PA Photos and Documents
1816-1860 Antebellum Period
Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University – Lucy Say Illustrations
This collection consists of pencil and watercolor drawings, hand-colored plates of North American mollusks and other animals, and early experimental etchings produced by Lucy Way Say. The collection also contains …
Altoona Area Public Library – Historic Photographs
This collection contains photos documenting the history of Central Pennsylvania and the surrounding region.
Bethlehem Area Public Library – Greene-Dreher Historical Society – Hopedale Moravian Church Pastors’ Letters 1836-1878
The Hopedale Moravian Church letters are the only known first-person accounts of life in the early settlement of Newfoundland in northeast Pennsylvania. When a small group of German immigrants arrived …
Cambria County Library – Johnstown, PA History Books
Johnstown, Pennsylvania, was originally formed as a town in 1800. The city has experienced three major floods throughout its history and later became the site of the Cambria Iron Company. …
Centre County Library and Historical Museum – Bellefonte Governors’ Papers
Bellefonte has been home to seven governors, five of whom were Governors of Pennsylvania. This collection features correspondence, documents, and manuscripts of their authorship as well as other artifacts connected …
Centre County Library and Historical Museum – Miles-Potter-Humes House
History of the Miles-Potter-Humes House in Bellefonte, PA from 1815 to the present and of its owners through photographs, other images, and documents.
Chester County History Center – Charles J. Pennock Papers
The digitized papers of Charles J. Pennock consist of a small number of letters, most by or addressed to Charles J. Pennock; two bird log books; a manuscript copy of …
Chester County History Center – David Evans Collection
This selection of digitized diaries by David Evans dates from 1835 to 1879. In these diaries, Evans notes his early studies in school; his experiences as a teacher, farmer, and …
Chester County History Center – Edmund D. Cleaver Diary Collection
This diary of Edmund D. Cleaver (1833-1888) consists primarily of entries devoted to spiritual introspection. Most entries reflect Cleaver’s assessment of his own spiritual state while also noting his attendance …
Chester County History Center – Halliday Jackson Collection
This collection contains 11 volumes of writings and additional manuscripts, ca. 1793-1818, composed or transcribed by Halliday Jackson. These manuscripts primarily relate to his observations on Seneca Native American life, …
Chester County History Center – John Hill Brinton Reminiscences Collection
The digitized reminiscences recorded by John Hill Brinton consist of five volumes (three original and two typed transcripts) and date from 1856 to 1868. Found within the collection are descriptions …
Chester County History Center – Mary Eliza Brinton Hopkins Diary Collection
This digitized diary includes a range of daily life events recorded by Mary Eliza Brinton Hopkins. Mary Eliza Brinton was born in 1830/31 to William Brinton (1785-1878) and Gulielma Cooper …
Chester County History Center – Phebe Ann Sharpless Diary Collection
The three diaries kept by Phebe Ann Sharpless (now digitized) span 1849 to 1855, a time when Sharpless was in her twenties. Phebe Sharpless was born August 16, 1829, the …
Chester County History Center – Timothy Kirk Memorandum Book Collection
These three digitized memorandum books belonged to Timothy Kirk, born circa 1786 in West Marlborough, Chester County, Pennsylvania. He married Orpha Strode (or Stroud) (1796-1875) on April 5, 1821, and …
Chester County History Center – William Darlington Diary Collection
William Darlington was born in Birmingham Township, Pennsylvania, on May 28, 1782. He graduated from the medical department of the University of Pennsylvania in 1804 and spent most of his …
Chester County History Center – William Darlington Letterpress Copybook
The digitized copybook of William Darlington consists of 170 scanned pages and dates from 1845 to 1851. Found within the bound volume are handwritten ink-on-paper transcriptions of Darlington’s outbound correspondence …
Chester County History Center – Women’s Suffrage and Civil Rights Collection
The Women’s Suffrage and Civil Rights Collection measures 0.3 linear feet and dates from 1852 to 1933, with the bulk of the materials dating from 1893 to 1917. Found within …
Conshohocken Free Library – Minutes of the Town Council Collection
Minutes of the Town Council of the Borough of Conshohocken, Volume 1, July 1850 – March 1874 Collection.
Erie County Public Library – Erie Gazette 1820-1864
One of the Erie area’s earliest, substantial newspapers, The Erie Gazette was printed and published by Joseph M. Sterrett. It was printed weekly and had a republican slant.
German Society of Pennsylvania – Deutsche Ansiedelungs-Gesellschaft zu Philadelphia (German Settlement Society of Philadelphia) records
The Deutsche Ansiedlungs-Gesellschaft zu Philadelphia (German Settlement Society of Philadelphia) was founded in 1836 by a group of German Philadelphians whose goal was to found a German colony somewhere in …
German Society of Pennsylvania – German Society Agentur
The Agentur Records Collection consists of 72 volumes of handwritten ledgers, indexes, logs, reports, and letter books spanning the years 1847 to 1947, recording the efforts of the German Society …
German Society of Pennsylvania – Philadelphia Demokrat
This collection consists of the daily German language newspaper “Der Demokrat”. Variant titles are: Philadelphia Demokrat, Philadelphia Demokrat und Anzeiger der Deutschen, and Philadelphier Demokrat. It merged with the Morgen …
German Society of Pennsylvania – Philadelphia Demokrat (1838)
This newspaper was edited & published by Hermann Burckhardt & Georg Rottenstein, May 1838-?, then by Georg Rottenstein alone. Not to be confused with Der Demokrat, 1839-1918.
Indiana University of Pennsylvania – Indiana, Pennsylvania in the Civil War Collection
Welcome to the Indiana University of Pennsylvania – Indiana Pennsylvania in the Civil War Collection, a part of the POWER Library: PA Photos and Documents. The Indiana Pennsylvania in the …
Juniata College – Huntingdon County Historical Newspapers
This digital collection contains the archive of the Huntingdon Gazette and the Huntingdon Journal. The Huntingdon Gazette is the first successful newspaper on the town of Huntingdon and covers late …
Keystone College – Local History Collection
Welcome to the Keystone College Local History Collection, a part of the POWER Library: PA Photos and Documents. This collection a large number of photos and documents from and about …
LancasterHistory – City Directories 1843 – 1900 Collection
This collection consists of Lancaster City and County residential and commercial directories, 1843-1900. These directories provide valuable information regarding the population of Lancaster City and County, as well as the …
LancasterHistory – Lancaster Examiner and Herald 1834-1854 Collection
Lancaster’s Examiner and Herald was published weekly in Lancaster, Pa., during the middle years of the nineteenth century. By digitizing the years 1834 – 1872, patrons are provided with a …
LancasterHistory – Lancaster Examiner and Herald 1855-1872 Collection
Lancaster’s Examiner and Herald was published weekly in Lancaster, Pa., during the middle years of the nineteenth century. By digitizing the years 1834 – 1872, patrons are provided with a …
Lycoming College – Historic Documents
Our Historical Documents Collection features a monograph of the college’s history from its beginnings to 1955 and manuscripts of importance to the colleges almost two-hundred year history.
Lycoming College – Student Newspapers, 1856 – present
This digitized collection of eighteen student publication spans the life of the College from its inception as the Dickinson Seminary, through its years as a junior college, to its present …
Memorial Library of Nazareth & Vicinity – Millgrove Schoolhouse
Millgrove School District operated out of a schoolhouse in Bushkill Township, Pennsylvania from about 1860 to 1956. The house was torn down in 1967. It was part of a collection …
New Cumberland Public Library – Scrapbooks and Memorabilia
This collection contains scanned images of scrapbooks from individuals and organizations related to New Cumberland. Themes vary from book to book. One scrapbook contains statistics and news articles about the …
Old Economy Village – Archives
The Harmonists, a Christian Communal society, founded Old Economy Village in 1824. They were known for their piety, as well as for their economic successes in textile manufacturing, including silk …
Pennsylvania Highlands Community College – Cambria County Immigration Declarations
This collection includes scans of immigration declarations registered in Cambria County from 1835-1991. Information includes name, place of departure, country of origin, and age.
Pennsylvania Highlands Community College – Cambria Memory Project
This collection features items collected from the public that focus on the immigrant and ethnic heritage of Cambria County.
Pennsylvania Horticultural Society – Archive Collections Guides
This ongoing collection consists of finding aids created for the archival holdings of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society (1827- ). Included are guides to historical materials such as the PHS minute …
Pennsylvania Horticultural Society – Philadelphia Garden Photographs, 1900-1940: 1. Garden Club of Philadelphia
The Garden Club of Philadelphia was established in 1904 by Mrs. J. Willis Martin and Miss Ernestine Goodman to promote an interest in gardens, their design, and management. The garden …
Reading Area Community College – The Schuylkill Navigation System
The Schuylkill Navigation Company was incorporated in 1815 for the purpose of making the Schuylkill River navigable. In the State Archives of Pennsylvania Manuscript Group 110 there are copies of …
Schwenkfelder Library & Heritage Center – Rosina Heydrich’s Midwifery Manual and Ledger, 1770-1819
An extensive midwifery manuscript (Hebamme Büchlein) in the archive of the Schwenkfelder Library and Heritage Center, penned between the years 1770-1819, is attributed to Rosina Heydrich, a midwife and member …
Scranton Public Library – History of the Scranton Public Library
A collection of very early photographs of the library from 1893. There are also documents of the history of one of our buildings, the Silkman House.
Scranton Public Library – Out of the Wilderness: The Industrialization and Development of the the Scranton Area 1850-1865
Funded by a grant from the Willary Foundation, this collection contains letters, books, paintings, photographs, and other artifacts from the era when the Lackawanna Valley emerged from its agrarian beginnings …
Uniontown Public Library – Fayette County Iron Works Records
This handwritten historic collection contains over 2,800 pages of entries documenting the operations necessary to produce iron and iron products. It holds seven Isaac Meason Union Furnace Ledgers covering the …
Wagner Free Institute of Science – Lectures on Conchology by William Wagner
A collection of handwritten lectures on Conchology, consisting of an Introductory lecture followed by 15 topical lectures. They were written and delivered by William Wagner, founder of the Wagner Free …
Warren Library Association – The Allegheny Pilot
Provides a detailed navigational study of the river during the era of early rafting and lumbering.
West Pittston Public Library – Pittston Gazette Collection
Welcome to the West Pittston Library’s Pittston Gazette Collection, a part of the POWER Library: PA Photos and Documents. The Pittston Gazette Collection includes the first 58 years of publication from 1850 …













































