Collections : [University of Michigan William L. Clements Library]

This partially printed, 208-page volume contains notes kept by Charles Staples, Jr., while he served as a judge of exhibits at the Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1876. Staples assessed products in classes 280-284 within the manufactures section, which included items such as files, razors, cutlery, nails, and lumberjack tools. He commented most extensively on a variety of "burglar-proof" safes.

This partially printed, 208-page volume contains notes kept by Charles Staples, Jr., while serving as a judge of exhibits at the Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1876. Staples assessed products in classes 280-284 within the manufactures section, which included items such as files, razors, cutlery, nails, lumberjack tools, and safes.

Charles Staples, Jr., a native of Portland, Maine, attended the Centennial Exhibition sometime between May and November 1876. He served as an exhibit judge for Department II (Manufactures), Group XV, classes 280-284, and recorded his notes in a pre-printed "International Exhibition 1876 Judges' note book." For each exhibit, Staples provided the manufacturers' names, the items' class numbers, the items' places of origin, and his observations. He noted which exhibits won awards, and often mentioned manufacturers who offered low prices. Staples assessed goods from the United States and from a number of foreign countries, which included Germany, Russia, Poland, Switzerland, France, Belgium, Egypt, Jamaica, Norway, Brazil, the Netherlands, Canada, Great Britain, Sweden, and Italy. Many types of items were associated with a particular country; Canada, for example, displayed a large number of axes and other tools used in the lumber industry. Staples also viewed files, scissors and shears, cutlery, axles, nails, hunting and cooking knives, rivets, coffin fittings, locks, and hinges. The final pages hold more extensive notes on safes, many of which were asserted to be "burglar-proof." A brief partial index appears on the last page of the volume.

This collection contains 11 letters that Dennis McElhone wrote to his friend, Andrew B. Cochran of Pottsville, Pennsylvania, in 1860. McElhone commented on life in Washington, D.C., where he worked as an assistant messenger for the United States House of Representatives, and remarked on political issues such as the presidential election of 1860.

This collection contains 11 letters that Dennis McElhone ("Denny") wrote to his friend, Andrew B. Cochran ("Andy") of Pottsville, Pennsylvania, from February 16, 1860-July 23, 1860. McElhone commented on life in Washington, D.C., where he worked as an assistant messenger for the United States House of Representatives. He wrote about political issues, such as possible nominees for the presidential election of 1860, and inquired about friends in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. McElhone expressed his support for the Democratic Party, but indicated his willingness to vote for a Republican candidate under certain circumstances. He also described differences between the North and the South, commented on sectionalism in politics, and mentioned mutual acquaintances and his plans to visit Pennsylvania. For more information, see the Detailed Box and Folder Listing below.

This volume (22 pages) is a typewritten biography of Elias Durand, a French immigrant who became a notable pharmacist and botanist in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the mid-19th century. The biography, written by a former apprentice, concentrates on Durand's final years in France and on his pharmaceutical career in the United States.

This volume (22 pages) is a typewritten biography of Elias Durand, a French immigrant who became a notable pharmacist and botanist in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the mid-19th century. The biography, written by a former apprentice, concentrates on Durand's final years in France and on his pharmaceutical career in the United States.

Durand's final apprentice wrote this biography, entitled Some Recollections of an Old Corner, in 1886. Two images are pasted into the book's opening pages: an illustration of Durand's pharmacy and a photograph of Elias Durand. The biography begins with a brief history of Durand's studies in France, as well as a description of his service as an assistant pharmacist in Napoleon's Army. The bulk of the narrative concerns Durand's experiences in the United States, first in Boston and Baltimore and then as a pharmacy owner in Philadelphia.

The author traces Durand's first jobs in America, including descriptions of Durand's encounter with a group of Native Americans outside of Baltimore (pp. 7-8) and his establishment of his own business, which he operated between 1824 and 1852. The biography frequently discusses Durand's role in the professionalization of the American pharmaceutical industry and mentions many of his accomplishments, such as his invention of an apparatus for making "carbonic acid water" (p. 10), his use of French literature and research to further American pharmacy expertise (pp. 11-12), his soda water and fruit juice concoctions (pp. 13-14), and his work bottling mineral water (p. 18). The author credits Durand with the creation of several medicines and notes the pharmacist's association with prominent Philadelphia doctors including Charles Meigs and Samuel Jackson. The biography also briefly mentions Durand's later botanical career and his personal life.

This collection consists of incoming letters sent to Mary Averell Knap of Brownsville and Ogdensburg, New York, between 1850 and 1862, and letters sent to her granddaughter, Lydia Averell Hasbrouck, of Ogdensburg, New York, in 1885 and 1886 by her cousin, Thomas Whitney Brown. The correspondence concerns daily life, occasional references to the Civil War, literature, and Brown's attempts to gain admission to the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University).

The Knap-Whitney family letters consist of approximately 88 letters. The correspondence addressed to Mary Averell Knap includes 4 outgoing and approximately 75 incoming personal letters dated between 1848 and 1864. Her parents, friends, cousins, and other family members commented on their daily lives, with occasional references to the Civil War. Mary Knap's father, Thomas Knap, informed his daughter about his life in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the fall of 1850, and occasionally discussed the sermons he heard. After 1850, Mary's correspondents primarily included her cousins and friends. In the mid-1850s, Maria M. Campbell (later Smith), a cousin, wrote about her education and social life at St. Mary's Hall, Burlington, New Jersey, and in October 1858 discussed her relocation to Fort Mason, Texas (resultant from her husband's affiliation with the United States Army's Second Cavalry). Susie P. Willene wrote of her life in "Frankford," and in one letter she shared her distaste for recent political developments in South Carolina, despite her southern heritage (June 22, 1855). Other friends reported social news, such as marriages and, in one instance, the author's secret engagement. Knap also received letters from several men, including one written in German.

Though Mary Knap continued to receive letters throughout the Civil War, her correspondents primarily focused on personal matters, such as her cousin Will's efforts to establish a forge at Fort Pitt, Pennsylvania. Others described a visit to an army encampment in Washington, D.C., and mentioned a soldier's aid society.

Mary A. Knap also wrote 4 letters to George Whitney in 1857, about her life in Brownsville and his unreciprocated romantic advances.

The correspondence sent from Thomas Brown Whitney of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to his cousin, Lydia Averell Hasbrouck of Ogdensburg, New York, includes 8 letters dated from 1885 and 1886 and 1 letter dated in 1940. He shared family news and stories, and commented on his daily life. An avid reader, he frequently discussed literature and literary figures, such as Lords Tennyson and Byron, and occasionally copied poetry into his letters. Whitney enjoyed fencing, and drew several figures fighting in his letter of December 26, 1885. After September 1885, the letters concentrate on his desire to attend College of New Jersey (now Princeton University), and he wrote of his studies, college entrance exams, and classes in Latin. On April 6, 1886, he voiced his concerns about "hazing and general fighting" at Princeton. His letter dated March 23, 1940, reflects on a bout of "grippe" and attitudes towards the Second World War, including German anti-war sentiment.

The Liberty Bell Tour photograph album contains approximately 580 photographs depicting the journey of the Liberty Bell from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to the Panama-Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco, California, and back again in 1915.

The Liberty Bell Tour photograph album contains approximately 580 photographs depicting the journey of the Liberty Bell from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to the Panama-Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco, California, and back again in 1915.

The album (40 x 28 cm) has black paper covers and 305 pages, 14 of which do not contain any photographs. The photographs are generally arranged in chronological sequence and depict loading the Liberty Bell onto parade floats and train cars, celebratory parades, gathered crowds, and individuals and groups posing with the Liberty Bell. Numerous pictures include captions referencing the locations in which they were taken. The album also contains two small maps, each showing one of the routes of the cross-county trips that the Liberty Bell took, as well as landscape photographs of scenes in the western United States. Notable persons photographed with the Liberty Bell include Thomas Edison, members of the Daughters of the American Revolution, and groups of Native Americans in Cayuse, Oregon. Landscapes pictured include views of Wyoming, Pulpit Rock, Bear River Canyon, Mount Shasta, Shasta Springs, Horseshoe Curve, Royal Gorge, the Rockies, Salt Lake, and Feather River Canyon.

This collection contains the text of two sermons given by Quaker minister Priscilla Hunt Cadwallader in 1824 and 1831, along with two copies of notes on a sermon given by Cadwallader at Philadelphia in the early 19th century.

This collection contains the text of two sermons given by Quaker minister Priscilla Hunt Cadwallader in 1824 and 1831, along with two copies of notes on a sermon given by her at Philadelphia in the early 19th century. The first item is the 4-page text of "A Sermon Delivered by Priscilla Hunt at New Bedford," dated April 15, 1824, about religious judgment, and turning to God and to the Christian faith. In a second sermon, entitled "A Sermon by Priscilla Cadwalader at Concord Quartly Meeting, held at Darby" (November 15, 1831), she discussed a range of religious topics; the 9-page document is particularly notable for its emphasis on the judgment of God and for Cadwallader's prophetic vision of the coming Civil War. She said, "I have seen Africa's sons … distinctly heard the … roar of cannons, those thunders of war approaching North America[,] raging and ransacking through the United States, with glittering clashing swords … Hath not my spiritual eye beheld brother's sword bathed in a brother's blood. Ah! My friends the clouds are rising, the tempest will come, and a more tremendous storm never beat on American Shores." The final two items in the collection are copies of identical notes, entitled "Priscilla Hunt's Exercise in Philadelphia." These notes allude to internal strife within the Society of Friends; as the author explained, " … the Trump of the everlasting Gospel would be laid down in this City because says she you have erred against the true gospel."