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Chase-Cromwell-Underhill Family papers

 Collection
Identifier: HC.MC-1238

Scope and Contents

The collection includes members of the Quaker Chase, Cromwell, and Underhill families. The principal authors are Lincoln Cromwell, Thomas Chase, and Alice Cromwell Chase. The papers are oriented toward business -- several of the Cromwells and Underhills were involved in the Bowery Savings Bank in New York, for example. The letters are primarily on topics of health and daily life. There are a few diaries by women in the collection.

Dates

  • 1782-1952

Creator

Access Restrictions

The collection is open for research use.

Use Restrictions

Standard Federal Copyright Laws Apply (U.S. Title 17).

Biographical / Historical

Logan Goodman, donor of this collection, discovered the collection in a barn on her property. No information on the previous owner is known.

James W. Cromwell (1842-?) was a member of Haverford College class of 1859. He was one of the founders of the literary society at Haverford, Athenaeum, and secretary of the Henry Society. After graduation, he became a mercantile banker and a member of the firm of William Iselin & Co. He was a night hospital nurse during the Civil War at the New England Soldiers' Relief Hospital in New York. He was a member of many arts, science, and business clubs.

From: Haverford College Matriculate Catalog, p. 91.

Lincoln Cromwell (?-1952) was elected a trustee of the Bowery Savings Bank in 1917 and remained so until his death in 1952. He was a partner in the William Iselin & Co. drygoods company beginning in 1898.

William Cromwell (1800-1872) was the son of James and Charlotte Cromwell. He married Caroline Underhill in 1825. He was a member of the Society of Friends and was active in working toward emancipation and the humane treatment of Native Americans. He was a member of the House of Refuge for Juvenile Delinquents. He was a trustee of the Bowery Savings Bank. Alice, his daughter, married Thomas Chase, president of Haverford College.

Eleanora Kissel was a member of the American Expeditionary Forces with the YMCA Army of Occupation in France and Germany from March 1918 to July 1919. She was also a painter, and painted landscapes, still lifes, and figures.

Thomas Chase (1827-1892), son of Anthony and Lydia Chase, was president of Haverford College from 1875 to 1886. A New Testament scholar and a member of the American Committee for the revision of the Bible, Thomas Chase came to Haverford from Harvard as Professor of Philology and Classical Literature dedicated to high scholarship and community for its 40-some students. He authored numerous publications on classical subjects. His address at the Friends' School on Whittier in 1884 was said by the poet to be "the most discriminating, just, and sympathetic criticism of his literary work that he had seen, and he made hime one of his literary executors." He married Alice Cromwell.

Alice Cromwell Chase (1837-1882) was the daughter of William Cromwell and a member of Monthly Meeting of Philadelphia for the Western District. She married Thomas Chase.

From The Friends' Review.

Extent

25 folders (5 boxes)

Language

English

Overview

The collection is concentrated on the period of 19th to early 20th century and includes the correspondence, diaries, genealogies, wills, deeds, and scrapbooks of the Quaker Chase, Cromwell, and Underhill families.

Acquisition

The Chase-Cromwell-Underhill Family papers were donated to Special Collections, Haverford College in 1995 by Logan Goodman.

Separated Materials

"Oration by Thomas Chase and Poem by John G. Whitter ...", 1860. Printed obituary of Alice Cromwell Chase removed to Quaker Collection.

Processing Information

Processed by Diana Franzusoff Peterson.

Title
Chase-Cromwell-Underhill Family papers, 1782-1952
Status
Completed
Author
Diana Franzusoff Peterson
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
English

Find It at the Library

Most of the materials in this catalog are not digitized and can only be accessed in person. Please see our website for more information about visiting or requesting reproductions from Haverford College Quaker & Special Collections Library

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Haverford PA 19041 USA US