In Memoriam. Mrs. James Mifflin

Hftemmr MRS. JAMES MIFFLIN. LILY STURGIS MIFFLIN, widow of James Mifflin, Esq. of Philadelphia, and daughter of Edward Wight by his wife, Caroline Frances Stimson, was born in New York City, October 2, 1850, and died at Philadelphia, May 27, 1920. The representative of long lines of distinguished New England ancestry, Mrs. Mifflin, from the time of her marriage to James Mifflin, was closely identified with the social and in¬ tellectual activities of Philadelphia. Music, art and histor¬ ical matters occupied a large place in her life. The needs of her fellow-men and women held an appeal for her and many were her deeds of unostentatious kindness. Often, in¬ deed, was her hand stretched out to help and to strengthen those temporarily embarrassed by the tides of time. She took an intelligent interest in the evolution of the patriotic hereditary societies, was instrumental in the for¬ mation of the Pennsylvania Society of Colonial Dames of America, and ably filled the position of its first Correspond¬ ing Secretary. Mrs. Mifflin became deeply interested in the Swedish settlements on the Delaware, and, it was due to her efforts that the Pennsylvania Society of Colonial Dames se¬ lected, in 1895, February fifteenth as the day for its annual commemoration that being the day in 1643, when Governor Printz sailed up the Delaware and established the first seat of government, within the present State of Pennsylvania, on Tinicum Island. Her address, before the Society at this occasion, on John Printz, Governor of New Sweden, subsequently appeared in The American Historical Register, a monthly gazette of the Patriotic Heriditary Societies of the United States, published in Philadelphia, 1894-7, of which she was an associate editor and contributor. A close student of art in its manysideness, Mrs. Mifflin served for years in the Associate Committee of Women to the Board of Trustees of the Pennsylvania Museum and School of Industrial Art. To this work she brought an enthusiasm that knew no bounds and rarely missed a committee meeting, She had travelled extensively. In earlier days she was ac- — (213) 214 Memoir. — —- eustomed to spend many summers abroad notably in Italy and there she developed a taste for the curious and unusual objects of art, some of which she afterwards presented to the Pennsylvania Museum. The Tyrolese peasant’s Cottage, now exhibited in the Children’s Museum at Memorial Hall, was one of her gifts. Mrs. Mifflin was the first woman to serve on the Board of Directors of The Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania, was the first Chairman of its Associate Committee of Women, and keenly alive to the welfare of the Society. One of the last acts of her life was a bequest to it of two thousand dollars. With the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, she had been identified for years and was ever eager to further its ad¬ vancement, making it, too, a beneficiary under her will. Dur¬ ing the World War none were more active than she in sup¬ port of the Receptions, given under its auspices to the Officers, Soldiers, Sailors and Marines. For and at these functions she was unsparing of herself, her time, and her financial aid. Here, her real personality showed itself and greatly endeared her to the throng of youth which overflowed the Society’s spacious halls. Fond of social life she upheld its best traditions and was esteemed by old and young alike. Well and widely read, her observation on the questions of the day compelled attention; and made her a desirable addition to any gathering. At the opera she was a familiar figure in the stock holder’s seats at the Academy of Music and elsewhere. In membership with many organizations civil, social and patriotic, Mrs, Mifflin brought to them all the resources of a trained and positive mind, ripe judgment, clearness of thought, clever¬ ness of speech, toleration of the faults and foibles of others, a sense of humor equal to most emergencies and a just and generous giving. Withal, she was a loyal friend, and a communicant of the Episcopal Church in whose faith and practice she died. The recollection of a life so wrapped up in activities will fill the minds of the many who knew her well with an inspiration and an example. Hers was “ The reason firm, the temperate will, Endurance, foresight, strength and skill.” —