Pennsylvania Photos and Documents

The digitized copybook of William Darlington consists of 170 scanned pages and dates from 1845 to 1851. Found within the bound volume are handwritten ink-on-paper transcriptions of Darlington’s outbound correspondence to family, friends, acquaintances, institutions, and businesses. William Darlington (1782-1863) was born to a Quaker family near Dilworthtown, Chester County and spent his childhood on his family’s farm. After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania with a medical degree, Darlington served as a surgeon on a merchant ship for several years before returning to Chester County to practice medicine. A prominent member of the community, Darlington served as a major in the War of 1812, was the president of the Bank of West Chester for thirty-three years, and served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for two terms (1815-1817 and 1819-1823). After studying medical botany under Professor Benjamin Smith Barton at the University of Pennsylvania, Darlington continued to nurture a lifelong interest in botanical studies. In 1826, he published _Florula Cestrica_, a catalog of the plants native to West Chester, and that same year, was one of ten original members to establish the Chester County Cabinet of Natural Sciences. In 1837, he published an expanded volume of his catalog, _Flora Cestrica_, which contained a complete classification for every known plant in Chester County. Other works of note include _Agricultural Botany_ (1847) and _Memorials to John Bartram and Humphry Marshall_ (1849). The copybook covers Darlington’s outbound correspondence from 1845 to 1851. Correspondents include his sister, Jane Hough, and friends in the community, including the Batchelder and Jeffrey families. With these correspondents, Darlington shares thoughts on his family, women’s interest in science, and appreciation for condolence letters received upon the death of his son. A significant portion of correspondence relates to Darlington’s interest in botany, including detailed descriptions of plant specimens and their classification, and the exchange of printed publications with other botanists, plant collectors, and naturalists. Frequent correspondents include Dr. F. Boott, Anna Maria Collinson, Asa Gray, and H.W. Richardson. Additional correspondence to institutions and businesses relate to personal accounts, invitations to speak, society memberships, and other academic topics. The William Darlington Letterpress Copybook is housed and available for research use at the Chester County History Center.

The two digitized diaries of William Riley Blakeslee consist of 538 scanned pages and date from January 1862 to December 1863. Found within the diaries are accounts of his service in the Civil War, including personal accounting records, daily events, travels between camps, and visits to Coatesville. William Riley Blakeslee (1822-1909) was born to Benjamin and Sophia Lane Blakeslee in Springville Township, Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania. After receiving his medical degree, Blakeslee moved to Coatesville, Pennsylvania where he practiced medicine as a surgeon and general physician. Blakeslee was married three times and left seven children. As a well-known figure in his community, Blakeslee was known for his house and gardens, and for opening one of the first drug stores in Coatesville. During the Civil War, Blakeslee served as a surgeon with the 115th Regiment of Pennsylvania Volunteers from October 1861 until his discharge in March 1863, and returned to service from July to August 1863 in the wake of Gettysburg. After the war, he continued practicing medicine in Coatesville and was employed as a surgeon for the Pennsylvania Railroad for over fifty years. The first diary notes Blakeslee’s arrival at Camp Constitution in Camden, New Jersey in May 1862, and documents the regiment’s travels to various locations in Virginia, including Fort Monroe, Harrison’s Landing, Centerville, northern Virginia, and Fredericksburg from June to December of 1862. Entries in the second diary describe marches near Falmouth, Virginia from January to March, and activities at Camp Muhlenberg near Reading, Pennsylvania and Camp Cook near Scranton, Pennsylvania from July to August of 1863. Blakeslee’s entries for 1863 provide greater description and details regarding fellow officers, daily news, events, and visits back to his home in Coatesville. In addition, entries dating from September 9 onward include recollections and notes of daily activities from the previous year. The entirety of the William Riley Blakeslee Diary Collection is housed and available for research use at the Chester County History Center.

The Women’s Suffrage and Civil Rights Collection measures 0.3 linear feet and dates from 1852 to 1933, with the bulk of the materials dating from 1893 to 1917. Found within the collection are published materials, letters, manuscripts, and ephemera related to women’s suffrage. Materials document the Pennsylvania Woman Suffrage Association (PWSA) at the state and chapter levels, as well as the larger National Woman Suffrage Association. The Chester County Equal Suffrage Association is also represented. Some organizational materials for men, sympathetic temperance materials, and anti-suffrage materials are also included. When Elizabeth Cady Stanton introduced a suffrage resolution at the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention in New York, equal suffrage became a central part of the national woman suffrage platform. Just a few years later, West Chester’s Horticultural Hall became the host location for the Pennsylvania Woman’s Rights Convention in June 1852. In the first afternoon session, voting rights was the first resolution debated and adopted in West Chester. In 1869, the National Woman Suffrage Association was founded in response to the 15th amendment. By the early 20th century, auxiliary chapters of the National American Woman Suffrage Association, as well as similarly focused organizations for men, existed in Chester County. The collection includes correspondence regarding the planning of the 1894 PWSA Convention in West Chester, including letters between Lucy Anthony and her aunt Susan B. Anthony. A notebook by Mary Heald Way details women’s suffrage events, club activities, and quotes from publications related to women’s rights. Printed materials include flyers, tracts, and publications promoting suffrage activity dating from 1893 to 1917. In some cases, only the cover, title page, and individual relevant pages have been scanned from published materials. The entirety of the Women’s Suffrage and Civil Rights Collection is housed and available for research use at the Chester County History Center.

This collection contains photographs of Northern Chester County in the first decades of the 1900s.

The Conshohocken Recorder, April 1, 1882 - September 9, 1954.

The Fox Chapel Area High School's yearbook "Renard," published every year since 1961, is an essential window into the daily life and times of the six municipalities in the school district. The yearbooks also offer a valuable visual record of local students for genealogical research.

The Meadville Local History Collection is a condensed sketch of the early history of Meadville, Pennsylvania which covers the city's natural resources and a portrayal of leading industries educational, financial, and commercial interests.

Archival photographs documenting the priesthood of the Most Reverend Joseph McShea, Bishop of Allentown.

Elizabethtown College was founded by members of the Church of the Brethren, one of the original "peace churches" to spread from Europe to the United States. This peace pamphlet collection contains pamphlets that focus on peace issues and conscientious objectors' movement. Pamphlet dates range from 1775 to the 1970's.

The Teachers for West Africa Program was a program for young people certified in teaching to work in schools in West Africa. The teachers taught in schools in Ghana and Nigeria, usually alongside volunteers in the Peace Corps and other smaller groups such as Teachers for East Africa and Operation Crossroads Africa. The program started in 1961 and was phased out in 1972. The Hershey Foods Corporation sponsored it, while Elizabethtown College administered it. The teachers who applied were from all over the country, and only a selected few were sent to West Africa. Dr. James Berkebile, the program director; many members of the program; and teachers took photographs while traveling, living, and interacting with the local people. This collection contains photographs illustrating the landscapes, schools, and people of Ghana and Nigeria, which were later used for brochures, pamphlets, and other advertisements for the program.

This collection of audio-only interviews show the impact that COVID-19 had on businesses, local government, the healthcare sector, educational intuitions, non-profits, and houses of worship. Community leaders were invited to the library and asked to give their perspectives on the early days of the pandemic, their emergency response, the strengths and weaknesses of the Erie Community, and the lessons learned.

This collection contains maps of Erie County, PA. which have been scanned from the collection at the Erie County Public Library's Heritage Room. We have selected maps that are not readily available elsewhere online through places like The Library of Congress or the National Archives.