Ferdinand J. Dreer autograph collection


Collection 0175

1492-1925
(105.0 Linear feet ; 330 boxes, 133 volumes, 2 flat files)

Summary Information

Repository
The Historical Society of Pennsylvania
Creator
Dreer, Ferdinand J., 1812-1902.
Title
Ferdinand J. Dreer autograph collection
ID
0175
Date [inclusive]
1492-1925
Extent
105.0 Linear feet ; 330 boxes, 133 volumes, 2 flat files
Author
Finding aid prepared by Weckea D. Lilly
Language
English
Mixed materials [Volume]
1-131
Mixed materials [Box]
1-326
Abstract
Ferdinand Julian Dreer’s chief hobby was collecting autographs. He started with two documents and over time he was able to amass more than 15,000 items from some of the world’s most prominent and intriguing public figures. Owing to this interest, Dreer became acquainted with many people in the world of arts and letters, politics, education, clergy, business, and international affairs. As he was aware of such a collection’s potential impact on scholarship and society, Dreer donated all of his holdings to the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, with which he had been associated for many years as the institution’s vice president.

Preferred Citation note

[Indicate cited item of series here], Ferdinand J. Dreer autograph collection (Collection 175), The Historical Society of Pennsylvania.

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Biographical/Historical note

Ferdinand Julian Dreer was born March 2, 1812, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His parents, Frederick and Augusta Frederica (Nolthenius) Dreer, were of German ancestry. As a young boy, he was educated in the schools in Philadelphia. Then at the age of 16 he was apprenticed to a local jeweler, and later to a businessman in New York City. After becoming familiar with the assaying trade (analyzing the composition and quality of metal objects) he established the firm Annan & Dreer with John Annan. He later became business partners with George Hayes, establishing another firm, Dreer & Hayes, where Dreer worked until his retirement in 1863.

As a goldsmith and jeweler, Dreer was able to earn a fortune, primarily contracting with the government mint in Philadelphia (George 1986). With such a fortune, he was able to contribute to Philadelphia in many ways. He helped establish the Hayes Mechanics Home (later named Hayes Home for Men); promoted and directed the Philadelphia Academy of Music; was a charter member of the Howard Hospital and the Philadelphia Female Medical College; volunteered, at age 50, for the Gray Reserves during the Civil War; was a “generous contributor to and earnest worker in behalf of the bounty fund, the Sanitary Commission fair Cooper Shop refreshment saloon and the Satterlee Hospital" (Derby and White 1909); and served as a charter member of the Union Club of Philadelphia (which was founded in 1862 and merged with the Union League Club of Philadelphia in 1865).

Dreer’s enthusiasm for collecting came gradually. Ill health at the age of 37 and a close call with death caused him to rethink the degree to which he would work at this business and other affairs. Thinking that he was dying, Dreer traveled to Germany expecting to lay rest in his parents’ home county. “But the trip abroad proved beneficial, and he returned to America in a much improved state of health. Nevertheless, he reduced significantly his business activities and began to spend more and more time accumulating manuscripts of prominent world figures” (George 1986). However, it wasn’t until after his retirement that he devoted himself full-time to expanding his collection of autographs. Writing in 1890 of his reasons for pursuing autograph collecting so vigorously after retirement, Dreer (pp. vii-viii) commented:

“In the year 1863 I retired from the pursuit of a lucrative business on account of impaired health, and indulged to the fullest extent in my favourite employment and recreation of collecting, repairing, and arranging autograph letters, and in enriching printed volumes by the insertion of some of the letters, and also pictorial illustrations. I daily worked more hours and with greater assiduity in that ‘labour of Love’ than I ever did in money-winning. And this delightful occupation has been far more profitable to me than the former one, for it has, by daily recreation and continual pleasant employment, invigorated my physical powers, and, I am satisfied, has been instrumental, under Providence, in the prologation of my earthly existence for many years. It has diverted attention from myself, and prevented the intrusive approaches of the malady which afflicts the pessimist.”

The first two items in his collection were letters written by Norwegian violinist Ole Bull and Lydia Maria Child, American author and abolitionist. “These two letters created in me an earnest desire to possess more treasures of a similar kind” (p. v). As the collection grew, he understood an even greater purpose for such material—given the types of material he collected and the nature of their content relating to topics in history, biography, philosophy, art, science, education, and religion and theology. Following the first items came a letter written by George Washington, the nephew of the country’s first president, then letters from President George Washington, 51 from President Thomas Jefferson, at least one letter from each president before McKinley, signers of the Declaration of Independence, his friend’s Benson J. Lossing’s Pictoral Field-Book of the Revolution, and a collection of autographs created by Baltimore resident Robert Gilmor. Dreer then began acquiring documents from aboard including England, France, and Germany. Once satisfied with the formation of the collection, Dreer, in 1890, donated it to the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, “one of the useful and flourishing institutions of my native city.”

Dreer married Abigail Dickinson in 1834 and they had two sons Frederick A. and Ferdinand J. Dreer Jr. Dreer died in 1902 leaving behind a rich legacy of service and philanthropy to the city of Philadelphia and the nation.

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Scope and Contents note

The Dreer Collection consists of four sections: specimen autographs arranged by Dreer in categories; additions to the collection after 1890, largely alphabetically arranged; individual letterbooks, journals, literary manuscripts, and small collections assembled by others; and a collection of English and continental literary figures of the mid-19th century, assembled by Samuel Carter Hall, editor of the British Art Journal. The collection includes: political and military figures; European political and military figures; fine and performing artists; American and European literary figures; clergymen; scientists and explorers; and British and continental literary figures of the nineteenth century. These catergories are further broken down as follows:

Autographs of political and military figures, 1497-1922: Colonial Conventions, including the Albany and Stamp Act Congresses; members of the Old Congress; signers of the Declaration, with the state seals; members of the Federal Convention; Presidents Washington to Harding and their cabinets; governors of the states; mayors of Philadelphia to 1893; American statesmen; officers in America before the Revolution; generals of the Revolution; soldiers of the Revolution; officers in the War of 1812 and the Mexican War; American naval officers; Union generals; Confederate generals; and Union officers.

Autographs of European political and military figures, 1571-1917: Statesmen of continental Europe; British statesmen; French Revolution; royal personages; British military; British navy; officers of the French army and navy; miscellaneous military figures.

Autographs of fine and performing artists, 1492-1921: Actors, singers, and dancers; painters and engravers; architects and sculptors; musicians and composers.

American and European literary figures, 1604-1918: American prose writers; American poets; British prose writers; British poets; German prose writers; French prose writers; European writers; continental poets.

Autographs of clergymen, 1492-1921: American Protestant Episcopal bishops; American clergy; popes and cardinals; figures of the Protestant Reformation; British clergy.

Autographs of scientists and explorers, 1492-1912: Inventors; travelers and explorers; physicians, surgeons, and chemists; astronomers; scientists.

Miscellaneous manuscripts, 1730-1892: Letters of Nicholas Biddle; Bank of the United States; American lawyers; British lawyers; philanthropists; and famous merchants.

Literary and scientific autographs and manuscripts, 1703-1900: Letters, literary manuscripts, and journals organized around individuals, institutions, or events. Of American interest are: letters of the Penn family, 1666-1786; letter of Evan Evans, Rector of Christ Church, Philadelphia, to the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, 1707; Franklin’s “Queries to be asked the Junto;” letters from Patrick Henry to George Washington, 1777-1778, concerning the Conway cabal; papers of George Washington, 1744-1799; letters of Thomas Jefferson, 1774-1825; letters of Robert Morris, 1777-1799; letters of Thomas Jefferson, 1774-1825; letters of Robert Morris, 1777-1799; Jacob Rush’s letters to John Hancock, 1777; letters to Philadelphia naturalist Humphrey Marshall from Thomas Parke, John Abell, and other naturalists in America and Europe, 1772-1796; John Heckewelder’s journal, 1793; and letters, papers, and prints illustrating Marquis de LaFayette’s life, 1784-1830.

Dreer also collected a comprehensive group of papers relating to the publication of John Marshall’s Life of George Washington, including the holograph manuscript for volumes 4 and 5 (the first three volumes were destroyed in a printing office fire), subscription lists, and letters between Caleb P. Wayne, the publisher, and Mason Locke Weems and William Poyntell, his agents, as well as letters from Bushrod Washington and John Marshall.

From his friend Robert Dale Owen, Dreer received holograph copies of “The Future of the North West in connection with the scheme of Reconstruction without New England,” 1863; Owen’s examination of spiritualism, “Footfalls on the Boundary of Another World,” 1860; and a letter addressed to President Lincoln in 1863, “The Pardoning Power in its Relation to Reconstruction.”

Other literary manuscripts include: Edgar Allan Poe, holograph copies of verse and a book review; letters of Jared Sparks, 1835-1843, to Edward Ingraham; Leigh hunt, manuscript for About Ben Adhem; William Duane’s book of humorous anecdotes; John Fanning Watson, “Historical Incidents of Germantown,” 1823, “Annals of Philadelphia” and supplement, and genealogical material concerning the Fanning family; Francis Hopkinson’s transcription, 1776, of “Chronological Tables of Europe;” John Redman’s annotated copy of Emanuel Swedenborg’s  Delights of Wisdom concerning Conjugal Love (London, 1794); and John Penn’s copy of  Les Vrais Principes de la Langue francaise (Amsterdam, 1747).

Scientific and miscellaneous manuscripts complete this section of the collection: Benjamin Rush manuscripts, 1786-1813; materials relating to the polar expedition of John Ross, 1832-1836; letters to Alfred L. Elwyn, Treasurer of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, 1848-1856; and Elisha Kent Kane’sjournal, 1853-1855, of the 2nd Grinnel Expedition and correspondence with George W. Childs concerning its publication. Also present: Thomas Rush memorandum book, 1711-1749; surveys of land of Richard Peters, 1742-1765; miscellaneous manuscripts of Friends Meetings, Middletown, Bucks County, and elsewhere, 1731-1832; records of the Homony Club, Annapolis, Md., 1770-1773; Chester Cunty bail books, 1768-1785, and special bail book, 1805-1830; Bucks County, militia brigade inspector’s reports, 1800-1818; Philadelphia Fire Company constitution and minutes, 1818-1837; dockets of justices of the peace, Adams County, 1830-1832, 1858-1860; subscription list for mezzotint engraving after Athenaeum portrait of George Washington, published by George W. Childs, 1852, with testimonial letters from U.S. senators; diaries and accounts of Mrs. Scott Siddons, 1881-1890; Robert Proud accounts for his Philadelphia school, 1751-1790, with a list of students; and Thomas Sully’s Register of Portraits.

Political and military history papers, 1518-1864: Dreer collected Civil War materials extensively, including William G. Brownlow, “History of the Rise, Progress and Decline of the Great Rebellion, 1861-1862,” published in 1862; letterpress book of Brevet Brigadier General James A. Ekin; papers relating to John Brown’s raid on Harper’s Ferry, Va., his trial and subsequent execution; letters of Confederate General Gideon J. Pillow to his wife Mary; scrapbooks of “Rebellion Relics,” including ephemera, songsheets, broadsides, photograph of John Wilkes Booth, and Confederate and United States fractional currency; diary, 1862-1863, of John H. Markley, a sergeant in the Pennsylvania Volunteers; and Francis Janvier’s manuscript of his Civil War poem, “The Sleeping Sentinel,” 1863.

Represented, too, are a number of political and military figures from other periods: documents relating to the history of Holland, 1518-1673, including several of William the Silent and William III, in Dutch, and a summary account of the Estates General; letter of James VI of Scotland to Queen Anne of Denmark, 1593; documents relating to Admiral Sir William Penn, 1650-1651, including minutes of several Councils of War off Spain and of the Admiralty Board, 1655-1667; holograph and typescript of William Darlington’s “Memoirs and Correspondence of John Lacey, Esq.;” Jacob Vandel’s “Notes on the Mexican War,” 1846, revised 1874; returns of Daniel Wier, Commissary to His Majesty’s Troops in America, 1777; log of the U.S. brig Argus, 1808-1811; account with sloop  Sally, 1763-1764; and letters of Edward Rutledge of South Carolina.

Miscellaneous letters, 1703-1883: Miscellaneous letters and papers of Americans and Europeans including correspondence of John Fothergill, Yorkshire Quaker merchant, and his son, Dr. John Fothergill, 1703-1798; letters collected by the family of John Franklin, pioneer settler in the Wyoming Valley; and papers of Edwin Greble, Philadelphia politician, 1853-1883. Also included in ephemeral Americana removed from a volume labeled by Dreer “Historical and Literary Curiosities.” Samuel Carter Hall letters, ca. 1850-1880: Letters addressed to Samuel Carter Hall, editor of the Art Journal, and his wife, Anna Maria Fielding Hall. Correspondents include: W. C. Aitken, William Cullen Bryant, Fredrika Bremer, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Edward Robert Bulwer Lytton, and Walter Savage Landor, 1850-1880s. Dreer formed this collection of “letters written by the hands of persons of different nationalities and distinguished in almost every arena of intellectual activity” between 1848 and 1890. To these holograph items Dreer added engravings, lithographs, and other ephemera illustrative of the careers of the individuals whose autographs he collected. With funds provided by Dreer at the time of his gift and by his estate, the Historical Society of Pennsylvania has continued to add to the collection.

The Dreer Collection was formed by gifts, purchases, and exchanges. Dreer’s most important early purchase was part of the Robert Gilmor Collection in 1851, a collection particularly rich in the papers of the Penn family, George Washington, and British and European artists and literary figures. In 1863 Dreer retired from the jewelry business to devote himself entirely to “my favorite employment and recreation of collecting, repairing, and arranging autograph letters.” The collection he formed is rather idiosyncratic and personal and reveals his interest in the arts and sciences, exploration, spiritualism, and the Civil War. Until 1870 Dreer dealt exclusively with American dealers and collectors, but thereafter he began to buy extensively in Europe. Throughout his collecting career Dreer received significant gifts from individuals whose papers he was collecting as well as from other collectors. Such gifts included an important group from Robert Dale Owen, and the Hall Collection from George W. Childs, editor of the Public Ledger.

After Dreer’s death, Simon Gratz bought extensively for the collection. The purchases recorded in the accession book reveal Gratz’ taste for political Americana more than they reflect Dreer’s interests.

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Overview of Arrangement

  1. Series I: Alphabetical Section
  2. Series II: Subjects Section
  3. Series III: Volumes

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Administrative Information

Publication Information

 The Historical Society of Pennsylvania ; 2011

1300 Locust Street
Philadelphia, PA, 19107
215-732-6200

Conditions Governing Access note

This collection is open for research.

Processing Information note

The processing of this collection primarily included rehousing the material. The collection maintains its original arrangement.

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Related Materials

Related Archival Materials note

Autograph Collection of The Historical Society of Pennsylvania, 1671-1939.

Clement, Samuel M. Collection, 1770-1909.

Conarroe, George M. Autograph collection, 1643-1882.

Etting, Frank M. Collection, 1558-1917.

Gratz, Simon. Collection, 1677-1910.

Sprague, William Buell, 1795-1876. Autograph collection, 1749-1814.

Wanamaker, John, 1838-1922. Collection, 1779-1892.

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Controlled Access Headings

Genre(s)

  • Autographs collections.
  • Correspondence.
  • Deeds.

Subject(s)

  • Dreer, Ferdinand J. (Ferdinand Julius), 1812-1902

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Bibliography

Dreer, Ferdinand J. "Introductory Note." In A Catalogue of the Collection of Autographs formed by Ferdinand Julius Dreer Volume I, edited by Ferdinand Julius Dreer, v-x. Philadelphia: Printed for Private Distribution, 1890.

Keen, Gregory B. "Autograph Collection of Ferdinand J. Dreer." Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography 14 (1890): 182-188.

George, Joseph. "Lincoln Family Documents in the F. J. Dreer Collection." Illinois Historical Journal 79 (1986): 139-142.

Griffith, Sally F. Serving History in a Changing World: The Historical Society of Pennsylvania in the Twentieth Century. Philadelphia: The Historical Society of Pennsylvania, 2001.

Derby, George, and James Terry White. The National Cyclopædia of American Biography: Being the History of the United States as Illustrated in the Lives of the Founders, Builders, and Defenders of the Republic, and of the Men and Women who are Doing the Work and Moulding the Thought of the Present Time, Volume 10. New York: James T. White & Company, 1909.

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Collection Inventory

 Series 1:  Alphabetical Section 

Box

A (1724 - 1907) 

1

Ba - Bo (1704 - 1901) 

2

Br - Ch (1735 - 1940) 

3

Civil War Continental Congress (1760 - 1891) 

4

Cl - Cu (1672 - 1899) 

5

Deeds (1714 - 1850) 

6

D - E (1701 - 1887) 

7

F - Fra [except Fothergill] (1746 - 1868) 

8

Fothergill Papers (1703 - 1798) 

9

John Franklin Papers (1644 - 1847) 

10

Fre - Gw [except Edwin Greble] (1670 - 1896) 

11

Edwin Greble Papers [Correspondence, Miscellaneous paper, Accounts, Bldg & Finance, Bills & Receipts, Certificates, Invitations & Name Cards, Journal of Travels in Africa & Asia, Letters of Attorney, Lossing, Benson J. Military Papers] (1853 - 1883) 

12

Edwin Greble Miscellaneous Papers [Newspaper Clippings, Passport, Political Papers, Veteran Bounty Fund Commission, Empty Envelopes, etc.] (1861 - 1882) 

13

Ha - Ho (1718 - 1868) 

14

Hub - Hux [except Huntingdon County] (1794 - 1894) 

15

Huntingdon County (1766 - 1892) 

16

I - K (1669 - 1879) 

17

L - Ma (1683 - 1898) 

18

Me - Morris, N. (1714 - 1878) 

19

Morris, Robert - O. (1668 - 1866) 

20

P (1678 - 1866) 

21

Q - R (1688 - 1913) 

22

Sa - Sl (1663 - 1896) 

23

Sm - Thompson, Charles (1745 - 1916) 

24

Thompson, John - Wh (1684 - 1934) 

25

Wi - Z (1734 - 1908) 

26

Messrs Baldwin & Company [New York Merchants Business Correspondence 1823-1841; John & Wm Reynolds of Meadville; Crawford County, Pa. Correspondence 1816-1853; uncataloged MSS] (1769 - 1889) 

27

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 Series 2:  Subjects Section 

Box

Colonial Conventions 

28

Colonial Conventions 

29

Members of the Federal Convention 

30

Members of the Federal Convention 

31

Signers of the Declaration of Independence 

32
Oversize

Signers of the Declaration of Independence (Facsimile Declaration of Independence, engraved by W. J. Stone) 

FF1
Box

Signers of the Declaration of Independence 

33

Members of the Old Congress (Adams - Butler) 

34

Members of the Old Congress (Cadwalader - Dyer) 

35

Members of the Old Congress (Edwards - Hall) 

36

Members of the Old Congress (Hamilton - Hutson) 

37

Members of the Old Congress (Ingersoll - Lee, R. H.) 

38

Members of the Old Congress (Lee, T. S. - Meredith) 

39

Members of the Old Congress (Phillips - Sitgreaves) 

40

Members of the Old Congress (Middletown - Pettit) 

40A

Members of the Old Congress (Smallwood - Trumbell) 

41

Members of the Old Congress (Tucker - Zubly) 

42

Presidents of the United States and their Cabinets (Washington - Damidson) 

43

Presidents of the United States and their Cabinets (Madison - John Q Adams) 

44

Presidents of the United States and their Cabinets (Jackson - Tyler) 

45

Presidents of the United States and their Cabinets (Tyler - Fillmore) 

46

Presidents of the United States and their Cabinets (Pierce - Lincoln) 

47

Presidents of the United States and their Cabinets (Lincoln - Grant) 

48

Presidents of the United States and their Cabinets (Hayes - Cleveland) 

49

Presidents of the United States and their Cabinets (Cleveland - Harding) 

50

Governors of Colonies (Andros - Hutchinson) 

51

Governors of Colonies (Jordan - Wright) 

52
Oversize

Governors of Colonies (Thomas Penn patent to Solomon Cole, Oct. 16, 1739) 

FF2
Box

Governors of the States (Aiken - Chapman) 

53

Governors of the States (Chester - Fulton) 

54

Governors of the States (Gamble - Holmes, D.) 

55

Governors of the States (Holmes, J. - Lyon) 

56

Governors of the States (McClelland - Padelford) 

57

Governors of the States (Title Page - Runnels) 

58

Governors of the States (Sargent - Tracy) 

59

Governors of the States (Treadwell - Young) 

60

Mayors of Philadelphia 

61

French Refugees Colonial and Indian Affairs 

62

French Refugees Colonial and Indian Affairs 

63

Statesmen of Continental Europe (Abrial - Cabaignac) 

64

Statesmen of Continental Europe (Cabour - Espartero) 

65

Statesmen of Continental Europe (Fagel - Hardenberg) 

66

Statesmen of Continental Europe (Haugwitz - Lucchesini) 

67

Statesmen of Continental Europe (Maanen - Munchausen) 

68

Statesmen of Continental Europe (Nagler - Segur) 

69

Statesmen of Continental Europe (Semonville - Zuichemus) 

70

American Statesmen (Adams - Botts) 

71

American Statesmen (Bourn - Clayton) 

72

American Statesmen (Cobb - Drake) 

73

American Statesmen (Dobbin - Garnett) 

74

American Statesmen (George, James - Harlan, James) 

75

American Statesmen (Harlan, James - Jay, John) 

76

American Statesmen (Johnson, Andrew - Lewis, Dixon) 

77

American Statesmen (Lewis, John - Merrimon, Augustus) 

77A

American Statesmen (Miles, Wm. Porcher - Pendleton, Geo. H.) 

78

American Statesmen (Pendleton, Nathaniel - Robbins, Asher) 

79

American Statesmen (Roberts, Jonathan - Swanwick, John) 

80

American Statesmen (Taliaferro, John - Wadleigh, Bainbridge) 

81

American Statesmen (Waldo, Daniel - Yulee, David L.) 

82

English Statesmen (Abbot, Charles - Carmathen, Thom.) 

83

English Statesmen (Carnavon, Henry - Ewart, Wm.) 

84

English Statesmen (Fitzroy - Holland) 

85

English Statesmen (Horner - O'Connor) 

86

English Statesmen (Pakington - Spencer) 

87

English Statesmen (Stanley - Yorke) 

88

Persons connected with the French Revolution (Title Page - Duranthon) 

89

Persons connected with the French Revolution 

90

Persons connected with the French Revolution 

91

Royal Personages, A-E (A - Bo) 

92

Royal Personages, A-E (Br - Eug) 

93

Royal Personages, F-L (Faustin I - Henry VII) 

94

Royal Personages, F-L (Maintenon - Orleans) 

95

Royal Personages, F-L (Henry VIII - Louise, Queen of Prussia) 

96

Royal Personages (Philippe - Dreer) 

97

Actors, Singers and Dancers (Davenport - Grisi) 

98

Actors, Singers and Dancers (Abbott - Cushman) 

99

Actors, Singers and Dancers (Hackett - Kemble, Frances A.) 

100

Actors, Singers and Dancers (Kemble, John P. - Maywood) 

101

Actors, Singers and Dancers (Nilsson - Sinclair) 

102

Actors, Singers and Dancers (Skinner - Young) 

103

Educators (Apple - White) 

104

Officers Serving in America Before the Revolution (Abercromby - Lyman) 

105

Officers Serving in America Before the Revolution (McDonald - Wolfe) 

106

General of the Revolution (Ward - Lafayette) 

107

Generals of the Revolution (de Kalb - Muhlenberg) 

108

Generals of the Revolution (Weedom - Sumner) 

109

Generals of the Revolution (Huger - Webb) 

110

Soldiers of the Revolution (Adair - Bowen) 

111

Soldiers of the Revolution (Box - Davies) 

112

Soldiers of the Revolution (Dearborn - Frey) 

113

Soldiers of the Revolution (Furman - Hillhouse) 

114

Soldiers of the Revolution (Hoagland - Lowrey) 

115

Soldiers of the Revolution (Lucas - Newton) 

116

Soldiers of the Revolution (Nichholas - Revere) 

117

Soldiers of the Revolution (Rhea - Smith) 

118

Soldiers of the Revolution (Smith - Turner) 

119

Soldiers of the Revolution (Turner - Young) 

120

Officers of the War of 1812 and Mexican War 

121

Officers of the War of 1812 and Mexican War 

122

Officers of the War of 1812 and Mexican War (Neville - Shields) 

123

Officers of the War of 1812 and Mexican War (Simpson - Yell) 

124

American Navy (Adams - Hitchcock) 

125

American Navy (Ho - Mat) 

126

American Navy (Mau - Pink) 

127

American Navy (R - S) 

128

American Navy (S - Z) 

129

Union General of the Civil War (A - Burb) 

130

Union General of the Civil War (Burn - C) 

131

Union General of the Civil War (D - G) 

132

Union General of the Civil War (Hac - Hunt, Lewis C.) 

133

Union General of the Civil War (Hunter, David - Lytle, William H.) 

134

Union General of the Civil War 

135

Union General of the Civil War (Morrow, Henry - Quimby, Isaac) 

136

Generals of the Civil War (Ramsay - Sheridan) 

137

Generals of the Civil War (Sheridan - Sturgis) 

138

Union Generals of the Civil War (Su - Vinton, David H.) 

139

Union Generals of the Civil War (Vinton, Francis L. - Zook, Samuel) 

140

Confederate Generals (A - Chambliss, Jno) 

141

Confederate Generals (Cheatham - Ewell, R. S.) 

142

Confederate Generals (Fa - Hardeman, W. P.) 

143

Confederate Generals (Harris, Nat - Kirkland, W. W.) 

144

Confederate Generals (Lag - Mumford, James) 

145

Confederate Generals (Nicholls, Francis - Rust, Albert) 

146

Confederate Officers in the Civil War (Atkins - Letcher) 

147

Confederate Officers in the Civil War (Scales, Alfred M. - Trimble, Isaac R.) 

148

Confederate Officers in the Civil War (Trudeau, James - Zollicoffer, Felix K.) 

149

Confederate Officers in the Civil War (Lockett - Confederate Miscellaneous) 

150

Union Officers of the Civil War (Albright - Govin) 

151

Union Officers of the Civil War (Goldsborough - Reno) 

152

Union Officers of the Civil War (Richardson - Woodhull) 

153

English Military (Title Page - Carleton) 

154

English Military (Carleton - Fraser) 

155

English Military (Title Page - Knollys) 

156

English Military (Lake - O'Hara) 

157

Officers of the English Army (Pakenham - Rupert) 

158

Officers of the English Army (Schonberg - Wolsley) 

159

English Navy (Anson - Cornwallis) 

160

English Navy (Davis - Howe) 

161

Officers of the English Navy (Jervis - Penn) 

162

Officers of the English Army (Percy - Yorke) 

163

Officers of the English Army and Navy (Allix - Brissac) 

164

Officers of the English Army and Navy (Broglie - Custine) 

165

French Army and Navy (Da - For) 

166

French Army and Navy (Fou - Kl) 

167

French Army and Navy (L - Mau) 

168

French Army and Navy (Me - O) 

169

French Army and Navy (P - San) 

170

French Army and Navy (Sar - W) 

171

Miscellaneous Naval and Military Letters 

171A

Miscellaneous Naval and Military Letters (Abd-El-Kader - Kniphausen) 

172

Painters and Engravers (Abbey - Collins) 

173

Painters and Engravers (Constable - Etty) 

174

Painters and Engravers (Faed - Haslem) 

175

Painters and Engravers (Haydon - Krimmel) 

176

Painters and Engravers (LaFarge - Morse) 

177

Painters and Engravers (Morton - Pyne) 

178

Painters and Engravers (Raeburn - Schadow) 

179

Painters and Engravers (Scheffer - Sully) 

180

Painters and Engravers (Thompson - Wagstaffe) 

181

Painters and Engravers (Waldo - Zucchi) 

182

Architects and Sculptors (Akers, Charles - Elmes, James) 

183

Architects and Sculptors (Flaxman, John - Notman, John) 

184

Architects and Sculptors (O'Donovan - Wyatt, Matthew C.) 

185

American Prose Writers (Abbott - Baylor) 

186

American Prose Writers (Beach - Brown) 

187

American Prose Writers (Buckingham - Cobb) 

188

American Prose Writers (Cobbett - Dixon) 

189

American Prose Writers (Dobsen - Gordon) 

190

American Prose Writers (Gray - Harsha) 

191

American Prose Writers (Hart - Hutton) 

192

American Prose Writers (Ingrahame - Ludewig) 

193

American Prose Writers (MacAlister - Moore) 

194

American Prose Writers (Morford - Phillips) 

195

American Prose Writers (Piatt - Reed) 

196

American Prose Writers (Reid - Shillaber) 

197

American Prose Writers (Simms - Stoever) 

198

American Prose Writers (Stone - Tuthill) 

199

American Prose Writers (Twining, Kinsley - Weed, Thurlow) 

200

American Prose Writers (Weems, M. L. - Young, John Russell) 

201

American Poets (Title Page - Crandall) 

202

American Poets (Cruse - Huntington) 

203

American Poets (Title Page - Morris) 

204

American Poets (Moulton - Rougetti) 

205

American Poets (Title Page - Taylor) 

206

American Poets (Thaxter - Woolsey) 

207

English Prose 

208

English Prose (Blewitt - Coleridge) 

209

English Prose (Collier - Edgeworth) 

210

English Prose (Edgeworth - Grote) 

211

English Prose (Guthrie - Jerrold) 

212

English Prose (Jewsbury - Lysons) 

213

English Prose Writers (Title Page - Murchison) 

214

English Prose Writers (Murphy - Proud) 

215

English Prose Writers (Title Page - Steele) 

216

English Prose Writers (Stevens - Young) 

217

German Prose Writers (Adelung - Eschenburg) 

218

German Prose Writers (Ewald - Humboldt) 

219

German Prose Writers (Jacobi - Rabener) 

220

German Prose Writers (Rafn - Zschokke) 

221

Miscellaneous European Writers (Algarotti - Iriarte) 

222

French Prose Writers (About - Constant) 

223

French Prose Writers (Corne - Hugo) 

224

French Prose Writers (Title Page - Mercier) 

225

French Prose Writers (Merrilhou - Roux de Rochelle) 

226

French Prose Writers (Sacy - Zola) 

227

British Poets (Aird - Burns) 

228

British Poets (Byron - Cunningham) 

229

British Poets (Title Page - Keats) 

230

British Poets (Keble - Opie) 

231

British Poets (Patmore - Somerville) 

232

British Poets (Southeby - Young) 

233

Poets of Continental Europe (Alfieri - Iffland) 

234

Poets of Continental Europe (Jacobi - Puschkin) 

235

Poets of Continental Europe (Pyrker - Zedlitz) 

236

Musicians and Composers (Abielle, Johann C. - Ludwig) 

237

Musician and Composers (Bourgault Ducondray, L. A. - Dussek, J. L) 

238

Musicians and Composers (Ehlert - Mozart) 

239

Musicians and Composers (Nageli - Zelter) 

240

American Clergy, Protestant Episcopal Bishops (Adams - Ferguson) 

241

American Clergy, Protestant Episcopal Bishops (Funsten - Lyman) 

242

American Clergy, Protestant Episcopal Bishops (McClure, David - Quintard, Charles Todd) 

243

American Clergy, Protestant Episcopal Bishops (Randall, George M. - Young, John) 

244

American Clergy (Title Page - Barber, Jonathan) 

245

American Clergy (Barnes, Albert - Boyd, William) 

246

American Clergy (Bradford, John M. - Channing, Wm. E.) 

247

American Clergy (Chapin, Edward H. - Demme, L. K.) 

248

American Clergy (Title Page - Field, Henry Martyn) 

249

American Clergy (Finley, Samuel - Hawley, William) 

250

American Clergy (Heckewelder - Kerr) 

251

American Clergy (Kidd - McWharter) 

252

American Clergy (Title Page - Nevin, John W.) 

253

American Clergy (Nevin, William - Purcell, John B.) 

254

American Clergy (Rainsford, William S. - Sherman, John) 

255

American Clergy (Simpson, Matthew - Styles, John) 

256

American Clergy (Title Page - West, Samuel) 

257

American Clergy (West, Stephen - Zeisberger, David) 

258

Popes, Cardinals and Roman Catholic Clergy (Title Page - Gregoire) 

259

Popes, Cardinal and Roman Catholic Clergy (Gregory XVI - Wiseman) 

260

Protestant Reformers (Title Page - Hyacinthe) 

261

Protestant Reformers (Jonas - Zollikofer) 

262

English Clergy (Atterbury, Francis - Dumster, Charles) 

263

English Clergy (Eadie - Hawker) 

264

English Clergy (Heber - Johnson, J.) 

265

English Clergy (Keene - Middleton) 

266

English Clergy (Milman - Pusey) 

267

English Clergy (Raffles - Summer, C. R.) 

268

English Clergy (Sumner, J. B. - Yates) 

269

American Lawyers (Addison, Alex - Bimmey, Horace) 

270

American Lawyers (Blake, Horace - Byfield, Nathan J.) 

271

American Lawyers (Cadwalader, John - Daniel, Peter) 

272

American Lawyers (Daveiss, J. - Fuller, T.) 

273

American Lawyers (Gaston, William - Hopkinson, Jos.) 

274

American Lawyers (Hopkinson, Thos. - Keyes, Wade) 

275

American Lawyers (Killen - McCord) 

276

American Lawyers (McDuffie - Niblack) 

277

American Lawyers (Nicholas - Phillips) 

278

American Lawyers (Pierrepont - Savage) 

279

American Lawyers (Schleg - Symmes) 

280

American Lawyers (Talcott - Waite) 

281

American Lawyers (Walbridge - Yonge) 

282

English Lawyers (Archbold - Hardwicke) 

283

English Lawyers (Hardwicke - Young) 

284

Nicholas Biddle Letters (1813 - 1827) 

285

Nicholas Biddle Letters (Archbold - Hardwicke) 

286

Bank of the United States 

287

Bank of the United States 

288

Inventors (Title Page - Godfrey) 

289

Inventors (Goodyear - Whitney) 

290

Travelers and Explorers (A - K) 

291

Travelers and Explorers (L - W) 

292

Physicians, Surgeons, & Chemists (Abercrombie, John - Caldwell, Charles) 

293

Physicians, Surgeons, & Chemists (Campter, Peter - Dupuytren, Guillaieme) 

294

Physicians, Surgeons, & Chemists (Elder, William - Holmes, Oliver Wendell) 

295

Physicians, Surgeons, & Chemists (Home, Everard - Lobb, Theophilus) 

296

Physicians, Surgeons, & Chemists (locke, Dr. John - Pancoast, Dr. William Henry) 

297

Physicians, Surgeons, & Chemists (Paris, Dr. John Ayrton - Ruston, Thomas) 

298

Physicians, Surgeons, & Chemists (Scarpa - Wyman) 

299

Astronomers and Mathematicians (Title Page - Graham) 

300

Astronomers and Mathematicians (Halley - Montucla) 

301

Astronomers and Mathematicians (Newcomb - Zach) 

302

Scientists (Title Page - Brunel, I. K.) 

303

Scientists (Brush, G. - Durand, E.) 

304

ScientistsEdwards (George - Hilgard, Julius E.) 

305

Scientists (Hilprecht, H. V. - Lyman, Benjamin S.) 

306

Scientists (Maclaren, Charles - Count Fumford, Benjamin Thompson) 

307

Scientists (Countess Rumford - Zea, Francisco A.) 

308

Miscellaneous (Abbott - Caton) 

309

Miscellaneous Manuscripts (Chambelain - Gutierrez) 

310

Miscellaneous Manuscripts (Ha - Ma) 

311

Miscellaneous Manuscripts (Me - P) 

312

Miscellaneous Manuscripts (R - Y, and Anon.) 

313

Philanthropists (A - J) 

314

Philanthropists (L - W) 

315

Famous Merchants (A - W) 

316

Lafayette Letters 

317

Humphrey Marshall Correspondence 

318

Humphrey Marshall Correspondence (July 12, 1879 - October 11, 1803; and n.d.) 

319

Letters and Papers of William Penn 

320

Letters and Papers of William Penn 

321

Letters and Papers of William Penn 

322

Letters and Papers of William Penn 

323

Papers of Thomas Jefferson 

323A

Life of George Washington by John Marshall (Letters from Bushrod Washington and John Marshall, 1800 - 1921) 

324

Letters and Papers of George Washington 

325

Letters and Papers of George Washington 

326

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 Series 3:  Volumes 

Volume

Original Manuscript and Correspondence of Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Hall 

1

Original Manuscript and Correspondence of Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Hall 

2

Original Manuscript and Correspondence of Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Hall 

3

Original Manuscript and Correspondence of Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Hall 

4

Original Manuscript and Correspondence of Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Hall 

5

Original Manuscript and Correspondence of Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Hall 

6

Original Manuscript and Correspondence of Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Hall 

7

Original Manuscript and Correspondence of Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Hall 

8

Original Manuscript and Correspondence of Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Hall 

9

Original Manuscript and Correspondence of Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Hall 

10

Original Manuscript and Correspondence of Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Hall 

11

Original Manuscript and Correspondence of Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Hall 

12

Original Manuscript and Correspondence of Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Hall 

13

Original Manuscript and Correspondence of Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Hall 

14

Original Manuscript and Correspondence of Mr. and Mrs. S. C. Hall 

15

Dreer Manuscript Collection - Accession List [Old Volume 1] 

16

Manuscript and Correspondence of George W. Childs 

17

Journal of a Cruise in United States Brig Argus (1808 - 1810) 

18

W. G. Brownlow - Rise, Progress and Decline of the Rebellion (1861 - 1862) 

19

Bucks County Brigade Inspector's Accounts (1800 - 1817) 

20

Bail Book, Chester County, PA (May 1768 - November 1785) 

21

Special Bail Book, Chester County, PA (April 24, 1805 - March 18, 1818) 

22

Special Bail Book, Chester County, PA (June 7, 1816 - December 16, 1830) 

23

James A. Elkin - Letters (c. 1868) 

24

Letters of Eminent Psychologists 

25

Dr. Fox - Prescription Book (1821 - 1823) 

26

Letters and Documents Relating to Holland (1518 - 1678) 

27

Memoirs and Correspondnece of John Lacey, Esq. 

28

John Lacey Papers 

29

John Brown Papers (1851 - 1861) 

30

Dr. Kane's Correspondnece with George W. Childs in Relation to the Issuing of the Arctic Explorations 

31

Dr. Elisha Kent Kane - Log Book 

32

Benjamin Rush - Correspondence (1793 - 1813) 

33

Homony Club Papers, Vol. I 

34

Middletown Friend's Monthly Meeting Papers, Bucks County, PA 

35

Journal of the Mexican War by J. Jacob Os Vandel (1846 - 1848) 

36

Letters of Admiral Sir William Penn (1650 - 1660) 

37

R. D. Owen, "Future of the Northwest" 

38

Letter to the President - "The Pardoning Power in its Relation to Reconstruction" 

39

Philadelphia Fire Company Director's Minutes (1818 - 1838) 

40

Letters of General Gideon J. Pillow 

41

Rebellion Relics, Vol. I 

42

Rebellion Relics, Vol. II 

43

Footfalls on the Boundary of Another World, Vol. I 

44

Footfalls on the Boundary of Another World, Vol. II 

45

Delights of Wisdom - Conjugial Love 

46

Marshall, John - Life of Washington, Vol. I 

48

Marshall, John - Life of Washington, Vol. II 

49

Edward Rutledge Papers 

50

Letters of Edgar Allen Poe, Vol. I 

51

Petecost League Ledger (1706 - 1710) 

52

Letters of Jared Sparks, Vol. I 

53

Subscribers to Printed Work on George Washington's Life 

47

Correspondence to Albert L. Elwyn 

54

Diary of Mrs. Scott Siddons, Vol. I 

55

Diary of Mrs. Scott Siddons, Vol. II 

56

Diary of Mrs. Scott Siddons, Vol. III 

56A

Episcopal Church - A Memorial of the State of the Church in Pennsylvania, Vol. I 

57

Francis Janvier - "Sleeping Sentinel" (Poem) 

58

Frederick Schinkle - Account Book (1801 - 1803) 

59

Correspondence from Daniel Weir to T. Robinson, Vol. I (1777) 

60

Robert Proud - School Account Book, Vol. I (1759 - 1792) 

61

John H. Markley: Diary in Civil War (August 15, 1862 - November 18, 1863) 

62

Sir John Ross - Letter from Arctic Explorer 

63

Tables of Europe from the Nativity (1703) 

64

Dreer Ferdinand - Account Book, Vol. I 

65

Various Principles of French Language, Vol. I 

66

William and Shriner Hemple - William - Receipt Book 

67

Thomas Rush - Memorandum Book (1711 - 1749) 

68

Philip Benezet - Sloop Sally Accounts (1763 - 1764) 

69

Garrett Meade - Receipt Book (1759 - 1762) 

70

Ferdinand Dreer - In Memoriam (1812 - 1902) 

71

Hewes and Ogden Day Book (1758 - 1771) 

72

Wayne-Weems-Hill Correspondence 

73

Unidentified Indexes 

74

Unidentified Index 

75

Generals of the Civil War, Union - General Muhlenberg orderly book (1775) 

77

Generals of the Civil War, Union - James Speakman Book (1818) 

78

Generals of the Civil War, Union - Joshua Speakman Ledger 

79

Ferdinand Dreer - Catalogue of Autographs 

80

Catalogue of a Valuable Collection of Autographs, The Property of A Gentleman Relinquishing the Pursuit 1874 

81

Catalogue of the Valuable & Extensive Collection of Autographs and Historical Manuscripts Collected by the late Major Ben. Perley Poore of Newburyport, MA (1888) 

82

Catalogue of the Interesting and Valuable Collection of Autograph Letters, Manuscripts and Historical Documents, of the Late John Dillon, Esq (1869) 

83

Catalogue No. 660 - The Baker Collection of Washington's Books and American Historical and Literary Rarities (1891) 

84

Catalogue of a very Valuable Collection of Historical Letters and Documents (1889) 

85

Catalogue No. 1087 - Oil Portraits and Engravings the Collection of the late Ferdinand J. Dreer, Esq. of Philadelphia (1913) 

86

Valuable Library of the late Ferdinand J. Dreer, Esq. of Philadelphia: Rare American History and Miscellaneous Literature, An Unique Collection of Extra Illustrated Books (1913) 

87

A Catalogue of the Collection of Autographs formed by Ferdinand Julius Dreer, Vol. I (1890) 

88

A Catalogue of the Collection of Autographs formed by Ferdinand Julius Dreer, Vol. I (1890) 

89

A Catalogue of the Collection of Autographs formed by Ferdinand Julius Dreer, Vol. II (1890) 

90

A Catalogue of the Collection of Autographs formed by Ferdinand Julius Dreer, Vol. II (1893) 

91

Unidentified Account Book 

92

Autographi-Holographiani by Wm. Brotherhead (1857) 

93

Unidentified Index 

94

A Pedigree & Genealogical Notes, from Willis, Registers, and Deeds, of the Highly Distinguished Family Penn, of England and America, Designed as a Tribute to the Memory of the Great and Good William Penn (1871) 

95

Colonial Governors 

96

Federal Convention 

97

Signers of the Declaration of Independence 

98

Members of the Old Congress 

99

Presidents of the United States and their Cabinets (with Index) 

100

J. Armrod - C. P. Wayne Correspondnece 

101

Jacob Rush - A. L. S. to John Hancock (1777) 

102

John Heckewelder (MSS) - Journey with Commissioners to Indian Treaty 

103

Leigh Hunt - Abow Ben Athem MSS 

104

Robert Fulton Papers 

105

Pennsylvania Surveys (1742 - 1765) 

107

Ferdinand J. Dreer - A Book of Original Entries 

108

Henry / Washington Letters, Folder I 

109

Letter from James VI of Scotland to his wife Queen Anne of Denmark (1593) 

110

Letter and Papers of Robert Morris 

116

Autograph Letter of General George Washington 

117

General Grant and General Buckner / Also a Letter from President Lincoln to General Grant 

118

Ben Franklin - The Junto 

119

R & S Wister - Plan of Solitude 

120

Historical Incidents of Germantown 

121

Watson's Annals (c. 1860) 

122

Suppliment to Watson's Annals 

123

The Fanning Family 

124

Unidentified Volume 

125

John Kelpius - Journal (1694 - 1708) 

126

John Kelpius - Journal (1694 - 1708) 

126A

A Catalogue of the Collection of Autographs formed by Ferdinand Julius Dreer, Vol. I [DA ∙ 423 A – GR] (1890) 

127

A Catalogue of the Collection of Autographs formed by Ferdinand Julius Dreer, Vol. II [DA ∙ 423 GR – OX] (1890) 

128

A Catalogue of the Collection of Autographs formed by Ferdinand Julius Dreer, Vol. III [DA ∙ 423 P – Z] (1890) 

129

A Catalogue of the Collection of Autographs formed by Ferdinand Julius Dreer, Vol. IV [DA ∙ 423 ADDENDA] (1890) 

130

Catalogue of the Entire Collection of Autographs of the Late Mr. I. K. Tefet, of Savannah, GA (1867) 

131

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