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Collection
James Buchanan Collection
Title
James Buchanan Collection
Object ID
MG0096
Date Range
1816-present
  1 document  
Collection
James Buchanan Collection
Title
James Buchanan Collection
Description
The James Buchanan Collection, 1816-present, contains material that pertains to the life and legacy of James Buchanan and his Lancaster home, Wheatland. The collection includes correspondence of James Buchanan and letters written by his niece, Harriet Lane Johnston. Newspaper articles discuss Buchanan's life and Wheatland, tell the story of Buchanan's romance with Ann Coleman, and report on commemorative events. Legal and personal business are represented by deeds, financial matters, and Buchanan's probate records.
Political papers include the Presidential appointment of Buchanan as Minister to Russia, certification to represent Pennsylvania in the U.S. Senate, and a series of letters regarding the Atlantic slave trade in 1819 and Liberia in 1858. In letters, Buchanan outlined his reasons for not wanting to run for Governor, wrote about the confidence bestowed on him by the Democratic Party, and established a fund for the city of Lancaster to purchase wood and coal for poor women during the winter. After the Crimean War, Buchanan wrote to the ambassador to the United Kingdom and observed that Russia seemed to be intent on recovering its military prestige and had made vast naval preparations.
There is an assortment of ephemera, such as programs for memorial celebrations, material related to John Updike's play Buchanan Dying, commemorative stamps, sheet music, and invitations. Souvenir pamphlets from Wheatland provide history about Buchanan's home and the museum. Speeches range from those given by Buchanan to several that honor his life and Presidency. A scrapbook describes the establishment of Wheatland as a museum and contains newspaper articles about archaeology on the site in 1948.
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.
Date Range
1816-present
Creation Date
1816-present
Year Range From
1816
Creator
LancasterHistory (Organization)
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 03
People
Buchanan, James
Johnston, Harriet Lane
Other Creators
Buchanan, James (1791-1868)
Subjects
Ambassadors
Historic houses
Legal documents
Legislators--United States
Letters
Memorials
Monuments
Personal correspondence
Presidents--United States
Russia
Slavery
Statues
Wheatland (Lancaster, Pa.)
Search Terms
Ambassadors
Buchanan Collections
Historic houses
James Buchanan
James Buchanan Presidential Library
Legal documents
Letters
Memorials
Monuments
Correspondence, Personal
Presidents
Russia
Senators, United States
Slavery
Statues
Wheatland
Extent
2 boxes, 80 folders, 1 scrapbook, 1 oversized item, 4 cubic ft.
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Object ID
MG0096
Location of Originals
Location of originals is noted when known.
Newspaper articles were preserved as photocopies.
Associated Material
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 (JBFP)
Historical Society of Pennsylvania microfilm in the LancasterHistory Research Library
LancasterHistory Library collection
Photograph collection
Curatorial collection
Wheatland Mansion
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.
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.
To make a request, please contact archives@lancasterhistory.org for a high-resolution image and permission to publish.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Classification
MG0096
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Digitization of the James Buchanan Collection was funded by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, PHMC Appl ID # 201808013051, 2019-2020.
James Buchanan and Wheatland Scrapbook, February 1936-May
1948 was cataloged as part of a project funded by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, ME60112, 2007-2008.
Documents
Less detail
Collection
Yeates, Lancaster County Historical Society Collection
Title
Yeates, Lancaster County Historical Society Collection
Object ID
MG0205
Date Range
1699-1934
Jasper Yeates. Signatures of Jasper Yeates, William Montgomery, James Buchanan, and Philip Metzgar. 16 September 1816. With the seal of Jasper Yeates. Recorded by William Bausman, Register of Wills. 27 March 1817. Folder 16b Photocopies of Jasper Yeates’ will Photocopy of the manuscript copy of the will
  1 document  
Collection
Yeates, Lancaster County Historical Society Collection
Title
Yeates, Lancaster County Historical Society Collection
Description
Yeates, Lancaster County Historical Society Collection provides insight into the Yeates family, local social history, and details of legal business from 1743-1870. These documents have been collected by the Lancaster County Historical Society over many years. Collection includes letters, receipts, articles, eviction notice, advertisement, estate inventories, wills, deeds, treaty, court transcript, drawings, photographs, copy of house plan, post road distances, daybook, letter book, catalog of books in Jasper Yeates' library, and an alphabetical catalog of law books.
Date Range
1699-1934
Year Range From
1699
Year Range To
1934
Date of Accumulation
1699-1934
Creator
LancasterHistory (Organization)
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 05
People
Atkinson, Matthew
Bausman, William
Bond, Phineas
Bowman, Valentine
Bradford, W.
Brien, Edward
Burd, Edward
Carson, John
Coates, Samuel
Conyngham, David
Conyngham, Elizabeth Yeates
Conyngham, Redmond
Dallas, George M.
Davis, Jonathan
Davison, Benjamin
Dickey, Robert
Duncannon, Thomas
Edward, Thomas
Erter, Henry
Ewing, John
Ferguson, John
Fohren, Michael
Gibson, John
Gillchrist, John
Godcharles, Frederic A.
Graff, Conrad
Gregg, Andrew
Grubb, Peter
Hamilton, Charles
Hamilton, James
Hamilton, John
Hamilton, William
Hand, Edward
Hand, Jasper
Hayes, A. L.
Henry, John
Hess, David
Jago, John
Javin, William
Keeportz, Daniel
Kittera, William
Kremer, Philip
Krug, Jacob
Kurtz, William
Lindsay, William
Loudersmith, Wendel
Lyon, Joseph Barnet
Magaw, David
Marshall, J.
McClellan, John
McKean, Thomas
Millar, John
Miller, Michael
Minich, Henry
Muhlenberg, William Augustus
Nesbitt, John
Nissley, Martin
Ord, John
Philips, David
Postlethwaite, John
Poultney, Thomas
Price, Eli K.
Probst, John
Ramsey, Robert
Rawle, William
Riegart, Adam
Rine, Widow
Ross, George
Ross, J.
Scott, James
Sergeant, Thomas
Shippen, Edward
Shippen, Evans Wallis
Shippen, Robert
Simpson, John
Smith, Charles
Smith, Mary Yeates
Stein, Charles
Steinman, Fredrick
Stevenson, Henry
Stewart, Charles
Sturmii, Johannis Christophorus
Thomas, John
Tilghman, Benjamin C.
Tilghman, E.
Tilghman, Edward
Tilghman, William
Tilghman, William B.
Towson, William
Underwood, John
Wallace, George
Wallace, William
Waln, Nicholas
Warden, J.
White, William
Wickersham, Elijah
Willson, Samuel
Yeates, Catharine
Yeates, Jasper
Yeates, Jasper, Jr.
Yeates, John, Jr.
Yeates, John, Sr.
Yeates, Margaret
Yeates, Sarah Burd "Sally"
Zantzinger, Paul
Subjects
Business records
Deeds
Family records
Law libraries
Letters
Library catalogs
Wills
Search Terms
Business records
Correspondence
Deeds
Family records
Finding aids
Letters
Manuscript groups
Wills
Extent
6 boxes, 49 folders, 13 books, 6 cubic ft.
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Object ID
MG0205
Location of Originals
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Copies
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Related Item Notes
Yeates, Aungst Collection (MG0206)
Yeates, Carson Collection (MG0207)
George M. Steinman Collection (MG0184)
Jasper Yeates Colonial Law Library
Objects in the Curatorial Collection
Notes
Preferred Citation: Title or description of item, date (day, month, year), Yeates, Lancaster County Historical Society Collection (MG0205), Folder #, LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Access Conditions / Restrictions
Restrictions noted at the item level. The letter copybooks in Folders 31 and 36 are restricted--please use the transcriptions available in the library.
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-205
Classification
MG0205
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Folders 1-34 and Books 1-2 were processed and finding aid prepared prior to 1997. Added to PP on 26 March 2022.
Documents
Less detail