Central Philadelphia Monthly Meeting lantern slide collection

This is a collection of glass lantern slides, donated to the Friends Historical Library by Central Philadelphia Monthly Meeting (CPMM). It seems to have been compiled by Philadelphia Young Friends' Association, possibly as entertainment for the members of the PYFA at various gatherings. Most slides depict Quaker meetinghouses, portraits of Quakers, slides of Quaker conferences, or topics relating to Quakerism in the United Kingdom. The lantern slides are primarily photographs of subjects, as well as illustrations, silhouettes, and photographs of statues or busts.

The “Meetinghouses” series includes exterior and interior photographs of meetinghouses, mainly Philadelphia Yearly Meeting. Most of the photographs were taken from 1890-1900 by Gilbert Cope.

The “Portraits” series includes portraits of Friends from the same period and notable Quaker figures from before the 20th century.

The “Quakerism in the UK” series includes images of and relating to Quaker sites in England, including Swarthmoor Hall.

The “Conference” series is comprised of photographs taken at Friends conferences in Swarthmore, PA (1896), Richmond IN, (1898), and Chautauqua. NY (1900).

The “Various” series includes other miscellaneous or unidentified slides, including residences, maps, and floor plans.

Of special interest are a portrait of Wilson Chinn, a formerly enslaved person who was branded with his enslaver’s initials and whose portraits were circulated during the abolitionist movement; slides of maps indicating George Fox’s travels through England and Europe; and portraits of To-hee (Brier), an Iowa chief.