The Winterthur Library

 The Joseph Downs Collection of Manuscripts and Printed Ephemera

 

 

OVERVIEW OF THE COLLECTION

 

Creator:          Williams-Guest-Roberts families

Title:               Papers

Dates:             1783-1878

Call No.:         Col. 767

Acc. No.:         05x77

Quantity:        31 items

Location:        19 F 1

 

 

BIOGRAPHICAL STATEMENT

 

Most of the papers are from various members of the Williams and Guest families, Quakers of Philadelphia, Pa., who intermarried.  Hezekiah Williams (1716-1807) was a merchant in Philadelphia; his sons were in business with him.  Hezekiah married Sarah Abbott (1718/19-1746), and one of their sons was Abbott Williams (d.1803).

 

George Guest was a shopkeeper or merchant in Philadelphia.  His father, John or Jonathan, probably also a merchant, handled some of his affairs when he was ill in 1784.  John may also have been the father or grandfather of Margaret Guest who married Abbott Williams in 1781.

 

Anna Nicholson Rhoads was born in Haddonfield, NJ, in 1864.  Carrie was probably a sister.  In 1891, Anna married George Guest Williams (1865-1940).  She died in Philadelphia in 1926.

 

Nothing is known about the family of George Roberts who died ca.1832.

 

 

SCOPE AND CONTENT

 

The collection contains a number of different items related to members of the Guest, Williams, and Roberts families.  Correspondence with George and John Guest sheds light on their business of importing textiles from England in the 1780s.  A manuscript account book, probably from the Philadelphia firm of Guest & Bancker, also concerns the selling of textiles in the early 19th century.  It was also used as a cash book and contains some lists which may be store inventory.  Someone drew pictures of horses and carts on a couple of its pages.  Another account book pertains to settling the estate of George Roberts, who died ca.1832.  Three deeds document the selling of land in Evesham, Burlington Country, NJ.  A mathematics copy book was kept by an unknown student.  A miniature commonplace book contains verses from the Bible and snippets of hair from various family members, probably of the Rhoads family.  A miniature dictionary is also part of the collection.

 

 

ORGANIZATION

           

The papers are in accession number order.

 

 

PROVENANCE

           

Gift of Gerard R. Williams.

 

 

ACCESS POINTS

 

People:

            Guest, George.

Roberts, George, d.ca.1832.

Rhodes family.

 

Topics:

            Guest & Bancker (Philadelphia, Pa.)

            Bible - Quotations.

            Commercial correspondence - 18th century.

Decedents’ estates.

Deeds - New Jersey - Burlington County.

Mathematics - Problems, exercises, etc.

Miniature books - Specimens.

Textile fabrics - Prices - 19th century.

Wagons - Pictorial works.

Great Britain - Commerce - United States.

            United States - Commerce - Great Britain.

 

            Account books.

            Commonplace books.

            Merchants.

            Students.

 

 

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE COLLECTION

 

Location: 19 F 1

 

[note: all accession numbers begin with 05x77]

 

Folder 1: Letters to George Guest, merchant in Philadelphia:

 

.1         From Champion & Dickason, London, December 3, 1783 and January 1, 1784; December: acknowledges receipt of a bond; safe arrival of F.D., Jr.; regrets that textiles must be sent so soon as dyeing and printing take more time at this season; January: the goods were not ready to be shipped as soon as they had hoped.

 

[Champion & Dickason usually included a copy of their previous letter along with a copy of the new letter]

 

.2         From Champion & Dickason, London, January 1 and February 10, 1784, January: hope to send their orders later this month; February: bills received; glad he was satisfied with last shipment, but the harsh winter and great demand for goods has caused prices to rise

 

.3         From Champion & Dickason, London, February 10 and March 28, 1784, February: see above; March: about delay in a shipment of goods because of a leak in the ship; has sent some more calico

 

.4         From Champion & Dickason, London, March 28 and April 19, 1784, March: see above; April: about a bill; shipment on its way

 

.5         From Champion & Dickason, London, April 19 and June 15, 1784, April: about a bill; the shipment mentioned in letter of March 28 is now on its way; June: bill of lading for specie received; will send order as soon as possible; F.D., Jr. sends respects

 

.6         From Champion & Dickason, London, October 27 and December 2, 1784, October: money received; December: wise not to import goods at this time as there are already sufficient goods in stock in the American market

 

.7         From Champion & Dickason, London, February 1, 1785, bill has been accepted and credited to his account

 

.8         From Champion & Dickason, London, February 1 and May 23, 1785, February: bill received; May: about Guest’s protest of a commission charge

 

.9         From Champion & Dickason, London, November 2, 1785, bills of lading for specie received; hope he will soon pay rest of bill

 

.10       From Champion & Dickason, London, November 2, and December 18, 1785, November: see above; December: bills of lading for specie received

 

.11       From Champion & Dickason, London, December 18 and 31, 1785, December 19: bills of lading for specie received; December 31: encloses Guest’s account current with them

 

.12       From Champion & Dickason, London, December 31, 1785 and February 20, 1786; December: bill of lading for specie received; February: hope that they will soon receive the rest of the money Guest owes them – if he doesn’t pay his bills more promptly, they may cut off his credit

 

.13       From Champion & Dickason, London, July 3 and August 10, 1786, July: bill received; goods were in such demand in 1784 that it was not possible to fill orders exactly but believe will be able to do so this year because prices have fallen; August: only small amount remains for Guest to pay on his bill

 

.14       From John Cash & Co., Coventry, December 26, 1794, about order for textiles; includes bill.

 

.15       From Hudswell & Thorp, London, July 20, 1797, payment of last bill received; will send the galloon in about 5 or 6 weeks; will insure as usual

 

.16       From Hudswell & Thorp, London, June 30, 1798; invoice of two trunks of merchandise containing sewings, galloons, shoe string ribbons, velvet bands, etc.; am getting next shipment prepared; would help if Guest could send orders sooner; bill received

 

.17       From Hudswell, Thorp & Gardner, London, September 13, 1799, invoice of goods: gallons, ferrets, satin, bands, buckles, linings, sewings, etc.; will send these goods as soon as can; bills received

 

.18       From Hudswell, Thorp & Gardner, London, October 2, 1800, goods shipped on the Roebuck, will ship more in the spring, about selling goods on their account if they don’t suit Guest’s needs

 

.19       From Joseph Dunderdale, New York, April 8, 1801, has received Guest’s payment for goods obtained from Richard Pullan; hopes for further orders

 

.20       From Hudswell, Thorp & Gardner, Manufacturers of Hair Ribbons, Galloons, Ferrets, Velvet Ribbons, &c. &c., London, April 24, 1801, invoice for galloons, ties, buckles, etc.; note about shipment [printed billhead]

 

.21       From Hudswell, Thorp & Gardner, London, July 20, 1802, encloses bill of lading and invoice for buckles, unions, linings, shoestrings, ribbons, etc.

 

 

Folder 2: Letters to John Guest, Philadelphia:

 

.22       From Champion & Dickason, London, July 6, 1784, payments received and copy of account enclosed; sorry to hear that Guest’s son [George] so ill; will not ship the goods George had ordered; also a copy of their letter to George Guest dated June 15, 1784 about receipt of payment

 

.23       From Champion & Dickason, London July 6 and September 16, 1784; July 6: see above; September: have heard that George is better and hope for his continued improvement

 

 

Folder 3: Account and cash book, probably of firm Guest and Bancker, 1810, 1813

 

.24       Account book of a Philadelphia merchant (more likely a wholesaler or importer).  The first 11 pages contain a list of sales of textile fabrics to other merchants, mostly in Philadelphia, but also in Boston, Baltimore, and Charleston, South Carolina; the descriptions give a little detail of what was sold: furniture dimity, fancy plates, plain chambrays, figured British book muslin, etc.  The shipments were marked GBK, and some are initialed EWB.

 

Next come thirty-four pages of a cash book covering 1813.  Both the names Guest and Williams are included in the lists of names.  Lastly, are found some undated accounts, sometimes listing names and sometimes goods (mostly textiles, but also buttons, pencils, blacking, and other items).  It is not clear what these lists are, although they are possibly a store inventory.  More of the list is found in the back of the volume (after the blank pages).

 

About half the pages are blank.  Someone drew horses and carts and a rough map of South America on some of the pages.

 

The donor of this volume thought it perhaps belonged to the firm of Hezekiah Williams & Sons, but the GBK designation and the initials EWB on the first pages are more likely to refer to the firm of Guest and Bancker which was in existence in 1810, although not listed in the 1813 Philadelphia directory. 

 

The volume is bound in leather, blind-tooled on the front and back covers.  One the spine is a red label with “Sales Book” stamped in gilt.  Part of the spine label is torn.  One signature is loose.  The first pages seem to be missing, and some pages from the back have been cut out.

 

 

Folder 4: Roberts family account book, ca.1832-1841

 

.25       Account book from the vendue sale held to settle the estate of George Roberts, among the goods sold were agricultural implements (dung fork, grain cradle, harrow, corn sheller, etc.), hay, ladders, earthenware, knives and forks, baskets, buckets, furniture, blankets and quilts, andirons, looking glasses, and other assorted goods.  Payments were received by D., Josiah, or Joseph Roberts.  Laid into the volume is a math exercise pertaining to the Pennsylvania method of calculating land

 

The volume has a blue paper front cover, but the back cover is missing.

 

 

Folder 5: Mathematics copy book, 1806?

 

.26       Copy book kept by an unknown person, with exercises in decimal fractions, including examples of use with federal money, troy and avoirdupois weights, apothecaries weights, cloth and liquid measures, dry measures, and time; simple and compound interest; “barter 1806”; loss and gain; fellowship (i.e. partnership); and multiplication of feet, inches, and parts

 

The volume is covered with decorative paper.

 

 

Folder 6: miniature books                

 

.27       Commonplace book, ca.1842-1878, contains remnants of hair cut in 1842 from grandmother, father, Aunt Hannah, Eddie, Anna(?), Aunt Mary, Nancy Ellis (2 years old); also contains passages from the Bible transcribed by a Quaker in 1876-1878, one initialed A.N.R. (possibly Anna Nicholson Rhodes) and another signed Carrie Rhoads.  

 

The book is bound in black leather; the front and back covers are decorated in gilt with a picture of a dancing girl; the word Album and gilt flowers appear on the spine.  The text block is detached from the binding.

 

.28       A Dictionary of the English Language….  Philadelphia: R. P. Desilver, 1838.

Pasted inside the front cover is a note: “Jabez Jenkins composed this ‘first pocket-size [dictionary?] in all history.’  His patron was father-in-law Charles Williams, 616 N. 6th St., Phil., tanner & financier.  His daughter Margaret was married to an Ivory Tower dream[er].  Wedding present home 121 W. Coulter St., Gtn.”  Laid into the volume is a printed verse from an African-American spiritual. 

 

The dictionary is bound in black leather.  The front cover is detached.  

 

 

Folder 7: New Jersey deeds

 

.29       Deed, Samuel Haines, High Sheriff of Burlington County, to William Coles of Philadelphia, for a tavern house and lot in Evesham, Burlington County, May  20, 1816; the land had belonged to Koertland Schneck, who had inherited it from his parents John and Leah Schneck.

 

.30       Quit claim from Enoch and Martha Hollinshead to Joseph Hays for a lot of land in Evesham, New Jersey, September 11, 1819

 

.31       Deed of conveyance from Joseph Hays, blacksmith of Chester township, Burlington County, to William Cole, of Evesham township, for a lot of land in Evesham, New Jersey [with penciled note: sold A. Stiles]; Hays had purchased the lot from Joshua Hollinshead in 1816