Lot 660

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Description:

PENNSYLVANIA QUAKERS DISCUSS MEMBERS WHO ARE MISTRESSES OF SLAVEOWNING HOUSEHOLDS
Most intriguing unsigned manuscript document, 1p. oblong 8vo., [Philadelphia], 1778, entitled: "Minute of the Yearly Meeting, 1778, As entered in ye Quarterly Meeting; And in Respect of how to proceed in cases where only the mistresses of families where Slaves are held, Are Members of our religious society" The document continues, in full: "It is the sense of the Yearly Meeting, that where such Case arises, and any Woman evidently discovers a disposition of Mind to reject or approve the Judgment & Concern of the Yearly Meeting heretofore given, that Monthly Meeting (after Due Labour & Christian endeavours have been used to Convince her of her Error without Effect) should proceed to Declare that she is not in Fellowship with us - And it is further desired that Friends in the Course of their Labour with such who continue to hold Slaves in Bondage, may be well assured of the Disposition of mind of the mistresses of Families that they Unite with us in our Concern & Testimony against this unrighteous Practice; And where the contrary disposition appears, and is persisted in, Our Discipline should be exercised against them." The verso bears the notation: "Minute of the Yearly Meeting respecting Negro Mistresses, 1778". In 1797, these minutes were published by Philadelphia Quaker and printer Samuel Sansom in a volume entitled "Rules of Discipline and Christian advices of the Yearly Meeting of Friends for Pennsylvania and New Jersey", indicating that they were most likely drafted by a Pennsylvania congregation. In 1756, the Quakers became the first Western organization of any sort to ban slaveholding, and their influence encouraged Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson to call for a ban on the importation of slaves, which was enacted by the Continental Congress on December 1, 1775. During the Revolutionary War, their influence also encouraged George Washington to allow slaves to enlist in exchange for their freedom, in part to counter similar measures enacted by the British. It is also interesting to note that, given this document''s specific focus on women, the prominent place of women among the Friends, and the practice of dividing meetings by sex, it is very likely that this issue was debated at this yearly meeting primarily by women, and that these minutes were recorded by a woman. The document is professionally encapsulated, bears folds and faint foxing throughout, with some chipping at the edges, else very good.

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May 9, 2017 10:00 AM EDT
Chesapeake City, MD, US

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