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AA1 through AB42 (ca. 42 linear ft.)
Table of contents
Historical background
The Indian Committee of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting (PYMIC) began
in 1795 and continues at the present time.
Previous to this, Philadelphia area Friends formed the "Friendly
Association for Regaining and Preserving Peace with the Indians
by Pacific Measures." The "Friendly Association"
grew out of the violence of the French-Indian War of the mid-1700s
and was active as a formal organization from ca. 1756-1764.
Work of the Indian Committee included teaching Indians and their
children, monitoring legislation affecting Native Americans and
helping them combat frauds and abuses. The committee worked primarily
with the Seneca on the Allegany and Cattaraugus Reservations in
New York and with the Cornplanter Indians in Pennsylvania.
Work was centered at Quaker Bridge ("Tunesassa"), N.Y.
where Friends established a boarding school in 1852 adjacent to
the Allegany Reservation. Friends Indian School operated as a
boarding school for Native Americans until 1938. The completion
of the Kinzua Dam (Allegheny Reservoir) led to the flooding of
much of the Allegany Reservation and the evacuation of Seneca
families. Philadelphia Friends were active in helping the Seneca
fight the construction of Kinzua.
Major topics discussed in the records include Friends' 18th and
19th century visits to Indians at various locations (Oneida, Genesanguhta,
Stockbridge, etc.), the settlement at Tunesassa and later boarding
school (Friends Indian School), the Ogden Land Company, Buffalo
Treaty fraud of 1838 and resulting land problems, Kansas land
claims, leasing of Indian land, temperance, legislation impacting
on Native Americans, the "Salamanca Commission" (Joseph
Scattergood), the Kinzua Dam project (Allegheny Reservoir, N.Y.)
and efforts to stop it, civil rights issues and the 1972 shooting
by police of Leroy Shenandoah in Philadelphia.
(See: Samuel Parrish "Some chapters in the history of the
Friendly Association for Regaining and Preserving Peace with the
Indians by Pacific Measures" (Philadelphia : Friends Historical
Association, 1877) [BX7644.PZ S6]; Rayner W. Kelsey "Friends
and the Indians" (Philadelphia : The Associated Executive
Committee of Friends on Indian Affairs, 1917) [BX7644 K2 F9];
Lois Barton "A Quaker promise kept: Philadelphia Friends
work with the Allegany Senecas 1795-1960" (Eugene, OR : Spencer
Butte Press, c1990) [BX7644 .B293 Q2 1990])
Links to images
The following list brings together all of the image links found
throughout this finding aid.
 Page 1 of ALS, New Stockbridge, 6 mo. 19, 1798, of Hendrick Aupaumut,
Stockbridge chief, to John Parrish and Henry Drinker of PYMIC.
Aupaumut writes of his lengthy return trip home from Philadelphia,
how he found his people and farm, financial matters regarding
the building of a sawmill and gristmill and thanks them for accepting
an appointment from the President and Secretary of War "according
to my request." Page 2
(from AA41 - Correspondence, letters to PYMIC from the Stockbridge)
(each approx. 127k)
 Page 1 of ALS, Versailles, N.Y.,
Dec. 14, 1891, of Thomas Kennedy, President of the Seneca Nation,
to George J. Scattergood, Philadelphia, inviting him and members
of the Society of Friends to attend Seneca National Council and
advise the Seneca on leasing their land in Salamanca and elsewhere.
Also typed reply of Scattergood on reverse. Page 2 (from AA41 - Correspondence, letters to PYMIC
from the Seneca) (each approx. 78k)
 Page 1 (1st and 2nd year) of "Prescribed
course of study, Friends' School for Indian children, Tunesassa,
New York." n.d., Page 2 (3rd and 4th year) Page 3 (5th year) (from AA59 - Friends Indian School
"Tunesassa") (each approx. 59k)
 Front cover of "Tunesassa
Echoes," Vol. 12, 6 mo. 9, 1899. "Tunesassa Echoes"
was a handwritten production "Devoted to the interests of
the General Improvement Society" of Friends Indian School,
containing essays on temperance, school news, lists of members,
etc. Its motto "Temperance at all times; humanity to every
living creature; and general elevation of morals." (from
AA64 - Friends Indian School "Tunesassa") (78k)
Related collections
Other collections that contain material related to Quakers and
Native Americans include: The Associated Executive Committee of
Friends on Indian Affairs records, 1758-1929 (bulk 1892-1917),
Ms. Coll. 1003; Enoch Hoag Indian letterbooks, 1870-1878, Ms.
Coll. 1104; Enoch Hoag Indian papers, 1865-1883, Ms. Coll. 1034;
Jonathan Richards papers, 1870-1881, Ms. Coll. 964; John Biddle
Garrett papers, 1853-1961 (bulk 1863-1872), Ms. Coll. 903.
Access
The Philadelphia Yearly Meeting Indian Committee is a standing
committee of the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Religious
Society of Friends (PYM). The PYM records which are on permanent
loan to the repositories of Haverford and Swarthmore Colleges
are available on microfilm for scholars use. The records may be
consulted by any scholar but may not be reproduced without written
permission of PYM Records Committee.
Arrangement and description of collection
The "AA" and "AB" numbers following each
link refer to the records' vault location and should be included
when requesting material from the collection.
- "Friendly Association"
(AA1 - AA5)
- Five volumes of papers, 1745-1792, of "The Friendly Association
for Regaining and Preserving Peace with the Indians by Pacific
Measures" include original accounts, deeds, addresses,
journals, minutes, notes, reports, printed material, etc.; the
papers are arranged in chronological order; all of these volumes
have detailed typed indexes accompanying them.
- Philadelphia Yearly Meeting Indian Committee (AA6 - AB42)
- The records of the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting Indian Committee
include minutes, financial papers, account books, correspondence,
addresses, speeches, reports, journals, scrapbooks, legal, land
and legislative related papers, maps, lists, transcripts, published
items, photographs, film, video and other material as described
below:
- Minutes (AA6 -AA14)
- Minutes of the Indian Committee in 8 volumes, 1795-1970, plus
folders of loose minutes from 1795-2003.
- Financial records (AA15
- AA40)
- Financial records include: PYM accounts with its Treasurer,
1783-1808; PYM Indian Committee accounts, bills, receipts, etc.
1776-1929; "Subscriptions in aid of the Boarding School
for Indian Children at Tunesassa" 1856; PYM Indian Committee
Treasurer's financial correspondence with related accounts,
bills, receipts, etc., 1853-1983; Treasurer's vouchers, 1892-1929;
Canceled checks, 1894-1901, 1921-1928; Bank statements with
canceled checks, 1920-1983; Treasurer's reports, 1809-2001 [incomplete];
Account books, 1787-1999, Budgets, 1989-1998.
- Correspondence (AA41 - AA41.2)
- Correspondence, 1791-2000, includes letters from Stockbridge,
Creek, Delaware, Seneca, Oneida, Onondaga, Tuscarora and other
Native American tribes and individuals (Cornplanter, etc.);
letters from Friends at Tunesassa, etc.; letters from government
officials in U.S. War Department, Interior Department; addresses
to Indians from Friends, etc.
- Correspondence is divided into two series: letters written
by individual correspondents and Native American Nations and
addressed primarily to the Indian Committee are arranged alphabetically
by correspondent and chronologically within folders (AA41).
Those letters written by the committee or members of the committee
acting for the committee are arranged chronologically (AA41.1).
Addresses from U.S. Presidents (AA41.2). In most cases, a note
re contents of the letters is also included.
- Reports and Conferences (AA42
- AA43)
- Reports of PYM Indian Committee, 1793-1922; 1976-1980 (with
gaps); 1988-2002, are reports to the Committee from subcommittees,
from Friends who visited Indians and were reporting their findings
to the Committee, from the Indian Committee to PYM, etc.
- Conferences with the Indians, 1792-1865, include accounts
of meetings held in Philadelphia and elsewhere.
- Legal, land and legislative papers
(AA44)
- Legal, land and legislative papers, 1795-1915, contain papers
primarily related to the Seneca Indians of N.Y. and their land
problems and are arranged chronologically. Topics discussed
include: Buffalo Treaty fraud of 1838, Ogden Land Company, leasing
of Indian land, Federal legislation affecting the Indians, Cornplanter
heirs, etc.
- Salamanca Commission (AA45)
- "Salamanca Commission" (U.S. Commission to locate
villages in the Allegany Indian Reservation, N.Y.) includes
the papers, 1871-1877, of Joseph Scattergood, who was a member
of the commission. The other two commissioners were John Manley
of N.Y. and Henry Shanklin of Kansas. The diary of Joseph Scattergood,
1871-1875, gives a narrative account of the commission's work
and his experiences serving on it.
- Miscellaneous papers (AA46)
- Miscellaneous papers of the Indian Committee includes maps,
1795-1837; lists of members of the Indian Committee, 1797-1978,
etc.
- Friends Indian School ("Tunesassa")
(AA47 - AA68)
- Friends Indian School ("Tunesassa") records, ca.
1828-1964 (photographs, reports, minutes, financial records,
faculty lists, maps, student publications, film, video, etc.).
- Friends Indian School (frequently referred to by Friends simply
as "Tunesassa") was active as an Indian boarding school
from 1852 to 1938. Records of the school include: "Records
of Indian Children at Tunesassa B.S. Tunesassa, Cattaraugus
Co., New York. 1888" volume with categories for name of
child, age, date of admittance, date of re- admission, date
of leaving, name of parents, residence, observations (some entries
have Tribe noted); grade book, 1898-1938; guest book, 1888-1943;
Old Scholars Association records, 1937-1938; faculty minutes,
1936-1937; application forms, 1933-1938; duties of various positions
at the school (not dated); lists of faculty, 1914-1938; history
of the school; property related papers, 1806-1935; "Society
for General Improvement" records, 1876-1930, includes papers
written by students; photographs, ca. 1900-1964; film, ca. 1920-30?
and copy video.
- Published materials (AA69)
- Publications, 1795-1983, includes pamphlets, brochures, newsletters,
reprints, etc., many of these are publications of PYM and other
Friends organizations. Issues of The Friend, 1904-1905 (giving
a review of committee's work 1795-1894).
- Indian Aid Association of Philadelphia
(AA70 - AA74)
- Indian Aid Association (IAA) records, 1869-1923, include minute
books, annual reports and misc. papers. IAA began in 1869 (coincident
with President Grant's Peace Policy). It was not under the jurisdiction
of PYM Indian Committee, but was an unofficial organization
of Philadelphia Friends. The Association arose out of the isolation
that PYM found itself in at that time and was a way for Philadelphia
Friends to co-operate with the other Yearly Meetings in Indian
work. The IAA sent delegates to the Associated Executive Committee
of Friends on Indian Affairs and financially supported the work
at Skiatook School (later Hillside) that was administered by
that organization.
- Associated Executive Committee
of Friends on Indian Affairs (AA75 - AA87)
- Records of the Associated Executive Committee of Friends on
Indian Affairs, 1869-1975 include minute books, annual reports,
misc. reports, etc. This organization began in 1869 as a direct
result of President Grant's Peace Policy, which gave control
of the Indians located in the Central Superintendency (Kansas
and the Indian Territory) to the Orthodox branch of the Society
of Friends.
- Also annual reports, 1921-1923, of the Board of Missions of
the Five Years Meeting (AA88)
- Journals (AA89 - AA91)
- Journals includes those of John Peirce, 1798-1801; John Philips,
1806; and Joseph Scattergood, 1865, relating their visits to
the Indians (Seneca, Oneida).
- Papers of Joseph Elkinton (1794-1868)
(AA92)
- Papers of Joseph Elkinton include journals, letterbooks and
some misc. papers. Joseph Elkinton (1794-1868) went to Tunesassa
in 1816 where he learned the Seneca language and taught school
for many years. In 1831 he and his family moved to Philadelphia.
- Papers of Joseph S. Elkinton (1830-1905)
(AB1 - AB10)
- Papers (ca. 1789-1918) of Joseph Scotton Elkinton (1830-1905,
son of Joseph Elkinton) include journals, correspondence, and
many papers related to the Indians. He copied and compiled volumes
of material on Indians including two volumes containing original
correspondence of he and his father relating to the Seneca Indians,
1795-1879.
- Scrapbooks (AB11 - AB23)
- Thirteen scrapbooks, 1878-1902, of newspaper clippings related
to the Indians throughout the United States, a clipping service
was used.
- "Indian Records" (AB24
- AB40)
- There are 16 bound volumes of "Indian Records" as
well as many unbound sheets. They contain handwritten copies
of letters, speeches, addresses, extracts, treaties, reports,
legislation, minutes, journals, etc. dating from 1502-1900,
having to do with Indians and PYM Indian Committee. They apparently
were created by Joseph S. Elkinton with the help of Rebecca
Sears, his secretary [and include copies of his and his father's
papers]. There are references to them in the minutes of the
Indian Committee.
- Books (AB41)
- Books and oversize published items.
- Robert R. and Edith R. Solenberger
papers (AB42)
- Papers of Robert R. Solenberger and his mother, Edith Reeves
Solenberger include letters, notes, essays, reports, Indian
related publications, etc. They include a report on the Allegany
Indian Reservation written by Robert Solenberger along with
his confidential field notes of interviews, 1942 (there are
restrictions re using and publishing this material). The papers
also include material on Tunesassa, correspondence (much of
it Edith Reeves Solenberger's) with government officials and
concerned persons related to Friends' and Senecas' efforts to
halt the building of Kinzua Dam and issues of various Native
American publications (Kinzua Planning Newsletter, 1962-1967;
Rosebud Sioux Herald, 1964-1966, etc.).
- Artifacts (AB43)
Named tribes/projects (AB44)
Akewesasne Freedom School projects (AB45)
Yearly Meetings, Quaker groups, etc. initiatives (AB46)
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Return to: Table of contents
Contact Diana Franzusoff Peterson (dfpeters@haverford.edu
or 610-896-1284) for more information about this collection. Please
include the manuscript collection number in your request.
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