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Ms. Coll. 855
ca. 75 items (1 box)
Table of Contents
Biographical background
Jonah Thompson (1702-1780) was the son of Isaac and Hannah (Lawson)
Thompson. He was a schoolmaster and established a Quaker school
at Compton, Dorsetshire (England) ca. 1735. He was a minister
and made a religious visit to America in 1750-51.
Jonah married Mary Beaton in 1735. Their children included John,
sent to the U.S. at age 26, and Thomas (1746-1826), who married
Ann Gregory and succeeded his father at his school at Compton.
Thomas and Ann's children included John (d. 1877), who was in
business at Hitchin (England).
Jonah's son John (ca. 1744-1819) came to America in 1770, taught
in Anthony Benezet's Phila. school and was afterwards a merchant.
He married Rebecca Chalkley James in 1782. Their son, James B.
Thompson (b. 1785), merchant, married Lydia Poultney in 1809.
James and Lydia's children included Rebecca, who married Isaac
P. Morris (1803-1869); and John James Thompson (1815-1875), manufacturer,
and member of I.P. Morris & Co., who married Elizabeth Hough
Trotter. Their son, James Beaton Thompson (1855-1915), was a member
of Phila. Monthly Meeting and Haverford College graduate (1874).
(Sources for biographical information: DQB, Thompson family papers
and The Thompsons of Compton in "Friends Quarterly Examiner,"
1878, p.104-122, 272-295)
Links to images
The following are all of the image links found within this finding
aid.
 Page 1 of ALS of George Thompson,
Glasgow, February 10, 1849 to cousin, John Thompson. Letter mentions
President Roberts and Liberia, successful purchase of ship and establishment
of packet service to Liberia, with ship manned by black crew and
owned by black stockholders. Page 2
| Page 3 | Page 4 |
Page 5 | Page 6 (each approx. 78k)
Summary of collection
Includes correspondence, genealogy, silhouette, printed material,
certificate, testimony, accounts.
Papers include letters from Jonah Thompson (1756-1758), accounts
of his expenses in attempting to gain possession of land left
him in America by Nathaniel Tilley (1753-1755) and his certificate
of travel issued by New Port R.I. Yearly Meeting in 1751.
Letters of his son John to family in England (1773-1805) relate
his experiences in Phila.; letters of John's grandson John James
Thompson to his cousin John Thompson (at Hitchin, England) discuss
family news, national and political questions, slavery, business
and financial conditions, tariffs and settlement of N.E. boundary
of U.S. (1840-1874).
In addition there are letters from James B. Thompson (1876),
George Thompson (1849), Louis Street (1868), John Jay Smith (1874),
John Pleasants, Jr. (1751), John T. Lewis (1867-1869), Henry G.
Landgraff (18__?), Elizabeth Coggeshall (1851) and Edward Armstrong
(1868). Most of these additional letters are addressed to John
Thompson at Hitchin. The collection also contains miscellaneous
manuscripts, including genealogical notes on the Thompson family.
Arrangement and description of collection
The collection is arranged alphabetically by correspondent. Many
letters have been photocopied.
- Genealogical notes
misc. notes on Thompson family genealogy
- Armstrong, Edward
2 ALS Sept. 23, 1868 and Dec. 9, 1868, addressed to John Thompson
[Hitchin?]
topics:
- EA editing Penn-Logan correspondence to be published by
Historical Society of Pa.
- wishes to secure picture of William Penn
- inquires about Place portrait and its authenticity
- re: crayon drawing of Wm. Penn in "Penns and Penningtons,"
apparently the Place portrait, discusses its authenticity
- Coggeshall, Elizabeth H.
1 ALS 7 mo. 17, 1815, addressed to A[nn] T[hompson] at Compton
also a silhouette of EHC
topics:
- family matters and health
- met "thy dear daughter Whittell when in Chester"
- expects to go soon to U.S.
- Landgraff, Henricus G.
ALS undated [18--?], addressed to "Mr. Thompson at Compton
near Sherborne"
topics:
- in Latin (signed "Heinricus Goodfredus Landgrafius")
- Lewis, John T.
4 ALS March 22, 1867 to April 13, 186[9?], addressed to John
Thompson, Hitchin
topics:
- family matters
- family gathering at which family heirlooms displayed
- JTL has joined the Episcopal Church and is warden of St.
James Church
- inquires about Wm. Lewis, ancestor
- Pa. Hospital for the Insane
- Liberia
- Pleasants, John, Jr.
ALS 2 mo. 13, 1751, addressed to "Jonah Tomson"
topics:
- re: to the purchase of land on which he has secured an
option
- religious discussion
- Smith, John Jay
2 ALS Aug. 3 and 14, 1874, addressed to John Thompson, Hitchin
topics:
- declines invitation to Hitchin
- high price obtained for S. Smith's History of N.J.
- Darlington Conference
- JJS going to see Mr. Allen re: copying portraits of Wm.
Penn and wife
- promises photos of Wm. Penn painting
- Street, Louis
ALS 1 mo. 2, [18]68, addressed to William Ransom
topics:
- letter from Madagascar asks for clothing for hot weather
to be sent, suggests John Thompson be asked to make clothing
- Thompson, George
ALS Glasgow Feb. 7-10, 1849, addressed to John Thompson, [Hitchin?]
(see image below)
topics:
- re: President Roberts and Liberia
- describes purchase of a ship and of a packet service to
Liberia (in U.S.)
- ship has black crew, most stockholders black
- suggests the establishment of a similar service from "here"
as in U.S.
- reports progress on a new method of making soda
Page 1 of ALS of George Thompson, Glasgow, February
10, 1849 to cousin, John Thompson. Letter mentions President
Roberts and Liberia, successful purchase of ship and establishment
of packet service to Liberia, with ship manned by black crew
and owned by black stockholders. Page
2 | Page 3 | Page 4 | Page 5 | Page 6 (each approx. 78k)
- Thompson, James B.
ALS 9 mo. 19, [1876], addressed to "Cousin John" [Thompson,
Hitchin?]
topics:
- re: Centennial in Philadelphia and large crowds, hotels
packed and RRs busy
- family matters and hot weather
- Thompson, John
4 ALS July 5, 1773 to 7 mo. 25, 1805, addressed to sister Nancy
and brother Thomas (in England)
topics:
- little likelihood of his returning to England
- death of one of his best friends, Dr. Evans (1773)
- describes visit to S. Emlen, who "spoke much in favour
of matrimony"
- asks for pocketbooks to be sent for young ladies he knows
- deeds for land
- sending a "packett" by Morris Birkbeck and other
Friend returning home [England] after religious visit
- "packett" contains book with names of original
purchasers and map of Liberties
- start of Rev. War
- acknowledges receipt of turnip seed
- refers to recent epidemic [yellow fever?]
- his own poor health
- sympathy for death of brother's wife
- JT has store with oldest son, next son 18 years old and
apprentice
- weather
- mistaken idea that it's cheaper to live in America
- evils of cheap liquor
- sends message to D. Roberts and family
- refers to visit from William Crotch
- Thompson, John J.
7 ALS Oct. 30, 1840 to 11 mo. 27, 1874, addressed to John Thompson,
Hitchin
topics:
- re: their common ancestor, Thomas Lawson
- work of cousin Mary Roberts
- family news
- visit of cousin Thompson Neave in Phila.
- penny postage system
- slavery question, says "misunderstood in your country"
and in this section "we are all decided abolitionists"
- early legal efforts to abolish slavery in U.S. thwarted
by English government
- attitude of Southerners on slavery
- comparison of slaves conditions to that of miners and
laborers in England
- business conditions
- financial crisis in U.S.
- desirability of having N.E. boundary settled
- Uncle George accepting appointment as warden of Eastern
Penitentiary
- European trip of Charles Neave
- inability to find letters of ancestor Jonah Thompson
- evils of British opium war
- death of Jonah Thompson on "9th ult." (1861)
- acknowledges receipt of Friends papers and photos of portraits
of Wm. and Hannah Penn
- William Tallack and his writings
- expresses approval at Parliaments action in regard to
Established Irish Church
- reconstruction difficulties in the South
- disappointment in President and failure to impeach
- probability that Friends will support Grant in next election
- Smith's Catalogue deficient in names of American Friends,
a list of names omitted being prepared
- changes in firm due to death of Isaac P. Morris
- orders books
- President Grant's plan to use Friends in managing Indians
- Pacific RR and possibility of its bringing large numbers
of Chinese to east, Chinese labor better than Irish or German
- regrets can't get daguerreotypes of Hannah and Wm. Penn
for Penn-Logan correspondence being edited by Edward Armstrong
- death of William Allinson, Dr. Henry Hartshorne (Haverford
College) appointed in his place as editor of Friends Review
- ill health of James Morris
- re: prohibition movement
- visit of Yardley Warner
- R. Pearsall Smith left Society of Friends
- death of James T. Morris (nephew) on 9 mo. 23, 1874
- visit of Robert P. and Hannah Smith to England
- mention of John Jay Smith
- folder also includes:
- circulars of May Collection of anti-slavery material at
Cornell University (1874) and of Port Richmond Iron Works
(I.P. Morris & Co.)
- acknowledgment of a contribution to May Collection at
Cornell of anti-slavery material from John Thompson, giving
list of books presented (1875)
- newspaper clipping of obit. of JJT (May 26, 1875)
- Thompson, Jonah
2 ALS 2 mo. 9, 1756 and 8 mo. 5, 1758, addressed to John Pemberton
and William Logan
topics:
- re: finding two servants willing to leave England and
go to America and work for John Pemberton
- sending medicines requested by mother of John Pemberton
- JT's affairs a mess due to his absence in U.S.
- JT may go to Bristol to better support his family
- proposes Joseph Beck instead of R. Champion to be joined
with Jonah in the letter of attorney
- JT gone to Wm. Logan's uncle's place to take an catalog
of his books
- Samuel Emlen to set sail for "Charlestown"
- mentions "Mordeca Yarnald"
- folder also includes:
- typed genealogy of JT (1 p.)
- travel certificate of JT dated 4 mo. 17, 1751 from New
Port, R.I. Yearly Meeting to Quarterly Meeting in "Bridport"
in Great Britain
- list of meetings in America visited by JT
- "Joseph Ball's draft of a Testimony for Jonah Thompson"
- "account of expenses of Jonah Thompson in attempting
to get possession of the land in America bequested him by
Nathaniel Tilly of Thomford (1753)" [accounts 1753-1755]
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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