Book Reviews

Book Reviews Guide to the Archives and Manuscript Collections of the American Philosophical Society. Compiled by Whitfield J. Bell, Jr. and Murphy D. Smith. [Memoirs of the American Philosophical Society Held at Philadelphia for Promoting Useful Knowledge, Volume 66.] (Philadelphia: The American Philosophical Society, 1966. vii, 182 p. Index. $3.00.) The Library of the American Philosophical Society Held at Philadelphia For Promoting Useful Knowledge is not the depository to which a genealogist normally would have recourse in a search for genealogical source material. Aside from the Franklin Papers — the Society owns more than half of the known surviving manuscripts of Benjamin Franklin — its primary holdings relate to the history of science and various aspects of American social and cultural history. Anthropology, genetics, physics, geology, botany, are all represented in the Society's collections. Its important collection of manuscript material relating to American Indians is so extensive it is fully described in the separate Guide to Manuscripts Relating to the American Indians, published in 1966, by the Society. But among the manuscripts relating to American social and cultural history, there is an unexpected number of items of considerable interest to the genealogist. Some include genealogical data in the strict sense. Others are manuscripts which provide the flesh to cover the bare bones of genealogy, thereby enabling the researcher to instill life into his list of begats. In a random examination of the 784 numbered collections listed in this Guide, this reviewer noted at least fifty of prime interest to the Pennsylvania genealogist. There are undoubtedly more. Those collections having special genealogical data as such include the William Darlington papers (212); the James Hutchinson papers (355); the Montgomery family of New Jersey (465); the Peale family papers (053, 554); the Sellers family papers (675, 676); the papers of the Society of Free Quakers (701); and the General Jonathan Williams account (764). Many of the historical manuscripts are of equal interest to the genealogist. There are a number of collections containing material relating to the French and Indian War, chiefly: the Burd-Shippen papers (163, 164); Account Books for Fort Augusta and Fort Pitt (261, 262); Alexander Hunter's Receipt Book (351); military records and accounts (568); the papers of Edward Shippen of Lancaster (679). Orderly books of the Revolutionary War are represented in items 156, 714, 718, 754, while letters and papers touching the war are scattered throughout the collections. Of special interest to Philadelphians are the papers and records of the Carpenters' Company of Philadelphia (175); the complete Stephen Girard papers, filmed at Girard College (286), and the Pennsylvania Hospital archives, also on film (574). Other collections from which material for the Colonial period may be gleaned include the Register Book, 1765-77, of the Philadelphia notary public, Peter Miller (459); John Reynell's Daybook (623); David Rittenhouse's Receipt Book (628); and the Shippen receipts, waste book, letter book and Docket of Cases (680-683). From such selected items, as well as the many nineteenth and twentieth century collections, it is clear that a visit to the Library, open to the public and delightful to work in, could very well be rewarding. 60 Book Reviews 61 The Guide, as its title suggests, is divided into two parts. Following an introduction explaining the purpose, form and content of the book, the Archives of the Society itself are listed. These are divided into twelve sections numbering 91 separate collections. They range from minutes and by-laws through officers, members, curators, committees and financial records. The Manuscript collections begin with No. 92, and extend through No. 784. These are arranged alphabetically, either by author of the collection, or by subject, as in No. 335: Heraldry. Where possible the authors have been Identified and known sketches in biographical encyclopedias cited. Membership in the Society is also noted. The subject of each collection, whether it is manuscript, photostat, film or typed copy, and the extent of the material are all given, with inclusive dates. There is also a brief breakdown of each collection, and if letters are included, the names of the principal writers and addressees are listed. A 33-page name and subject index lists by number the individual collections included in the Guide. Here this reviewer felt the index might have been extended a little by including a somewhat more specific breakdown of subject matter. For example, though items relating to the French and Indian War are listed under its own heading, those relating to the American Revolution are not. To find such items as accounts, orderly books and journals pertaining to that war, one must turn to the heading, "United States, American Revolution." Again, such specific items as business ledgers, account, receipt and waste books might have been listed under the heading, "Business records," and perhaps grouped by years as in the Guide to the Manuscript Collections of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. Admittedly, holdings of this nature are relatively small, but the stranger, searching for stray clues to complete his genealogical puzzle or historical dissertation, would then have an easier time selecting the material he wished to scrutinize. On the other hand, if the searcher is looking for material on a specific individual, the index will be most helpful. For the first time the public has been made aware, in considerable detail, of the treasures to be found in the Society's Library. The modest price at which this Guide is offered by the American Philosophical Society at its headquarters on Independence Square, 104 South Fifth Street, Philadelphia, 19106, makes it possible for all researchers to place this highly useful volume on their shelves. HANNAH BENNER ROACH Heads of Families at the First Census of the United States Taken in the Year 1790: Pennsylvania. (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1966. [Reprint: Washington: Government Printing Office, 19081 426 p. Index. $15.00.) Pennsylvania German Pioneers. A Publication of the Original lists of Arrivals in the Port of Philadelphia From 1727 to 1802. By Ralph Beaver Strassburger. Edited by William John Hinke. (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1966. [Second Printing in two Volumes.] lv, 776 p. xxvi, 709 p. Map, appendices, indices. $25.00.) By the re-publication of these two basic reference works relating to Pennsylvania, the Genealogical Publishing Company of Baltimore has supplied a long-felt need, and continues its commendable policy of making available to researchers out-of-print source material. The first work, originally published in 1908 by the Government Printing Office, in its present form duplicates the initial publication except for the omission of the 1796 Map of Pennsylvania by J. Reid found in the original. It includes the original introduction, the enabling Act and the population summaries of the twenty-one counties then comprisins 62 The Pennsylvania Genealogical Magazine Perinsylvama. As all Pennsylvania genealogists know, the 1790 Census is as essential a tool in genealogical research as the assessment lists found in the Pennsylvania Archives; jointly they enable the researcher to follow an individual from the 1760's, through the period of the Revolution, to the beginning of the westward movement. The present edition of Pennsylvania German Pioneers, initially published in three volumes under the auspices of the Pennsylvania-German Society at Norristown, Pa., in 1934, is equally valuable. Although this edition, reprinted with the permission of the Society, omits the original second volume of facsimile signatures on the ship lists, and reproduces only the first and third original volumes, the omission does not seriously detract from its intrinsic value to the researcher; the percentage of genealogists who can read the German script of the original second volume facsimiles probably is relatively low. The essential information is contained in the original 'first and third volumes, now available in two volumes. Volume I of the present edition, as in the first, contains 324 ship passenger lists having over 26,000 signatures. The lists run from 1727 to 1771, when emigration ceased because of the Revolution. The introduction, which should be read carefully by all who use the work, explains in detail the difference between, and significance of, the Captains'. Allegiance and Abjuration Lists. The second volume of the present edition, though omitting the various illustrations found in the original third volume, is otherwise identical with it. The introduction provides a further historical commentary on the lists, which cover the period from 1785, when emigration was resumed after the Revolution, to 1808. An additional 182 lists are given. These, in many cases, include considerable information about the emigrant, such as age, occupation, place of birth, country of origin, and/or personal appearance. Invaluable indices are included: of captains, ships, ports, officials and importing merchants, and Christian masculine and feminine names appearing in all the lists. The index of pioneers listed in the two volumes runs to 452 pages. Genealogists working on Pennsylvania families, or on those having Pennsylvania origins, who do not have in their personal libraries copies of these two indispensable works, may now supply the deficiency. They are strongly urged to do so. HANNAH BENNER ROACH The Family of Boluses. By Sir Anthony Richard Wagner, K.C.V.O., Garter Principal King of Arms. (Glasgow: University Press, 1966. 181 p. Coat of arms, pedigree charts, map, glossary, index.) This study traces the yeoman family of Bowser back into the mid-fifteenth century in the East Riding of Yorkshire. Since the work was started in 1926 by the Honorable Philip Cary, York Herald, and then taken over in 1933 by Sir Anthony Wagner, one can get a realistic view of the difficulties and costs of building a pedigree of a yeoman family. The full story is told and the records used are carefully cited. The name of Bowser is believed to be a variant of the occupational title of bursar, probably developed independently in a number of places. This pedigree starts with William Bowser of Wharram le Street, first noted in 1468, and runs through sixteen generations to the present day. Twenty-two pages are devoted chiefly to the male line of Charles Howard Bowser. His coat of arms is given in full color and is supplemented by the badge of David Charles Bowser, his son. Book Reviews 63 The seventeenth century representatives of the family were Quakers, but no connections with any immigrant families are noted. This reviewer checked the early records of the Philadelphia area for members of the family who might have been found in Penn sylvania, but no English Bowsers appeared. It is perhaps interesting to note, however, that a German family of the name of Bausser did come to Philadelphia in Colonial times, arriving on the Brigantine Richard and Elizabeth from Rotterdam on 28 September 1733. Descendants of this family, its name anglicized to Bowser, are scattered rather widely over the Middle Atlantic states. The chief value of The Family of Bowser to American students lies in the detailed description of the method of handling this kind of research, particularly from the seventeenth century back. There are 132 pages of supporting data, lists, and abstracts of records searched, as well as a two-page glossary, all of which provide a fully documented problem and the manner in which it was solved. It should be followed as a guide by all who seek to trace backwards, in the United Kingdom, the antecedents of a Colonial immigrant. We owe a debt of gratitude to Sir Anthony Wagner for providing us with this beautifully produced example of a properly done job, and for making the work possible, to Major D. C. Bowser, Mill of Argaty, Donne, Perthshire, U. K. The book is available only from him. WALTER LEE SHEPPARD, JR. The Story of Heraldry. By L. G. Pine. (Rutland, Vt.: Charles E. Tuttle Co., Inc., 1966. 164 p. Coats of arms, glossary, index. $4.71.) This new edition of Mr. Pines study of heraldry is one which all interested Americans would do well to read. A former editor (1949 - 1959) of Barlee's Peerage and Landed Gentry, and a prolific writer and speaker on genealogical subjects, he presents his subject in a lively and comprehensible manner. The book is no textbook, but is designed for the informed layman. In it he gives in simple and understandable terms his appraisal of the origin, rise, decline and revival of heraldry, each outlined against the historical background of its period. In his discussion of heraldry's origin and development, it is clear he is a firm believer that the authority of the heraldic writings and records of the Middle Ages is greater than later rationalizations; he quotes freely from many of the early records, analyzing each critically. When he comes to the period of heraldry's decline and revival, he is equally definite in his opinions. He takes a dim view of the method, as he says, "bearing some resemblance to the Morse code," devised by the Italian herald, Sylvester Petra-Sancta, for indicating in black and white the color of arms, and considers it "artistically hideous" (p. 87 - 8). He is far from being in accord with the late A. C. Fox-Davies (1891 - 1928), editor of Armorial Families and in 1914, of the Landed Gentry, in which he states FoxDavies "ruthlessly excised arms for which no grant could be found" (p. 33). Obviously disagreeing with the Fox-Davies thesis that no English arms are valid unless registered by the College of Arms, Mr. Pine goes to some length to demonstrate that this principle initially was fostered by the College itself in the eighteenth century (p. 72 -3), after it had been shorn of the powers of control originally granted by Royal Commission in the six • teenth, and exercised during the Visitations. On the other hand, he gives full credit to such men as Arthur Oswald Barron (1868 - 1939), "described by one of the Officers of Arms as the leading authority in this country on medieval heraldry" (p. 93)1, and to John 64 The Pennsylvania Genealogical Magazine Horace Round (1854 - 1928), as "the mightiest demolisher of false pedigreu whom England is ever likely to produce" (p. 97). Separate chapters discuss the development of heraldry in Wales, Ireland, Scotland and the Commonwealth. There is a sympathetic chapter on American heraldry of considerable interest. He makes it clear that although Americans are not granted arms by any authority in their own country, they have a perfect right to assume arms for themselves, as was done in medieval times, provided they do not take arms from which they cannot prove descent. The Committee on Heraldry of the New England Historic Genealogical Society, though it maintains Rolls of Arms, does not grant arms; it registers arms upon adequate proof, usually those demonstrably granted or confirmed by some heraldic body; those which demonstrate their use by prescription (from time immemorial but never registered); or those brought over by first settlers. Mr. Pine's last chapters deal with the development of the use of arms by corporate bodies, the state of heraldry today, and a bibliographical chapter critically assessing the value of studies on heraldry. A five -page glossary is a useful reference amplifying the heraldic terms used in the book. The publisher's description of this edition as "completely revised . . . in order to bring the book abreast of the numerous changes in the world of Heraldry," appears to be not entirely accurate. Only sections of it appear to have been rewritten, if the change in type face which occurs on a number of pages is any indication. Certainly the revision did not, in all instances, take cognizance of Anthony Wagner's change of status in 1961 from Richmond Herald to Garter King of Arms, as a comparison of pages 12, 57, and 150, with the footnote on page 90 shows. Such lapses, regrettable as they may be, in no way detract from the intrinsic value of Mr. Pine's present edition. Concise, uncluttered by a plethora of heraldic terms unfamiliar to the layman, it provides a comprehensible and generally objective exposition of the story of heraldry, even though it may be one with which not all would agree. The text is embellished with a score of wood engravings in black and white by K. F. Rowland. They are unusual interpretations of various arms in a medium not generally associated with the representation of heraldic art. Mr. Pine's opinion of their artistic value is not indicated. HANNAH BENNER ROACH Information Wanted Mrs. Leone Rodebaugh Terrel, 310 Hermitage Drive, Elkton, Md., 21921, is searching for data on the Rodebaugh, Rodebach, Rodeback family, particularly MICHAEL RODEBACEI of Whitemarsh Township, Montgomery Co., Pa., born 1750-55; probably Lutheran or Reformed Church member. Marriage date and place, wife's name, death date and burial place, and names and birth dates of his children are sought. Mrs. Terrel has much data from 1000 on which she will exchange for above information.