A Century and a Half of Care

A Century and a Half of Care

The Benjamin Franklin Papersat the American Philosophical

Society Library

American Philosophical SocietyFounded by Benjamin Franklin 1743

American Philosophical Society Library

Franklin’s Will

“To my son William Franklin…all my Books and Papers which he has in his Possession…The residue and remainder of all my books, manuscripts, and papers, I do give to my grandson, William Temple Franklin.”

Temple Searches for Additional Papers of Ben’s

William Temple Franklin

Franklin Leaves Papers with Joseph Galloway at Trevose

Joseph Galloway

Trevose

W.T. Franklin Leaves Papers with Fox family at Champlost, 1791

Champlost—Near present-day 2nd St. and Olney Avenue

Charles Pemberton Fox

Jared Sparks: First Scholar to Use Franklin Papers From Fox Estate for Works of

Franklin (1836-1840)• “I have been very successful in

procuring materials for this edition. In a garret seven miles from Philadelphia I found two large trunks of Dr. Franklin’s papers, which had lain there undisturbed forty years.”

• April 17, 1837: “Mr. Fox went again with me to his country-seat, where we got all the Franklin papers in order, and sent them in two large trunks to Philadelphia. The whole weight is four hundred pounds, there being at least thirty cubic feet of solid papers. They are mostly arranged in files.”

• July 24, 1837: “Commenced the examination of Franklin’s papers in the great trunks which I brought from Philadelphia. They have been classified and arranged by a young man whom I have employed in that service.”

Jared Sparks

After completing Works of Franklin, Sparks encourages Foxes to donate papers to APS,

1840“John Vaughan informs the Society that Mr. C.B. Fox has deposited in the Archives a collection of papers and original letters of Doctor Franklin.”

APS MinutesJuly 17, 1840

Charles Pemberton Fox

American Philosophical Society Librarian and President, 1840

John Vaughan Peter S. DuPonceau

Franklin Papers Committee hires Charles B. Trego To Arrange and Bind Franklin Papers,

1852

“Mr. Trego was instructed to arrange the paper in chronological order as the general plan…it was also agreed that when thei apers are prepared in volumes ready for binding, Mr. Trego be requested to call the committee together…

APS Archives, 1852 May 8

Early Inventories

Initial Summaryof Volumes, 1852

Invoice for work on Papers, 1860

I. Minis Hays, LibrarianCompiles Hays Calendar ofFranklin Papers, 1899-1906

As Franklin Bicentenary approached, Hays sees need for work on Franklin papers

Catalogues Papers in Hays Calendar (1899-1905)

William Berwick, Library of Congress Manuscript Restorer, disbinds, silks, and rebinds manuscripts

Franklin papers bound in volumes similar to these, ca. 1910

Franklin Papers andlibrary move, 1934

Philosophical Hall3rd Floor Library Move to Drexel building

Papers Move with Library to Drexel Building

Drexel building5th and Chestnut

Drexel Building Interior, ca. 1935

Franklin-Bache Papers, 1936

• Purchased in 1936 for $75,000

• Conserved by Carolyn Horton, “First Conservator”

• Arranged by Alban Hoopes

• Catalogued at the item level, bringing 20th century professional library practice to APS

Microfilming the Franklin Papers December 1941

• Ruth Franckens microfilms the Franklin Papers

• Papers filmed between Dec.1941 and Feb. 1942, then “stored for the duration” of war at the Fidelity Bank and Trust Co.

• Researchers used microfilm only during the war

“Stored for the Duration” of the War

Franklin Papers Editorial Project American Philosophical Society

and Yale University1954-Present

Leonard W. Labaree,Editor in Chief

Whitfield J. Bell, Jr., Assistant Editor

Disbinding and Arrangement in Archival Folders and Boxes

Early 1970s

• Franklin volumes disbound by Willman Spawn, Conservator of the American Philosophical Society

• To Prevent Contact of manuscripts with acidic paper

• To enable easier removal of individual items for researchers and exhibition loans

Archival Boxes and Folders

Preserved Hays Volume and Page Numbers

Individual Folders Better security Easier Retrieval

Franklin-Bache andSmaller Collections

• Re-housed in archival folders and clamshell boxes, 1970s

• Existing arrangement retained. Franklin-Bache and other small collections arranged chronologically

• Prior to 2003, still accessible only through catalog cards and typed inventories

Online Resources

• APS WebsiteAll Franklin collections in online finding aid as of 2003

• Franklin Papers OnlineFull-text, searchable by author, recipient, date, and keyword

APS Home Page

EAD (Encoded Archival Description) Finding Aids Page

Fox Accession/Hays Calendar Inventory

Franklin Papers TodayEllen Cohn at Yale and

Franklin Papers Volumes at APS

Franklin Papers Online

Browse by name or dateSearch for words or phrases

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American Philosophical Society Library

http://www.amphilsoc.org