EIS LIBRIS
In the room: The Club and Its Institutions
The Pennsylvania Hospital's books of promissory notes, 1751 to 1798
In the room: The Club and Its Institutions
Every pledge to the new Hospital was a debt. The subscriber signed a printed promissory note from Franklin's press, the Treasurer bound the notes two to a page, and a clerk drew up lists at the front of the volume so that any man's bond could be found and, in time, marked as paid. The lists from the first book of 1751 survive with it. They name Franklin, Bond and the Pembertons among eighty-seven founding subscribers, and they show the Treasurers still chasing the last unpaid pledges in 1767.
Franklin's scheme for the Hospital turned on a conditional grant. The Assembly would give two thousand pounds if private citizens first pledged the same. When the Managers came to claim the grant, the Speaker of the Assembly refused to count mere promises toward the two thousand pounds unless each subscriber signed a penal bond for the sum he had pledged. They signed. That is why these notes exist, why each one names a penalty of double the gift, and why the Treasurer kept them in books like a merchant's ledger. The Speaker was Isaac Norris, whose own bond for one hundred pounds is No. 24. Five of those books survive here, with some two hundred and seventy notes between them, running from the first subscription of 1751 to a young physician's pledge of sixty dollars in 1798. With them is one of the rarest pieces of paper the Hospital ever issued, the vellum certificate given to a man who paid in cash.
The note of William Franklin, 21 August 1754, with that of Joseph Stennard above it
I do not remember any of my political manoeuvres, the success of which gave me at the time more pleasure, or wherein, after thinking of it, I more easily excused myself for having made some use of cunning.Benjamin Franklin, on the Hospital grant, in his Autobiography
The founders' book is made in two parts. It opens with four manuscript leaves in the clerk's hand, which are the index to the volume. The notes themselves follow, bound two to a page in the order they were signed. The first list is alphabetical and sends the reader from a man's name to his page. The second is numerical and runs from No. 1 to No. 87, page by page. With the two together the Treasurer could put his hand on any man's bond in a moment, and a dot against the name told him the debt was paid.
The clerk's index to the founders' book of 1751. Each line gives a subscriber's surname, the page on which his note was bound, and the sum he pledged. Franklin stands under F, on page 3, for twenty-five pounds. A line at the foot explains the heavy black dots: "Note, those that are dotted are Discharged."
The same subscribers in the order they signed, two notes to a page. Israel Pemberton is No. 1 at one hundred pounds. Joshua Crosby, first President of the Managers, is No. 3. Benjamin Franklin is No. 5, sharing page 3 with Joseph Wharton, and Dr. Thomas Bond, whose idea the Hospital was, is No. 11.
The list closes with John Nixon and William Grant on page 44. Beside it, in a bold hand, the Treasurer records a debt paid: "Recd from John Smith by the hands of James Stephens Ten pounds Sixteen Shillings in full principal and Interest of the within. Hugh Roberts Treasr."
The other side of the same leaf is the bond itself, written out by hand to Hugh Roberts for ten pounds and witnessed by William Jones. The signature was clipped away when the debt was settled. The clerk then turned the cancelled sheet sideways and used the blank half for a memorandum, "Notes remaining in this Book, April 1767," naming the nine pledges still unpaid sixteen years after the founding.
Each pledge was a printed form from the press of Franklin and Hall, filled in by a clerk, signed and sealed by the subscriber, and attested by one or two witnesses. When the money came in, the Treasurer cut the signature out of the sheet. A note with its signature still in place is a debt that was never paid. These twelve are chosen from some two hundred and seventy in the five books. Every payment of interest and principal was written on the back and signed, so each sheet carries the whole history of its pledge. Three are shown here with their backs.
Collection Highlight
Nos. 1 and 2, the first day of the fifth month 1751
The Treasurer began his book with a family. No. 1 is Israel Pemberton the elder, who came to Philadelphia from Bucks County as a young man, built one of the great mercantile houses of the province, sat twenty years on the Provincial Council and presided over the Yearly Meeting of Friends. No. 2 is his eldest son, Israel Pemberton the younger, signing as merchant. Each promised John Reynell, Treasurer, one hundred pounds with lawful interest by the twenty-fourth of June next ensuing, and bound himself in the penal sum of two hundred.
The two notes witness each other. The father’s is signed in the presence of "Isr: Pemberton jun:" and "Jam: Pemberton," his two sons. The son’s is witnessed by "Israel Pemberton" and the same brother James. Both are dated in the Quaker manner, the first day of the fifth month, which in 1751 was July. Both were paid in full on 17 July 1755, the son settling his father’s as executor a year after the old man’s death, and on each the signature has been cut away, which is how the Treasurer cancelled a note he had been paid.
The son is the one history remembers, and not always kindly. He was clerk of the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting through the 1750s, a founder of this Hospital and of the Contributionship, and head of the Friendly Association, which raised Quaker money to make peace with the Indians when the province would not. His enemies on the frontier called him King of the Quakers and meant it as an insult. The Paxton marchers named him in 1764. The revolutionary government exiled him to Virginia without trial in 1777, and he came home broken and died two years later. He opposed Franklin in the Assembly over the scheme for royal government, and his name is on the second note of Franklin’s Hospital.
The father’s note is still in the founders’ book, first in the Treasurer’s sequence. The son’s was taken out of the volume generations ago and is held separately in the collection.
Franklin's son was about twenty-four, clerk of the Assembly and his father's postmaster, when he bound himself for ten pounds. Hugh Roberts, his father's friend from the Junto, signed as witness with George Price. The note shares its page with that of Joseph Stennard of the Northern Liberties. Both signatures were cut away when the debts were paid, which is how the Treasurer cancelled a bond.
The back of the sheet tells how it ended. By 1763 William was royal governor of New Jersey, and the pledge of 1754 was still open. Hugh Roberts records the end of it: "Recd 12th August 1763 from W.F. by the hands of Dd. Hall Fourteen pounds eight Shillings and four pence in full principal and for 7 years 4 mo. and 1/3 Interest." David Hall, Franklin's partner in the printing house, settled the account. Above it, Joseph Stennard's ten pounds came in "by hands of his wife."
Nos. 23 and 24 of the founding subscription, two to a page as the Treasurer bound them. Charles, soon to be Treasurer himself, pledged twenty-five pounds. His brother Isaac, Speaker of the Assembly and the man who chose the words on the State House bell, pledged one hundred, a sum matched only by the Pembertons. Thomas Crosby and Samuel Sansom witnessed both.
The back is in the hand of Charles Norris as Treasurer, with his flourished signature twice. His own twenty-five pounds was "Allow'd in Acct." against cash he had advanced for the Hospital. His brother the Speaker paid differently: "May 2 1755 Recd by his Executing a Deed to the Corporation of the Pensilva. Hospital dated ye 14th of last March for a House & Lot in Derby where John Pearson Lives. Consid: One hundred pounds."
Nos. 47 and 48. The two men signed together and each witnessed the other's bond. Abel James is the merchant who, thirty years later, came into possession of the first part of Franklin's memoirs and wrote urging him to finish them. Franklin placed that letter at the head of Part Two of the Autobiography.
The clerk wrote his trade into the form: "Edward Duffeild of the City of Philada. Watchmaker." Duffield kept the State House clock, cut the dies for the first medal struck in the colonies, and was named by Franklin an executor of his will. Joseph Fox, the master carpenter who became Speaker, witnessed this note and that of Samuel Smith above it.
No printed form would serve, so the pledge was written out by hand. Young promises to deliver "the Value of One Pound ten Shillings in Earthen Ware suitable for the Hospital per Annum, to Continue during my Natural Life." He signed and sealed it in red wax before Hugh Roberts and Samuel Rhoads, the two Managers who were then planning the building on Pine Street.
Another pledge for life, in manuscript: twenty shillings a year "during my Natural Life," signed and sealed before Jacob Lewis. Dunlap had married a niece of Deborah Franklin, and Franklin had made him postmaster of Philadelphia. His nephew and apprentice John Dunlap would print the Declaration of Independence.
McMackin, of Deptford Township in Gloucester County, New Jersey, signed for ten pounds. Then he reconsidered. Hugh Roberts struck through the first bond and wrote across it: "on second thought McMackin said he was inclined to give but five pounds at present, see his Bill beneath." The second bond, for five, follows on the same page, signed and sealed. A later hand adds that he had "removed to Pennsylva. near Byberry."
Not every pledge was collected. John Reardon bound himself for five pounds before the Managers Evan Morgan and Joseph Morris, and his signature and wax seal are still in place because the bond was never paid and so never cancelled. Beneath it the Treasurer closed the account in two words.
In the small book of 1764 to 1772. Hopkinson signed for ten pounds before David Rhea, eight years before he signed the Declaration of Independence. He was the first pupil of Franklin's Academy and one of the executors of Franklin's will. His signature was cut away when the pledge was paid, and the window it left would show a signature from a later leaf, so a soft cord is laid across the opening to keep the two from being confused.
On the back, Thomas Wharton twice records twenty-four shillings for two years' interest, in 1770 and 1772. Then the hand changes: "Recd Novr 5 1778 of Francis Hopkinson Thirteen pounds Nineteen shills. in full for Principal & Interest of the within Note. Jo. Hillborn." Between the second receipt and the third, Hopkinson had signed the Declaration of Independence, and the British had taken Philadelphia and left it again.
"Joseph Watson practitioner in Physick of Bucks County" pledged ten pounds to Thomas Wharton, the new Treasurer. The witness is the Treasurer's wife. Among some two hundred and seventy bonds, hers is one of the very few signatures of a woman, and it suggests a country doctor calling at the Wharton house with no one else at hand to attest his seal.
In the small book of 1764 to 1772, still bound. "Christopher Ludwick of the City Philada. Baker" pledged ten pounds before David Bacon. The gingerbread baker became Baker General of the Continental Army, and Benjamin Rush wrote and published his biography. Where Ludwick's signature was cut away, the signature of Francis Harris shows through from the leaf beneath.
The last note in the last book, and the only one in dollars: sixty dollars, under a penal sum of one hundred and twenty "Dollars specie," payable to Mordecai Lewis and witnessed by Samuel Coates. Coxe was the grandson of Dr. John Redman, whose own note is No. 51 in the founders' book of 1751, and the pupil of Benjamin Rush.
Collection Highlight
Printed by Franklin and Hall on vellum
BF-2023.052
A subscriber who could not pay at once gave the Treasurer his bond. A subscriber who paid in cash received this instead. "This is to certify, That Joseph Jones of Plimouth hath contributed the Sum of Ten Pounds to the Pennsylvania Hospital, and is thereby become one of the Corporation of Contributors, and vested with all the Rights, Powers and Privileges of a Contributor to the said Hospital, according to an Act of Assembly made to encourage the Establishment of the same." Hugh Roberts signed it as Treasurer. The Hospital's seal of the Good Samaritan is impressed on a paper wafer at the corner, over a blue ribbon laced through the vellum.
Under the Act of 1751 a gift of ten pounds made a man a member of the corporation, with a voice in the election of its Managers, and the certificate was his proof of it. The notes stayed in the Treasurer's books and survive by the hundred. The certificates went home with the men who earned them, and almost none have come down. Miller's bibliography of Franklin's printing locates only five.
Some of the most important founding notes were taken out of the volumes generations ago and travelled separately. These came into the collection before the books did, and are now reunited with them.
BF-2023.051
Thomas Cadwalader and Isaac Jones, Nos. 9 and 10, still together on one sheet. John Armitt and Anthony Morris Jr., Nos. 7 and 8. John Redman, under whom Benjamin Rush served his apprenticeship, No. 51. Samuel Preston Moore, No. 53. Phineas Bond, No. 83. William Shippen the elder and Edward Penington, Nos. 71 and 72, witnessed by the young Timothy Matlack. With them is the note of James Clewlow, potter, from the book of 1754. Cadwalader, Moore and the two Bonds were four of the Hospital's first five physicians.
27 April 1768
BF-2023.032
Thomas Foxcroft signs with his title, Deputy Post Master. He was postmaster of Philadelphia, and his brother John Foxcroft was Franklin's partner as joint Deputy Postmaster General for the northern colonies. On 27 April 1768 he promised Hugh Roberts, Treasurer of the Hospital, ten pounds with interest, and bound himself in the penal sum of twenty. Thomas Tillyer of the post office witnessed it.
Every note in the five books and the loose leaves, 206 in all, in the order in which the Treasurers bound them. For the founders' book the roll follows the clerk's own numbered list of eighty-seven, so it also names the 22 founding subscribers whose notes were taken out of the volume long ago, Benjamin Franklin's among them. Sums for the founders' book are the clerk's figures. Some notes are dated in the Quaker manner. In 1751 the year still began in March, so the fifth month, written 5mo, was July. The Treasurers wrote their receipts on the backs of the notes. Where a back has been read, the roll tells how the pledge was paid, whether in money, in goods, in work on the building, or never. Search by subscriber, by trade, by witness, or by the manner of payment. The men who witnessed these bonds were the Hospital's Managers and their circle, and their names run through the roll from end to end.
| Book | Page | No. | Subscriber | Trade or place | Sum | Date | Witnesses | How it was paid | Where it is now |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1751-1754 | 1 | 1 | Israel Pemberton Sr. | £100 | 1 Jul 1751 | Israel Pemberton Jr., James Pemberton | Paid in full 17 July 1755 by his son and executor, Israel Pemberton Jr. £100.5.0. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 1 | 2 | Israel Pemberton Jr. | £100 | 1 Jul 1751 | Israel Pemberton, James Pemberton | Paid in full 17 July 1755, the same day as his father's note. £100.5.0. | Held separately, BF-2023.032 | |
| 1751-1754 | 2 | 3 | Joshua Crosby | £100 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 2 | 4 | Richard Peters | £50 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 3 | 5 | Benjamin Franklin | £25 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 3 | 6 | Joseph Wharton | £50 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 4 | 7 | John Armitt | Cooper | £20 | 1 Jul 1751 | A. Morris Jr, Thomas Cadwalader | Paid in full 2 July 1752. £21.4.0. | Held separately, BF-2023.051 |
| 1751-1754 | 4 | 8 | Anthony Morris, Jr. | Receiver | £50 | 1 Jul 1751 | Thomas Cadwalader, Isaac Jones | Interest for twenty-five years, then paid in full in February 1777. £52.12 and pence. | Held separately, BF-2023.051 |
| 1751-1754 | 5 | 9 | Isaac Jones | Philadelphia | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Thomas Cadwalader, Thomas Bond | Paid in full 28 August 1753. £10.14. | Held separately, BF-2023.051 |
| 1751-1754 | 5 | 10 | Thomas Cadwalader | physician | £25 | 1 Jul 1751 | Thomas Bond, Anthony Morris, Jr. | Paid in full 24 May 1753. £27.16.10. | Held separately, BF-2023.051 |
| 1751-1754 | 6 | 11 | Thomas Bond | £25 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 6 | 12 | Joseph Morris | £15 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 7 | 13 | James Pemberton | £25 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 7 | 14 | Adam Harker | £10 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 8 | 15 | Isaac Greenleaf | £20 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 8 | 16 | John Pole | £15 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 9 | 17 | David Hall | £10 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 9 | 18 | Samuel Rhoads | £10 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 10 | 19 | Anthony Benezet | £10 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 10 | 20 | Thomas Stretch | £10 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 11 | 21 | Thomas Crosby | £25 | 1 Jul 1751 | Isaac Norris, Charles Norris | Discharged 10 June 1752. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 11 | 22 | Samuel Sansom | £15 | 1 Jul 1751 | Isaac Norris, Charles Norris | Discharged 26 December 1751. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 12 | 23 | Charles Norris | £25 | 1 Jul 1751 | Thomas Crosby, Samuel Sansom | Cancelled 6 October 1753 against money the Treasurer had advanced for the Hospital by order of the Managers. £26.17.6. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 12 | 24 | Isaac Norris of Fairhill | £100 | 1 Jul 1751 | Thomas Crosby, Samuel Sansom | Paid 2 May 1755 with a deed to the Hospital for a house and lot in Darby, valued at £100. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 13 | 25 | John Ross | £15 | 1 Jul 1751 | Samuel Sansom, Joshua Howell | Interest from 1756, then paid in full 27 3mo. 1762. £16.16. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 13 | 26 | Caspar Wistar | £50 | 1 Jul 1751 | Samuel Sansom, Joshua Howell | Discharged 4 October 1751, three months after signing. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 14 | 27 | Stephen Anthony | £10 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 14 | 28 | Joshua Howell | £10 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 15 | 29 | Daniel Benezet | £15 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby, Joshua Howell | Discharged 25 June 1752. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 15 | 30 | Charles Jones | £15 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby, Joshua Howell | Paid in full 25 September 1755. £16.19.0. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 16 | 31 | Reese Meredith | £40 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby, Joseph Wharton | Interest from 1756, then paid in full 19 3mo. 1762. £44.16. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 16 | 32 | William Fishbourne | £15 | 1 Jul 1751 | William Branson, Joshua Crosby | Paid in full 29 April 1755 by the hands of Joshua Crosby. £15.18.0. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 17 | 33 | Charles & Alexander Stedman | £40 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby, John Baron | Interest paid to 1764. The principal was never paid, and the note is uncancelled. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 17 | 34 | Joseph Richardson | £15 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Paid in full 29 March 1753. £16.7.0. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 18 | 35 | William Plumsted | £25 | 13 Aug 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Paid in full 1 January 1756. £26.10. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 18 | 36 | Robert Tuite | £20 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Interest from 1756, then paid in full 1 May 1760 by his widow and executrix, Mary Tuite. £22.10. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 19 | 37 | Joshua Fisher | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby, William Fussell | Paid in full 1 September 1752. £10.14.0. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 19 | 38 | Thomas Lightfoot | £15 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby, Pearson Parvin | Paid in full 16 April 1755. £15.18. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 20 | 39 | Robert Moore | £25 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Paid in full 1 October 1753. £26.17.6. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 20 | 40 | Wight Massey | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Interest credited 1752 and 1754, then paid in full 4 4mo. 1761 by his daughter and executrix, Elizabeth Massey. £16. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 21 | 41 | Samuel Mifflin | £25 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Discharged 23 April 1755. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 21 | 42 | Samuel Hazard | merchant | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Discharged 28 June 1752. | In the book |
| 1751-1754 | 22 | 43 | Hugh Roberts | £25 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 22 | 44 | Joseph Fox | £25 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 23 | 45 | Anthony Morris | £75 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Paid in full 24 December 1754. £76.16.9. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 23 | 46 | Samuel Noble | Northern Liberties | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Interest in 1757 and 1759, then paid in full 7 1mo. 1760. £11.1. | In the book |
| 1751-1754 | 24 | 47 | Thomas Lawrence Jr. | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Abel James | Paid in full 16 April 1755. £11.1.6. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 24 | 48 | Abel James | £15 | 1 Jul 1751 | Thomas Lawrence Jr. | Discharged 6 January 1756. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 25 | 49 | John Jones | £10 | 1751 | In the book | |||
| 1751-1754 | 25 | 50 | Joseph Leech | £10 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 26 | 51 | John Redman | Physician | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Paid in full 24 December 1753. £10.6. | Held separately, BF-2023.051 |
| 1751-1754 | 27 | 52 | Robert Jenney, LL.D. | minister, Christ Church | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Discharged 28 June 1752. | In the book |
| 1751-1754 | 27 | 53 | Samuel Preston Moore | physician | £30 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Discharged 14 April 1752. | Held separately, BF-2023.051 |
| 1751-1754 | 27 | 54 | John Wister | £20 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 28 | 55 | George Mifflin | £25 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Paid in full 29 April 1755 by the hands of Joshua Crosby. £26.2.6. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 28 | 56 | John Mifflin | £25 | 14 Aug 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Paid in full 11 January 1754. £27.2.6. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 29 | 57 | Evan Morgan | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Paid in full 14 April 1755. £11.1.0. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 29 | 58 | Joseph King | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Timothy Matlack Jr. | Interest to 1756, then paid in full 15 February 1758. £11.2.6. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 30 | 59 | John Smith | £50 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby, Richard Wells | Paid in full 23 June 1755. £56. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 30 | 60 | Morris Morris | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Interest to 1758, the last paid by his widow. The principal was never paid, and the note is uncancelled. | Held separately, BF-2023.032 | |
| 1751-1754 | 31 | 61 | William Griffitts | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Settled 30 4mo. 1763 in nails and other goods supplied to the Hospital. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 31 | 62 | William Moode | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Paid in full 16 January 1753. £10.18.0 with earlier interest. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 32 | 63 | Samuel Neave | £25 | 1 Jul 1751 | Thomas Davis, William Dimsdale | Paid in full 16 April 1755. £27.13.9. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 32 | 64 | Jonathan Mifflin | £33 6 8 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby, Timothy Matlack Jr. | Interest from 1756, then paid in full 29 August 1763. £36.3.4. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 33 | 65 | Samuel Powel | £50 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Discharged 25 April 1752. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 33 | 66 | Jacob Lewis | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Owen Jones | Paid 26 4mo. 1758, the Hospital accepting three years' interest as full after seven. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 34 | 67 | John Nelson | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Paid in full 22 July 1752. £10.12.9. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 34 | 68 | Francis Richardson | £15 | 1 Jul 1751 | Joshua Crosby | Interest from 1756, then paid in full 14 1mo. 1764. £16.12.4. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 35 | 69 | John Hughes | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Timothy Matlack Jr. | Interest from 1756, then paid in full 13 June 1764. £11.6.6. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 35 | 70 | Enoch Flower | £15 | 1 Jul 1751 | Timothy Matlack Jr. | Interest for twenty years, then paid in full 13 March 1775 by Benjamin Swett. £18.11 and pence. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 36 | 71 | William Shippen | £10 | 10 Jan 1752 | Timothy Matlack, Jr | Interest from 1756, then paid in full 29 4mo. 1765. £10.12. | Held separately, BF-2023.051 | |
| 1751-1754 | 36 | 72 | Edward Pennington | £20 | 11 Feb 1752 | Timothy Matlack, Jr, Joshua Howell | Paid in full 27 March 1753. £21.6.3 with earlier interest. | Held separately, BF-2023.051 | |
| 1751-1754 | 37 | 73 | James Logan Jr. | merchant | £25 | 19 Feb 1752 | Timothy Matlack Jr. | Interest for twenty-three years. The principal was settled by a bond dated 4 March 1789. | In the book |
| 1751-1754 | 37 | 74 | Townsend White | merchant | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Evan Morgan | Paid in full 5 9mo. 1758. £13.2.0. | In the book |
| 1751-1754 | 38 | 75 | Matthias Johns | cooper, Phila. County | £10 | 1 Mar 1752 | Samuel Hazard, Evan Morgan | Interest from 1753, then paid in full 10 July 1758. £11.4. He would not pay the last three months' interest. | In the book |
| 1751-1754 | 38 | 76 | Daniel Williams | baker | £10 | 1 Mar 1752 | Samuel Hazard, Evan Morgan | Discharged 23 April 1755. | In the book |
| 1751-1754 | 39 | 77 | Peter Sonmans | £12 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 39 | 78 | Solomon Fussell | chairmaker | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Evan Morgan, Joseph Morris | Paid in full 3 September 1756. £11.9. | In the book |
| 1751-1754 | 40 | 79 | William Branson | merchant | £50 | 1 Jul 1751 | Evan Morgan, Thomas Say | Paid in full 21 April 1755. £55.8. | In the book |
| 1751-1754 | 40 | 80 | Thomas Say | apothecary | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Evan Morgan, Peter Thomson | Interest for forty years, then the principal paid 2 April 1791. | In the book |
| 1751-1754 | 41 | 81 | Thomas Paschall | hatter | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Evan Morgan | Paid in full 5 December 1752. £10.17.9. | In the book |
| 1751-1754 | 41 | 82 | Benjamin Loxley | carpenter | £12 | 1 Jan 1752 | Evan Morgan | Appearing to have been settled, and directed to be cancelled by minute of the Managers 25 January 1790. | In the book. Cancelled |
| 1751-1754 | 42 | 83 | Phineas Bond | Physician | £10 | 1 Jul 1751 | Evan Morgan | Paid in full 24 February 1756, in discount with Samuel Rhoads. £12.14.0. | Held separately, BF-2023.051 |
| 1751-1754 | 42 | 84 | Joseph Lownes | £12 10 | Named in the clerk's list. The note is no longer in the book | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 43 | 85 | James Wright | Hempfield, Lancaster Co. | £20 | 25 Oct 1752 | James Johnston | Interest paid through William Griffitts, then paid in full 22 10mo. 1763. £21.18. | In the book |
| 1751-1754 | 43 | 86 | John Nixon | £10 | 1 Apr 1754 | Israel Pemberton | Interest from 1757, then paid in full 27 2mo. 1761. £12.8. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 44 | 87 | William Grant | £10 | 4 May 1754 | Joseph Morris, John Reynell | Probably discharged 29 April 1755. | In the book | |
| 1751-1754 | 44 | William Attwood | £50 | unexecuted | In the book. Printed form, never signed | ||||
| 1751-1754 | 45 | John Pemberton | £25 | 1754 | Hugh Roberts, Samuel Rhoads | Paid in full 5 September 1754, two months after signing. £25. | In the book | ||
| 1751-1754 | 46 | John Palmer | £10 | 1754 | Hugh Roberts, Samuel Rhoads | Paid in full 26 November 1757. £11.4. | In the book | ||
| 1751-1754 | 47 | Samuel Morris | £10 | 1754 | Hugh Roberts, Samuel Rhoads | Paid in full 3 September 1756. £11.6.0. | In the book | ||
| 1751-1754 | 48 | George Gray | £15 | 1754 | Samuel Rhoads, Hugh Roberts | Discharged 1 May 1756. | In the book | ||
| 1751-1754 | 49 | George Emlen | £100 | 1754 | Hugh Roberts | Paid in full 1 January 1755. £103. | In the book | ||
| 1751-1754 | 50 | John Goodwin | £10 | 1754 | Hugh Roberts, Samuel Rhoads | Paid 9 8mo. 1757 in work on the Hospital, through an order from Samuel Rhoads. | In the book | ||
| 1751-1754 | 52 | William Attwood | £50 | 1754 | Attwood Shute, Hugh Roberts | Interest paid by Attwood Shute, then paid in full 3 May 1760 by William Shute. £56.10. | In the book. Manuscript bond | ||
| 1754-1761 | 1 | Richard Wistar | £20 | 14 Aug 1754 | Joseph Stretch, Hugh Roberts | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 1 | Jonathan Zane | merchant | £10 | 15 Aug 1754 | Hugh Roberts, Samuel Rhoads | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 5 | Gunning Bedford | carpenter | £10 | 22 Aug 1754 | Hugh Roberts, Samuel Rhoads | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 5 | John Mifflin, Jr | £10 | 22 Aug 1754 | Hugh Roberts, Samuel Rhoads | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 7 | Thomas Brooks | bricklayer | £10 | 16 Aug 1754 | Hugh Roberts, Jacob Lewis | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 8 | James Chattin | printer | £10 | 17 Aug 1754 | Hugh Roberts, George Roberts | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 14 | Joseph Stinnard | Northern Liberties | £10 | 21 Aug 1754 | Joseph Redman, James Mackey | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 14 | William Franklin | £10 | 21 Aug 1754 | Hugh Roberts, George Price | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 15 | James Clewlow | Potter | £10 | 21 Aug 1754 | William Shippen, Hugh Roberts | Held separately, BF-2023.051 | ||
| 1754-1761 | 18 | John Ware | Wicaco | £10 | 22 Aug 1754 | Hugh Roberts, John Church | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 18 | Robert Jones | Lower Merion | £10 | 20 Aug 1754 | Hugh Roberts, John Sayre | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 19 | Benjamin Kendall | £600 | 9 Sep 1761 | Hugh Roberts (mortgaged house) | In the book. Bond and mortgage, the Hospital's capital lent at interest | |||
| 1754-1761 | 29 | Benjamin Armitage Jr. | smith | £10 | 22 Aug 1754 | Hugh Roberts | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 29 | Isaac Stretch | watchmaker | £10 | 27 Aug 1754 | Hugh Roberts | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 30 | John Roberts | miller, Lower Merion | £10 | 28 Aug 1754 | Hugh Roberts | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 30 | Jeremiah Brown | West Nottingham, Chester Co. | £10 | 31 Aug 1754 | Jonathan Beere, Hugh Roberts | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 32 | Andrew Bankson | £10 | 3 May 1755 | In the book. Cancelled, paid in cash | ||||
| 1754-1761 | 42 | Joseph Davis | shoemaker | £10 | 25 Aug 1754 | Evan Morgan, Joseph Morris | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 42 | Thomas Ellis | glazier | £10 | 25 Aug 1754 | Evan Morgan, Joseph Morris | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 43 | Moses Standley | £10 | 25 Aug 1754 | William Clark, Evan Morgan, Joseph Morris | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 43 | John Reardon | £5 | 25 Aug 1754 | Evan Morgan, Joseph Morris | In the book. Marked "Dyed Insolvent." Signature and seal intact | |||
| 1754-1761 | 44 | William Chancellor | Physician | £10 | 5 Aug 1754 | Evan Morgan, Joseph Morris | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 44 | William Standley | £10 | 5 Aug 1754 | Evan Morgan, Joseph Morris | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 45 | William Clark | Cooper | £10 | 5 Aug 1754 | Evan Morgan, Joseph Morris | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 45 | Jeremiah Elfreth | £10 | 25 Aug 1754 | Evan Morgan, Joseph Morris | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 46 | George Benzil | £10 | 27 Apr 1756 | Hugh Roberts | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 46 | Henry Paulin | xx | 27 Apr 1756 | In the book | ||||
| 1754-1761 | 47 | Stephen Williams | £10 | 4 Mar 1758 | Bernerd Refen | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 47 | John Bissel | Smith | £10 | 8 Nov 1758 | George Roberts | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 50 | Jacob Duche, Esq. | £10 | Aug 1754 | William Grant | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 50 | Thomas Smith | £10 | 20 Aug 1754 | John Reynell | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 51 | John Bringhurst | merchant | £10 | 10 Sep 1754 | Joshua Crosby | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 51 | Anthony Wilkinson | carver | £10 | 28 Aug 1754 | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 52 | John Baynton | £10 | 20 Aug 1754 | Joshua Crosby | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 52 | Evan Evans | £10 | 16 Sep 1754 | John Reynell | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 54 | George Gray | Lower Ferry on Schuylkill | £20 | 1 Nov 1755 | James Coultas, Richard Sewell | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 55a | Robert Erwin | £10 | 10 Mar 1755 | Hugh Roberts | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 55 | Richard Parker | merchant | £15 | 15 Jan 1759 | Joseph Marriott, George Roberts | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 55 | John Shute | merchant | £20 | 7 Jun 1761 | Henry Hammeror | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 56 | Samuel Mifflin, Jr | £10 | 6 Aug 1754 | Isaac Lane, John Reynell | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 59 | Robert Parrish | carpenter | £10 | 4 May 1761 | Anthony Benezet | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 59 | David Bacon | hatter | £10 | May 1761 | Anthony Benezet | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 61 | John Graves | £10 | 26 Aug 1756 | Jacob Art, David Bevan | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 62 | Daniel Dupuy | Silversmith | £10 | 9 Aug 1754 | John Reynell, John Smith | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 65 | Thomas Wharton | merchant | £10 | 13 Aug 1756 | George Roberts | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 65 | James James | joiner | £10 | 13 Aug 1756 | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 66 | Isaac Garrique | £10 | 28 Aug 1754 | John Smith, John Reynell | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 67 | John Bayley | £10 | 17 Dec 1754 | Thomas Crosby | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 67 | Bartholomew Penrose | £10 | 17 Dec 1754 | Thomas Crosby | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 68 | Thomas Hollowell | £10 | 20 Mar 1755 | John Smith, Richard Wells | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 69 | Plunkett Fleeson | upholsterer | £10 | 2 May 1757 | Wm. Bradford, Daniel Roberdeau | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 70 | Benjamin Kendall | £10 | 9 Aug 1754 | John Reynell, John Smith | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 71 | Thomas Carpenter | £10 | 6 Jun 1794 | In the book | ||||
| 1754-1761 | 71 | James Wharton | merchant | £10 | 2 May 1757 | Wm. Bradford, Daniel Roberdeau | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 72 | William Logan | Stenton | 50 pistoles | 23 Aug 1754 | John Smith, Richard Wells | In the book. Pledged in gold | ||
| 1754-1761 | 73 | William West | Merchant | £10 | 2 May 1757 | Wm. Bradford, Daniel Roberdeau | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 73 | John Malcolm | sail-maker | £10 | 2 May 1757 | Isaac Norris, Daniel Roberdeau | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 74 | Daniel Ottley | Smith | £10 | 28 Aug 1754 | John Reynell, John Smith | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 75 | Atwood Cowman | Merchant | £10 | 2 May 1757 | William Shute, Daniel Roberdeau | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 75 | William Shute | Tallow Chandler | £10 | 2 May 1757 | Atwood Cowman, Daniel Roberdeau | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 76 | Joseph Richards | Silversmith | £5 | 8 Aug 1754 | John Reynell, John Singetti | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 81 | Charles Evans | £10 | 29 May 1759 | Charles Evans | In the book | |||
| 1754-1761 | 81 | William Jones | late of Kingsess | £30 | Feb 1759 | James Coultas, John --- | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 82 | Joseph Sermone | Smith | £10 | 5 May 1760 | Israel Pemberton | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 82 | John Lukens | Horsham | £12 1 | 23 Jun 1761 | Edward Roberts | In the book | ||
| 1754-1761 | 83 | William Young | potter | 30s. a year | 22 Aug 1754 | Hugh Roberts, Samuel Rhoads | In the book. In earthenware, yearly for life | ||
| 1754-1761 | 84 | William Wallace | of the Northern Liberties | £10 | 1 Sep 1756 | John Parrish | In the book. Renewal of a subscription of July 1751 | ||
| 1754-1761 | 85 | William Dunlap | printer | 20s. a year | 1 Apr 1761 | Jacob Lewis | In the book. Yearly for life | ||
| 1754-1766 | 4 | Samuel Smith | merchant | £10 | 6 Aug 1754 | Joseph Fox | Interest for fourteen years, then paid in full 17 2mo. 1768. £10.12. | In the book | |
| 1754-1766 | 4 | Edward Duffield | watchmaker | £10 | 6 Aug 1754 | Joseph Fox | Interest from 1756, then paid in full 14 2mo. 1764. £11.4.0. | In the book | |
| 1754-1766 | 7 | Matthew Clarkson | merchant | £10 | 12 Aug 1754 | Joseph Fox | Interest to 1766. The principal is not receipted on the note. | In the book | |
| 1754-1766 | 7 | William Parr | attorney at law | £10 | 12 Aug 1754 | Interest from 1757, then paid in full 3 4mo. 1762. £12.8.0. | In the book | ||
| 1754-1766 | 9 | Daniel Stonemetz | baker | £10 | 13 Aug 1754 | Joseph Fox | Interest from 1756, then paid in full 21 June 1771 by his executor, John Stonemetz. £14.6.9. | In the book | |
| 1754-1766 | 9 | John Jones | £10 | 13 Aug 1754 | Paid in full 17 July 1755. £10.3.5. | In the book | |||
| 1754-1766 | 9 | Richard Walker | Warrington, Bucks Co. | £10 | 5 Jun 1766 | Hugh Roberts | In the book | ||
| 1754-1766 | 14 | Edward Evans | cordwainer | £10 | 22 Aug 1754 | Joseph Fox | Interest from 1756, then paid in full 3 11mo. 1762. £10.7. | In the book | |
| 1754-1766 | 14 | James Claypoole | painter | £10 | 30 Aug 1754 | No receipt. The note is marked as belonging to the building account. | In the book | ||
| 1754-1766 | 17 | William Shipley | victualler | £10 | 30 Aug 1754 | Joseph Fox | Interest for twenty-two years, then paid in full 28 October 1776. £11.11. | In the book | |
| 1754-1766 | 17 | William Ball | goldsmith | £10 | 30 Aug 1754 | Isaac Jones | Interest from 1756, then paid in full 19 7mo. 1760. £11.7.6. | In the book | |
| 1754-1766 | 20 | Joseph Wills | clockmaker | £10 | 30 Aug 1754 | Isaac Jones | Paid in full 25 November 1758. £10.8. | In the book | |
| 1754-1766 | 20 | Christian Grasshold | tailor | £10 | 20 Aug 1754 | Joseph Fox | Paid in full 1 4mo. 1762 by Michael Halling on his behalf. £11.4. | In the book | |
| 1754-1766 | 36 | George Dillwyn | minister | £20 | 9 Jan 1764 | Stephen Collins | Interest from 1766, then paid in full 10 October 1771. £24.5.0. | In the book | |
| 1754-1766 | 36 | Hugh Hughes | £10 | 2 May 1755 | Matthew Clarkson | Paid in full 9 May 1755, one week after signing. £10. | In the book | ||
| 1754-1766 | 36 | John Rich | Plasterer | £5 | 26 Aug 1756 | Samuel Rhoads, Jacob Lewis | Settled 30 10mo. 1758 against his bill for plastering the Hospital. | In the book | |
| 1754-1766 | 38 | William Gibbons | merchant | £15 | 12 Jan 1764 | Robert Hooper Jr. | In the book | ||
| 1754-1766 | 39 | Peter Reeves | Merchant | £25 | 1 Feb 1760 | William Lloyd | Interest for twenty years, then paid in 1780, partly in Continental money and the rest in specie. | In the book | |
| 1754-1766 | 39 | Samuel Lewis | Carpenter | £10 | 1 Feb 1760 | William Lloyd | Interest from 1762, then paid in full to Samuel Preston Moore. £10.12.0. | In the book | |
| 1754-1766 | 40 | William Smith | Rector of the Academy | £15 | 14 Sep 1761 | Hugh Roberts | Interest to 1771. The principal was never paid, and the note is uncancelled. | Held separately, BF-2023.032 | |
| 1754-1766 | 41 | John McMackin | Gloucester, New Jersey | £10 | 23 Nov 1763 | In the book. Cancelled "on second thought" | |||
| 1754-1766 | 41 | John McMackin | Gloucester, New Jersey | £5 | 23 Nov 1763 | Hugh Roberts | In the book. Replaces the cancelled bond above | ||
| 1754-1766 | 42 | Jacob Graff | £10 | 7 Dec 1763 | Hugh Roberts | Paid in full 14 December 1767. £11.0.6. | In the book | ||
| 1754-1766 | 44 | Lewis Weiss | £20 | 28 Jan 1766 | Israel Pemberton | Interest to 1774. The principal was never paid, and the note is uncancelled. | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 1 | Peter Miller | conveyneer | £10 | 27 Apr 1764 | Hugh Roberts | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 2 | Job Bacon | hatter | £10 | 1 May 1764 | Hugh Roberts | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 4 | John Knowles | £15 | 16 Apr 1765 | Hugh Roberts | In the book | |||
| 1764-1772 | 6 | Christopher Ludwick | Baker | £10 | 10 May 1765 | David Bacon | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 7 | Richard Budden | £10 | 21 May 1765 | Thomas Wharton | In the book | |||
| 1764-1772 | Allen Russell | undated | Samuel Rhoads | In the book | |||||
| 1764-1772 | 12 | Joseph Potts | Merchant | £100 | 26 Apr 1768 | Samuel Pemberton, Jonathan Freeman | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 13 | William Hoffman | sugar-baker | £10 | 26 Apr 1768 | Samuel Pemberton, Jonathan Freeman | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 18 | Samuel Pleasants | Merchant | £20 | 26 Apr 1768 | Charles Pemberton | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 20 | Francis Harris | Merchant | £10 | 26 Apr 1768 | Hugh Roberts | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 24 | John Parrock | £10 | 26 Apr 1768 | Benjamin Frapnich | In the book | |||
| 1764-1772 | 25 | Isaac Howell | brewer | 10 in beer | 26 Apr 1768 | William Fisher | In the book. Paid in beer | ||
| 1764-1772 | 26 | John Willcocks | Merchant | £10 | 26 Apr 1768 | Samuel Pemberton | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 27 | Thomas Fisher | £10 | 26 Apr 1768 | Samuel Pemberton | In the book | |||
| 1764-1772 | 28 | William Silgrave | Merchant | £10 | 26 Apr 1768 | Stephen Collins | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 29 | Francis Hopkinson | £10 | 26 Apr 1768 | David Rhea | In the book | |||
| 1764-1772 | 30 | John Rhea | Merchant | £10 | 27 Apr 1768 | Samuel Davies | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 32 | John Bayard | Merchant | £10 | 27 Apr 1768 | Hugh Roberts | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 33 | George Shoemaker | Blacksmith | £10 | Hugh Roberts | In the book | |||
| 1764-1772 | 35 | Joseph Watson | physician | £10 | 24 Jan 1771 | Rachel Wharton | In the book. Witnessed by the Treasurer's wife | ||
| 1764-1772 | 36 | Alexander Edwards | £10 | 1 Feb 1771 | Rev. Prette W. Jones | In the book | |||
| 1764-1772 | 37 | James Biddle | Esquire | £10 | 22 Feb 1772 | George Campbell | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 39 | Joseph Shippen Jr. | Esquire | £10 | 22 Feb 1772 | Jacob Lewis | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 40 | John Day | Druggist | £15 | 22 Feb 1772 | Jacob Lewis | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 42 | Sharp Delany | Druggist | £10 | 22 Feb 1772 | Jacob Lewis | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 43 | Daniel Drinker | Merchant | £10 | 22 Feb 1772 | Jacob Lewis | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 44 | Samuel Duffield | physician | £10 | 24 Feb 1772 | Jacob Lewis | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 46 | Thomas Wishard | Chandler | £10 | 24 Feb 1772 | Jacob Lewis | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 47 | John Evans | Hatter | £10 | 24 Feb 1772 | Jacob Lewis | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 48 | Benedict Dorsey | Merchant | £10 | 24 Feb 1772 | Jacob Lewis | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 49 | Joshua Cresson | Merchant | £15 | 24 Feb 1772 | Benedict Dorsey | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 50 | Samuel Howell | Merchant | £15 | 24 Feb 1772 | Jacob Lewis | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 51 | James Stewart | Merchant | £10 | 24 Feb 1772 | Jacob Lewis | In the book | ||
| 1764-1772 | 52 | Blair McClenachan | Merchant | £10 | 24 Feb 1772 | Jacob Lewis | In the book | ||
| 1772-1798 | 1 | John Harrison | £25 | 10 Apr 1794 | Samuel Coates | In the book | |||
| 1772-1798 | 2 | Benjamin Paschall | Cordwainer | £10 | 25 Feb 1772 | In the book | |||
| 1772-1798 | 3 | John White | Druggist | £10 | 4 Jun 1794 | Samuel Coates, John Coates | In the book | ||
| 1772-1798 | 4 | John Redman Coxe | Physician | $60 | 21 Apr 1798 | Samuel Coates | In the book. The only pledge in dollars | ||
| Loose, 1768 | Thomas Mifflin | merchant | £15 | 26 Apr 1768 | Francis Many Jr. | Loose note | |||
| Loose, 1768 | Clement Biddle | merchant | £10 | 26 Apr 1768 | Robert Bass | Loose note | |||
| Loose, 1768 | Thomas Foxcroft | Deputy Postmaster | £10 | 27 Apr 1768 | Thomas Tillyer | Held separately, BF-2023.032 |
See everyone in the Dramatis Personae who belonged to the Hospital, and choose any other institution to watch the same names return.
Read the names on these notes and the rest of the room comes into view, because the men who pledged to the Hospital and witnessed its bonds were the same men who had founded everything else. Hugh Roberts, who witnessed William Franklin's note and signed hundreds of receipts as Treasurer, had sat in the Junto with Franklin since the 1720s, and was a director of the Library Company and of the Philadelphia Contributionship. Samuel Rhoads, who witnessed the potter's bond, was a director of both as well, and designed the Hospital's building. John Smith, whose name stands at No. 59 in the founders' book, was the Contributionship's first treasurer. Israel Pemberton Jr., No. 2, sat on its first board.
Thomas Cadwalader, No. 10, had been one of the Library Company's original directors in 1731. Thomas and Phineas Bond were original members of the Philosophical Society of 1743 and original trustees of the Academy in 1749, along with William Plumsted, No. 35. William Smith, who signed as "Rector of the Academy," was its first Provost. Francis Hopkinson was its first pupil. Edward Duffield kept the State House clock, and John Lukens of Horsham, who signed in 1761, observed the transit of Venus for the Society eight years later.
The club left few objects of its own. The Library Company, the fire company, the Academy and the Society are each represented in this room by a handful of things. The Hospital is different, because it ran on debt, and debt has to be written down, signed, witnessed and kept. Its notes are the nearest thing that survives to a membership roll of Franklin's Philadelphia.
See everyone in the Dramatis Personae who belonged to the Hospital, and choose any other institution to watch the same names return.
The notes were kept in the Treasurer's own volumes. The boards of the three large books are now detached. The one shown here is covered in rough calf, the ordinary dress of an eighteenth-century account book. The two small books of 1764 to 1798 are in half calf over marbled paper. They have been rebacked, with the original marbled sides preserved.
At the right, the small books of 1764 to 1772 and 1772 to 1798. At the left, the front board of the book of 1754 to 1761, lettered "B" in ink by the Hospital's own clerk.
Each opens its catalogue page.
