A Record Year for Preserving Pennsylvania's Stories
- jbarrett479
- 23 hours ago
- 4 min read
2025 was a record-breaking year for the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. We added over 200 new books and nearly 100 archival collections—more than 1,200 linear feet of history. From the legacy of the University of the Arts to family papers, grassroots activism, and industrial records, these acquisitions show how art, labor, and civic life have shaped Pennsylvania and the nation. They underscore HSP’s role as a steward of stories that inspire research, creativity, and public memory.
The highlights below offer a series of case studies that illustrate the breadth, depth, and research potential of these new acquisitions.
University of the Arts records, circa 1876–2024 (1,000 linear feet)
The largest archival acquisition in HSP’s history preserves nearly 150 years of creative education in Philadelphia. The University of the Arts archives trace the evolution of American art instruction through faculty papers, student work, exhibition records, photographs, architectural drawings, and audiovisual materials. From renowned artists like Edna Andrade and Laura Jean Allen to generations of emerging creators, the collection captures how artists were trained, how ideas circulated, and how creative communities took shape from the 19th century to the present.
Community Activism
Fund for an Open Society records, circa 1975–2009 (48 linear feet)
Founded during an era of rapid urban change, the Fund for an Open Society worked to sustain racially and economically integrated neighborhoods. Its records document innovative approaches to fair housing—from mortgage lending to community leadership training—and offer a ground-level view of how activists responded to gentrification, segregation, and displacement over three decades.
Asian Americans United publications and ephemera, circa 2025 (0.1 linear feet)
These contemporary posters, flyers, and handouts capture Asian Americans United’s ongoing work to confront anti-Asian violence, advocate for housing justice, and build community in Philadelphia. Small in size but powerful in voice, the collection documents activism as it happens—designed for streets, meetings, and moments of collective action.
Family History & Genealogy
Milton Botwinick genealogical research materials, circa 1996–2007 (24 linear feet)
Compiled by one of Philadelphia’s most prolific professional genealogists, this collection reflects decades of meticulous family research. Packed with charts, correspondence, and vital records, it offers both rich family histories and a behind-the-scenes look at how genealogical research is conducted.
Price Family Papers,1652–2022 (17 linear feet)
Spanning more than six generations, the Price family papers document a lineage deeply embedded in Philadelphia’s civic, intellectual, and cultural life. Family members—including Eli K. Price, a lawyer, historian, and preservation advocate—were active in institutions such as Fairmount Park, the Woodlands Cemetery and Historic Trust, and the Allegheny West Foundation. The collection includes rare early legal texts, manuscript drafts, estate and real estate records, family correspondence, photographs, architectural drawings, and personal artifacts. Together, these materials illuminate how one prominent family helped shape Philadelphia’s legal culture, preservation movement, and public spaces over nearly three centuries.
Roberts, Ervin, and Mudge Family Papers, 1813–circa 1968 (4 linear feet)
This collection traces the intertwined lives of the Roberts, Ervin, and Mudge families, connecting Philadelphia’s railroad, legal, and religious history. Miriam W. Roberts was the daughter of George Brooke Roberts, longtime president of the Pennsylvania Railroad, while her husband, Spencer Ervin Jr., was a lawyer, author, and noted historian of the Anglican Church who served as a deputy to the Episcopal Church’s General Convention from the Diocese of Pennsylvania. The papers include diaries, correspondence, photographs, blueprints of the family’s Bala Cynwyd home, and church history research, offering a window into elite professional networks, faith communities, and family life in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Industry & Labor
Franks and Wagner receipt books, 1805–1817 (0.3 linear feet)
These modest ledgers offer an intimate look at early 19th-century Philadelphia craftsmanship. Kept by two house carpenters, the receipt books record everyday transactions—from schoolhouse measurements to brickwork on Arch Street—revealing how skilled labor shaped the growing city.
Thomas M. Righter papers, 1850–1923 (6 linear feet)
Documenting coal mining ventures across Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia, this collection traces the rise of industrial extraction through correspondence, maps, financial records, and blueprints. It also captures the personal dimensions of industrial life, including family relationships and regional mobility.
Susquehanna Coal Company locomotive catalogs and schematics, 1903–1907 (0.1 linear feet)
This handmade volume assembles order forms, technical drawings, and parts catalogs for mining locomotives. It offers a rare glimpse into the machinery that powered Pennsylvania’s coal industry at the height of industrial expansion.
Curlee Holton art book and prints, 2025 (0.15 linear feet)
Artist Curlee Raven Holton created The Sublime Narrative of Self-Emancipation, a 44-page artist book interleaving eight original prints with vellum pages featuring images from HSP’s collections. Drawing on abolitionist records and the legacy of spirituals, Holton commemorates the 250th anniversary of the Pennsylvania Abolition Society through powerful visual narratives of resistance and liberation. A separate series of eight large-format prints from the book is also included in the collection. Read more about HSP's 2025 artist-in-residency.
Make your appointment today
Discover for yourself how these and dozens of other new collections invite you to explore art, activism, industry, and family life in Pennsylvania and beyond. Reach out to us with inquiries or book a spot in our Reading Room. We look forward to joining you on your historical journeys. While visiting us at 1300 Locust Street in Philadelphia, plan to check out our current exhibit, and make sure to view one of our single largest new acquisitions - a striking, hand-painted Works Progress Administration map of Pennsylvania counties (circa 1936), alive with stenciled town symbols and historical vignettes—now on view in HSP’s Information Commons and best appreciated up close.
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