vaux's diverse business interests is contained in this collection. In addition to their land holdings, the Vaux's were very active in internal improvements, with records from numerous navigation companies held in the collection. The Vaux's were also involved in mining and mineralogy, including Pennsylvania's oil lands, which is also reflected in the content of this collection. Finally, there are partial records of some prominent Philadelphia institutions, such as the Bank of Pennsylvania and the Philadelphia Contributorship.
- Native American Documents - In addition to George Vaux's travels into Indian Country, there are extracts from Indian Treaties and some records of the Friendly Association in this collection.
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| | | | Call #: | Mss.Ms.Coll.73 | | | | Extent: | 150 Linear Feet | | | | Topics: | African American | American Revolution | Antebellum Politics | Early National Politics | Marriage and Family Life | Native America | Pennsylvania History | Philadelphia History | Social Life and Custom | Surveying and Maps | Travel | | | | Genre: | Business Records and Accounts | Family Correspondence | General Correspondence | Institutional Records | Legal Records | Maps and Surveys | | | | Subjects: | Abolition, emancipation, freedom | Genealogy. | Land speculation | Mineralogy. | Quaker businesspeople | Quakers -- Missions. | Seneca Indians | Slaves, slavery, slave trade | Social conditions, social advocacy, social reform | Yellow fever. | |
| 11 | Author: | Burd, James, 1726-1793 | Requires cookie* | | | Title: | Burd-Shippen Papers
| | | | Dates: | 1708-1792 | | | | Abstract: | This collection is one of the largest early American collections the APS holds. Its breadth of sources provides insight into colonial Pennsylvania history, especially that of Lancaster County. Although largely material composed of material from James Burd, there are also significant documents relating to the Shippen family. Documents touch on matters financial, political, and social. While the collection is of wide ranging material, its strength lies in three main parts: the Seven Years' War and Pontiac's Rebellion in Pennsylvania, Burd's business records, and life in Lancaster County from 1754-1776.
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| | | | Call #: | Mss.B.B892 | | | | Extent: | 6.5 Linear Feet | | | | Topics: | Business and Skilled Trades | Colonial Politics | Government Affairs | Land and Speculation | Military History | Native America | Pennsylvania History | Seven Years' War | Surveying and Maps | Trade | | | | Genre: | Business Records and Accounts | Diaries | Family Correspondence | General Correspondence | Miscellaneous | Official Government Documents and Records | Political Correspondence | Travel Narratives and Journals | | | | Subjects: | Court calendars -- Pennsylvania. | Fort Augusta (Pa.) | Fort Duquesne | Fort Granville (Pa.) | Fort Hunter | Fort Pitt (Pa.) | Fort William Henry (N.Y.) | Fortification -- Pennsylvania. | Iroquois Indians | Lancaster County (Pa.) -- History | Meteorology -- Pennsylvania -- Observations | Military supplies. | Pennsylvania -- History -- Colonial period, ca. 1600-1775 | Pennsylvania -- History -- French and Indian War, 1755-1763 | Philadelphia (Pa.) -- Commerce | Shippenburg Library Company | United States -- History -- French and Indian War, 1755-1763 | United States. Army. Supplies and stores | |
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