Manuscript Group 394
PENNSBURY MANOR COLLECTION
ca. 1930s-1940s
3 cubic feet
Pennsbury Manor is the reconstructed home of William Penn, noted statesman, diplomat,
Quaker, and founder of Pennsylvania. Wishing to establish a home in his recently
founded colony, Penn purchased this tract of land on the Delaware River from the
Indians in 1682. The manor was begun in 1683, and Penn lived there from 1699 to
1701, when he and his family returned to England. The manor fell into disrepair
by the 1730s. In 1932, the land was deeded to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
and the administration of the property was vested in the Pennsylvania Historical
Commission. More land was acquired in 1940. In 1936, the Commission requested
architect R. Brognard Okie to prepare plans for the possible recreation of Pennsbury
Manor, following extensive research on the original design. The contracting firm
of Sessinghaus and Ostergard were responsible for the construction of Pennsbury.
The buildings were completed in July 1939, followed by the gardening and landscaping
work. The furnishing of the mansion was completed by 1946. Today, Pennsbury Manor
is one of the numerous historic sites directly operated by the Pennsylvania Historical
and Museum Commission.
The collection consists of the records of the contracting firm, Sessinghaus and
Ostergard, which oversaw renovation and construction of Pennsbury Manor in 1930's
and 1940's. The records detail contractors' negotiations with the state and the
architect, relationships with the federal government, and information about the
practical and philosophical questions of reconstruction. Included are:
Accounts and Business Correspondence Documenting the Construction of the Facility
Blueprints
Drawings
Letter of Attorney to Sell 1500 Acres of Pennsbury Manor, 18 June 1746
Map of Falls Township Depicting all of Pennsbury Manor's Original Area, 1858
Motion Picture Film, 16mm (black & white and color) Relating to Commission Sites in the 1930s (2 films on 1 reel)
Photographs
Reprint of Reed's 1681 Map of Philadelphia Showing Center City Philadelphia and Immediate Environs with a List of Patent Holders, 1870
Scrapbooks
Surveyor's Journal (1928-1935)
See also MG 8, Pennsylvania Collection (Miscellaneous), 1626-1970. and MG 303,
the R. Brognard Okie Architectural Papers, 1793, 1828-1949
Manor Construction Records, ca. 1930s-1940s. (3 cartons, 1 box) {#394m.1}
The container listings for this Manuscript Group are available for viewing
and word-searching in PDF format: [Holdings]
