Archival Adventures in Small Repositories

The goal of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania's "Hidden Collections Initiative for Pennsylvania Small Archival Repositories" (HCI-PSAR) is to make better known and more accessible the important but often hidden archival collections held by the many small, primarily volunteer-run historical organizations in the Philadelphia area. The project is funded by a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. This blog will document the adventures and experiences of Project Surveyors as they visit historical societies, museums, historic sites, and other small archival repositories in Philadelphia and Montgomery counties.

Sesquicentennial Memories at Strawberry Mansion
1/18/12
Author: Celia Caust-Ellenbogen

The Sesquicentennial International Exposition, held in Philadelphia in 1926, is widely considered to be a monumental flop. Hoping to recreate the success of the Centennial Exposition of 1876, funders pumped a veritable fortune into building a temporary city on what is now Franklin Delano Roosevelt Park. For goodness’ sake, the first bridge between Philadelphia and New Jersey (today known as the Benjamin Franklin Bridge) was built in greedy anticipation of hordes of paying customers. But the hordes didn’t come, and, embarrassingly, the Sesquicentennial Exhibition Association was placed in equity receivership in 1927 for its inability to pay off its debts.

Topics: 20th century, Arts and Culture, Philadelphia, Women
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Awbury Arboretum: Worth the Journey
1/11/12
Author: Celia Caust-Ellenbogen

Who wants to come with me on a trip to Europe? We'll go visit Paris, and Rome; it'll be fun! Oh, but before you pack your bags, I should probably mention this one tiny detail: We'll be going in 1877. Many nights and days will be passed on coal-powered trains, and it's going to get pretty bumpy... The, ahem, bathroom facilities might not be quite up to 21st-century health standards... I'll just come out and admit it: this is not going to be a glamorous trip.

Topics: 19th century, Women
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Happy New Year from the HS of Whitpain
1/4/12
Author: Celia Caust-Ellenbogen

Happy New Year! This beautiful card comes from the archival materials at the Historical Society of Whitpain. We have learned a lot about Normandy Farm recently, since it falls in the collecting area of both the Historical Society of Whitpain and the Wissahickon Valley Historical Society.

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Christmas in Goschenhoppen
12/28/11
Author: Celia Caust-Ellenbogen

I'm not particularly scared of Santa Claus (his freakish ability to withstand the heat inside a chimney notwithstanding). But if I had grown up in a Pennsylvania German community and heard stories about Belsnickel, I would probably be terrified. We managed to capture a rare candid photo of him while surveying the archival collections of the Goschenhoppen Historians, and you have to admit, he's a bit intimidating.

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A Christmas Wish in Ambler, 1936 (Wissahickon Valley HS)
12/22/11
Author: Celia Caust-Ellenbogen

What do you want for Christmas this year? Imagine if the president of your company agreed to pay off all of your debts--mortgages, hospital bills, everything--or give you $1,500 cash if you had none. Imagine if he didn't just do it for you, but agreed to pay the debts of everyone working at the company? Wouldn't that be a wonderful Christmas?

That is exactly what happened in Ambler, Pennsylvania in 1936.

Topics: 20th century, Business, Depression, Economics, Industry, Labor
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The "asBESTos" scrapbooks are at the HS of Fort Washington
12/16/11
Author: Celia Caust-Ellenbogen

Did you know that Ambler used to be the asbestos capital of the world? The appeal of that slogan doesn't really stand the test of time, but if it weren't for the industrial development that came with the Keasbey & Mattison asbestos factory, the borough of Ambler in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania wouldn't be what it is today.

Topics: 20th century, Environment and Nature, Industry
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A Story of Perseverance at the Welsh Valley Preservation Society
12/12/11
Author: Celia Caust-Ellenbogen

When Hugo Fischer emigrated from Germany to Towamencin Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania in the early 1900s, he bought a mill. At the time it seemed like a solid investment, but by the 1920s, the mill already wasn't doing as well as he had hoped. But then--opportunity! Fischer's mill was on a beautiful 14-acre property, and motorists began picnicking and asking for permission to camp in the scenic environs. Fischer recognized the lucrative possibilities, and started building facilities to entice more guests--for a fee, of course--a candy and ice cream pavilion, a boardwalk over the dam, cabanas, and a swimming pool. Before long, Fischer's Pool was a recreation destination!

Topics: 20th century, Business, Economics, Environment and Nature
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Another Man's Treasure at the Highlands Historical Society
12/1/11
Author: Celia Caust-Ellenbogen

More often than you'd think, we hear stories of valuable archival materials being rescued from trash heaps. For goodness' sake, it even happened with some of William Penn's papers--charged with the task of shredding Penn family documents in 1870, a "Mr. X" grew bored of his work and sold the lot for pulp to a paper mill instead. From there, luckily, the papers found their way to an auction house, and many of those same documents are now safely housed at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania.* Yet another reason to thank savvy trash-pickers is the Sheaff journals at the Highlands Historical Society.

Topics: 19th century, 20th century
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Worcester Historical Society: Enter Now!
11/22/11
Author: Celia Caust-Ellenbogen

Have you seen the movie "The Prize-Winner of Defiance Ohio" ? It's a really fantastic film, based on a memoir by Terry "Tuff" Ryan about how her mother helped support a family of 12 by winning jingle-writing contests. (Check out the trailer here.) I couldn't stop thinking about it the whole time I was surveying the archival holdings of the Worcester Historical Society, because of the "Christine Shearer and Irma Schultz Scrapbooks" collection. Christine Shearer of Worcester, PA was quite as avid a contest-winner as Evelyn Ryan of Defiance, Ohio. And Christine Shearer made scrapbooks about it!

Topics: 20th century, Arts and Culture, Economics, Women
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Get a Meta-Education at the Lower Merion Historical Society
11/16/11
Author: Celia Caust-Ellenbogen

Want to learn about the history of education? Or how to teach people about history? Or how to run an effective community-based educational project? Go to the Lower Merion Historical Society, son, and get yourself schooled.

Topics: 20th century, Education, World War II
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