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Lamb-Sykes family papers, 1680-1947 (majority within 1819-1911)

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Summary

Creator:
Lamb family and Sykes family
Abstract:
The Lamb-Sykes family papers contain correspondence, financial and legal documents, daguerreotypes, and other materials related to the Philadelphia families' daily lives and business endeavors. The collection reflects their legal and mercantile affairs, investments, real estate, and involvement with the Mechanics Bank of Philadelphia.
Extent:
11 linear feet
Language:
English
Authors:
Collection processed and finding aid created by Katelyn Jedro, April 2013

Background

Scope and Content:

The Lamb-Sykes family papers date from 1683 to 1947, with the bulk of the materials concentrated between 1819 and 1911. They form a record of the lives of the Lamb and Sykes families of Philadelphia, especially their financial, legal, and business activities. The collection includes approximately 300 letters; 9 linear feet of accounts, receipts, tax records, promissory notes, and legal documents; 60 account and expense books; 6 daguerreotypes; and 0.5 linear feet of school papers, family history, printed and ephemeral items, and other materials.

The Correspondence series is made up of approximately 300 letters to and from members of the Lamb, Sykes, and Norris families, between 1819 and 1907. Few writers sent more than a small number of letters to their family and friends. The correspondence reflects a variety of different activities and experiences, and many different geographical locations. Selected examples include:

  • Six letters between the Carswells and the Jacksons. Andrew Jackson and his wife Rachel sent four letters to Margaret and Margaretta Carswell between 1819 and 1822; Margaretta and Andrew Jackson each wrote 1 letter in 1843. These letters refer to historical events, such as the Treaty of Doak's Stand (Rachel Jackson's letter of October 20, 1820). In 1843, Margaretta wrote to Andrew Jackson about her intention to create a school for girls. The former U.S. President commended her for her proposal, and promised to spread the word amongst his female relations.
  • Five letters by Margaret Carswell, cousins, and siblings to Margaretta Lamb, from West Ely, Missouri, in the winter of 1837-1838
  • Approximately 10 letters between Margaretta and her husband, written when Lemuel traveled to London in the late 1830s. In these letters they discussed business and domestic life in Philadelphia.
  • Four letters written by Margaretta's daughter Margaret, during her travels to France and Germany in 1846
  • Six letters to Margaretta Lamb from her (former) pupils in 1851
  • Five letters by Margaretta's son Samuel, written from Panama, then San Francisco, in 1854. By the following year, he moved to St. Paul, Minnesota, where he wrote approximately 15 letters. In his letters from San Francisco, he described the quality of life in the West difficulties finding work, and the influx of people to the area.
  • Approximately 21 letters by Lemuel Lamb, Jr., in the mid-late 1850s from Detroit, Michigan; Superior, Wisconsin; St. Louis, Missouri; Chattanooga, Tennessee; New Orleans; Dubuque, Iowa; Pittsburgh; Marshall, Texas; and others. In letters to his mother and father, he remarked on his journey west, a cholera outbreak, his own good health, and his business affairs.
  • Twenty letters to Isaac Norris, Jr., from Jennie Carlile Boyd in Newport, Rhode Island, between April and July 1890. She wrote 15 of them on mourning stationery.
  • Approximately 27 letters from Harriet Lamb, Charles [Grugan?], and [Anne Grugan?] about their stay in Paris in 1851 and detailing the final illness and death of Margaret Lamb.

The Documents and Financial Records series consists of approximately 9 linear feet of financial, legal, and land documents of the Lamb and Sykes family. The series includes documents related to court cases; estate administration records for Margaretta Lamb, Franklin Wharton, Sarah Moore, and others; documents related to land holdings in Philadelphia, New Jersey, Delaware, and Rhode Island; and papers related to trade, investment, and banking.

The Photographs series includes 6 cased daguerreotypes. One postmortem portrait of Harriet Lamb in her coffin is accompanied by Philadelphia photographer Marcus Root's receipt of sale and the undertaker's bill for funeral expenses (1853). The other daguerreotypes are undated portraits of unidentified individuals and groups.

The Poetry, Recipes, Lists, and Fragments series contains 9 poems and writing fragments, 1 medicinal recipe, 1 recipe for cream pie, 1 book of lists, and 1 blank book. One poem, dated 1850 and titled "Fools and Their Money Parted," laments a decision to provide money to family members for the purposes of investment. The medicinal recipe is a "Cure for Cancer, Erysypelas, Humours, Diseases of the Liver, & Coughs" (undated). The book of lists is a volume of approximately 80 pages, which contains lists of books, Christmas gifts, prints, the contents of trunks, and other household objects (ca. 1880s).

The Printed Materials series consists of 2 circulars, 2 books, 16 stock reports, 23 issues of the serial Infant's Magazine, 2 pamphlets, approximately 60 newspaper clippings, and 2 engravings. See the box and folder listing below for more information about these items.

The Genealogy series consists of approximately 45 genealogical manuscripts pertaining to the Lamb, Norris, Pepper, Sykes, and Wharton families. One document regards Lemuel Lamb's immediate family, with birth and death dates for most of his siblings, and for some of his brothers-in-law. The Norris family genealogical materials include a 395-page family album with original and copied 18th- and 19th-century correspondence, photos and illustrations, newspaper clippings, and other items. A booklet printed by the "Provincial Councilors of Pennsylvania" includes a history of the Norris family. A similar booklet, prepared for an October 19, 1947, family reunion, describes the genealogy of the "Pepper Clan." The Sykes family materials are made up of copies of letters and writings documenting the early history of the family and their emigration to America. The Wharton family items include copied letters and writings, and an incomplete draft of the memoirs of Robert Wharton.

The Realia series includes 2 circular medals from the Bulldog Club of America, 1924 and 1925, and a metal nameplate from the urn of "Isacco Norris," Dr. Isaac Norris, who died in Italy.

Biographical / Historical:

Lemuel Lamb was born in 1779, one of nine children of Lemuel (1738-1812) and Desire Swan Lamb (1739-1797). The younger Lemuel became a merchant, moved to Delaware County, New York, and ran a store there by 1802. He invested in multiple business enterprises, including the La Motte Mining Company, the Quincy Land Group, and the Deep River Gold Mine. He served as the president of the Mechanics Bank from 1824 to 1841. Lemuel Lamb died on September 21, 1855.

Margaretta Lamb was born on April 10, 1801, the daughter of Irish immigrant and merchant Samuel Carswell (d. 1822) and Margaret Carswell. Margaretta had at least three siblings, Mary, Samuel, and Matthew. She married Lemuel Lamb (1779-1855) in 1822. The same year, she inherited her father's stock in the Mechanics Bank, and real estate in and outside of Pennsylvania. The family suffered financial losses, partly associated with the fall of the Second Bank of the United States in 1836, and, in order to help offset the losses, Margaretta established a girl's boarding school at the family's home on Chestnut Street in Philadelphia. Andrew Jackson (1767-1845) was a friend of Margaretta's father, Samuel Carswell, and Rachel Jackson (1767-1828) held Mary Ann and Ezra Stiles Ely (Margaretta's sister and brother-in-law) in high regard. Margaretta raised her two sons and seven daughters, and actively participated in the family's business affairs, especially as Lemuel spent considerable time away from home. Margaretta Lamb died on November 14, 1882.

Robert Wharton Sykes, born on July 1796, descended from the Wharton family, who emigrated from England to Pennsylvania in the 17th century. He was one of four children of Mary Wharton and William Sykes. Robert practiced law in Philadelphia. He married and had at least one child, Robert Franklin Sykes (December 5, 1838-December 12, 1838). Following the death of his first wife, Robert married Lucy Swan Lamb, one of Margaretta and Lemuel Lamb's daughters. Robert W. Sykes invested in Philadelphia and New Jersey real estate, and his extensive business records respect multiple rental properties. He died on September 13, 1875, at his residence in Germantown.

Isaac Norris, Jr., was born on August 2, 1865, the son of Lucy S. Lamb Sykes's sister Clara Lamb and Isaac Norris, MD (b. 1834). Isaac Norris, Jr., earned a bachelor of philosophy at Yale University in 1885, and a bachelor of law from the University of Pennsylvania in 1888. He practiced law and resided at Fair Hill, the family estate in Bryn Mawr. On April 3, 1902, he married Harriet (d. August 18, 1905). They had one daughter, Mary Lloyd Norris (b. January 4, 1903).

Acquisition Information:
1996, 2002. M-3224, M-4249, M-5078.1 .
Processing information:

Cataloging funded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC). This collection has been processed according to minimal processing procedures and may be revised, expanded, or updated in the future.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged into the following eight series:
  • Correspondence
  • Documents and Financial Records
  • School Papers
  • Photographs
  • Poetry, Recipes, Lists, and Fragments
  • Printed Materials
  • Genealogy
  • Realia
The series are arranged in bundles, which reflect the collection's original order:
  • Series I: Correspondence
  • Series II: Documents and Financial Records
    • Sub-series I: Lamb and Sykes Family Legal and Land Documents
      • Sub-sub-series I: Court Cases
      • Sub-sub-series II: Certificates and Legal Documents
      • Sub-sub-series III: Estate Administration Records
      • Sub-sub-series IV: Land Documents
    • Sub-series II: Lemuel and Margaretta Lamb Financial Records
      • Sub-sub-series I: Accounts and Financial Correspondence
      • Sub-sub-series II: Accounts and Correspondence with Lucius Kingman of the Quincy Land Agency
      • Sub-sub-series III: Accounts and Correspondence with Joseph Winchell & Company
      • Sub-sub-series IV: Deep River Gold Mining Company Papers
      • Sub-sub-series V: La Motte Mining Company Papers
      • Sub-sub-series VI: Receipts, Promissory Notes, and Tax Records
      • Sub-sub-series VII: Account and Expense Books
    • Sub-series III: Sykes Family Financial Records
      • Sub-sub-series I: Robert Sykes Accounts and Financial Correspondence
      • Sub-sub-series II: Sykes Family Accounts
      • Sub-sub-series III: Washington Manufacturing Company Papers
      • Sub-sub-series IV: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Railroad Terminus Papers
      • Sub-sub-series V: Receipts and Tax Records
      • Sub-sub-series VI: Sykes Family Account and Expense Books
  • Series III: School Papers
  • Series IV: Photographs
  • Series V: Poetry, Recipes, Lists, and Fragments
  • Series VI: Printed Materials
    • Sub-series I: Circulars, Stock Reports, Pamphlets, and Books
    • Sub-series II: Newspaper Clippings
    • Sub-series III: Engravings
  • Series VII: Genealogy
  • Series VIII: Realia

Rules or Conventions:
Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS)

Subjects

Click on terms below to find any related finding aids on this site.

Subjects:
Administration of estates.
Banks and banking--Pennsylvania--Philadelphia.
Boarding schools--Pennsylvania--Philadelphia.
Estates (Law)
Gold mines and mining.
Inheritance and succession.
Lawyers--Pennsylvania--Philadelphia.
Lead mines and mining--Missouri.
Merchants--New York.
Merchants--Pennsylvania--Philadelphia.
Mines and mineral resources--United States.
Real estate investment.
Travel--France.
Travel--Germany.
Travel--Italy.
Trusts and trustees.
Wills.
Women teachers--Pennsylvania--Philadelphia.
Portraits.
Portraits, Group.
Postmortem photography--United States--History--19th century.
Formats:
Account books.
Albums (books)
Cadastral maps.
Certificates.
Checkbooks (or financial records)
Daguerreotypes.
Deeds.
Depositions.
Drawings (visual works)
Estate administration records.
Financial records.
Genealogies (histories)
Indentures.
Letters (correspondence)
Medals.
Photographs.
Powers of attorney.
Prints (visual works)
Promissory notes.
Receipts (financial records)
Stock certificates.
Tax records.
Wills.
Names:
Farmers' and Mechanics' Bank in the City of Philadelphia.
Joseph Winchell and Company.
La Motte Mines.
Pennsylvania Railroad.
Second National Bank of Philadelphia.
Washington Manufacturing Company.
Moore, Sarah.
Wharton, Franklin.
Lamb, Harriet, 1832-1853.
Boyd, Jennie Carlile.
Carswell, Margaret.
Carswell, Samuel.
Ely, Ezra Stiles, 1786-1861.
Grugan, Annie.
Grugan, Charles.
Kingman, Lucius.
Lamb, Lemuel, 1779-1855.
Lamb, Lemuel, Jr., 1833-1866.
Lamb, Samuel Carswell, 1836-1872.
Lamb, Margaretta Carswell, 1801-1882.
Jackson, Andrew, 1767-1845.
Jackson, Rachel, 1767-1828.
McClellan, James E.
M'Clellan, Samuel, 1800-1853.
MacGregor, Mary.
Miles, George W.
Nichols, Charles.
Norris, Isaac, Jr., 1865-1936.
Pepper, Margaret Lamb, d. 1851.
Robinson, John J.
Sykes, Lucy Swan Lamb, d. 1900.
Sykes, Mary.
Sykes, Robert Wharton, 1796-1875.
Wharton, Joseph, 1734-1816.
Wharton, Joseph, 1707-1776.
Winchell, Joseph.
Places:
Bryn Mawr (Pa.)
Detroit (Mich.)
Philadelphia (Pa.)
Saint Paul (Minn.)
San Francisco (Calif.)
Superior (Wisc.)
West Ely (Mo.)

Contents

Using These Materials

Info for Visitors

How to Request

Ordering Reproductions

Download PDF Finding Aid
RESTRICTIONS:

The collection is open for research.

USE & PERMISSIONS:

Copyright status is unknown

PREFERRED CITATION:

Lamb-Sykes Family Papers, William L. Clements Library, The University of Michigan

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Collection

Lamb-Sykes family papers, 1680-1947 (majority within 1819-1911)
Total components 133
Last indexed 2025-02-09