One hardbound volume that contains the signatures of those who received Journals and Acts of General Assembly of Pennsylvania and notes that they were passed from one prothonotary to the next. Occupation or position is listed after some names. Handwritten.
Preferred Citation: Title or description of item, date (day, month, year), Collection, Title and Object ID, Box #, Folder #, LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Access Conditions / Restrictions
Please request at Reference Desk or Research@LancasterHistory.org.
Copyright
Copies of historic Lancaster County, Pennsylvania government records held by LancasterHistory may be published without special permission. There is no fee for publication. Proper credit lines are encouraged in the interest of good documentation.
Credit
Courtesy of Lancaster County Archives and LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
James Buchanan Family Papers, Part 1, Papers of James Buchanan, Series 1 Correspondence
Description
The James Buchanan Family Papers, Part 1, Papers of James Buchanan, Series 1 Correspondence, Subseries 1 contains letters to James Buchanan and Subseries 2 contains letters from James Buchanan. Within these subseries, the letters are arranged chronologically, dating from 1819-1868.
This collection contains letters, both to and from James Buchanan. The letters from Buchanan range from the different periods of his life-as a private citizen and lawyer, senator, and ambassador to Russia and Britain; his Presidential term from 1857 to 1861; and his later years until his death in 1868. The earlier letters include details of his travels, political matters and the military, social engagements and responsibilities, his responsibilities as a political figure, and accounts of family chatter and gossip. He also discusses at length, in his letters to and about Harriet Lane, his opinions of whom she should marry, his opinions about her social encounters and interactions, her living situations, and her livelihood. Buchanan also often wrote about his Christian beliefs, especially during the later years of his life. Letters from his later years detail the day-to-day life at home in Wheatland, including some of his guests, his servants, and his illnesses as the end of his life neared.
The letters that are addressed to James Buchanan range in different topics, concerning military affairs, political and legal information, and family chatter. Other letters include details of Buchanan's financial matters that are in reference to loans, Buchanan's investments and purchases, deeds and bonds. There are also a number of thank-you letters and notes of recommendation.
Many of the letters are to his niece, Harriet Lane and nephew, James Buchanan Henry. Other correspondents are H. B. Swarr, Henry A. Muhlenberg, family members, Francis Scott Key, Riggs & Co., James L. Reynolds, and many political colleagues.
Admin/Biographical History
James Buchanan was born on April 23, 1791 to James Buchanan and Elizabeth Speer. He was the second child born out of ten children, and he would go on to outlive all but one of his siblings. Most popularly remembered as Pennsylvania's only President and as a lifelong bachelor, Buchanan committed a lifetime to politics. In 1821, he left his law practice and embarked on his political career after having been voted into the U.S. House of Representatives. He would remain in the House for five consecutive terms before serving as the U.S. Minister to Russia, a Senator in the U.S. Senate, the U.S. Secretary of State, the U.S. Minister to Great Britain, and finally, the 15th President of the United States. He died in his bedchamber at Wheatland at 8:30 AM on June 1, 1868. He was 77 years old. [https://www.lancasterhistory.org/about-wheatland, accessed 10/24/2019]
System of Arrangement
James Buchanan Family Papers, Part 1 Papers of James Buchanan is arranged into six series.
James Buchanan Papers, Dickinson College Archives & Special Collections http://archives.dickinson.edu/collection-descriptions/james-buchanan-papers
James Buchanan and Harriet Lane Johnston Papers, Library of Congress https://www.loc.gov/collections/james-buchanan-and-harriet-lane-johnston-papers/
James Buchanan Papers, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, http://www2.hsp.org/collections/manuscripts/b/Buchanan0091.html
James Buchanan Papers, Penn State University Libraries, https://libraries.psu.edu/findingaids/1458.htm
Related Item Notes
James Buchanan Family Papers
James Buchanan Collection (MG0096) https://collections.lancasterhistory.org/en/permalink/lhdo3760
Historical Society of Pennsylvania microfilm
Photograph Collection
Curatorial Collection
Wheatland Collection
Wheatland Mansion
Notes
Preferred Citation: Title or description of item, date (day, month, year), Collection Title (MG#), Part #, Series #, Box #, Folder #, (or Object ID), LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania. URL if applicable. Date accessed (day, month, year).
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Please use digital images and transcriptions when available. Original documents may be used by appointment. Please contact archives@lancasterhistory.org at least two weeks prior to visit.
Copyright
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Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Description Level
Series
Custodial History
The James Buchanan Family Papers were collected by the James Buchanan Foundation for the Preservation of Wheatland. This collection was relocated from the Wheatland mansion to the LancasterHistory archives in the Spring of 2009.
Digitization of the James Buchanan Family Papers was funded by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, PHMC Appl ID # 201808013051, 2019-2020.
A writ of habeas corpus is a procedure for obtaining a judicial determination of the legality of an individual's custody. This collection includes petitions for writs of habeas corpus and the writs themselves, showing the names of petitioners, persons to be brought to court, nature of dispute or alleged crime, dates of writs and accompanying documents, names of judges, and names of persons that the writs are filed against. Petitioners include indentured servants, Freedom Seekers, free persons of color, convicted prisoners, those awaiting trial, relatives of prisoners, parties in child custody disputes, and relatives of army recruits and draftees. Handwritten, handwritten on printed forms, and a very few typewritten.
Petitions from landowners to the Court of Common Pleas requesting an order to the sheriff to issue deeds for property purchased at the previous sheriff's land sales. Petitions show names of petitioner, former owner, and former sheriff; signature of petitioner; a brief description of the property; location; purchase price; and date. Arranged chronologically by year, then alphabetically by purchaser's name. Most are handwritten on printed forms.
System of Arrangement
Arranged chronologically by year, then alphabetically by purchaser's name.
Petitions from landowners to the Court of Common Pleas requesting an order to the sheriff to issue deeds for property purchased at the previous sheriff's land sales. Petitions show names of petitioner, former owner, and former sheriff; signature of petitioner; a brief description of the property; location; purchase price; and date. Arranged chronologically by year, then alphabetically by purchaser's name. Most are handwritten on printed forms.
System of Arrangement
Arranged chronologically by year, then alphabetically by purchaser's name.
Petitions from landowners to the Court of Common Pleas requesting an order to the sheriff to issue deeds for property purchased at the previous sheriff's land sales. Petitions show names of petitioner, former owner, and former sheriff; signature of petitioner; a brief description of the property; location; purchase price; and date. Arranged chronologically by year, then alphabetically by purchaser's name. Most are handwritten on printed forms.
System of Arrangement
Arranged chronologically by year, then alphabetically by purchaser's name.
Petitions from landowners to the Court of Common Pleas requesting an order to the sheriff to issue deeds for property purchased at the previous sheriff's land sales. Petitions show names of petitioner, former owner, and former sheriff; signature of petitioner; a brief description of the property; location; purchase price; and date. Arranged chronologically by year, then alphabetically by purchaser's name. Most are handwritten on printed forms.
System of Arrangement
Arranged chronologically by year, then alphabetically by purchaser's name.
Petitions from landowners to the Court of Common Pleas requesting an order to the sheriff to issue deeds for property purchased at the previous sheriff's land sales. Petitions show names of petitioner, former owner, and former sheriff; signature of petitioner; a brief description of the property; location; purchase price; and date. Arranged chronologically by year, then alphabetically by purchaser's name. Most are handwritten on printed forms.
System of Arrangement
Arranged chronologically by year, then alphabetically by purchaser's name.
Petitions from landowners to the Court of Common Pleas requesting an order to the sheriff to issue deeds for property purchased at the previous sheriff's land sales. Petitions show names of petitioner, former owner, and former sheriff; signature of petitioner; a brief description of the property; location; purchase price; and date. Arranged chronologically by year, then alphabetically by purchaser's name. Most are handwritten on printed forms.
System of Arrangement
Arranged chronologically by year, then alphabetically by purchaser's name.
