The Walker & Brother (Christiana, Pa.) Records contain a receipt book of grain merchants, Walker & Brother of Christiana, Pennsylvania. The business correspondence pasted to the receipt stubs documents the firm's purchases and sales of grain, cigars, fertilizer, coal and lumber; banking; debt collection; and purchases of horses, cattle, and baling machinery.
Admin/Biographical History
Joseph Coates Walker was born in Sadsbury Twp., Lancaster County on 4 April 1832. He learned the science of agriculture in his youth and in 1853 became a clerk at a mercantile business in Gap, Pennsylvania. He moved to Christiana briefly, then returned to Gap in 1857 to begin his career in general transportation, grain, coal and lumber, with his brother, Asahel. In 1880, the business became Joseph C. Walker & Son, when E. Enfield Walker joined his father. Outside of the mercantile business, Joseph served as postmaster, revenue collector, justice of the peace and president of Gap National Bank.
Ellis, Franklin, and Samuel Evans. 1883. History of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania… Philadelphia: Everts & Peck, pp. 1055-1058.
Biographical Annals of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania… Chicago: Beers, 1903, pp. 308-9.
Preferred Citation: Title or description of item, date (day, month, year), Walker & Brother (Christiana, Pa.) Records (MG0558), LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Access Conditions / Restrictions
This volume may be used by appointment. Please contact research@lancasterhistory.org prior to visit.
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.
The D. S. Sweeton & Co. Records are made up of orders to the company for wood wheels, receipts for payments made by Sweeton, price lists of the Lancaster Polishing Factory, and personal memorabilia including invitations and a checkbook from Northern National Bank of Lancaster.
Admin/Biographical History
David S. Sweeton was born in Glassboro, New Jersey c.1827. He was a woodturner by trade and specialized in building staircases. He moved to Lancaster in 1881 and first appears in the Lancaster City Directory as a manufacturer of emery wheels in 1892. (An emery wheel has an abrasive coating that is used for buffing or grinding.) From 1897 to 1901 Sweeton is listed as the proprietor of the Lancaster Polishing Wheel Works located at 44 W. Liberty Street, Lancaster. After 1901, he is listed only as a manufacturer.
Sweeton lived at 414 W. Lemon St., Lancaster in 1886 and 1888, but by 1906 he had moved to 439 W. Frederick St., then to 33 W. Liberty St., and finally to 623 N. Shippen St.
Sources: Lancaster City Directories; Obituary, Daily New Era, 1 March 1906.
Preferred Citation: Title or description of item, date (day, month, year), D. S. Sweeton & Co. Records (MG0320), Folder #, LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
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.
The Heleine Family Collection consists primarily of letters received by William B. Heleine and Rebecca Jane (Jacoby) Heleine during their youth and reflect the perennial concerns of that age group: friendship, courtship, and finding employment. Many of the letters are from William B. Heleine's cousin William F. Lebzelter, son of J. Philip Lebzelter founder of the Eagle Wheel and Bending Works (later P. Lebzelter & Son Co. then Lebzelter's) in Lancaster.
Preferred Citation: Title or description of item, date (day, month, year), Collection Title (MG#), Folder #, (or Object ID), LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania. URL if applicable. Date accessed (day, month, year).
Access Conditions / Restrictions
Original documents may be used by researchers--contact Research@LancasterHistory.org prior to visit or request at Reference Desk.
Copyright
Collection items may be photographed. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at Research@LancasterHistory.org.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory. 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, Pennsylvania.
The Frederick S. Brown Collection contains tax receipts, bonds, and letters belonging to Mr. Brown. Also, an agreement for the sale of land along the Susquehanna River.
Preferred Citation: Title or description of item, date (day, month, year), Frederick S. Brown Collection (MG0085), Folder #, LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
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.
The Kirk Family Papers contain items from the Kirk family, of Kirk's Mill, in Little Britain Twp. Ciphering and other school books of Lewis Kirk represent some of his schoolwork. Elisabeth's scrapbook from 1846 shows her interest in poetry. Legal and financial documents of Levi Kirk pertain to the sale of land, farming, medical expenses and the payment of bounties in 1864. Published works and the Columbian Almanac for 1836 are among the mid-nineteenth century items that the family saved.
See estate papers and court records for members of the Kirk family in the Lancaster County Government Records.
Notes
Preferred Citation: Title or description of item, date (day, month, year), Collection Title (MG#), Folder #, (or Object ID), LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania. URL if applicable. Date accessed (day, month, year).
Access Conditions / Restrictions
Original documents may be used by researchers--contact Research@LancasterHistory.org prior to visit or request at Reference Desk.
Copyright
Collection items may be photographed. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at Research@LancasterHistory.org. Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory. Persons wishing to publish any material from this collection 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, Pennsylvania.
This collection contains items from the Hiram Buckwalter and John S. Shelley families. Hiram Buckwalter recorded the birth dates of his children in the account book. John S. Shelley's letterhead was preserved in the account book, as was an insurance receipt and two loose account and calculation sheets.
Folder 1: Account book of Hiram Buckwalter, 1881-1907; page 173 is an "account of Minnie Buckwalter," 1907 -- The account shows items purchased to furnish a home. Birth dates of Hiram's children are on the last page.
Folder 2:
Letterhead of John S. Shelley, Rapho Township Supervisors. No date.
Receipt to Hiram Buckwalter from the Manor Mutual Fire Insurance Company of Lancaster County. 1923.
Account of labor by Joseph Knabel and receipt of payment.1908.
Page of calculations. No date.
Folder 3: Facsimile of invitation to John S. Shelley and cover of program for the dedication of the Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge, 1930
Admin/Biographical History
John S. Shelley (1880-1965) https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/30594169/john-s-shelley
John's daughter, Grace (1916-2012), married Paul B. Brubaker (1913-2004). Paul was the grandson of Hiram Buckwalter (1857-1930).
The Andrew J. Steinman Collection contains the personal and business papers of Andrew J. Steinman, the Steinman family, and John M. Hale. Andrew was a lawyer; his wife was the daughter of John M. Hale, also a lawyer. This collection is comprised of correspondence, legal papers, and financial records.
Preferred Citation: Title or description of item, date (day, month, year), Collection Title (MG#), Box #, Folder #, (or Object ID), LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
This collection may have been a gift of Mrs. Buller, 21 October 1966.
Access Conditions / Restrictions
Original documents may be used--contact Research@LancasterHistory.org prior to visit or request at the Reference Desk.
Copyright
Collection items may be photographed. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at Research@LancasterHistory.org.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory. 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, Pennsylvania.
Other Numbers
MG-66
Classification
MG0066
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Originally processed prior to 1997. Finding aid revised by PW; typed by KR, Winter 2012. Added to database 26 December 2023.
This collection contains estate papers and financial documents of Dr. Charles Herbst.
Admin/Biographical History
Charles Herbst (1782-1865) studied medicine with Dr. William Fahnestock and started his practice in 1804. The following year he was a physician at the prison. In May 1813, he served as surgeon in Major Samuel Humes' Lancaster Battalion. Dr. Herbst is buried at Woodward Hill Cemetery in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
This collection contains the family papers of Helen Buckwalter Woerner from 1798-1939 including deeds, farm inventories, public sale posters, estate papers, and contracts. Some items of interest are the deeds, public sale documents, and a Campbell's Soup Company contract for tomato growing. A map shows the site master plan for the Lancaster Airport that was built on this family's farmland.
The Brinton Family Collection contains genealogy, estate records, receipts, school workbooks, correspondence, farm records, tax records, bank records, wedding and funeral announcements, invitations, visiting cards, and postcards.
Admin/Biographical History
The Brintons were a prosperous family, owned farms and mills, and participated in other business ventures. They were of English heritage and members of the Quakers, or Society of Friends. In order to escape religious persecution in England, William Brinton purchased 200 acres in Birmingham Twp., Pennsylvania in 1684. His descendants eventually moved further west to eastern Lancaster County.1
Cyrus Brinton (1830-1917), the fourth of six children, was the son of Samuel and Lydia P. Jackson Brinton. In 1813, Samuel purchased 200 acres of land in Christiana (land that was later bounded by the Christiana Machine Shop on the south, Pine St. on the west, Sadsbury Ave. on the north, and Rte. 41 on the east). The land was not ideal for farming, but the property was picturesque and the farm was successful. Cyrus married Rebecca Whitson and they farmed on his father's property for about ten years. At that time they purchased a farm and mill on the road from Cooperville to the Noble Road. The original woolen mill was later turned into a grist mill, then a creamery. Cyrus and Rebecca had five children: Francis, Thomas Luther, William Haslam, Anne Haslam, and Martha Alice.2
Genealogy:3
Thomas Whitson m. Martha Hobson
b. 7 February 1796 b. 10 November 1800
d. 27 November 1864 d. 18 June 1889
(Sadsbury, Chester County) (Sadsbury)
They were married at New Salem Meeting, 17 May 1827. Rebecca was one of their eight children.
Cyrus Brinton m. Rebecca Whitson
b. 28 December 1830 b. 3 February 1832
d. 9 February 1917 d. 29 October 1903
(Sadsbury, Lancaster County) (Lancaster County)
They were married at Christiana, PA, 12 February 1857.
Thomas Whitson m. Hannah Starr
b. 27 September 1760 b. 3 February 1765
d. 1 June 1826 d. 20 April 1836
(Sadsbury)
The parents of Thomas Whitson, they were married 31 October 1787.
Francis Hobson m. Ann Johnson
b. 14 February 1768 b. 15 December 1775
d. 1835 (Lancaster County)
farmer and shoemaker d. 1852
(New Garden) (New Garden)
The parents of Martha Hobson, they were married 14 September 1797.
1 Garrett, Mary. 1979. "Brintons of Sadsbury Township, Lancaster County: Where they originated, what they accomplished, and where they have gone." Octorara Area Historical Society 1:13.
2 Ibid.
3 Whitson Family Chart, August 1951. The Albert Cook Myers Collection. Chester County Historical Society (Pa.)
The Chester County History Center (Pa.) also has information on the Brinton and Whitson families.
Notes
Preferred Citation: Title or description of item, date (day, month, year), Brinton Family Collection (MG0038), Folder #, LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Folder 40 was a gift of Betsey Collins, 5 March 1993.
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-38
Classification
MG0038
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Cataloged prior to 1997. Box 1 was recataloged by JB, Fall semester 2006. Added to database 16 June 2021.
