Philosophy
This is quite fascinating and involves the archives of The Wistar Institute.
It’s not uncommon to find hidden treasure at The Wistar Institute. Usually, however, those treasures are discovered in a lab and come in the form of a newly identified gene, a technology to improve drug delivery, or the isolation of a protein that plays a key role in fighting disease.
Last summer, Wistar archivist Nina Long came across a treasure of a more traditional nature. While going through the Wistar vault, the Wistar Museum Collections curator spotted a dusty black box with a handwritten label. Much to her surprise, the box contained a collection that had not been seen since it was inventoried in 1958 — colonial currency dating from before the American Revolution. Long, also the director of Library Services for Wistar, counted 74 notes, printed between 1758 and 1777 from the Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware colonies. Even though money had expiration dates during that time, many people chose to keep the bills, believing them to be valuable even after the notes were expired. The label on the box and a note that lay atop the bills were written by the Institute’s founder, Isaac Wistar, who indicated that the money had been passed down from his maternal grandfather, former Philadelphia mayor Isaac Cooper Jones, upon his death in 1865. Some of the bills in the box were printed by Benjamin Franklin and his business partner David Hall in Philadelphia. Others bore signatures of Charles Thomson, John Morton, and Francis Hopkinson — all signers of the Declaration of Independence. The collection is valued at $18,000, according to John Kraljevich, a renowned numismatist in New York City. The bills, which were placed in protective coverings, are part of the Wistar Archives Collections.
The Wistar Institute
The Wistar Institute [Wikipedia]
- Marr Recording Collection
"A collection on the move: UMKC’s massive Marr Sound Archives will move into a ‘robot’" by Mara Rose Williams February 8th, 2014 The Kansas City Star Chuck Haddix strolled up and down the aisles between the towering stacks...
- Samuel A. Goudsmit Papers Available Online Via Aip
"AIP's Niels Bohr Library Makes Goudsmit Papers Available Online" Papers document history of frontier physics research July 26th, 2011 PRNewswire The Niels Bohr Library and Archives of the American Institute of Physics (AIP), has digitized...
- David Rittenhouse And The American Flag
"Looking Up: David Rittenhouse, a patriot and an astronomer" by Peter Becker July 1st, 2010 Helena Daily World As colonial America fought for their freedom from tyranny from the king of England 238 years ago, among the patriots was David Rittenhouse,...
- Deceased--joel Bloom
Joel Bloom August 5th, 1925 to September 23rd, 2008 "Joel Bloom, Science Exhibit Innovator, Is Dead at 83" by Dennis Hevesi September 26th, 2008 The New York Times Joel N. Bloom, who in his 21 years as director of the science museum and planetarium...
- Albert Einstein And Yivo
"I want to express to the Institute my recognition for its work in the service to the education and research of Jewish nation. I see the search for education as the principle goal of Jews and Institute's work, especially during these times of persecutions,...
Philosophy
What's in your archive?
This is quite fascinating and involves the archives of The Wistar Institute.
The Tale of the Lost Colonial Currency
It’s not uncommon to find hidden treasure at The Wistar Institute. Usually, however, those treasures are discovered in a lab and come in the form of a newly identified gene, a technology to improve drug delivery, or the isolation of a protein that plays a key role in fighting disease.
Last summer, Wistar archivist Nina Long came across a treasure of a more traditional nature. While going through the Wistar vault, the Wistar Museum Collections curator spotted a dusty black box with a handwritten label. Much to her surprise, the box contained a collection that had not been seen since it was inventoried in 1958 — colonial currency dating from before the American Revolution. Long, also the director of Library Services for Wistar, counted 74 notes, printed between 1758 and 1777 from the Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware colonies. Even though money had expiration dates during that time, many people chose to keep the bills, believing them to be valuable even after the notes were expired. The label on the box and a note that lay atop the bills were written by the Institute’s founder, Isaac Wistar, who indicated that the money had been passed down from his maternal grandfather, former Philadelphia mayor Isaac Cooper Jones, upon his death in 1865. Some of the bills in the box were printed by Benjamin Franklin and his business partner David Hall in Philadelphia. Others bore signatures of Charles Thomson, John Morton, and Francis Hopkinson — all signers of the Declaration of Independence. The collection is valued at $18,000, according to John Kraljevich, a renowned numismatist in New York City. The bills, which were placed in protective coverings, are part of the Wistar Archives Collections.
The Wistar Institute
The Wistar Institute [Wikipedia]
- Marr Recording Collection
"A collection on the move: UMKC’s massive Marr Sound Archives will move into a ‘robot’" by Mara Rose Williams February 8th, 2014 The Kansas City Star Chuck Haddix strolled up and down the aisles between the towering stacks...
- Samuel A. Goudsmit Papers Available Online Via Aip
"AIP's Niels Bohr Library Makes Goudsmit Papers Available Online" Papers document history of frontier physics research July 26th, 2011 PRNewswire The Niels Bohr Library and Archives of the American Institute of Physics (AIP), has digitized...
- David Rittenhouse And The American Flag
"Looking Up: David Rittenhouse, a patriot and an astronomer" by Peter Becker July 1st, 2010 Helena Daily World As colonial America fought for their freedom from tyranny from the king of England 238 years ago, among the patriots was David Rittenhouse,...
- Deceased--joel Bloom
Joel Bloom August 5th, 1925 to September 23rd, 2008 "Joel Bloom, Science Exhibit Innovator, Is Dead at 83" by Dennis Hevesi September 26th, 2008 The New York Times Joel N. Bloom, who in his 21 years as director of the science museum and planetarium...
- Albert Einstein And Yivo
"I want to express to the Institute my recognition for its work in the service to the education and research of Jewish nation. I see the search for education as the principle goal of Jews and Institute's work, especially during these times of persecutions,...