Skip header and navigation

Revise Search

10 records – page 1 of 1.

Collection
Collateral Appraisements
Title
Collateral Appraisements
Object ID
Coll App 1912 F002 M
Date Range
1912
Collection
Collateral Appraisements
Title
Collateral Appraisements
Description
Appraisements of real estate for inheritance tax. Some personal property appraisals are also included. Appraisals include: name of decedent; location and description of real estate; description of personal property; valuation of real estate and personal property; and assessed tax. May also include names of heirs. Arranged chronologically by year, then alphabetically by first letter of decedent's last name. Handwritten; from 1886, handwritten on printed forms.
System of Arrangement
Arranged chronologically by year, then alphabetically by first letter of decedent's last name.
Date Range
1912
Date of Accumulation
1849-1913
Year
1912
Creator
Register of Wills
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives West
Storage Container
Box 0011
People
McCullaugh, P. J.
McCullagh, P. J.
Subcategory
Documentary Artifact
Search Terms
Collateral appraisement
Lancaster
Letters
Affidavits
Place
Lancaster
Extent
16 boxes (8 cubic feet)
Object Name
Appraisal
Language
English
Condition
Fair
Object ID
Coll App 1912 F002 M
Box Number
011
Additional Notes
Or McCullagh, P. J.
Included letter and affidavit.
3 items, 1 piece
Access Conditions / Restrictions
Request at research desk. Photocopy made by staff member.
Classification
RG 03-00 0312
Description Level
Item
Less detail
Collection
M. T. Garvin Papers
Title
M. T. Garvin Papers (MG-34)
Object ID
MG0034
Date Range
1899-1988
  1 document  
Collection
M. T. Garvin Papers
Title
M. T. Garvin Papers (MG-34)
Description
This collection contains information and materials relating to Milton Thomas Garvin, his department store and the Garvin Lecture Series. The scrapbooks were complied by him through the years of 1899-1936. Other items in this collection include letters to family and business partners, several pamphlets from the Garvin Lecture Series, M. T. Garvin & Co. store information, receipts, invoices, banquet programs, and a sampling of financial records from the store.
Admin/Biographical History
Milton Thomas Garvin was born in Fulton Township around 1860. In 1874, at the age of fourteen, Garvin quit school and moved to Lancaster City. He worked various odd jobs before he was hired to work as an errand boy for R. E. Fahnestock's dry goods store in December of 1874.
At the age of sixteen, Fahnestock promoted Garvin to a salesman for the store. He continued to work there through his adolescent years and was promoted to manager at the age of twenty-one, when Fahnestock was in failing health. Garvin assumed that responsibility for twelve years and then bought the store when Fahnestock was ready to retire. Garvin renamed the store M. T. Garvin & Co.
Over the next ten years, Garvin bought the rest of the building and several surrounding buildings to expand his store to a four story and three lot property. He prospered in business and was a philanthropist throughout Lancaster County.
Other than a prominent businessman, Garvin served as a board member, trustee, director or president of the following organizations: The Shippen School for Girls, Lancaster General Hospital, Lancaster Chamber of Commerce, Meadville Theological Seminary, A. Herr Smith and Mechanics' Libraries, Lancaster Charity Society, Joseph Priestly Conference, and People's Octoraro Meeting House.
Milton Thomas Garvin died on 18 August 1936.
Date Range
1899-1988
Year Range From
1899
Year Range To
1988
Date of Accumulation
1899-1988
Creator
Garvin, Milton Thomas, 1860-1936
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 01
People
Bechtold, Walter
Bixler, Julius Seelye
Cayce, Hugh Lynn
Chaisson, Eric J.
Compton, Arthur H.
Cousins, Norman
Fitch, S. W.
Fosdick, Harry Emerson
Garvin, Milton Thomas
Hart, Hornell
Hocking, William Ernest
Hopf, Richard
Hupper, Jacob
Kennedy, Gerald
Kiehl, J. P.
Kring, Walter Donald
Lamont, Corliss
Maritain, Jacques
McMurrin, Sterling M.
Niebuhr, Reinhold
Northop, F.S.C.
Noss, John B.
Park, Charles E.
Ross, James H.
Rossner, John
Royden, Maude
Ruether, Rosemary Radford
Smith, Andrew
Sperry, Willard L.
Taylor, Jeremy
Thurman, Howard
Tillich, Paul
Other Creators
LancasterHistory (Organization)
Subjects
Business records
Civic leaders
Department stores
Scrapbooks
Search Terms
Civic leaders
Correspondence
Department stores
Elks (Fraternal order)
Hotel Brunswick
Lancaster Elks Lodge, No. 134
Letters
M. T. Garvin and Co.
Photographs
Scrapbooks
Stevens House Hotel
Williamson Park
Wills
Finding aids
Manuscript groups
Extent
5 boxes,12 folders, 13 scrapbooks, 4.5 cubic ft
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Object ID
MG0034
Related Item Notes
See also the Photograph and Curatorial Collections.
Access Conditions / Restrictions
No restrictions.
Copyright
Collection may not be photocopied. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at research@lancasterhistory.org.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Other Numbers
MG-34
Classification
MG0034
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Processed and finding aid prepared by TH, April 2014. Added to database 10 May 2018.
Documents
Less detail
Collection
Ellsworth Edwards Collection
Title
Ellsworth Edwards Collection (MG-37)
Object ID
MG0037
Date Range
1827-1933
  1 document  
Collection
Ellsworth Edwards Collection
Title
Ellsworth Edwards Collection (MG-37)
Description
Contains Edwards family materials including correspondence and family photographs.
Date Range
1827-1933
Year Range From
1827
Year Range To
1933
Date of Accumulation
1827-1933
Creator
Edwards, Ellsworth
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 01
People
Bair, Maggie
Edwards, Bessie
Edwards, Ellsworth
Edwards, Maggie
Smoker, Katie
Subjects
Family records
Letters
Search Terms
Correspondence
Family records
Letters
Photographs
Wills
Manuscript groups
Finding aids
Extent
1 box, 8 folders, .25 cubic ft.
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Object ID
MG0037
Access Conditions / Restrictions
No restrictions.
Copyright
Collection may not be photocopied. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at research@lancasterhistory.org.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Other Numbers
MG-37
Classification
MG0037
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Cataloged prior to 1997; added to database 10 May 2018.
Documents
Less detail
Collection
Blanche Nevin Collection
Title
Blanche Nevin Collection
Object ID
MG0039
Date Range
1905-1940
  1 document  
Collection
Blanche Nevin Collection
Title
Blanche Nevin Collection
Description
Collection contains correspondence, poetry, and newspaper articles.
Admin/Biographical History
Blanche Nevin (1841-1925), artist and poet, was born in Mercersburg, Franklin County, Pennsylvania. She was the daughter of John Williamson Nevin, a theologian, teacher, and minister, and Martha Jenkins, daughter of the politician and iron master at Windsor Forges, Robert Jenkins. When Dr. Nevin became the president of Franklin & Marshall College in 1855, he moved the family to Lancaster. They moved to Windsor Forges (or Windsor Place) from 1856 to 1858, while Dr. Nevin acted as executor of his mother-in-law's estate, and then moved permanently to Caernarvon Place on Columbia Avenue (the present site of Degel Israel Synagogue). The Nevin children were well-educated and cultivated for society, as their parents had been.
Blanche was the nation's first noteworthy sculptress. In 1889, she sculpted the statue of Revolutionary War General Peter Muhlenberg, which stands in the National Statuary Hall at the U.S. Capitol. She also sculpted the bust of President Woodrow Wilson. Lancastrians are most familiar with her Lion in the Park (1905) at Reservoir Park and her horse drinking fountain (1898) at the intersection of Columbia Avenue and West Orange Street. Blanche composed a number of poems and set several to music; many were inspired by Lancaster County, her travels, and family and friends. Her poems include: "Great-Grandma's Looking-Glass" (1895), "One Usual Day" (1916), and "To My Door" (1921).
She bought Windsor Place in Caernarvon Twp. in 1897, restored the mansion house and the name Windsor Forges, and added a studio. Furniture and other influences from her travels adorned the house and grounds. She also owned a house in Manasquan, New Jersey; spent time with friends in New York and Philadelphia; and traveled a great deal, especially during the winter.
Her obituary in a Lancaster County newspaper states, "The simple, unpretentious neighbors of Miss Nevin never questioned her foreign ideas and eccentricities, but accepted her for the true, human qualities which she so abundantly possessed."
Date Range
1905-1940
Year Range From
1905
Year Range To
1940
Date of Accumulation
1905-1940
Creator
Aungst, John
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 01
People
Appel, Roberts
Appell, John
Carmichael, Catharine
Dock, Mrs.
Forney, J. G.
Gable, S. Edw.
Jenkins, Catharine Carmichael
Jenkins, Robert
Magee, David F.
Nevin, Blanche
Shenk, H. H.
Shoemaker, Henry W.
Other Creators
LancasterHistory (Organization)
Subjects
Sculptors
Poets, American
Letters
Poetry
Clippings (Books, newspapers, etc.)
Search Terms
Clippings (Books, newspapers, etc.)
Correspondence
Lancaster Automobile Club
Letters
Newspaper clippings
Poetry
Poets
Sculptors
Windsor Forge
Manuscript groups
Finding aids
Extent
1 box, 3 folders, .15 cubic ft.
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Object ID
MG0039
Related Item Notes
MG-730 Blanche Nevin Papers
Access Conditions / Restrictions
No restrictions.
Copyright
Collection may not be photocopied. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at research@lancasterhistory.org.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Other Numbers
MG-39
Classification
MG0039
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
This collection was cataloged in 1998; added to database 15 May 2018.
Documents
Less detail
Collection
Captain John M. Groff Collection
Title
Captain John M. Groff Collection (MG-44)
Object ID
MG0044
Date Range
1905-1940
  1 document  
Collection
Captain John M. Groff Collection
Title
Captain John M. Groff Collection (MG-44)
Description
Collection contains photographs, many labeled and dated, and two scrapbooks. One scrapbook contains newspaper articles concerning the military and professional life of Captain Groff. The other scrapbook contains military records including special orders, certificates, passes, correspondence, and government requirements. There are also newspaper articles, maps, and other memorabilia.
Date Range
1905-1940
Year Range From
1905
Year Range To
1940
Creator
Groff, John M.
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 02
People
Davis, R.
Groff, John M.
Klein, Henry Martin John
Malone, John
Pershing, John Joseph
Subjects
World War, 1914-1918
Scrapbooks
Letters
United States. Army. American Expeditionary Forces
Search Terms
American Defense Society
American Expeditionary Forces
American Expeditionary Forces, Supply Division, Postal Express Service
American Red Cross
Clippings (Books, newspapers, etc.)
Correspondence
Finding aids
Letters
Manuscript groups
Maps
Newspaper clippings
Photographs
Postal Express Service
Scrapbooks
World War I
WWI
Extent
1 box, 9 folders, .5 cubic ft.
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Object ID
MG0044
Related Item Notes
See the Photograph Collection.
Access Conditions / Restrictions
No restrictions.
Copyright
Collection may not be photocopied. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at research@lancasterhistory.org.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Other Numbers
MG-44
Classification
MG0044
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Cataloged prior to 1997. Added to database 17 May 2018.
Documents
Less detail
Collection
Edward Hand Reunion and Genealogy Collection
Title
Edward Hand Reunion and Genealogy Collection
Object ID
MG0116
Date Range
1805-1984
  1 document  
Collection
Edward Hand Reunion and Genealogy Collection
Title
Edward Hand Reunion and Genealogy Collection
Description
Collection consists largely of information on the descendants of Edward Hand and on the Hand Family Reunion. Contains correspondence, genealogical materials, family charts, photographs, and commemorative booklet 1912, on Lancaster County in the Revolutionary War. Also, three documents concerning the settling of the Hand estate.
Date Range
1805-1984
Year Range From
1805
Year Range To
1984
Date of Accumulation
1805-1984
Creator
Hand family
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 03
People
Hand, Edward
Lear, Robert H.
Brien, Edward
Brien, Dorothy Hand
Hand, Jasper
Subjects
Genealogy
Family records
Letters
Search Terms
Genealogy
Family records
Family reunions
Rock Ford
Correspondence
Letters
Manuscript groups
Finding aids
Extent
1 box, 27 folders, .5 cubic ft.
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Object ID
MG0116
Access Conditions / Restrictions
No restrictions.
Copyright
Collection may not be photocopied. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at research@lancasterhistory.org.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory.
Credit
Edward Hand Reunion and Genealogy Collection (MG-116), Folder #, LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pa.
Other Numbers
MG-116
Classification
MG0116
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Added to database 1 May 2019.
Documents
Less detail
Collection
Revolutionary War Collection
Title
Revolutionary War Collection
Object ID
MG0098
Date Range
1776-1976
  2 documents  
Collection
Revolutionary War Collection
Title
Revolutionary War Collection
Description
The Revolutionary War Collection contains a variety of materials from and about the Revolutionary War in Lancaster County and Pennsylvania. The original records include correspondence, military pay certificates, court records, and an orderly book kept by Lt. Col. Adam Hubley, Jr. during the Sullivan Campaign of 1779. There are also research notes and secondary sources, including a list of prisoners of war, a list of males in Lancaster County in 1776, Continental Hospital Returns 1777-1780, articles, information on soldiers buried in Lancaster County, and an article about John Paul Jones.
Date Range
1776-1976
Creation Date
1776-1976
Year Range From
1776
Year Range To
1976
Creator
LancasterHistory (Organization)
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 03
People
Beddulph, Robert
Boyd, John
Burd, James Edward
Chambers, Stephen
Coedans, James
Cooke, William
Ferree, John
Getty, Christian
Gurney, Francis
Hubley, Adam
Jolly, James A. "Jim"
Joy, Daniel
Kieffer, Henry Martyn
Moore, William
Neal, James
Patterson, Alex
Porter, Thomas
Ramsay, David
Rapp, Brandon
Reid, George W.
Worner, William Frederic
Zellty, John A.
Subjects
Cemeteries
Letters
Military history
Military regulations
Newtown, Battle of, Newtown, N.Y., 1779
Prisoners of war
Soldiers
Stony Point, Battle of, Stony Point, N.Y., 1779
Sullivan's Indian Campaign, 1779
United States--History--Revolution, 1775-1783
United States--History--Revolution, 1775-1783--Campaigns
United States--History--Revolution, 1775-1783--Prisoners and prisons
Search Terms
Battle of Newtown
Battle of Stony Point
Cemeteries
Clippings (Books, newspapers, etc.)
Correspondence
Finding aids
Haudenosaunee Confederacy
Letters
Manuscript groups
Military history
Military records
Military regulations
Prisoners of war
Receipts
Revolutionary War
Soldiers
Sullivan Campaign, 1779
Extent
3 boxes, 40 folders, 1.25 cubic ft.
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Object ID
MG0098
Notes
Harmful Language Warning: LancasterHistory is committed to preserving and providing access to materials chronicling Lancaster County's heritage. As a historical resource, this orderly book reflects the racial prejudices of the era and the violence perpetrated against the Haudenosaunee Confederacy during the American War of Independence. In order to maintain the historical integrity and context of collection items, LancasterHistory does not censor historical documents or edit language, titles, or organization names when transcribing original content. This volume contains language that is offensive, oppressive, graphic, and may cause distress. LancasterHistory does not condone the use of this language.
Access Conditions / Restrictions
No restrictions. Please use digital images and transcriptions when available.
Copyright
Collection may not be photocopied. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at research@lancasterhistory.org.Images have been provided for research purposes only. Please contact research@lancasterhistory.org for a high-resolution image and permission to publish.
LancasterHistory retains the rights to the digital images and content presented. The doctrine of fair use allows limited use of copyrighted material without permission from the copyright holder. Fair use includes comment, criticism, teaching, and private scholarship. Any images and data downloaded, printed or photocopied for these purposes should provide a citation. All other uses beyond those allowed by fair use require written permission.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory. Some items are photocopies from other collections--researchers must obtain permission for reproduction and publication from the owner of the original material.
Persons wishing to publish any material from this site must assume all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any claimants of copyright or other use restrictions. Publication fees may apply.
Credit
Revolutionary War Collection (MG-98), Box #, Folder #, LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pa.
Other Numbers
MG-98
Other Number
MG-98
Classification
MG0098
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Cataloged prior to 1997. Items have been added and the finding aid has been updated since 1997.
Documents
Less detail
Collection
General Thomas Welsh Family Papers
Title
General Thomas Welsh Family Papers
Object ID
MG0828
Date Range
1839-1932
Collection
General Thomas Welsh Family Papers
Title
General Thomas Welsh Family Papers
Description
The General Thomas Welsh Family Papers is a collection of original correspondence, official documents, and ephemera. Many of the papers were created by or directed to Thomas Welsh between approximately 1843 and his death in 1863. They provide glimpses into his youth, his experiences in the Mexican War, his life in Columbia between the wars, and his rise in rank to Brigadier General during the Civil War.
The collection contains correspondence with his wife and family from 1861-1863. There are also official correspondence and documents related to Welsh's military service, autobiographical pieces, correspondence following his death, obituaries, and family papers into the early twentieth century. Other items in the collection include genealogy pages from the family bible, photographic images of Thomas Welsh and family members, two scrapbooks, newspaper issues and newspaper clippings, written notes from recollections of one of Welsh's daughter, and a biographical sketch of Welsh written by his son.
Admin/Biographical History
Thomas Welsh (1824-1863) was a Lancaster County native (born and raised in Columbia), who rose from hardscrabble origins to local fame, first as a Mexican War hero, and then as a brigadier general during the Civil War. He was well known and well respected as a no nonsense officer, for his leadership and gallantry in battle, for his dedication to the service of his country, and for his concern for the welfare of his men.
Welsh lost his father at the age of 2, and went to work to support his family at age 8. He had very little formal schooling, and was largely self-educated. In 1843, at age 19, he left Lancaster County for Washington City, then went west as an itinerant carpenter/laborer to Cincinnati, Little Rock, and Fort Smith.
When the Mexican War broke out in 1846, he enlisted in a Kentucky regiment, and was severely wounded at the battle of Buena Vista (1847) from which he never fully recovered. Returning home to Columbia, he re-enlisted as a second lieutenant, assigned to the 11th U.S. infantry regiment in Mexico City. Within days of his arrival in Mexico City, he was declared unfit for service on account of his battle wound, and sent home again.
Back in Columbia as a civilian, he dabbled in politics, and received a patronage job in the Pennsylvania Main Line of Public Works (the rail and canal system connecting Philadelphia and Pittsburgh). After several years, he opened up a grocery and dry goods store in Columbia's canal basin. He also became an insurance agent. In 1857, he was elected Justice of the Peace, and his reputation grew as a community leader. By 1860, he was president of the Borough Council, a founding member of the Columbia Board of Trade, Vice President of the Columbia Cricket Club, and a canal boat operator, in addition to a dry goods merchant, insurance agent, and Justice of the Peace. He had a wife, 5 surviving children, and legal guardianship of his sister's 4 children.
When Confederate forces shelled Fort Sumter, marking the beginning of the Civil War, Thomas Welsh raised and organized the first company of volunteers from Lancaster County, and took them into the field as their Captain. Within days, he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel of the regiment, which served out its 90-day enlistment in the Shenandoah Valley.
Returning to Harrisburg, he was appointed Commandant of Camp Curtin, the problem-plagued processing center for new recruits. In short order, Welsh cleaned up the camp's poor sanitary conditions, improved the health of the camp, and implemented soldierly discipline and training.
In October 1861, he resigned from his camp duties, and as Colonel of the 45th Pennsylvania, led his regiment into the field. After brief service outside of Washington, they were sent to South Carolina in December, where they were posted to Otter Island. After the battle of James Island, they were recalled to Newport News, in July 1862, then sent to guard Aquia Creek.
In September, now in brigade command in Burnsides' 9th Corps, Welsh chased Lee's Confederate army west into central Maryland. His brigade broke the enemy line in Fox's Gap, on Sept. 14, then 3 days later achieved the furthest Union advance at Antietam, reaching the edge of Sharpsburg, and nearly cutting off Lee's only avenue of escape. Welsh's gallantry earned him a field promotion to brigadier general, which Congress confirmed on March 13, 1863.
The 9th Corps (Welsh now in command of the 1st Division) was sent west in the spring of 1863, then dispatched south to support Grant's investment of Vicksburg. After Vicksburg fell, they turned east and defeated Confederate General Johnston at the Battle of Jackson. Welsh contracted malaria in the southern swamps, and died in Cincinnati upon their return north. One of his men later recalled, "Had he lived, Welsh would undoubtedly have attained a much higher command. 1
1. Beauge, Eugene, in Albert, Allen D., Ed., History of the Forty-Fifth Regiment Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteer Infantry 1861-1865, Williamsport, PA: Grit Publ. Co, 1912, p. 79.
System of Arrangement
The collection is arranged in series:
Series A Thomas Welsh before the Mexican War
Series B Mexican War, 1846-1848
Series C Between the Mexican War and the Civil War, 1848-1861
Series D Civil War
Series E Post-Civil War
Series F Miscellaneous Family Papers
Series G Papers from the families of Gen. Thomas Welsh and Blanton C. Welsh
Date Range
1839-1932
Year Range From
1839
Year Range To
1932
Creator
Wiggin, Richard C.
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 19
People
Welsh, Thomas
Welsh, Annie Eunice Young
Welsh, Blanton Charles
Welsh, Effie
Welsh, Lilian
Welsh, Mary Young "Mazie"
Buchanan, James
Subjects
Letters
Mexican War, 1846-1848
Military orders
Military promotions
Personal correspondence
Political campaigns
Presidents--Election
Speeches, addresses, etc.
United States. Army--Military life
United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865
Search Terms
Civil War
Correspondence, Personal
Letters
Mexican War
Military life
Military orders
Military promotions
Political campaigns
Presidential elections
Speeches
United States Army
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Condition
Fair to good
Condition Date
2020-12-18
Condition Notes
Items are in fair to good condition.
Object ID
MG0828
Access Conditions / Restrictions
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
Images have been provided for research purposes only. Please contact archives@lancasterhistory.org for a high-resolution image and permission to publish.
LancasterHistory retains the rights to the digital images and content presented. The doctrine of fair use allows limited use of copyrighted material without permission from the copyright holder. Fair use includes comment, criticism, teaching, and private scholarship. Any images and data downloaded, printed or photocopied for these purposes should provide a citation. All other uses beyond those allowed by fair use require written permission.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory. Some items are photocopies from other collections--researchers must obtain permission for reproduction and publication from the owner of the original material.
Persons wishing to publish any material from this site must assume all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any claimants of copyright or other use restrictions. Publication fees may apply.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pa.
Classification
MG0828
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Almost all of the papers have been passed down through successive generations of Welsh's descendants, from Thomas Welsh's wife and children to his granddaughter, Emilie Benson (Welsh) Wiggin, to her daughter Nancy Jane (Wiggin) Townsend. After Nancy Townsend's death, her son Charles Townsend passed them on to his cousin, Richard Wiggin (grandson of Emilie Benson Wiggin) in 2015.
A few papers passed out of the family's possession and found their way into other collections. Richard Abel of Columbia, PA began collecting Welsh papers and artifacts some years ago, and subsequently transferred this collection of Welsh materials to Richard Wiggin in 2012.
Less detail
Collection
John Wise and History of Ballooning Collection
Title
John Wise and History of Ballooning Collection
Object ID
MG0019
Date Range
1850-1993
September 1955. Insert 7 Letter from Robert C. Batchelder of Saint James’ Church to John Andrews commenting on the paper he wrote on John Wise. Invitation to the Lancaster Public Library. 2-21 April 1956. �230 North President Avenue • Lancaster, Pennsylvania 17603-3125 717.392.4633
  1 document  
Collection
John Wise and History of Ballooning Collection
Title
John Wise and History of Ballooning Collection
Description
The John Wise and History of Ballooning Collection contains material about John Wise, a pioneering balloonist from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and the history of ballooning. Articles written by and about John Wise provide information about the man and his career. The bulk of Series 1 is correspondence, research notes, and drafts of "The John Wise Story," by John H. Andrews. Series 2 contains material about the ballooning hobby, other early aircraft, and the history of air mail.
Admin/Biographical History
As an adventurous and inquisitive young boy, John Wise was drawn to the skies above his native Lancaster County. He was fascinated by aerial pursuits and began to conduct experiments. He tied his cat to his homemade parachute and observed the cat's safe descent from a local church steeple.
A keen interest in ballooning developed and Wise became a famous aeronaut. Although balloon ascensions were common at county fairs and carnivals he had never observed an ascension before he made his first one in Philadelphia in 1835. John Wise completed 462 balloon ascensions including Lancaster ascensions from Penn Square and the prison yard.
In the nineteenth century many ascensions were made just for the novelty of the event, but John Wise's approach was from a scientific perspective. Each ascension gave him a chance to conduct scientific investigations of the atmosphere, pneumatics and hydrostatics.
It also gave him the opportunity to develop a more advanced flying machine. Wise was the first to observe the "great river of air which always blows from west to east" in the higher regions of the atmosphere. Today we call this phenomenon the jet stream. He also developed the ripcord safety mechanism.
John Wise promoted the advantages of balloon transportation. In 1843 he conceived a project for crossing the Atlantic Ocean and asked Congress to appropriate $15,000 for the project. Congress rejected the appropriation. Wise suggested a plan to bomb the Castle at Vera Cruz during the Mexican War and during the Civil War the Bureau of Topographical Engineers requested his services as a balloonist. He is credited with the first airmail transportation in 1859.
Detailed descriptions of his ascensions and experiments are found in his book, Through the Air, published in 1873. The last ascent of John Wise took place on September 29, 1879 from St. Louis, Missouri. This flight ended disastrously in Lake Michigan where his balloon fell and his remains lie.
Prepared by the Lancaster County Historical Society, ca. 1995.
System of Arrangement
This collection is arranged into two series.
Series 1 John Wise
Series 2 History of Ballooning
Date Range
1850-1993
Creation Date
1850-1993
Year Range From
1850
Year Range To
1993
Date of Accumulation
1850-1993
Creator
Andrews, John H.
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 01
People
Albertson, Catherine
Andrews, John Henry
Atkinson, S. C.
Bache, Hartman
Ball, Charles I.
Bartlett, Mrs. R. A.
Batchelder, Robert C.
Beckwith, A.
Beller, William
Black, J. W.
Blanchard, Jean Pierre
Blitzstein, Madelin
Bradbury, Ray
Brown, Elizabeth B.
Bruce, George
Burlingame, Roger
Burr, George
Byars, W. W.
Casey, Louis
Cessna, Clyde
Coffman, Ramon
Cornish, Joseph Jenkins, III
Cox, Palmer
Douty, Esther
Douty, Esther M.
Drepperd, Carl W.
Edwards, Vincent
Elvin, Thomas
Evans, William
Field, Francis J.
Fischer, Hans
Fleck, Glen
French, Melvin
Galzer, Emmett J.
Gambetta, Francis Leon
Greeley, A. W.
Grimm, Janet
Gryzewski, Tad
Halmi, Robert
Harrell, D. Tudor
Hautrive, M.
Hayden, F. Stansbury
Hopkins, Philip S.
Hunt, E. F.
Ingle, Harold E.
Kehr, Ernest A.
Keith, Barbara
Kessler, F. W.
Klein, Frederic S.
Kouwenhoven, John A.
Kreider, Ira
Kriebel, Robert C.
Kriebel, Robert G.
Lamorisse, Albert
LaPaz, Lincoln
Lindbergh, Charles
Lindquist, H. L.
Long, Elmer R.
Lundgren, Laura May Gross
Madsen, Peter
Maier, Alfred D.
Maxwell, George T.
McCloskey, Lores
McDevitt, William
Mills, James
Myers, Wilfred
Naves, Glen W.
Nicklin, John
Pasquarella, Gus
Peers, W.
Prevost, John W.
Roland, John
Rosenfeld, Albert
Sanabria, Nicolas
Schatvet, H. C.
Serviss, Garrett P.
Smith, Philip R., Jr.
Stehling, Kurt R
Steinmetz, Rollin
Stilphen, George F.
Taylor, Florence
Thompson, Howard
Topping, A.D.
Waitt, Robert
Warner, B. H.
Watson, Marion A.
Wetherill, Richard B.
Whipple, A. W.
Wilbur, W. H.
Wise, John
Wiseman, Frederick J.
Wolcott, Charles
Wolf, Constance
Woodruff, J. C.
Wright, Wilbur
Young, Pearl
Other Creators
Lancaster County Historical Society (Pa.)
Subjects
Hot air balloons
Hot air balloons--Launching
Airships
Aeronautics
Letters
Air mail service
Hindenburg (Airship)
Reconnaissance aircraft
Clippings (Books, newspapers, etc.)
Search Terms
Aeronautics
Air mail service
Airships
Aviation
Clippings (Books, newspapers, etc.)
Correspondence
Finding aids
Hindenburg (Airship)
Hot air balloons
Letters
Manuscript groups
Newspaper clippings
Obituaries
Reconnaissance aircraft
Extent
3 boxes, 40 folders, 1 scrapbook, 1 cubic ft.
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Object ID
MG0019
Access Conditions / Restrictions
No restrictions.
Copyright
Collection may not be photocopied. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at research@lancasterhistory.org.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Other Numbers
MG-19
Classification
MG0019
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
This collection was cataloged prior to 1997; added to database on 28 February 2018.
Documents
Less detail
Collection
Grand Army of the Republic Collection
Title
Grand Army of the Republic Collection
Object ID
MG0017
  1 document  
Collection
Grand Army of the Republic Collection
Title
Grand Army of the Republic Collection
Description
Collection consists of records of the Grand Army of the Republic and allied organizations. Most papers are from G.A.R. Post 478 (Mount Joy) and Post 84 (Lancaster). Included are minute books, burial records, membership applications, correspondence, national and state G.A.R. orders, encampment information, and Post correspondence. Many records are in book form.
Soldiers and sailors honorably discharged from the Army, Navy or Marine Corps of the U.S. who fought in the cause of the Union from Apr. 12, 1861 to Apr. 9, 1865 were eligible to become members of the Grand Army of the Republic. Allied Orders include: Ladies of the Grand Army of the Republic, Woman's Relief Corps, Sons of Veterans U.S.A. (later Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War) and their Auxiliary, as well as the Daughters of Veterans (later Daughters of Union Veterans of the Civil War).
Creation Date
1861-1931
Year Range From
1861
Year Range To
1931
Date of Accumulation
1861-1931
Creator
Grand Army of the Republic Post 478
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 01
People
Cruikshank, William
Furgeson, Elizabeth
Leach, David
Long, George
Nissley, D. H.
Nissley, David H.
Stephenson, Benjamin F.
Thomas, George H.
Thumb, Tom
Veil, Chas. H.
Wimer, John
Wolf, Joseph
Other Creators
Grand Army of the Republic Post 84; Grand Army of the Republic Post 524.
Subjects
Business records
Grand Army of the Republic
Grand Army of the Republic. Department of Pennsylvania
Ladies of the Grand Army of the Republic
Ladies of the Grand Army of the Republic. Department of Pennsylvania
Sons of Veterans, U.S.A
United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865
Woman's Relief Corp (U.S.). Department of Pennsylvania
Search Terms
Burial records
Business records
Civil War
Correspondence
Finding aids
Grand Army of the Republic
Iroquois Band
Stork's Orchestra
Ladies of the Grand Army of the Republic
Letters
Lincoln Cemetery
Manuscript groups
Mount Joy Cemetery
Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War
Woman's Relief Corp (U.S.)
Extent
6 boxes, 56 folders, 24 volumes, 3 cubic ft.
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Object ID
MG0017
Location of Originals
LancasterHistory (Organization)
Access Conditions / Restrictions
No restrictions.
Copyright
Collection may not be photocopied. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at research@lancasterhistory.org.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Other Numbers
MG-17
Classification
MG0017
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
This collection was cataloged prior to 1997; added to database on 6 March 2018.
Documents
Less detail

10 records – page 1 of 1.