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Pennsylvania Hall Association Records

 Collection
Identifier: SFHL-RG4-074

Scope and Contents

This collection contains minutes of the Board of Managers of the Pennsylvania Hall Association, 1838-1847, financial and legal papers, and other related materials concerning the financing and opening of the Hall and the events and litigation which followed. The destruction of Pennsylvania Hall marked the extreme of anti-abolition violence in the City of Philadelphia. Individuals active in the Association included Daniel Neall, Thomas Mott,

Dates

  • Creation: 1837-1899 (bulk 1837-1849)

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Friends Historical Library believes all of the items in this collection to be in the Public Domain in the United States, and is not aware of any restrictions on their use. However, the user is responsible for making a final determination of copyright status before reproducing. See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-US/1.0/.

Biographical / Historical

The Pennsylvania Hall Association was a stockholders association formed in 1837 to erect a building in Philadelphia dedicated “to Liberty and the Rights of Man.” The Hall was erected on 6th Street, between Cherry and Race Streets. Many of the primary movers behind the Association were Quakers involved in the anti-slavery movement. The building was opened in May 14, 1838, and was destroyed by fire on May 17, 1838, by an angry mob apparently incensed by the attendance of blacks and whites, men and women, at series of meetings, which included many prominent abolitionists at the opening day and a convention of the Female Anti-Slavery Society.

The president of the Board of Managers at the time of the destruction was Daniel Neall (1784-1846), a Philadelphia Quaker dentist, reformer, and abolitionist. The controversy over responsibility for the loss, the response from the City government, and financial claims dragged on for years. The destruction of Pennsylvania Hall marked the extreme of anti-abolition violence in the City of Philadelphia, resulting in a reaction which strengthened the cause of anti-slavery. Individuals active in the Association included Daniel Neall, Samuel Webb, and Joseph M. Truman.

Extent

0.25 linear ft. (1 box)

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

The Pennsylvania Hall Association was a stockholders association formed in 1837 to erect a building in Philadelphia dedicated “to Liberty and the Rights of Man.” Many of the primary movers behind the Association were Quakers involved in the anti-slavery movement. The building was opened on May 14, 1838, and, as a symbol of the abolitionist movement, was destroyed by an angry mob on May 17, 1838. This collection contains minutes of the Board of Managers of the Association, 1838-1847, financial and other related materials concerning the financing and opening of the Hall and the events and litigation which followed. Individuals active in the Association included Daniel Neall, Samuel Webb, and Joseph M. Truman.

Arrangement

The collection is divided into three series:

  1. Minutes of the Board of Managers
  2. Financial and legal papers
  3. Memorabilia

Physical Location

For current information on the location of materials, please consult the Library's online catalog.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Donor: Gift of Emily N. Bartlett, 1976

Related Materials

See also:

  1. See also Daniel Neall Papers, SC/ 086, and History of Pennsylvania Hall, Philadelphia (1838) F158.8.P4P4.
Title
An Inventory of the Pennsylvania Hall Association Records, 1837-1899 (bulk 1837-1849)
Author
SKM
Date
1999
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
English
Sponsor
Encoding made possible by a grant by the Gladys Kriebel Delmas Foundation to the Philadelphia Consortium of Special Collections Libraries

Find It at the Library

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