[Collection of business correspondence of W. H. Schieffelin & Co., 170 and 172 William Street, New York]
Title
[Collection of business correspondence of W. H. Schieffelin & Co., 170 and 172 William Street, New York]
Description
Collection of business correspondence dated between August 23, 1879 and May 5, 1898, including form letters, stationery, blank forms, billheads, and a circular. Two of the billheads contain ornamented type, decorative lettering, and an allegorical view. View includes an inset of a medieval apothecary at work surrounded by scenes of transportation and trade. Scenes show a train traveling past a large bundle and barrels, and a man standing near a horse-drawn cart loaded with bundles near a wharf by which a steam ship and sailing ship are visible on the water. Items billed include "Eng Catheters asstd," Rhubarb Root, Cuttle Bone, "Jayne's Cough Pills," Ayer's Sarsaparilla, Dandelion Root German, Garfield Tea, "Box from Fowler Mfg & Novelty Co.," Best Tooth Brush, and Dodds Kidney Pills. Collection also contains the August 1885 promotional circular "W. H. Schieffelin & Co's Soluble Pills and Granules" illustrated with images of the exhibition medals awarded to the firm, including Gold Medal, Holland International Exhibition, 1883; Paris Exposition, 1878; First Award, Sydney, 1879; Medal of Superiority, American Institute, New York, 1879; and Silver Medal, Melbourne, 1880. Medal imagery includes allegorical female figures, portrait busts, and garlands. Other correspondence relates to an invoice of goods, receipt for goods, requests for circulars from college of Pharmacy, the incorrect "William N. Clark," and an erroneous shipment of diphtheria antitoxin., Title supplied by cataloger., Printers include American Bank Note Company New York., Correspondents include G. W. Aimar & Co., Charleston, S.C. (founded in 1852); O. J. Griffin; David Hayes; M. Berliner & Co., Carry, Pa.; A. W. L. Jackson; William N. Clark; H. J. Patterson; and Polk Miller Drug Co., Cataloging funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (PW-506-19-10), 2010-2012., Gift of William H. Helfand., W.H. Schieffelin & Co. was originally founded by Effingham Lawrence in 1791. Lawrence sold the business to his brother-in-law Jacob Schieffelin and his brother John B. Lawrence in 1794 and it operated as Lawrence & Schieffelin until 1799 and the departure of Lawrence. Schieffelin continued in business and in 1805 entered into partnership with his son as Jacob Schieffelin & Son, which was reestablished in 1814 as H. H. Schieffelin & Co. following the retirement of Jacob. Henry H. retired in 1849 and his four sons assumed the firm, which became Schieffelin Brothers & Co. Between 1853 and 1859, Asher F. Randolph, John D. Dix, and William H. Schieffelin, William A. Gellatly and Joseph H. Westerfield also became partners in the business. In 1865, the four Schieffelin brothers retired and the firm became W.H. Schieffelin & Co. Schieffelin died in 1895 and William N. Clark, great-grandson of Jacob Schieffelin became president in 1895. The firm, which specialized in the manufacture of heavy chemicals and the distribution of synthetics, was incorporated as Schieffelin & Co. in 1903.
Date
[ca. 1870-ca. 1890]
Location
Library Company of Philadelphia | Print Department Helfand Popular Medicine Stationery Collection - S [P.2011.46.220-228]
Columbia trading with all the world.
Title
Columbia trading with all the world
Description
Allegorical print depicting "Columbia" (i.e., the United States) as a white woman with brown hair, on the deck of a ship. She holds a caduceus and disperses treasures from a horn of plenty held by "Wisdom," who is portrayed as a white woman attired in a helmet, armor, a skirt, and sandals. Wisdom holds a spear in her left hand and gives the treasures to three male figures representing the country's international trade partners. Figures depicted are: Africa as a Black man attired in a headpiece shaped like an elephant's head and leaning on a tusk of ivory; Asia as a bearded man with a light-brown color skin tone attired in a turban; and South America as a man in a feathered headpiece carrying a bow., Title from item., Date inferred from content., Possibly published in London and not the United States., Revised state. Previous title and imprint faintly visible and illegible below image., Gift of Dr. Mary DeWitt Pettit, 1965., RVCDC, Description revised 2021., Access points revised 2021., Part of digital collections catalog through a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services as administered by the Pennsylvania Department of Education through the Office of the Commonwealth Libraries, and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Tom Corbett, Governor, 2013-2014.
Date
[ca. 1789-ca. 1800]
Location
Library Company of Philadelphia | Print Department *GC - Allegories [7737.F]
R. & G.A. Wright [graphic] : Manufacturers of the celebrated gold medal perfumery and importers of French, English & German druggist & fancy articles, no. 23 South 4th St. Philadelphia. / Reen, engr.
Title
R. & G.A. Wright Manufacturers of the celebrated gold medal perfumery and importers of French, English & German druggist & fancy articles, no. 23 South 4th St. Philadelphia
Description
Advertisement containing a large central text panel with a background printed in color in a rainbow style and surrounded by an ornate decorative border. Border contains symbols, allegorical figures, and pictorial details representing the United States and patriotism (the American flag, Liberty, a shield adorned with the banner "E Pluribus Unum," and an eagle); Pennsylvania (a portrait of William Penn and the Pennsylvania state seal); and trade, commerce, and farming (barrels, crates, bundles of goods, a scythe, a hoe, sheaves of wheat, a mast of a sailing ship, and a land/marinescape view with a railroad and "John Fitch" steamboat). Some goods are marked "R & G.A.W." or "R." or "C.R." Border also includes a maternal female figure, attired in Roman garb, holding two children, and wrapped in a banner reading "Love One Another"; medals, some with classical figures and one with the text "Reward for 1849"; a book open to an illustration titled "Chemistry Analysis"; scroll-like ornaments; grape vinery; and floral and botanical details. R. & G. A. Wright, a partnership established about 1845 between Richard and George A. Wright, was a premier Philadelphia perfume manufacturer. The business was noted in the mid-19th century as the largest manufactory of its kind in the United States, England, and France. The Wright partnership relocated to 624 Chestnut Street about 1860. The business operated as R. & G. A. Wright until circa 1878., Title from item., Published in Colton's atlas of America, illustrating the physical and political geography of North and South America...Commercial edition with business cards of prominent houses in Philadelphia. (New York: J.H. Colton and Company, 1856), page 45 3/4. (HSP O 458), Not in Wainright., Retrospective conversion record: original entry, edited., LCP AR [Annual Report] 1981, pg. 51-52., Philadelphia on Stone, POSP 295
Creator
Reen, Charles
Date
[1856]
Location
Library Company of Philadelphia | Print Department *BW - Advertisements - Wright [P.8692]
Watson & Paul Business Records, 1792-1807.
Title
Watson & Paul Business Records, 1792-1807
Description
The Watson & Paul Business Records contains correspondence and financial documents relating to the firm's trade arrangements with a variety of local and national vendors and merchants, as well as those in Europe and the West and East Indies. The material describes business agreements, details of the goods and specifics of their transportation and value, and occasional news of the growing and harvesting conditions, states of the market, local politics, and weather., On deposit at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, 1300 Locust Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107. For service, please contact the Historical Society at 215-732-6200 or http://www.hsp.org., Watson & Paul was a Philadelphia firm formed by two merchants and brothers-in-law, James Paul (1770-1839) and John Watson (died 1811). They were in business from 1797 to 1811.
Creator
Watson & Paul
Date
1792
Location
Library Company of Philadelphia | MSS McA MSS 004, https://digital.librarycompany.org/islandora/object/Islandora%3A64760#page/1/mode/1up
George Albert Lewis Old Houses and Stores Album
Title
George Albert Lewis Old Houses and Stores Album
Description
Memory album compiled by Lewis containing written narratives, photographs, watercolors, textiles, drawings, prints and ephemera documenting his childhood and his lineage and family businesses and residences from the late 18th century to mid 19th century. Specific narrative topics include the provenance of the "Pictures" included in the album; "Memorabilia"; the "Marriage of our Ancestor, 1786. Johann Andreas Philipp Ludwig (i.e., J. A. P. Lewis) and Anna Maria Klingemann"; 'In Memoriam: Johann Andreas Philipp Ludwig' "; the "Memorials of the old Houses, Stores &c.," including deed, plot, architectural, and decor information pertaining to Lewis family residences at 121, i.e., 311 North Fifth Street (1791-1797), 60, i.e., 128 North Fourth Street (1797-1805), 82, i.e., 132 North Second Street (1814-1818), 124, i.e., 264 South Third Street (1818-1824), 148, i.e., 264 South Second Street (1824-1840) and rear storehouse on Laurel Street, and Sixteenth and Walnut streets (1840-1858), and the stores at Walnut and Front streets (1829-1856).
The old houses and stores with memorabilia relating to them and my father and grandfather
Title
The old houses and stores with memorabilia relating to them and my father and grandfather
Description
Memory album compiled by Lewis containing written narratives, photographs, watercolors, textiles, drawings, prints and ephemera documenting his childhood and his lineage and family businesses and residences from the late 18th century to mid 19th century. Specific narrative topics include the provenance of the "Pictures" included in the album; "Memorabilia"; the "Marriage of our Ancestor, 1786. Johann Andreas Philipp Ludwig (i.e., J. A. P. Lewis) and Anna Maria Klingemann"; 'In Memoriam: Johann Andreas Philipp Ludwig' "; the "Memorials of the old Houses, Stores &c.," including deed, plot, architectural, and decor information pertaining to Lewis family residences at 121, i.e., 311 North Fifth Street (1791-1797), 60, i.e., 128 North Fourth Street (1797-1805), 82, i.e., 132 North Second Street (1814-1818), 124, i.e., 264 South Third Street (1818-1824), 148, i.e., 264 South Second Street (1824-1840) and rear storehouse on Laurel Street, and Sixteenth and Walnut streets (1840-1858), and the stores at Walnut and Front streets (1829-1856)., Other narratives describe the yellow fever epidemic of 1793; J. A. P. Lewis's service in the volunteer militia; G. Albert's siblings S. Weir, John A., and Theodore C.; John F. Lewis's successful management of the financial panic of 1828 and his entertaining, including fireworks and "ample supplies of groceries, provisions, wine and liquors" on store; the business practices of the import trade; the conversion of Second Street residences into storefronts; the regrettable disposal of family possessions from the China trade, including card receivers, satins, pearl and ivory seals, artificial flowers, tortoiseshell combs, and silk covered boxes; the childhood of Eliza Mower along the Schuylkill River, her clandestine marriage to Lewis, and her death; John F. Lewis's lucky Mexican dollar; and the childhood and young adult years of G. Albert Lewis, including his "spying" at family parties, Christmas memories, sailing excurisons on the Schuylkill and Delaware rivers, and work for the Lewis firm., Album also contains numerous captioned and dated graphic and ephemeral materials, including watercolors and drawings by G. Albert Lewis, photographic views of family churches, family portraiture, newspaper clippings, certificates, bills of lading, and business and calling cards. Lewis's works depict family crests and coats of arms; sentimentalized genre scenes representing family lore, including J. A. P. Lewis's immigration to America for love; his childhood haunts, Christmas presents, and play areas; exteriors, interiors, grounds and gardens of the family residences and storefronts, including parlors, front rooms, gates, a weather vane designed as a cavalryman on the Walnut Street stable, dormer window (Second Street residence), store house on Laurel Street, and stores on Front and Walnut street; ground plans of Lewis residences (264 S. Second and Walnut Street); the "Great Tree" (South Second Street property); and Chinese exports and china patterns. Photographs depict family portraits of Johann Andreas Philipp and Anna Maria Lewis, John F. and Eliza Lewis, and G. Albert and Anne C. Lewis; the Lewis cargo ship "Globe," family churches and residences, including the altar of St. John's Lutheran Church, Crailsheim (J.A.P. Lewis's baptismal font) and St. Michael's Evangelical Lutheran Church, Swedes Church, (Gloria Dei), and St. Johns Evangelical Lutheran Church (Philadelphia), and the final residence of Eliza Lewis at 1927 Spruce Street; and family artifacts, furniture, and mementoes, including Ludwig's sword and secretary and John F. Lewis's lucky Mexican dollar. Also contains engraved portraits of Frederick the Great and pictorial details by Lewis incorporated at the end of narratives and as frames around portraits., Ephemera includes certificates, bills of lading, and calling cards (including in Chinese) related to the Lewis firms; G. Albert's share certificate in the Philadelphia Museum Company; photomechanical and chromolithographed genre prints; an engraving sample possibly by James Otto Lewis; newspaper clippings, including advertisements and announcement for the Lewis firms, family obituaries, and poems; manuscript "endorsements on notes received, but protested for non-payment" by Weir, Lewis & Co. and family signatures, including that of Eliza Lewis; and textile swatches from Chinese curios, wall paper, and upholstery. Family trees and a chronology of the Lewis firm (until 1828) also form the content., Floral border in watercolor on title page. Border also includes pictorial details showing a sailing ship and Chinese character., Wm. F. Murphy's Sons, Co. Makers stamped on spine., Red leather binding with gold lettering., Dedication: "Dedicated to the Memory of my dear Mother who made the homes of my childhood most lovely and so beautiful!" Surrounded by watercolor frame reading "Haec Olim Meminisse Juvabit Virgo," i.e., "This will help you remember once upon a time.", Gift of Oliver Allen., Cataloging funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (PW-506-19-10), 2010-2012., Transcription and inventory available at repository., See Sarah Weatherwax, "The Lewis Albums," The Magazine Antiques (August 2006), 116-121., See Oliver H. Allen, "The Lewis Albums," American Heritage 14 (December 1962), 65-80., One of six Lewis Family albums held in the Print Department., Housed in clamshell box., George Albert Lewis, son of Philadelphia China trade merchant John F. Lewis (1791-1858) of John A. Lewis & Co. and Eliza Mower (1788-1885), was a banker, genealogist, and artist descended from Hessian solder and Philadelphia Prothonotary Johann A. P. Lewis [formerly Ludewig]. Lewis studied art with G. W. Holmes, frequently exhibited at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and Artist's Fund Society, and was a member of several organizations, including the Numismatic & Antiquarian Society of Philadelphia, Genealogical Society of Philadelphia, and the Library Company. He married Anne C. Larcombe on July 1, 1851 and with her had two children Alberta (1854-1934) and Hermann (b. 1863) and grandchildren Hildegarde Allen (b. 1885), editor and publisher Frederick Lewis Allen (1890-1954), Barbara Lewis [Shepperd] (b. 1885), Margaret Lewis [Browne] (b. 1886), and George Draper Lewis (b. 1888).
Creator
Lewis, G. Albert, 1829-1915
Date
1900
Location
Library Company of Philadelphia | Print Department albums [P.9829.2]