Monthly Meeting of Friends of Philadelphia
Genealogy
Society of Friends
Quakers
Includes Certificate of Removal for Grace Stevenson and her daughters to Middletown Monthly Meeting dated 1768; four copies of the Certificate for Removal of Letitia Penn to London dated 1701; Certificate of Removal for Elizabeth Pane to Dublin dated 1711.
Parish missions
Sweden
Gloria Dei Church (Philadelphia, Pa.)
Lutherans
American Revolution (United States : 1775-1783)
Swedes
United States--Delaware River Valley
Lutheran Church
Archivum Americanum contains summaries, extracts and copies of correspondence between the archbishop and consistory of Upsal in Sweden and the missionaries sent to Swedish parishes along the Delaware river, including churches in Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey. Entries date from 1724 through approximately 1786, but begin with a "Prefatory Note" dated 1891. Topics include but are not limited to: requests to replace pastors who have passed away, opinions on the use of English in liturgy, personal controversies, official meeting minutes, and the welfare of members during the American Revolutionary war. A register of the members of various parishes makes up the rear portion of the volume. Some pages are in Swedish.
Pew rents, 1769-1770, and general accounts, 1799-1813
St. Paul's Church (Philadelphia, Pa.)
Church finance
Pews and pew rights
Episcopalians
Episcopal Church
Record of pew rents at St. Paul's from 1769 to 1770, and general accounts from 1799 to 1813. The practice of renting pews was common in 19th century churches; members paid a fee for the right to occupy a particular pew every week. Pew holders are listed by name, which are not entered alphabetically. Each entry spans two pages, recto and verso, and includes dates, numbers of seats rented, and sums paid. General accounts of the church start on page 65a, and include salaries for church employees, collections, investments, legacies, mortgages, ground rents, and payments toward an organ for the church.
Lottery account book, 1773 and charity collections, 1802-1812
Church fund raising
Charity
The first 24 pages of this account book record the funds raised by St. Paul's 1773 church lottery, with entries ordered by date. Records of St. Paul's charity collections from 1802 to 1812 start from the back of the book and run chronologically, upside down, for another eight pages.
Monthly Meeting of Friends of Philadelphia for the Northern District
A certificate of removal was a document given to persons who were transferring their membership from one monthly meeting to another. Their removal testified that they were members in good standing with the meetings they were leaving.
William White sermon 11, "Of the Truth of God," 1791, 1800
Christ Church (Philadelphia, Pa.)
Sermons
United Churches of Christ-Church and St. Peter's (Philadelphia, Pa.)
White, William, 1748-1836
Bible. New Testament
Bible. Psalms
William White (1748-1836) was born and educated in Philadelphia, and served as Rector of Christ Church and St. Peter's Church for 57 years. He also served as Chaplain of the Continental Congress, Chaplain of the Senate, the first presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church of the United States, and a long-time trustee for the University of Pennsylvania. Reverend White read this sermon in 1791 and again, in altered form, in 1800. In it, he discusses his thoughts on Psalms 100:5, "And his Truth endureth from Generation to Generation."
William White sermon 224, "Of Gospel Righteousness," 1792, 1800
Bible. Gospels
Bible. Matthew
William White (1748-1836) was born and educated in Philadelphia, and served as Rector of Christ Church and St. Peter's Church for 57 years. He also served as Chaplain of the Continental Congress, Chaplain of the Senate, the first presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church of the United States, and a long-time trustee for the University of Pennsylvania. In this sermon, which Reverend White delivered in 1792 and again in 1800, he discusses his thoughts on Matthew 5:20, "Except your Righteousness shall exceed the Righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the Kingdom of Heaven."
William White Sermon 170, "Of the enumeration of Days," 1797, 1835
Bible. Old Testament
William White (1748-1836) was born and educated in Philadelphia, and served as Rector of Christ Church and St. Peter's Church for 57 years. He also served as Chaplain of the Continental Congress, Chaplain of the Senate, the first presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church of the United States, and a long-time trustee for the University of Pennsylvania. Reverend White delivered this sermon in 1797, and again in 1835, with revisions noted on the inside front cover. Within, he discusses his thoughts on Psalms 90:12, "To teach us to number our Days, that we may apply our Hearts into Wisdom."
Trustee account book, David Lake, 1806-1827, 1843-1844
St. George's Methodist Church (Philadelphia, Pa.)
Methodists
Cemeteries
Burial records
Methodist Church
Account book of trustee David Lake. The first two pages date from 1843 to 1844 and appear to be a listing of member's burials, with names and grave locations. The records then begin at 1806 and run to 1827. Lake notes the Church's need to raise money through subscriptions to buy more land for burials, although the page for subscribers' names only lists two people, from 1808. From 1809 to 1812 Lake records the money he paid for clothing on behalf of James Ware, David James, and William Lake. From 1814 to 1827, Lake records the amounts (in number of "coppers") taken out and returned, usually written to cash, but sometimes for services, bills, or specific individuals' names.
Burials in Spruce Street Cemetery, 1843-1868 and Federal Street Cemetery, 1849-1863
Congregation Mikveh Israel (Philadelphia, Pa.)
Synagogue records and registers
Jews
Synagogues
Record of persons buried in both the Spruce Street Cemetery and Federal Street Cemetery of Congregation Mikveh Israel in the mid-19th century. Burials in the Spruce Street Cemetery are listed chronologically from the front of the book and span the years 1843 to 1868. Listings include the date of burial, name of deceased, age at time of death, date of death, location of grave, and sometimes family relations. Burials in the Federal Street Cemetery are listed chronologically from the back of the book and span the years 1849 to 1863. Listings include both the English and Hebrew dates of burial, name of deceased and location of grave.
Benjamin Dorr sermon 697, "Obedience to Government," 1849, 1860
Dorr, Benjamin, 1796-1869
Politics and government
Church and state
Benjamin Dorr served as rector for Christ Church from 1839 to 1868, and undertook the difficult job of holding the congregation together during the Civil War. Reverend Dorr delivered this sermon in 1849 and again in 1860, and lays out his thoughts on Matthew 22:21 "Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's and unto God the things that are God's." Note: Page numbering in the original text starts over after page 6, with a second page 3.
Synagogues--Finance
Detailed account of money spent and received by Congregation Mikveh Israel; the first 20 pages are of a slightly smaller size, which have been inserted into the bound manuscript and contain balances from 1858 to 1876. A few notes and receipts from that timeframe have been inserted into the following pages. The second half of the book contains a detailed accounting of expenses and receipts from 1900 to 1908, which pages are numbered according to the page numbers in the record itself.
Benjamin Dorr sermon 926, "Scripture Mysteries," 1859, 1864
Bible. Timothy, 1st
Reverend Benjamin Dorr served as rector for Christ Church from 1839 to 1868, and undertook the difficult job of holding the congregation together during the Civil War. This sermon lays out Reverend Dorr's thoughts on 1st Timothy 3:16, "Without controversy, great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory." The inside front cover notes two dates Reverend Dorr delivered this sermon, once in 1859 and again in 1864.
Historical accounts of Swedish settlement along the Delaware River and financial records of Gloria Dei, 1653-1760
Church records and registers
Marriage records
Indians of North America
Netherlands
Land Settlement
Colonies
African Americans
Rudman, Andrew, 1668-1708
Church buildings
Registers of births, etc.
Poor
Clergy
Bound manuscript containing many accounts of Swedish settlement along the Delaware River from the early 17th century to the mid-late 18th century. These accounts come from various sources, including several ministers sent to Gloria Dei by the King or Queen of Sweden. The accounts do not appear in strict chronological order and sometimes overlap with each other, but provide a rich and detailed account of this time and place. Translations of the Swedish have been provided for the bulk of the manuscript. Meeting minutes for the general parish and church council of Gloria Dei are interspersed with these personal accounts, as well as copies of letters to and from various kings, queens, bishops and archbishops in Europe. Topics covered include: land purchases; the building and upkeep of churches, including Gloria Dei and its cemetery; the need for new ministers and the struggle to house and pay them; the establishment of standards for religious practices in the new land; listings of Swedish families, including information on births, deaths, and marriages; and ongoing relations between the Swedes and their Indian, Dutch and English neighbors, including Quakers and the leaders of Christ Church. The last third of the book consists of financial accounts kept by Gloria Dei. Sums recorded include Sunday collections, special fundraising efforts, and expenditures for church repair, ministers' travel, and support of the poor and sick in the congregation. Note: The vast majority of records in this book run to 1760, but several documents at the back of the volume date from the early 1800s.
A Record of Friends Certificates of Marriage belonging to the Monthly Meeting of Philadelphia, 1672-1759
Quakers married each other in the presence of witnesses. A marriage certificate was drawn up and signed by those in attendance. This document also included the names of the bride and groom, where the wedding took place, and what monthly meeting oversaw the proceedings. Some certificates list the parents as well. This, the meeting's record of the event, was a copy of the original which was retained by the couple after being recorded.
A Booke of records: of bierthes and burials in Philadelphia in the Province of Penezlvania in Amerrica
In the 17th and 18th centuries, Friends generally kept records of the births and deaths of only those who were members. If a child was born to two Quakers in good standing at the time of the birth they were considered "birthright." This volume is unusual because it includes not only members of the Society of Friends, but also, entered separately after 1692, "An Account of the burialls of Such as are not Friends within the town of Philadelphia." Also includes births, 1677-1808, removals received, 1681-1758; acknowledgments, 1695-1698; births, 1783-1827; Deaths, 1806-1826. Indexed.
Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends
Society of Friends--Pennsylvania--Philadelphia
Quakers--Pennsylvania--Philadelphia
Philadelphia (Pa.)--Genealogy
Corporate minutes
Correspondence
Church committees
Church discipline
Church management
Church membership
Religious education
Temperance
Antislavery movements
Religious literature
Persecution
Yearly Meetings are large autonomous bodies of Quakers, meeting for several days once annually to conduct business, formulate the discipline, receive reports and concerns from its constituent meetings, review the state of the Society, and communicate with other yearly meetings and non-Quaker organizations.
A certificate of removal was a document given to persons who were transferring their membership from one monthly meeting to another. Their removal testified that they were members in good standing with the meetings they were leaving. Copy of the original made in 1881. Includes acknowledgments in the back, 1692-1698.
Yearly Meeting of Women Friends (Philadelphia, Pa.)
Quaker women
Women and religion
Yearly Meeting of Women Friends (Philadelphia
Pa.)
A Minute Book of Friends their Quarterly and Monthly Metings, 1682-1705
In the 17th and 18th centuries each quarterly meeting met four times a year and included representative of a nyumber of monthly meetings within a given region.It functioned as an intermediary between the local meetings and the Yearly Meeting, served as an appellate body for disciplinary matters, and considered questions too large for one meeting to resolve. This first book of minutes is unusual because it includes both quarterly and monthly business meeting minutes.
Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends. Philadelphia Quarterly Meeting; Monthly Meeting of Friends of Philadelphia
Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends. Philadelphia Quarterly Meeting
In the 17th and 18th centuries each quarterly meeting functioned as an intermediary between the local meetings and the Yearly Meeting, served as an appellate body for disciplinary matters, and considered questions too large for one meeting to resolve. A quarterly meeting also had the authority to establish or discontinue a monthly, preparative, or particular meeting for worship. Index at front.
The monthly business meeting is the basic unit of Quaker organization. In the 17th and 18th centuries, only members in good standing could participate. Men and women met separately to conduct business but worshipped together. The business meeting usually included Friends who might worship in several different meeting houses in a defined geographic area. It had responsibility for care of members, authorizing marriages and removals (transfers), and maintaining discipline.
Miscellaneous papers might include reports, financial documents, epistles, and other items which were usually only briefly referenced in the minutes of the business meeting.
A certificate of removal was a document given to persons who were transferring their membership from one monthly meeting to another. Their removal testified that they were members in good standing with the meetings they were leaving. This volume also includes a few acknowledgements, 1692-1698, at the end of the volume as well as a separate index.
The Women's Monthly Meeting Booke, 1685-1728
Quakers married each other in the presence of witnesses. This book, kept by women Friends, recorded intentions of marriage and the people and causes for distribution of funds. Laid in is another small book with additional marriage and fund disbursement information and 3 loose pages of accounts. Also includes some removals.
Women's Book of marriage intentions and accounts, 1685-1728
Quakers married each other in the presence of witnesses. This book, kept by women Friends, recorded intentions of marriage and the people and causes for distribution of funds. Laid in is another small book with additional marriage and fund disbursement information and 3 loose pages of accounts.
Epistles, letters, minutes, and reports - Index, 1685-1778
Miscellaneous papers might include reports, financial documents, epistles, and other items which were usually only briefly referenced in the minutes of the business meeting. Includes typed index of contents at beginning of each folder dated 1662-1702 [p. 2-8] and 1703-1713 [p. 224-229].
Removals Received, Original Certificates Nos. 1-150, 1686-1713
A certificate of removal was a document given to persons who were transferring their membership from one monthly meeting to another. Their removal testified that they were members in good standing with the meetings they were leaving. These are the original certificates, mounted in a volume at a later date, as received by Philadelphia Monthly Meeting. Indexed.
Supplementary Record to Certificates Received, 1686-1772
A certificate of removal was a document given to persons who were transferring their membership from one monthly meeting to another. Their removal testified that they were members in good standing with the meetings they were leaving. This is a copy made in 1882.
In the 17th and 18th centuries each quarterly meeting met four times a year and included representative of a nyumber of monthly meetings within a given region.It functioned as an intermediary between the local meetings and the Yearly Meeting, served as an appellate body for disciplinary matters, and considered questions too large for one meeting to resolve. A quarterly meeting also had the authority to establish or discontinue a monthly, preparative, or particular meeting for worship.
Deeds
Church history
Church property
Two copies of the indenture made on November 15, 1695, from Griffith Jones to Joshua Carpenter, for a parcel of land at Second Street in the Towne of Philadelphia, for the yearly rent of "Tenne pounds of currant silver money." One copy for Jones, and one for Carpenter. Two copies likewise of the 1702 deed by which Jones extinguished the ground rent, for the consideration of 150 pounds, and clarifying that Carpenter's name was used by "special nomination and appointment" of the community of Christ Church, and that the lot is to be used for the perpetual public worship of God, in the Christian religion as practiced by the Church of England.
Naturalization certificate of Andrew Rudman, 1701
Naturalization records
Framed parchment signed by William Penn, Governor of Pennsylvania, granting citizenship to Reverend Andreas (Andrew) Rudman in 1701. Rudman was one of the earliest pastors at Gloria Dei, and oversaw the construction of the church beginning in 1698.
Protestants
Anne, Queen of Great Britain, 1665-1714
Church schools
Tobacco
Taxation
Treasury warrant from Queen Anne, continuing a previous warrant from King William, allowing Christ Church to pay annual salaries of 50 pounds to a Protestant minister and 30 pounds to a schoolmaster, to be paid with one penny per each pound of tobacco duties collected in Pennsylvania.
St. Michael's Church (Trenton, N.J.)
Charters
A 1703 land grant from Governor Inglesby, giving four English farmers land to build a church on the hills north of the Delaware Falls, which they shared with Scottish farmers. In 1751 St. Michael's original Trenton sanctuary was built on this land.
Churchwardens' accounts
St. Peter's Church (Philadelphia, Pa.)
United Churches of Christ-Church, St. Peter's, and St. James's (Philadelphia, Pa.)
Record of expenditures by Christ Church and the United Episcopal Churches, from 1708 through 1833. Expenses noted include: firewood and candles; wine and bread for communion; supplies and workmen for building repairs and upkeep of the burial grounds; charitable assistance to the poor; and salaries for church employees such as the minister, sexton, organist, and Sunday school superintendent.
Baptisms, marriages, and burials, Christ Church, 1709-1718
Baptismal records
Church of England
Record of baptisms, marriages, and burials at Christ Church between 1709 and 1718, kept by clerk John Ashton. Pages containing baptism records are numbered pages 5 to 47; pages containing marriages are numbered pages 70 to 87; and pages containing burial records are numbered pages 123 to 158. Baptism records include the name of the person baptized, parents' names if that person is a child, age at time of baptism and date of baptism. Marriage records include the names of the bride and groom and the date of the marriage. Burial records include the name of the decedent and date of burial; often the names of parents or spouses are listed also.
Epistles, letters, minutes, and reports, 1714-1721
Miscellaneous papers might include reports, financial documents, epistles, and other items which were usually only briefly referenced in the minutes of the business meeting. Includes typed index of contents at beginning dated 1714-1721.
Removals Received, Original Certificates Nos. 151-300, 1714-1729
Vestry minutes, Christ Church, v. 1, 1717-1760
Parish elections
This volume holds the oldest known meeting minutes for Christ Church, dating from 1717 to 1760. The vestry is the governing body for the church. Each entry records the date, members present and business discussed. The Lieutenant Governor was often present at early meetings, and the Governor became a member of the vestry in 1718. Topics covered include: elections of wardens and vestrymen; fundraising for a steeple and burial ground; establishment of new pew rents; settlement of various accounts; the need to write to the Bishop of London for a new reverend; application for a charter; and the appointment of a schoolmaster. Note: Page 92 was blank and was not scanned.
Baptisms, marriages, and burials, Christ Church, 1719-1750
Record of marriages, christenings/baptisms, and burials at Christ Church from 1719 to 1750. All events from 1719 to 1724 are recorded together by date from pages 1 to 27. There is a gap in page numbering, then all marriages from 1725 to 1750 are recorded by date from pages 34 to 73. There is another gap in page numbering, then all christenings/baptisms are recorded by date from pages 104 to 179. There is a final gap in page numbering, then all burials from 1725 to 1750 are listed by date from pages 189 to 264.
Birth, death and marriage records, 1721-1783
In the 17th and 18th centuries, Friends generally kept records of the births and deaths only of members. If a child was born to two Quakers in good standing at the time of the birth they were considered "birthright." This item also includes some copies of marriage certificates.
Epistles, letters, minutes, and reports, 1722-1730
Miscellaneous papers might include reports, financial documents, epistles, and other items which were usually only briefly referenced in the minutes of the business meeting. Includes typed index of contents at beginning dated 1722-1731.
In the 17th and 18th centuries each quarterly meeting met four times a year and included representative of a nyumber of monthly meetings within a given region.It functioned as an intermediary between the local meetings and the Yearly Meeting, served as an appellate body for disciplinary matters, and considered questions too large for one meeting to resolve. A quarterly meeting also had the authority to establish or discontinue a monthly, preparative, or particular meeting for worship. Index at front.
Removals Received, Original Certificates Nos. 301-450, 1729-1736
Epistles, letters, minutes, and reports, 1731-1738
Miscellaneous papers might include reports, financial documents, epistles, and other items which were usually only briefly referenced in the minutes of the business meeting. Includes typed index of contents at beginning dated 1730-1738.
Baptisms, burials, and marriages, 1750-1789, and records of pastors, 1733-1758
Record of baptisms, burials and marriages performed by Gloria Dei from 1750 to 1789. Entries are not in strict order, and page numbering starts over several times. Records look to be batched by the pastor performing the ceremony as well as by date, and indexes are found throughout, paged in lowercase roman numerals. Baptismal records are found on images 5-67 (1750-1780) and 191-203 (1780-1788). Burial records from are found on images 2-4 (1787-1789) and 177-190 (1750-1776). Marriage records from are found on images 4-5 (1778); 68-158 (1750-1779); and 169-175 (1779-1780); and 204-237 (1779-1789). Although the vast majority of records in this bound volume are baptisms, burials and marriages, images 158 to 168 include accounts of the experiences of several early pastors of Gloria Dei in the 1730s, 1740s and 1750s. These pages include notes from meetings with the congregation and vestry. Some entries are written in Swedish.