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M.J. Scarlett letter to Joseph Pownall Scarlett

 Collection — Box: 1 letter
Identifier: 003-MS 439

Scope and Contents

1 sheet 8 x 10 inches, folded in half, written with sepia ink on watermarked paper.  Includes card 1 3/4 x 3 /12 inches with her hand written name and address.

Dates

  • Other: Date acquired: 11/06/2015

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

Archives and Special Collections of McNairy Library will reproduce Special Collections material to the extent that physical condition and copyright or other legal restrictions permit. Reproduction is available in the form of photocopies and digital images. All reproduction requests must be approved by a member of the professional staff. Decisions will take into account the type and condition of the binding, the brittleness of the paper, the size and the general size and fragility of the item.

Conditions Governing Use

Archives and Special Collections adheres to the provisions of the 1976 Copyright Act and amendments, and follows the minimum standards of educational fair use established under Section 107. In applying these standards, Archives and Special Collections will copy up to 10% of a copyrighted work if the copy is to be used for the purpose of private study, scholarship or research. The department will not copy for the purpose of public performance. Physical condition permitting, the department will copy more than 10% of a copyrighted work only with the written permission of the copyright holder. Multiple copies are not permitted under fair use. For authored works created since 1978, copyright lasts from the creation of the work until 70 years after the author's death. The expiration term for corporate, anonymous, or pseudonymous works is 95 years from publication or 120 years from creation, whichever occurs first. For works published before 1978, with a copyright notice, the maximum duration of copyright protection is 75 years. Works published before 1978 without a copyright notice are assumed to be in the public domain. Since March 1, 1989, a copyright notice is no longer necessary. Archives and Special Collections reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if fulfillment of the order would involve violation of copyright law.

Biographical or Historical Information

Mary J. Scarlett, the youngest child of John and Elizabeth (Pownall) Scarlett, was born on October 23, 1822. She taught for a number of years in country schools before attending the Female Medical College of Pennsylvania from which she graduated in 1857. Dr. Scarlett was appointed a demonstrator of anatomy at the College in 1859 and Professor of Anatomy in 1862. During many of these same years, she also served as a resident physician at the women's hospital which was associated with the Female Medical College. Like her parents and several of her brothers, Mary Scarlett was a Quaker and an abolitionist. Her brother, Joseph Pownall Scarlett, was one of three white men accused of treason for his role in the Christiana resistance in September, 1851. The suit against him was dropped when Castner Hanway, another white participant in the event, was acquitted. Mary J. Scarlett married G. Washington Dixon in May of 1873, retaining her professorship and continuing to practice medicine until her eyesight failed in 1881. She died in 1900.

Note written by

Extent

1.00 items

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

Manuscript letter from M.J. Scarlett to her brother, Joseph Pownall Scarlett, describing speeches by abolitionist leaders Frederick Douglass and William Lloyd Garrison. The letter also notes that she had attended a meeting at the Race Street Meetinghouse at which Lucretia Mott was also present. A slip of paper containing Mary J. Scarlett's handwritten name and address accompanies the letter.

Technical Access Requirements

The processing fee for photocopying or scanning requests is $10.00/request. There is no charge for Millersville University students, faculty, or staff.

Source of Acquisition

M & S Rare Books, Inc.

Method of Acquisition

Purchase

Related Materials

The Christiana Riot and the Treason Trials of 1851, part of the Henry Frank Eshleman Papers.

Other Descriptive Information

Folder also contains a description of the letter containing biographical information about Mary J. and Joseph P. Scarlett, a biographical sketch of Mrs. Mary J. Scarlett Dixon printed from the Pennsylvania Genealogy Trails website and a photocopy of the article "Notes by the way: the Christiana riot of 1851" from the Friends' intelligencer and journal.

Title
Archon Finding Aid Title
Description rules
Other Unmapped
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
und

Repository Details

Part of the Millersville University Special Collections Repository

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