Summary
The main aim of the assignment is to review the historical records of the Quakers’ settlement, one of the settlements from Colonial Pennsylvania and the Delaware River Valley. The ten annotated materials are primary sources in proper Turabian bibliography form not found in Albion’s Seed, explaining the Swedish settlement and how each source supports Fischer’s argument concerning folkways. The paper is arranged according to different sections, such as religion, politics, etc., according to Fischer’s arguments.
Annotated Bibliography
Religion
Gloria Dei Church (Philadelphia, Pa ). “Historical Accounts of Swedish Settlement along the Delaware River and Financial Records of Gloria Dei, 1653-1760,” 1653. Web.
The main idea presented is Religion, which supports Fischer’s argument concerning the ways of life and religion. The paper acknowledges the significance of faith in the life of the settlers. The paper also gives a record of the prominent persons who occupied the land, which makes up the social structure. The notion of the inner light, which said that every human soul received an emanation of divine love and virtue from Jesus, was a key component of Quaker theology.
Carson, H. L. “Dutch and Swedish Settlements on the Delaware.,” 1909. Web.
The source describes the New Englands Canaan the Delaware Valley as portrayed in Fischer’s argument. The ecosystem of the Delaware Valley was particularly well suited to the Quaker colonists’ cultural objectives. The river and harbor were transformed into a large common and were surrounded by thriving towns. The moderate temperature was a positive environmental influence. Death rates were relatively high by contemporary standards, making Delaware Valley a healthy region.
Ward, Christopher. “The Dutch & Swedes on the Delaware 1609-64,” 1930. Web.
This primary source chronicles the Quaker’s journey to the Delaware Valley and the ongoing conflict for territory. The first Europeans to live on Delaware’s beaches were the Dutch, who stayed there for about fifteen years. Then came the Swedes, who reigned for seventeen years until the Dutch retook the area and held it for nine more years before being routed by English forces in another part of the globe.
Politics
Myers, Albert Cook. Narratives of Early Pennsylvania, West New Jersey and Delaware, 1630-1707. Google Books. C. Scribner’s Sons, 1912. Web.
The Quaker political philosophy was good governance, liberty, and peace. Politics, in their view, was “an element of religion itself, a thing holy in its institution and its goal.” These religious precepts’ political significance, however, was up for debate. On matters of public concern, Quakers fought vehemently amongst themselves. According to the text, Pennsylvania was the colony where the notion of small government spread the furthest.
Records of the Courts of Quarter Sessions and Common Pleas of Bucks County Pennsylvania, 1684-1700. Edited by The Colonial Society of Pennsylvania. Meadville, Pennsylvania: Tribune Publishing Company, 1943.
The politics of ethnicity was another aspect of this political culture. Tensions between Welsh and English Quakers gave rise to this among the Quakers as early as the 1680s. These two tribes were so wary of one another that the English majority purposefully divided the Welsh colonies by drawing the county lines in Pennsylvania. Merion was put in Philadelphia County, while the townships of Haverford and Radnor were added to Chester County.
Death
Weslager, C. A. (1988). New Sweden on the Delaware: 1638-1655. Middle Atlantic Press.
The source agrees with Fischer’s contention that Quakerism concerns death. The leadership in Pennsylvania for the death penalty to be abolished adheres to the notion that death is the fulfillment of life. It represented the ultimate transcendence of the mortal person and an escape from the world’s corruptions. When a member of a Quaker family truly passed away, the whole family gathered and experienced a moment of the utmost seriousness.
Economic Activities
Carney, Leo H. “New Jersey Journal; Swedes in New Jersey.” The New York Times, 1987, sec. New York. Web.
The source focuses on Delaware River Valley regional commerce. The Pennsylvania Quakers prospered well as traders and merchants. Additionally, they had a policy of lending money to other Quakers at little or no interest, which helped them compete with other, less pious entrepreneurs. One significant aspect of this region’s culture was a mindset that greatly favored work and decried sloth. Work became a sacred act, and being idle was considered a mortal sin.
Marriage
Hazard, Samuel. Colonial Records of Pennsylvania. Google Books. T. Fenn, 1852. Web.
Quakers referred to as “mongrel marriages” to “unbelievers” were highly denounced. Outmarriage led to several Quaker meetings taking disciplinary action. There were no less than sixteen steps in a forthcoming Quaker wedding. In part due to the prohibitions on intermarriage, the massive influx of immigrants into the new colonies, and the gradual decline in political participation. The marriage practices of the Quakers mixed a fairly contemporary conception of romance with a great deal of formality.
Social Ranks
Gehring, C. T. (Ed.). Delaware Papers (Dutch Period): A Collection of Documents Pertaining to the Regulation of Affairs on the South River of New Netherland, 1648-1664. 1981, Genealogical Publishing Company.
At their social levels, Quakers objected to the usage of social titles. They emphasized that “Christians are to pursue the honor that originates from above, not the respect that comes from below; thus, they are to reject all the titles and styles of distinction.” No difference was made based on someone’s age, estate, gender, office, or position; everyone was addressed as “Friend.”
Dunn, Richard S., Mary Maples Dunn, Scott M. Wilds, Richard Alan Ryerson, Jean R. Soderlund, and Ned C. Landsman. The Papers of William Penn, Volume 2: 1680-1684. Google Books. University of Pennsylvania Press, 1982. Web.
Contains 202 documents about Penn, two excerpts, two tables, and information on who made the initial purchases from Penn. The book is divided into chronological sections, and each section’s title represents a theme. Except for “Negotiating the Charter” and “The Frame of Government of Pennsylvania,” the contents of the sections veer off course, and the editors frequently need to consult other parts to connect the various subjects.