Finding aid for West River Quaker Burial Ground Records, 1862-1994
General International Standard for Archival Description
Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College. Swarthmore, Pennsylvania 19081-1399 U.S.A.
Text converted and initial EAD tagging provided by FHL Staff, 2007
Encoded Archival Description
Encoded Archival Description (EAD) Version 2002
collection
West River Quaker Burial Ground Records 1862-1994
West River Quaker Burial Ground
Biographical History for: West River Quaker Burial Ground Records 1862-1994
BIOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL NOTE In 1656, Elizabeth Harris, an English Friend, visited Maryland and converted a number of early residents; George Fox and William Edmundson attended a meeting at West River in 1672. Minutes of the monthly meeting which included West River survive from 1677. Although Thomas Hooker devised a small plot of land to Friends in 1684 and Ann Pemberton deeded adjacent ground in 1833, the State of Maryland confirmed a 1867 deed when it incorporated Trustees for the "Quaker Burial Ground" in Galesville in 1888. This latter group of Trustees was made up of individuals whose families were interred in the ground, not necessarily all Quakers. However, in 1994, their successors petitioned Chesapeake Quarterly Meeting to take responsibility for the site; the Quarterly Meeting approved and appointed three Friends and one of the previous Trustees to a new Board.
SCOPE AND CONTENT OF THE RECORDS Records of the West River Quaker Burial Ground, 1862-1994. Consists of Minutes of the Trustees, General Records, Correspondence, Financial Records, and Miscellaneous. Financial materials include records of lot owners and sale of lots. Historical information is found in Miscellaneous. Organized into five series: Organization:MinutesCorrespondenceGeneralLegal & Financial RecordsMiscellaneous
Quakers -- Maryland -- Anne Arundel County
Society of Friends -- Maryland -- Anne Arundel County
West River Monthly Meeting Cemeteries -- Maryland -- Anne Arundel County
series
Series 1: Minutes
Minutes
Volume includes Memoranda relating to the burying ground, a history of the Burial Ground before 1867 and a description of the lot (pp.1-6), minutes, 1867-1937 (pp.6-41), and Treasurer's Accounts, 1868-1937 (pp.60-127). Also includes photocopy.
Minutes (copy)
Creation of Minutes (copy)
Time of Creation of Minutes (copy)
Incorporation
Photocopy of Act to Incorporate Trustees of the West River Quaker Burial Ground, as printed in Laws of Maryland, 1888.
Trustee Appointments (copy)
Administration change to Baltimore Yearly Meeting
Creation of Administration change to Baltimore Yearly Meeting
Time of Creation of Administration change to Baltimore Yearly Meeting
Photocopy of correspondence related to the transfer of oversight in 1994.
Series 2: Correspondence
Correspondence of Trustee President (copy)
Creation of Correspondence of Trustee President (copy)
Time of Creation of Correspondence of Trustee President (copy)
Includes legal papers, insurance, workman's compensation, burial ground regulations, lot purchases, maintenance, history
Cost of lots, sale of perpetual care lots, burial rates, lot locations, appeal letters, maintenance, genealogy, approach to Baltimore Yearly Meeting to resume oversight of burial ground
Correspondence of Secretary-Treasurer (copy)
Creation of Correspondence of Secretary-Treasurer (copy)
Time of Creation of Correspondence of Secretary-Treasurer (copy)
Annual care payments, lot locations, genealogy. Arranged alphabetically. Includes index of correspondants.
Due bills, requests for perpetual care lots, unauthorized grave openings, need for burial rules.
Series 3: General Records
General Records (copy)
Creation of General Records (copy)
Time of Creation of General Records (copy)
Folders: 1867-74 & 1882-1906; 1933-34; 1/1935-7/1935; 8/1935-10/1935; 11/1935; 12/1935; 1/1936-3/1936; 4/1936-12/1936; 1/1937-9/1937; 10/1937-5/1939; 6/1939-5/1942. Includes property deeds, financial accounts, correspondence, tire insurance, annual care payments, sale of lots, maintenance, historic markers, genealogy
Series 4: Legal and Financial Records
Legal ("Principle") Papers (copy)
Creation of Legal ("Principle") Papers (copy)
Time of Creation of Legal ("Principle") Papers (copy)
Wills, deeds. Indexed
Financial Reports (copy)
Creation of Financial Reports (copy)
Time of Creation of Financial Reports (copy)
Photocopies of financial records in book of minutes, 1867-1894; 1896-1937 (See: Series 1)
General Accounts
Cost of lots (copy)
Creation of Cost of lots (copy)
Time of Creation of Cost of lots (copy)
Sale of lots (copy)
"Lot owners"
Creation of "Lot owners"
Time of Creation of "Lot owners"
One volume account book with annual care payments by lot owners, 1950-1960; includes, in back of book, a list of lots sold from 1882-1956; file includes photocopies.
One volume account book with annual care payments by lot owners, 1960-1979, and financial reports, 1960-1979.
"Lot owners" (copy)
Creation of "Lot owners" (copy)
Time of Creation of "Lot owners" (copy)
Annual care payments
Receipts for lot purchases and related correspondence
Creation of Receipts for lot purchases and related correspondence
Time of Creation of Receipts for lot purchases and related correspondence
Vouchers
Creation of Vouchers
Time of Creation of Vouchers
Bills for grave markers and maintenance expenses; file also includes a set of photocopies.
Creation of Annual care payments
Time of Creation of Annual care payments
One volume of annual care payments, 1957-1967, with a 1973 notation that the cost of lot care was raised from $4. to $8.
Annual care payments (copy)
Creation of Annual care payments (copy)
Time of Creation of Annual care payments (copy)
Original receipt (1947) and photocopies of records of annual care payments, 1947-1994.
Perpetual care requests and receipts (copy)
Creation of Perpetual care requests and receipts (copy)
Time of Creation of Perpetual care requests and receipts (copy)
Perpetual care records (copy)
Creation of Perpetual care records (copy)
Time of Creation of Perpetual care records (copy)
Annual care delinquent accounts (copy)
Creation of Annual care delinquent accounts (copy)
Time of Creation of Annual care delinquent accounts (copy)
Annual appeal letters (copy)
Creation of Annual appeal letters (copy)
Time of Creation of Annual appeal letters (copy)
Annual appeal mailing lists (copy)
Contributions (copy)
Creation of Contributions (copy)
Time of Creation of Contributions (copy)
Tax information (copy)
Creation of Tax information (copy)
Time of Creation of Tax information (copy)
Maintenance: employees (copy)
Creation of Maintenance: employees (copy)
Time of Creation of Maintenance: employees (copy)
Maintenance: the wall
Creation of Maintenance: the wall
Time of Creation of Maintenance: the wall
Original contract and photocopies of correspondence related to the retaining wall; also includes copy of blueprint of grounds.
Maintenance: the fence
Originals and photocopies of correspondence related to the fence; also includes photographs and drawings
1813 Deed (ms. copy) and Ensor Street Documents
Series 5: Miscellaneous
Burial lists
Creation of Burial lists
Time of Creation of Burial lists
Photocopies of lists of burials in West River from 1911-1935 by T.A. Hardesty & Son, 1936, and recorded by Reginald Claytor, 1928-36.
Form letters (copy)
annual care dues, rules for opening graves, records updating, diligent dues, certificate of perpetual care
Burial regulations
Original and photocopies of burial regulations, 1894-1950 & n.d.
Burial ground directory (copy)
Creation of Burial ground directory (copy)
Time of Creation of Burial ground directory (copy)
Two lists of interments, alphabetical and by plot number, 1982
Burial ground plot
Creation of Burial ground plot
Time of Creation of Burial ground plot
Pencil sketch of burial ground showing plot numbers.
Other cemeteries (copy)
Literature from local church and private cemeteries
Stationery
Celebrations: 250th anniversary of founding of Baltimore Yearly Meeting May 1922
Creation of Celebrations: 250th anniversary of founding of Baltimore Yearly Meeting May 1922
Time of Creation of Celebrations: 250th anniversary of founding of Baltimore Yearly Meeting May 1922
Celebrations: Tercentenary Celebration, Galesville, Maryland August 16-17, 1952 (copy)
Creation of Celebrations: Tercentenary Celebration, Galesville, Maryland August 16-17, 1952 (copy)
Time of Creation of Celebrations: Tercentenary Celebration, Galesville, Maryland August 16-17, 1952 (copy)
News clippings (copies)
Creation of News clippings (copies)
Time of Creation of News clippings (copies)
Historic road markers (copy)
Creation of Historic road markers (copy)
Time of Creation of Historic road markers (copy)
Proposed text and related correspondence relative to historic markers.
Historic trees, Galesville, Maryland (copy)
Correspondence and news article on oak trees adjacent to the burial ground
Published historical accounts (copy)
Creation of Published historical accounts (copy)
Time of Creation of Published historical accounts (copy)
Photocopies of articles relative to Maryland Quakers.
Lists of births, deaths, marriages on the Western shore of Maryland, 1658-1780 (copy)
Creation of Lists of births, deaths, marriages on the Western shore of Maryland, 1658-1780 (copy)
Time of Creation of Lists of births, deaths, marriages on the Western shore of Maryland, 1658-1780 (copy)
Photocopies of articles with vital record information by John J. Brinkley, published in the Maryland Genealogical Society Bulletin from 1972 to 1974.
Sufferings of Eastern and Western Shore (copy)
Photocopies of articles from the Maryland Genealogical Society Bulletin (1972) by John J. Brinkley, and The Maryland and Delaware Genealogist (1984) by LaVerne Forbush on early Quaker sufferings.
Private family cemeteries: Cedar Park, Tulip Hill, Sudley, Lothian (copy)
Lists of burials.