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William Darlington papers

Call Number

MS 1165

Date

1800-1863, inclusive

Creator

Darlington, William, 1782-1863

Extent

4.5 Linear feet

Language of Materials

The documents in this collection are in English.

Abstract

Correspondence, diaries, manuscripts, scrapbooks, a ship's log, and a minute book of William Darlington (1782-1863). Collection includes correspondence with botanists, physicians, scientists, scholars, political and public figures, publishers, business acquaintances, museum officials, friends, and family (10 v. in 8 boxes). Diaries cover his time in medical school, various trips through Pennsylvania, and the period 1815-1821 during which he was a congressman. Other volumes include a history of the Tullian Society of Philadelphia, log of the ship "Bengal" on a voyage from Calcutta toward Philadelphia, two scrapbooks of newspaper clippings pertaining to current events, items of interest, and history of the Revolutionary War, a book of various types of songs written by Darlington, some autobiographical material, and a book of minutes of the commissioners appointed to lay out a state road from New Hope to the state line toward Baltimore. Frequent correspondents include: Spencer F. Baird, Isabella Batchelder, Wm. Arnold Bromfield, Anna Maria Collinson, Moses A. Curtis, B.S. Barton Darlington, William B. Darlington, John Ward Dean, W.H. Dillingham, Eliza Fell, Asa Gray, Thomas P. James, Benson J. Lossing, Elizabeth C. Morris, Dr. Ezra Michener, George F. Randolph, Lewis D. v. Schweinitz, C.W. Short, and John Torrey.

Biographical note

William Darlington was a physician, botanist, and member of the U.S. House of Representatives. He was born in Birmingham, Chester County, Pennsylvania on April 28, 1782 and received a medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 1804. He served as a surgeon on a merchant ship in 1807, and upon his return, settled in West Chester, Pennsylvania. At the beginning of the War of 1812, he raised a company of volunteers and later served as a major. Darlington was a Republican member of the House of Representatives from 1815-1817 and 1819-1923. In 1825, Darlington was appointed to the State Canal Commission, and in 1830, he served on the State Road Commission. Darlington stablished a natural history society in West Chester in 1826 and published several books on botany, including Agricultural Botany (1847) and Flora Cestrica (1853). From 1830-1863, Darlington served as the director and president of the National Bank of Chester County. He died in West Chester, Pennsylvania on April 23, 1863.

[This note is drawn from Darlington's entry in the Biographical Directory of the United States Senate: https://bioguide.congress.gov/search/bio/D000059]

Arrangement

The collection is organized in two series:

Series I. Correspondence, circa 1800-1863
Series II. Diaries and Scrapbooks, 1804-1863, undated

The arrangement of Series I was established at an earlier date. An index to the correspondence has been reproduced here in full. Series II has been arranged chronologically.

Scope and Contents

The bulk of the collection consists of correspondence written and received by Darlington and his contemporaries. Included are letters from physicians, scientists, scholars, political figures, publishers, business acquaintances, and family members. There are a number of letters from prominent 19th century botanists, including John Torrey, Charles Short, Ezra Michener, Moses A. Curtis, John C. Porter, William Bromfield, Elizabeth C. Morris, Anna Maria Collinson, and J.W. Phelps. The 1859 letters from J.W. Phelps describe pottery shards and hieroglyphics found in the Great Basin region of Utah. Other letters from Phelps describe the landscape surrounding the military post of Fort Brown, Texas. Another botanist, Miles Rock, sent Darlington descriptions of local flora from the Civil War battlefields of Bull Run in Virginia.

Additional correspondence includes personal letters from Darlington sons. Darlington's diaries cover his time in medical school; various trips through Pennsylvania; and his service in Congress, including detailed notes on the Missouri Compromise and ballot counts for presidential elections. Other volumes include a history of the Tullian Society of Philadelphia; a ship logbook; scrapbooks; and minutes from the State Road Commission.

Conditions Governing Access

Materials in this collection may be stored offsite. For more information on making arrangements to consult them, please visit www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.

Use Restrictions

Taking images of documents from the library collections for reference purposes by using hand-held cameras and in accordance with the library's photography guidelines is encouraged. As an alternative, patrons may request up to 20 images per day from staff.

Application to use images from this collection for publication should be made in writing to: Department of Rights and Reproductions, The New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024-5194, rightsandrepro@nyhistory.org. Phone: (212) 873-3400 ext. 282.

Copyrights and other proprietary rights may subsist in individuals and entities other than the New-York Historical Society, in which case the patron is responsible for securing permission from those parties. For fuller information about rights and reproductions from N-YHS visit: https://www.nyhistory.org/about/rights-reproductions

Preferred Citation

This collection should be cite as the William Darlington papers, MS 1165, The New-York Historical Society.

Location of Materials

Materials in this collection may be stored offsite. For more information on making arrangements to consult them, please visit www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.

Related Materials

For related material, please see AHMC Darlington.

Collection processed by

Alison Barr and edited by Julia Lipkins.

About this Guide

This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2023-08-21 15:49:34 -0400.
Using Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language: English

Repository

New-York Historical Society
New-York Historical Society
170 Central Park West
New York, NY 10024