Skip to main content
Header image

SFHL/FHL/RG5. Family and Personal Papers

 Record Group Term
Identifier: SFHL/FHL/RG5
The largest category of collections in Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College is that of Personal and Family Papers. These materials include correspondence, journals and diaries, and property records of Quaker individuals and family groups they date from the mid 17th century to the present.

Found in 339 Collections and/or Records:

Robert Heydon Gayner Papers

 Collection
Identifier: SFHL-RG5-048
Abstract

Chiefly family papers of tye Gayner family, Quakers, of Sunderland, England. Especially includes John Gayner (1824-1911), and his brother, Robert Heydon Gayner (1831-1916). Topics include family affairs, various Quaker interests, including the religious welfare of sailors and evening schools for young men, American Civil War, and trips to Europe and Egypt.

Dates: 1927-1932
Found in: Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College

Eleanor Ayres Gensemer Collection of Quaker Family Papers

 Collection
Identifier: SFHL-RG5-049
Abstract

This small collection of papers contains legal and financial papers, deeds, marriages certificates, and memorabilia primarily concerning the Bartram family and other Delaware County (Pa.) Quaker families collected by Eleanor Ayres Gensemer.

Dates: 1729-1930
Found in: Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College

Dora Anne Gilbert Papers

 Collection
Identifier: SFHL-RG5-050
Abstract

Dora Ann Gilbert (1869-1964), was Quaker librarian and genealogist from Chester, Pennsylvania. She graduated from Swarthmore College in 1893. The collection contains chiefly biographical and genealogical materials relating to the Gilbert, Strickland, Trego, and allied families, together with memorabilia relating to Swarthmore College Class of 1893, of which Gilbert was a member.

Dates: 1893-1958
Found in: Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College

Griffith Family Papers

 Collection
Identifier: SFHL-RG5-052
Abstract The Griffith family were Quakers involved in the textile industry in the area of Winchester, Virginia before the Civil War. Aaron H. Griffith was active in the Orthodox branch of Hopewell Monthly Meeting and was an Elder and Clerk of that Meeting. The collection includes family correspondence and miscellaneous manuscripts of the Griffith family, as assembled by Sylvia Dannett who was writing a novel about Aaron H. Griffith's daughter, Harriet Griffith Ellis. Of particular interest are the...
Dates: 1754-1890
Found in: Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College

William Hobson Papers

 Collection
Identifier: SFHL-RG5-062
Abstract

William Hobson, 1820-1891, was a Quaker minister and farmer from North Carolina, Iowa, and Oregon. The collection contains chiefly diaries (1859-1891) describing rural life in Iowa and ministerial visits to California, Kansas, Missouri, and Oregon; together with autobiographical fragments and notes for sermons.

Dates: 1851-1891
Found in: Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College

Hadassah M. L. (Hadassah Moore Leeds) Holcombe Diaries

 Collection
Identifier: SFHL-RG5-063
Abstract Hadassah M.L. Holcombe (1891-1978) was a Quaker educator who was a co-founder of the Friends Council of Education and served as Secretary of the Friends General Conference and Chairman of the Committee on Education of the Friends World Conference. Hadassah Holcombe taught mathematics at the Germantown Friends School for ten years, and, in addition to her other activities, served on the Boards of Swarthmore College, Antioch, George School, Sidwell Friends, and Haverford College. The...
Dates: 1904-1937
Found in: Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College

Jesse Herman Holmes Papers

 Collection
Identifier: SFHL-RG5-064
Abstract Jesse Herman Holmes (1864-1942), was a Quaker philosophy professor at Swarthmore College, 1900-1937. Holmes was an active participant in AFSC relief after World War I, travelling to oversee work in reconstruction throughout Europe. Holmes was the president of the National Federation of Religious Liberals and an active member of the Socialist party. Collection contains correspondence, biographical data, writings, and sermons. Also audio cassettes of reminiscences of friends, former students,...
Dates: 1905-1973
Found in: Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College

Holmes-Webb Family Papers

 Collection
Identifier: SFHL-RG5-065
Abstract William B. Webb was a druggist and member of Philadelphia Monthly Meeting of Friends (Hicksite). He married Rebecca Turner in 1853. Their youngest daughter, Rebecca St. Claire Webb, married Jessie Herman Holmes in 1892. Holmes was a prominent Quaker, taught philosophy and religion at Swarthmore College, and was active in AFSC relief in Europe after World War I. He also served as President of the National Federation of Religious Liberals and was an active member of the Socialist Party. The...
Dates: 1839-1972
Found in: Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College

Howland-Kirby Family Papers

 Collection
Identifier: SFHL-RG5-067
Abstract Howland and Kirby families were Quakers of Dartmouth, Fairhaven, and New Bedford, Mass. The collection contains primarily transcripts and photocopies of their papers. Of particular interest are dairies of Weston Howland, Jr., with notes on the arrival of whaling ships in New Bedford and details of a controversy over the New Bedford-Fairhaven bridge; those of Abby S., and Rachel, which describe a trip taken by Abby to New York, N.Y., and Washington, D.C. (1888) and women preaching at Friends...
Dates: circa 1790-circa 1973
Found in: Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College

William Hubben Papers

 Collection
Identifier: SFHL-RG5-068
Abstract William Hubben (1895-1974) was a prominent Quaker educator, speaker, editor, and author. Born in Germany in 1895, William Hubben joined the small but growing movement of German Quakers in 1923 and participated in a number of international religious and peace conferences. His political involvement with the Social Democratic Party caused his dismissal in 1933 by Hitler's government. He emigrated to the United States with his wife, Maria, and children soon afterward, and went on to be heavily...
Dates: 1906-1976
Found in: Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College
trico lib
Bryn Mawr College Special Collections
Haverford College Quaker & Special Collections