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McCall family papers
The McCalls were a merchant family of Philadelphia, Virginia, and Maryland, who imported and traded mostly tobacco and sugar from the West Indies. The collection consists of business and family correspondence, shipping records, clippings, and three business ledgers. George McCall (b. 1683) immigra...
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| Main Author: | |
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| Collection: | McCall Family Papers |
| Collection Number: | 1786 |
| Format: | Manuscript |
| Language: | English |
| Subjects and Genres: | |
| Online Access: | Link to finding aid |
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| Physical Description: |
2.6 Linear feet 5 boxes, 3 volumes |
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| Summary: |
The McCalls were a merchant family of Philadelphia, Virginia, and Maryland, who imported and traded mostly tobacco and sugar from the West Indies. The collection consists of business and family correspondence, shipping records, clippings, and three business ledgers.
George McCall (b. 1683) immigrated to Philadelphia from Scotland in 1701 and established a prosperous trade business with his brother Samuel (1681-1759), a merchant in Glasgow, Scotland. Samuel’s son Archibald McCall (1734-1814) was a successful merchant in Tappahannock, Essex County, Virginia before the Revolution. Due to his continued allegiance to the British, however, Archibald, along with other loyal McCalls, lost their business interests in North America and entered the sugar trade in the West Indies. Archibald’s son, George Archibald McCall (1802-1868), was the original commander of the Pennsylvania Reserve Corps during the Civil War. He also served in the Mexican-American War and in various Indian wars.
This collection includes correspondence between Archibald and his brother Samuel pertaining mostly to their trade business. Other business letters contain information on accounts, inventories, and bills. George A. McCall’s correspondences with his sisters reveal details about his adventures while traveling from Pennsylvania to Panama, as well as his travels in Europe. There are also Civil War-era letters from George to his wife, Elizabeth, in which he related his life as a soldier; her letters during the same time depict life at home.
The collection also contains miscellaneous papers and clippings, most of which pertain to George A. McCall, as well as an unidentified commonplace book dating from about 1787. Additionally, there are also two business ledgers and one bill book that belonged to Archibald McCall.
Please note that although Box 4 claims to hold “Gen. John Cadwalader items,” it does not contain any of his materials. Instead researchers will find two folders of miscellaneous papers; scientific notes; and a commonplace book that contains poetry, an unfinished novel, and translations from French of “The Code of Humanity.” |