Items

• Marriage certificate, [Washington C. Young to Amanda L. West]
  This marriage certificate for Washington Craig Young (January 2, 1860-November 2, 1931) and Amanda L. (West) Young (June 20, 1860-January 20, 1943) features two bust-length, carte-de-visite studio portrait photographs, gold touches, pictorial details, an ornate border, and text.
• Letter, Rebecca Johnson to Miss Anderson, May 19, 1945
  This letter was sent by Miss Rebecca Mary Johnson (July 10, 1905-October 4, 1991) to Miss Marian Anderson (February 27, 1897-April 8, 1993) on May 19, 1945. This letter was sent to share details about “a project for… intercultural advancement” that will feature famous Black Americans, like Marian Anderson (p. 1). Johnson asks Anderson questions about herself to be used in the exhibit for the benefit of the Springfield, Massachusetts community and youth.
• Letter, John Hassett to Miss Marian Anderson, December 31, 1957
  Little is known about John Hassett, the person. The letter was written on proprietor’s stationery for a South Norwalk, Connecticut retail shop specializing in religious goods, greeting cards, novelties, and gift wrapping (HASSETT’S Religious Goods1962).
• Letter, Cheryl G. Jones to Miss Anderson, August 27, 1969
  An envelope, two-page letter, and signed photograph mailed by high school student and aspiring singer Cheryl G. Jones to globally renowned contralto Marian Anderson Fisher (1897-1993). The letter is among many letters from aspiring singers and musicians included in the Marian Anderson Papers. Anderson's life was an inspiration to them and to countless others in the United States and abroad (Kruesi 1998).
• Letter, Jane Frink to Miss Marian, September 9, 1974
  Hoosier Jane Frink was an avid singer in high school and college. She garnered numerous awards and medals, according to print media accounts (The Terre Haute Tribune 1974), (The Terre Haute Tribune 1976). She married in 1981, though it was uncertain as to whether her vocal career blossomed (Frink n.d.).
• Letter, Mary Helen Stanek to Marian Anderson, February 21, 1952
  Mary Helen Stanek, age 71 was never married but was a lifelong cat lover (Mary Helen Stanek Obit 1941 ). The birthday card and brief letter was from Mary age 10, of Lehigh, Iowa, to Marian Anderson, dated February 21, 1952. Stanek writes to wish Anderson “years and years of happiness” upon discovering they share the same birthday, February 27th.
• Letter, Dutch Barhydt to Miss Anderson, May 16,1971
  Dutch’s (b. 1958) letter implies that he is a dedicated collector. For a 13 year old (U.S., City Directories: Dirck Barhydt Jr, n.d.), his objective is collecting original signatures from famous and influential people, including presidents and prime ministers. The teenager successfully acquired Miss Anderson’s signature.
• Will of Jeremiah Langhorne
  Jeremiah Langhorne of Middletown, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, sets forth his last will and testament, first entrusting his soul to God and directing that his body be buried at his executors’ discretion. His primary estate, an 800-acre plantation known as Langhorne Park, is devised to his grand-nephew Thomas Biles, with provisions for heirs of his body, and in default, to his niece Sarah Growdon and her heirs, then to her husband Lawrence Growdon. He carefully stipulates that three enslaved men—Jo, Cudjo, and London—are to remain in possession of the plantation until March 25, 1751, subject to rent payments, cultivation restrictions, and responsibilities for supporting Boson, enslaved women, and their children. After that period, the enslaved families are to be housed, given livestock, and in some cases granted small tracts of land. Langhorne further provides for the manumission of his enslaved people: all those aged twenty-four at his death (except Boson) are to be freed immediately, and the remainder upon reaching twenty-four. Beyond provisions for servants and enslaved people, Langhorne bequeaths sums of money and land to members of his extended family. His nephews, nieces, and their children—including members of the Biles, Pennington, and Bates families—receive significant inheritances, both in cash and in landholdings across Bucks County and beyond. He also leaves property to friends’ heirs (notably the Hamiltons) and to distant kinsmen in England. In addition to financial gifts, he directs that livestock, farming equipment, and household provisions be distributed among Jo, Cudjo, London, and other servants. Langhorne’s will demonstrates both the complexity of landholding in colonial Pennsylvania and the intertwined presence of enslavement, family inheritance, and patronage networks within his estate planning.
• "Nancy Greene, Emma Greene, 1904"
  This photograph is a tintype of Nancy Kate Greene (1875-1926) and her daughter Emma Epps (née Greene) (1902-February 27, 1989), likely taken in Princeton, New Jersey. Invented in the 1850s and produced into the 1900s, tintypes were photographs on thin iron metal that were often hand-colored and mostly used for portraits (Library of Congress, n.d.).
• Council of the City of Philadelphia, Resolution Honoring the Rich Life and Loving Memory of Jaci Adams
  **Honoring Jaci Adams: A Legacy of Advocacy and Leadership** Jaci Adams (1956 - 2014) was a remarkable transwoman whose life embodied resilience and the "American Dream." Born in Beckley, WV., and raised in North Philadelphia, Adams overcame a history of abuse, addiction, and incarceration to become a fierce advocate for social justice, particularly for the trans community (Staff 2014).
• Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, The House of Representatives, Condolence Resolution
  Condolence resolution in honor of Jaci Adams (1956 - 2014). The law enforcement officer was a remarkable transwoman whose life embodied resilience and the "American Dream." Born in Beckley, WV., and raised in North Philadelphia, Adams overcame a history of abuse, addiction, and incarceration to become a fierce advocate for social justice, particularly for the trans community (Staff 2014).
• Handwritten Stoutsburg Cemetery Ledger
  This handwritten ledger was kept by Herbert Albert Hubbard (June 7, 1875-July 11, 1948), Beverly Mills's (co-founder of the Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum) great-grandfather, at the Stoutsburg Cemetery. It includes minutes from Stoutsburg Cemetery Association meetings, including hymns sung and fundraising efforts, from 1912 through the 1920s.
• Milk glass chalice (fragment)
  Milk glass chalice (and other archaeological fragments such as nails and bricks), 20th century. Related to the original construction and use of Mt. Zion AME Church
• Mt. Zion African Methodist Episcopal Church (structure)
  Mt. Zion African Methodist Episcopal Church, built in 1899