The Civil War Volunteer Saloons and Hospitals Ephemera Collection holds ephemera and a few pieces of correspondence (including letters to and from Samuel Bradford Fales, William M. Cooper, and Arad Barrows) that illustrate and describe the workings of the Cooper Shop Volunteer Refreshment Saloon, the Union Volunteer Refreshment Saloon, and both of their hospitals. The ephemera is somewhat similar for each group, and consists primarily of donation acknowledgements, event tickets and programs, flyers, and circular letters that the committees used to raise funds., At the start of the American Civil War, thousands of enlisted men from the northeast arrived in Philadelphia on their way to fight in the South. No government or military agencies had made provisions for feeding or caring for these transients, so Philadelphians citizens founded the Cooper Shop Volunteer Refreshment Saloon and the Union Volunteer Refreshment Saloon. Both saloons opened for service in late May 1861. At no charge to the servicemen, they provided meals, newspapers, bathing facilities, changes of underwear and socks, and assistance in writing letters to families. Between them, the saloons operated twenty-four hours a day and depended solely on contributions of time and goods from neighborhood citizens and merchants. Those donations were supplemented by funds raised at a benefit fairs, concerts, and lectures held around the city, some of which benefited both organizations.
Creator
McAllister, John A. (John Allister), 1822-1896, collector
Date
1861
Location
Library Company of Philadelphia | Books & Other Texts MSS McA 5778.F (McAllister)
