Glossary for the Diaries of Angelina Grimké

A

A, Cousin. An unknown cousin whom Angelina reprimanded for finding excuses for a young Christian man, AG ("Arthur"), who had danced at a ball. See entry for June 14, 1829.

AJ. See Jones, Ann.

AM. Daughter of Angelina’s "Aunt" Royce Smith. No further information on the latter. Perhaps a sister-in-law of Mary Smith Grimké?

American Colonization Society. Founded in 1816, the intent of this organization was to establish a colony in West Africa to which free black Americans could emigrate. Its founders were white clergymen and men from the upper South who thought this was their best hope to rid the country of a population they found dangerous.

Andrews, Ethan (1787-1858). A lawyer, educator, and author of Latin dictionaries and various political and historical works. He was married to Lucy Cowles Andrews. They had 10 children. He founded the New Haven Young Ladies’ Institute in 1829.

Arch Street Meeting House. Designed in 1803 by the master builder and Quaker Owen Biddle Jr., this meeting house was completed in 1811. It was the largest monthly meeting in Philadelphia and was attended by many wealthy Quakers. After the schism of 1827, Arch Street was affiliated with the Orthodox faction. Both Angelina and Sarah Grimké were members there until they were disowned in 1838.

Auburn system. A system of prison management developed in the 1820s at the Auburn Prison in Auburn, New York, as a modification of the Pennsylvania system (see glossary entry). To prevent mutual "corruption" of prisoners, all talking was prohibited. Prisoners were kept in solitary confinement at night. During the day, they marched to and from their assigned tasks in a lockstep line, hands on the prisoner ahead -- with stumbling punished by flogging.

B

BF. Brother Frederick. See Grimké, Frederick.

BJ. Brother John. See Grimké, John.

Barker, A. See Barker, Abigail.

Barker, Abigail. No knowledge of her identity, aside from the two mentions of her in Grimké’s diaries: once as speaking in meeting (December 1832) and later as having sent a consoling Bible verse to Edward Bettle during his last illness.

Bates, E. Preached at Burlington meeting, as recorded by AG on April 10, 1830. Not further identified.

Bee, F. Frances Bee; married to Peter Smith Bee, son of Ann Smith Bee and Thomas Bee. Ann was Mary Smith Grimké’s sister. (Source: Louise W. Knight.)

Beecher, Catharine (1800-78). An American educator, Daughter of the Presbyterian clergyman Lyman Beecher; sister of Harriet Beecher Stowe and Henry Ward Beecher. Beecher and her sister Mary opened the Hartford Female Seminary in 1824. She and Angelina Grimké became friends when the latter visited Hartford in 1831. In 1837, when Angelina became famous/infamous, Beecher published An Essay on Slavery and Abolitionism, with Reference to the Duty of American Females. The essay challenged immediatism and promoted colonization as the correct approach toward ending slavery. It strongly criticized Angelina Grimké for calling women to step outside the domestic sphere and work actively against slavery.

Beecher, Harriet. See Stowe, Harriet Beecher.

Bettle, Edward (1803-32). Eldest son of the prominent Quakers Samuel and Jane Bettle. He did not attend college, but according to contemporary sources, was well versed in the sciences, political economy, literature, and several ancient and modern languages. He was active in various social reforms. He opposed slavery but did not support its immediate abolition. He married Eliza Ann Edwards in 1825; she died in 1827, shortly after the birth of their son, also named Edward. Bettle courted Angelina Grimké prior to her July 1831 visit to Catharine Beecher’s Hartford Female Seminary, and sporadically after that until his death from a "remittent fever" on October 10, 1832. Grimké wrote a lengthy account of the hopes she had had for their relationship, of his illness and death, and her shock and hurt that in the wake of his death his parents did not accord her the status of a bereaved fiancée. [See this diary, dated by the Clements Library December 17, 1832-May 13, 1833. Grimké biographer Louise W. Knight notes that December 17 is only the first date written into the account; but it appears well into the manuscript, which was likely begun shortly after Bettle’s death. See also "Edward Bettle," in Memoirs of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, vol. 1, appendix (Philadelphia: McCarty and Davis, 1864), 482-85.]

Bettle, Jane Temple (1773-1840). An elder at Arch Street Monthly Meeting, married to Samuel Bettle. Good friend of both Angelina and Sarah Grimké and of Catharine Morris. Mother of five children, including Edward, who conducted an on-again, off-again courtship of Angelina.

Bettle, Samuel, Sr. (1774-1861). Wealthy Philadelphia merchant and prominent Quaker minister at Arch Street Monthly Meeting. Sometimes served as Clerk of the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting. Married to Jane Temple Bettle. Father of Edward and four other children.

Board of M of SBS. Board of Managers of the Female Seaman’s Friend Society. See Charleston Female Seaman’s Friend Society.

Brainerd, David (1718-47). Ordained by the Presbytery of New York in 1744, Brainerd served as a missionary to Native Americans in the Mid-Atlantic and New England region. He contracted tuberculosis and was nursed until his death in the home of Jonathan Edwards (Sr) in Northampton. He achieved posthumous fame when his diary was published by Edwards as An Account of the Life of the Late Reverend Mr. David Brainerd (1840).

Braithwaite, Anna Lloyd (1788-1859). A British Quaker minister who traveled in the US three times between 1823 and 1827, hoping to counteract the influence of Elias Hicks. She visited the Grimkés in Charleston in the winter of 1827-28 and profoundly influenced both Angelina and Sarah Grimké, showing them how a woman might serve as a minister of the gospel.

C

C. Depending on context: Catharine Morris; Charles Grimké; Charleston (the city); or Catharine Beecher (in the July 1831 diary). In 1828, Grimké also referred to a Mrs. C, a Charleston acquaintance whom Grimké called upon on behalf of the Benevolent Society.

CB. See Beecher, Catharine.

CWM. See Morris, Catharine.

Carter, John. A young Philadelphian who appeared to be courting Angelina. She squelched his interest as she was attempting to reignite Edward Bettle’s courtship.

Catharine/Catherine. In the July 1831 diary, Catharine refers to Catharine Beecher. In other diaries, this is a reference to Catharine Morris.

Charles. See Grimké, Charles Faucheraud.

Charleston Female Seaman’s Friend Society. This female society, an outgrowth of the temperance movement, was founded in 1826 to establish and maintain a boarding house for seamen in which they would not be exposed to the temptation of alcohol. Mary Smith Grimké served as president of the society; Angelina was a collector and secretary of the group. (Source: Louise W. Knight.)

Congress Hall Hotel. A luxury (for its time) hotel located in Albany, New York. Grimké and her traveling companions stayed there in July 1831. Lafayette is supposed to have stayed there during an 1824 visit. The hotel was demolished in 1878 to make room for the new state capitol building

Connecticut Asylum for the Education and Instruction of Deaf and Dumb Persons. Established in 1817, this was the first school for deaf people in the United States. It was based on the principles of the French Royal Institution for the Deaf in Paris, which used sign language to instruct its pupils. Thomas Gallaudet was a Hartford clergyman who brought the system back to the US. Gallaudet University was founded by Gallaudet’s son Edward and named in his honor.

Cowper, William (1731-1800). British poet who produced the Olney Hymns, along with his friend John Newton (1725-1807) in 1779. This proved to be a very popular hymn collection, in both England and America. The most famous hymn of the collection is undoubtedly "Amazing Grace."

CY. See Young, Charlotte.

D

DH. Daniel Haviland, a northern Quaker who came south in 1825 to establish a branch of his father’s wholesale drug business in Charleston. (Source: Louise W. Knight.)

DL. See Latham, Daniel.

Dear Sister. See Grimké, Sarah Moore.

Dwight, Timothy (1752-1817). Born in Northampton, Massachusetts, Dwight was a Congregational minister, politician, and educator. He served as president of Yale University from 1795 to 1817. He was a mentor to Angelina’s brother, Thomas Grimké.

E

E. While Grimké lived in Charleston, she used "E" to signify her sister, Elizabeth (Eliza) Caroline Grimké. Once in Philadelphia, Grimké used "E" to refer, variously, to her sister, to a Philadelphia friend named Elizabeth, to Edward Bettle, or to Elizabeth Walton. Generally, the context makes this clear; if there is doubt, a footnote has been inserted in the transcription.

EB. See Bettle, Edward.

EE. See Evans, Elizabeth Barton.

EF. One of the overseers of Arch Street Meeting.

EL. Comforted Grimké after Edward Bettle’s death. Probably Elizabeth __, whom Grimké also mentioned in her diary dated November 17, 1829-May 18, 1833.

EP. See Pittfield, Elizabeth.

ET[?]. Unidentified woman acquaintance in Charleston.

EW. See Walton, Elizabeth.

Eaton, Rebecca. A Charleston friend of Angelina’s, likely from Third Presbyterian Church.

Edwards, Jonathan (1703-58). Renowned American pastor, evangelist, and theologian; arguably the foremost American religious thinker of his time. He served a Congregational church in Northampton until he was dismissed over his restrictive theological position on who could partake of the eucharist. He pastored a frontier church at Stockbridge, Massachusetts, and continued to write theological works. He accepted the presidency of the College of New Jersey (later renamed Princeton University) in late 1757, but shortly thereafter contracted smallpox and died.

Edwards, Jonathan Elliot, Jr. (1745-1801). Son of Jonathan Edwards. He held a pastorate in New Haven, Connecticut, for over 25 years. Like his father, however, he was then dismissed for doctrinal reasons. After pastoring another church in Connecticut for four years, he became president of Union College in Schenectady, New York, in 1799, and served there until his death some two years later.

Elizabeth. Arch Street Quaker, friend of Angelina’s.

Elliott, Hetty. Charleston acquaintance of the Grimkés. Angelina met her while she was traveling in New York with Sarah Whittall in July 1831.

Evans, E. See Evans,Elizabeth Barton.

Evans, Elizabeth Barton. (1793-1861). An approved Orthodox Quaker minister who visited most of the meetings in the US. She married William Evans (son of Jonathan Evans) in 1824; the two had four children. They lived in Philadelphia.

Evans, William (1787-1867). Eldest son of Jonathan and Hannah Bacon Evans. He married Abigail Musgrave in 1811 and they had two children. He became a respected minister in 1822 and visited meetings in the US and Canada. In 1824, he married Elizabeth Barton; they had four children. He served for some years as Clerk of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting.

F

Female Seamen’s Friend Society of Charleston. An organization founded in 1826 to establish and maintain a boarding house for sailors on shore in order to keep them from temptation. This was a place with Christian reading material, where liquor was not allowed. Devotions were held in the evenings.

Fisher, Alexander Metcalf (1794-1822). Born in Franklin, Massachusetts; studied at Yale and Andover Theological Seminary. He returned to Yale to teach mathematics and natural philosophy. Fisher became engaged to Catharine Beecher in late 1821. He decided to travel to Europe prior to his wedding and died in a shipwreck off the coast of Ireland on April 22, 1822.

Fothergill, John. Without clear confirmation, we suggest that this Fothergill wasthe British Quaker, born 1712, who served as clerk of London Yearly Meeting and founded Ackworth Quaker school. He trained in medicine at Ediburgh University and practiced in London. He was also interested in natural history and collected insects, shells, and plants.

Fox, George (1624-91). British founder of the Society of Friends. He was a traveling preacher in England and abroad. Angelina refers to his Journal or Historical Account of the Life, Travels, Sufferings, Christian Experiences, and Labour of Love, in the Work of the Ministry, of That Eminent and Faithful Servant of Jesus Christ, George Fox, first published, in two volumes, in 1709.

Frost, Ann (Anna) Rutledge Grimké (1795-1882). Older sister of Angelina Grimké.Married Thomas Drayton Frost in 1818; they had one daughter, Mary-Anna, in 1819. Thomas died shortly after her birth. Ann moved from Charleston to Philadelphia in 1825. According to Grimké biographer Louise W. Knight, this was at least partly because her Christian convictions called her to lead a less opulent lifestyle than was possible for a member of the Grimké family in Charleston. Much later, Frost wrote to her nephew Charles Stuart Weld that another reason for her move was her desire to shield her daughter from the slavery she had witnessed growing up.

Frost, Mary-Anna (1819-?). Born in Charleston to Thomas Drayton Frost and Anna Rutledge Grimké Frost. At some point, she and her mother moved to Philadelphia. Married Joel A. Hall. Later married a man by the name of Haskell and had three children with him.

G

George. One of the men enslaved to the Grimké family in Charleston.

Gibbons, J I[?]. Mentioned by Grimké as having prayed at Pine Street Meeting in August 1831. No further identification.

Greenhill. The country estate outside Philadelphia of the Israel Morris family. It came into the family by way of his wife Mary Hollingsworth Morris (1776-1820), who inherited it from two cousins whom she had raised. Mary married Israel Morris in 1799; they had six children. See "Green Hill," http://lowermerionhistory.org/texts/first300/part04.html.

Grimké (Weld), Angelina (1805-79). Author of this set of diaries. Growing up in Charleston, she had an individual mindset from her earliest days. She declined to be confirmed in her family’s Episcopal church and claimed to have little religious conviction until the deaths of some members family. Along with her mother and oldest sister, she began attending Thursday services at the Third Presbyterian Church, and became a very ardent member. However, after her sister Sarah became committed to the Society of Friends, Angelina moved toward adopting their views on doctrine and practice. She abandoned the Presbyterian Church, not without heartache, and eventually joined her sister in Philadelphia. Unfortunately, she also became disillusioned with the Quakers. Her independent mind and social conscience drove her in 1835 to write a letter of support to the radical abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison. This launched her and her sister Sarah’s brief but enormously influential public lecture tour, during which they came to tackle issues of women’s rights as well as slavery. She married Theodore Weld in 1839, and her initial retirement from the public eye became lengthy, due to ill health and the demands of childcare. For more on how her religious convictions grounded her life and actions, see Anna Speicher, The Religious World of Antislavery Women: Spirituality in the Lives of Five Abolitionist Lecturers (Syracuse, 2000). For a new and comprehensive treatment of the sisters, see Louise W. Knight’s forthcoming biography.

Grimké, Ann (Anna) Rutledge (1795-1882). See Frost, Ann Rutledge Grimké.

Grimké, Archibald Henry (1849-1930). Son of the enslaved woman Nancy Weston and Henry Grimké. He became a lawyer, author, and civil rights activist.

Grimké, Benjamin Rhett Secundus (1798-1825). A Lieutenant in the US Navy. He married Mary Augusta Barron in 1823, and they had a daughter, named after her mother. The family wasen route from Virginia to Charleston in 1825 when their ship was wrecked; Grimké and his daughter both perished. His widow remarried in 1828.

Grimké, Charles Faucheraud (1802-57). The youngest son and the least accomplished of the male Grimké siblings. Charles did not attend college and so could not pursue a professional career. During the time Angelina was keeping her diary, he lived in his mother’s home in Charleston. Angelina objected to his failure to support himself or, at minimum, contribute to the cost of his living expenses. She also deplored his habit of hosting drunken parties. For his part, Charles strongly resented Angelina's interference and expressed his displeasure in no uncertain terms.

Grimké, Elizabeth (Eliza) Caroline (1797-1874). Angelina’s sister. She did not marry and lived in the Grimké family home in Charleston. At some point after her mother’s death in 1839, she went to live with Henry and Selina Grimké in their Charleston home.

Grimké, Francis James (1850-1937). Son of the enslaved woman Nancy Weston and Henry Grimké. He became a prominent Presbyterian clergyman and civil rights activist in Washington, DC. He helped to found the NAACP in 1909.

Grimké, Frederick (1791-1863). Angelina’s brother. He graduated from Yale and studied law in South Carolina. In 1818, he moved to Chillicothe, Ohio, where he practiced law. In 1830, the governor commissioned him to serve a seven-year term as president judge of one of the Ohio circuit courts. He was then appointed to the Ohio Supreme Court, serving as a justice from 1836-42. He resigned from the court in order to write about political theory. He published essays and a highly regarded book of comparative political philosophy, Considerations upon the Nature and Tendency of Free Institutions (1846), an analysis of the ideal of equality in democracy. He never married.

Grimké, Henry (1801-52). Angelina’s brother, a lawyer who shared a legal practice with his brother Thomas. Henry had an estate in the country; however, during the winter and at some other times (the summer of 1829, for example), he and his wife stayed in his mother’s house in Charleston. Henry married Selina Simons in 1824, and they had three children: Henrietta, Montague, and Thomas Smith. Henry also had three children -- Archibald Henry, Francis James, and John -- with Nancy Weston, an enslaved woman. They had their father’s last name: for more, see their entries in this glossary.

Grimké, John (1785-1864). Eldest brother of Angelina. A medical doctor who practiced in Charleston. He married Sophia Ladson in 1816, and they had one child, Mary Roper Grimké. Angelina’s diary entries reveal that she and her brother had a less than cordial relationship.

Grimké, John (1852-1915). Son of the enslaved woman Nancy Weston and Henry Grimké. Unlike his brothers Archibald and Henry, John did not finish his studies, returning instead to Charleston to live with his mother; at some point, he moved to Tampa Bay, Florida.

Grimké, Mary (1789-1865). Sister of Angelina. She never married and lived in the Grimké family home in Charleston. Along with her mother and sister Eliza, Mary began attending St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in 1824. Later, she joined the Third Presbyterian Church for a time. Like her brother Thomas, she supported the colonization movement. (Source: Louise W. Knight.)

Grimké, Mary Augusta. See Heyward, Mary Augusta Grimké.

Grimké, Mary Smith (1764-1839). Angelina Grimké’s mother. From Charleston, South Carolina, she was the child of wealthy parents Thomas "Banker" and Sarah Smith. She married John Faucheraud Grimké in 1784, and bore 14 children, 11 of whom lived to adulthood. She continued to live in their Charleston home after her husband’s death in 1819. She was involved in many charitable organizations. As superintendent of the Ladies Benevolent Society of Charleston, she rebuilt the organization, retiring its debt. She was one of the founding board members of the Female Seamen’s Friend Society of Charleston. (Source: Louise W. Knight.) Angelina was very critical of what she characterized as her mother’s cold temperament and extravagant lifestyle, and her continued defense of slavery.

Grimké, Sarah Daniel Drayton (1786-1854). In 1810, she married Angelina’s brother Thomas. A devout Christian, she served as the first president of the Charleston Female Bible Society when it became an auxiliary of the American Bible Society in 1821.They had six surviving sons. Their oldest son and later their second son, having agreed to take their grandfather’s last name of Drayton, inherited Magnolia Plantation, outside of Charleston.

Grimké, Sarah Moore (1792-1873). Favorite sister of Angelina, and often referred to in the latter’s diary as Sister, Dear Sister, or Precious Sister.Sarah was acknowledged to have a sharp mind but as a female was not permitted to pursue her intellectual interests as her brothers did. In 1819, she accompanied her dying father to the seaside town of Long Branch, New Jersey, in hopes of a cure. She was introduced to Quakers and Quaker practices at this time. Her own spiritual journey was tortured, before and after she embraced the Society of Friends. The call to ministry that she felt was opposed by influential Quakers. She repeatedly turned down proposals of marriage from Israel Morris (see his entry). Although she initially opposed her sister Angelina’s antislavery activism, she changed her mind and accompanied Angelina on their 1837 lecture tour. She lived with Angelina and Theodore Weld for most of the rest of her life, and although she doted on her niece and nephews, her relationship with her sister was sometimes strained. In her later years, her religious views became both more radical and more compassionate of herself and others.

Grimké, Selina Simons (1806-43). Married Angelina’s brother Henry in 1824. She bore three children: Henrietta, Montague, and Thomas Smith. Selina and Henry lived in his mother’s home in Charleston during the winter.

Grimke, Sophia Ladson (1797-1863). Married to Angelina’s brother John.

Grimké, Stephen (b. ca. 1801). A man enslaved to Mary Smith Grimké, serving as her coachman. He ran away in 1826 but returned (the details of which event are not known), and is recorded as having joined -- with Grimké’s permission -- the Third Presbyterian Church in 1827. In 1828 he married a woman named Juda, who was enslaved in a different household. They were permitted to be together one night a week. (Source: Louise W. Knight.)

Grimké, Thomas Smith (1786-1834). Brother of Angelina. A very well-regarded lawyer who served for a time as a state senator in the South Carolina legislature. He was a devout Christian and active in various benevolent societies. In typical fashion for his class and region, this did not prevent him from benefiting from the labor of enslaved persons in his Charleston home and on his plantation. He was a strong supporter of the American Colonization Society. He married Sarah Daniels Drayton in 1810; theyraised six surviving sons. (Source: Louise W. Knight.)

H

H. See Grimké, Henry.

HB. See Stowe, Harriet Beecher.

Habersham, Robert. A gentleman from Savannah, traveling in the Catskills with his daughter and Hetty Elliott. Grimké encountered them on her travels in July 1831.

Hartford Female Seminary. Opened in 1823 by Catharine Beecher, with the help of her sister, Mary Foote Beecher Perkins. The school instructed young women in physical education, philosophy, and science, as well as the subjects more traditionally taught to women.

Hartford Retreat for the Insane was chartered in 1822. It represented a shift from the understanding that insanity was a purely physical condition that could be treated with bloodletting and purgatives to balance the body’s humors. At the Hartford Retreat, patients were treated with kindness and conversation, and for some years the institution was deemed a worldwide success.

Hawkes, Julia (1803-59). Born in Claremont, Massachusetts. After serving as a teacher in Catharine Beecher’s Hartford school, she opened her own seminary in Springfield, which is where Grimké encountered her in 1831. She then moved to Philadelphia and founded another female seminary in 1838. She married Bertrand Gardel around 1844. She traveled to the Middle East in 1859 and was killed when her party was attacked. Her wealthy husband erected a monumental tomb for her in Mount Vernon Cemetery, Philadelphia.

Heyward, Mary Augusta Grimké. Married to Grimké's brother Benjamin until his death in an 1825 shipwreck. She married William Heyward in 1828.

Hicks, Elias (1748-1830). Leader of the Hicksite branch of the US Quakers. See Hicksites.

Hicksites. A faction within the Society of Friends, so called after its most visible leader, Elias Hicks. In 1827, the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting formally split into the Orthodox and Hicksite Friends. Unlike the Orthodox, the Hicksites did not place scripture over the movement of the Holy Spirit. They emphasized the humanity rather than the divinity of Jesus; they disavowedpredestination and penal substitutionary atonement (the belief that Jesus, although innocent, substituted himself for sinners in his death on the cross). Angelina found the rejection of the atonement doctrine one of the most pernicious of the Hicksite stances.

Hubbard, J/I. A Quaker who delivered a message at Arch Street Meeting in August 1831 that Grimké found powerful.

J

JB. See Bettle, Jane.

JC. See Carter, John.

JJW. See Wells, J. J.

JK. See Kirk, John.

JL. See Letchworth, John.

JW. See Whitall, John Siddon.

John (1812-?). Enslaved personal servant of Henry Grimké. He served Grimké as valet, footman, and, upon occasion, nurse. Angelina records a time when Henry whipped John for some error. When John committed some other error, he ran off for the day. Both Angelina and her mother interceded on John’s behalf; Henry did not beat John on his return.

Johnson, "Friend." A woman from the Arch Street Meeting, and a confidante of Grimké.

Jones, Ann (1775-1846). An approved Orthodox Quaker minister from England who visited the United States with her husband George at various times from 1826 to 1830. They wanted to solidify the Orthodox viewpoint among Quakers. The couple spent most of their time in Philadelphia, but Jones also often traveled to preach to various Orthodox meetings, sometimes with Catharine Morris as a companion.

Jourdin, Richard. While in Hartford, Connecticut, Angelina visited the home he had once lived in. No further biographical information. When she was there, the home was occupied by Simeon Arnold.

K

King, Jonas (1792-1869). A Congregational clergyman from Hawley, Massachusetts, he was ordained to the ministry in Charleston, South Carolina, in 1819. He pursued missionary work in South Carolina in 1820. He taught at Amherst College in the 1820s but spent much of the remainder of his life as a missionary in Greece.

Kirk, John (b. 1750). A wealthy merchant, originally from Long Island, and one of the elderly members of the small Charleston Quaker meeting that Grimké began to attend. Kirk opposed slavery and supported its gradual abolition. He was in a long-standing feud with Daniel Latham, another elderly member of the meeting.Kirk objected to the fact that Latham’s wife, mother, and children were slaveholders. Latham was angry that Kirk had taken it upon himself to sell some land owned by the meeting. (Source: Louise W. Knight.)

Kirk, "Mr." Member of the Third Presbyterian Church in Charleston that Grimké joined. Gave an address to a Sunday school teacher’s meeting that Grimké summarized in a diary entry on January 14, 1828.

Kite, Thomas (1785-1845). A printer and bookseller and an approved minister at Arch Street Meeting. He was a good friend of both Grimké sisters. Angelina boarded at his home from October 1830 to November 1831. He married twice and was the father of nine children, three of them with his second wife, Edith Sharpless Kite (1777-1861).

Kitty. A young woman originally enslaved to Angelina’s mother. According to the Grimké’s first biographer, Catherine H. Birney, Angelina took charge of Kitty because her mother could not "manage" her. Angelina placed Kitty with a religious friend, but after the latter became a Methodist (a denomination that was divided on the topic of slavery and, in the 1840s, split between northern and southern wings), Angelina took Kitty back and transferred "ownership" back to her mother (Birney, Sarah and Angelina Grimké: The First American Women Advocates of Abolition and Woman’s Rights, orig. pub. 1885, 41).

Knight, Louise W. Historian and author of a forthcoming biography of Sarah and Angelina Grimké.

L

Ls. Charleston friends, whom Angelina visited before leaving for Philadelphia. No further information.

LC/L.C. See Langdon Cheves.

Langdon Cheves. A ship with a regular route between Charleston and Philadelphia that carried both freight and passengers. Both Angelina and Sarah Grimké mention passages on this ship in their diaries. It was named after Langdon Cheves (1776-1857), a well-known South Carolina lawyer, legislator, and businessman. Cheves was an early proponent of southern secession from the United States. He was a close friend of the Grimké family.

Latham, Daniel. (Angelina spells his name Lathum.) He was one of the elderly Quakers in the small Charlestonmeeting. He and John Kirk were in a long-standing feud. Latham was angry that Kirk had taken it upon himself to sell some land owned by the meeting. Kirk, who opposed slavery, objected to the fact that Latham’s wife, mother, and children were slaveholders. (Source: Louise W. Knight.)

Lathum, D. See Latham, Daniel.

Latham, S. Sarah Forbes Latham (d. 1835). A Quaker from Charleston; married to Daniel Latham.

Letchworth, John(1759-1843). An approved minister of Arch Street Meeting and the uncle of Thomas Kite. The Letchworths had two children. In 1801, he accompanied two women ministerson visits to other meetings, where he discussed the issue of slavery. (Source: Louise W. Knight.)

M

MA. Depending on time and place, either Grimké’s sister-in-law Mary Augusta Grimké (see Heyward, Mary Augusta Grimké) or her niece, Mary-Anna Frost.

MC. One of the overseers of Arch Street Meeting.

MH. Not identified; possibly one of the students in Grimke’s Sunday school class at the Third Presbyterian Church in Charleston. Louise W. Knight suggests that this might be Maria Haynes, who is mentioned in Grimké’s letters.

MP. See Perkins, Mary Foote Beecher.

MW. Not identified. A girl or woman whom Angelina visited in Charleston, hoping to steer her onto a more spiritual path.

Mason, S. and E. Acquaintances from Philadelphia whom Grimké encountered on her travels in July 1831.

McDowell, William A. (1789-1851). Born in New Jersey; graduated from the College of New Jersey in 1809. Completed studies at Princeton Seminary in 1813. Married Jane Kollock, daughter of one of his mentors, Henry Kollock (who played a role in Sarah Grimké’s faith journey). They had one child, Augustus William. McDowell’s health benefited from a move south, and he became the first pastor of the Third Presbyterian Church in Charleston, serving from 1823 to 1833. He and Angelina Grimké became very close, and she revered him as a mentor until she began to embrace Quakerism. Her departure from the church was very painful to them both. In 1833, he was elected corresponding secretary of the Board of Missions of the Presbyterian Church (USA), which required him to relocate to Philadelphia. He served in this role until he retired in 1850.

McIntire, Charles (no dates). Superintendent of the Sunday school at Third Presbyterian Church, where Angelina was a teacher. One of those who kindly but condescendingly lectured Angelina on the folly of leaving the Presbyterian Church and embracing Quakerism.

Monthly meeting. Within the Society of Friends, a meeting or group of local meetings, which historically met monthly for purposes of business, including the acceptance of new members. The term also came to apply to single congregations. (Gregory Barnes, Philadelphia’s Arch Street Meeting House, xxii.)

Morris, Catharine Wistar (1772-1859). Member of a prominent and wealthy Philadelphia Quaker merchant family. Daughter of Samuel and Rebecca Wistar Morris; sister of Israel Morris. Elder in the Arch Street Friends Meeting; also served as Clerk of the Women’s Meeting of the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting. According to Grimké biographer Louise W. Knight, Sarah Grimké lived with Morris from the fall of 1821 possibly through most of 1836. Angelina lived with her from November 1829 to October 1830; after that, she sometimes stayed with Catharine when Sarah was out of town. While the Grimké sisters appreciated Catharine’s hospitality and "motherly" care, they also resented her admonitions and criticisms.

Morris, Israel Wistar (1778-1870). From a prominent and wealthy Philadelphia Quaker merchant family. By the time the Grimkés knew him, he had become a gentleman farmer, having inherited an estate, Greenhill, from his deceased wife, Mary Hollingsworth Morris. He was a good friend of Sarah Grimké’s, and proposed marriage to her more than once. Sarah was tempted to accept him and her anguished reflections on this topic occupy her diary entries over a period of years, but for a variety of reasons, she always decided against it.

N

NS. Gentleman in Hartford, Connecticut, whom Grimké and her traveling companions tried to visit in the summer of 1831. His wife and daughter invited the party to call, but they elected not to due to fatigue.

Napier, Thomas and Ann. Charleston natives, Grimké family friends, and members of the Third Presbyterian Church of Charleston. Thomas served on the church’s Session Committee and was one of those who met with Angelina as she was severing her ties with the church. Their daughter lived in Northampton, Massachusetts, and they spent summers there, which is where Angelina encountered them in July 1831. The Napiers later moved to Northampton.

Norris, W. and H. See Norris, William and Harriet.

Norris, William and Harriet. A couple from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, to whom Grimké and her traveling companions were introduced in New Haven.

North Meeting. An Orthodox meeting after the 1837. Both Angelina and Sarah Grimké attended meetings there occasionally.

O

OA. A male Quaker whose prayer comforted Grimké in a time of uncertainty in September 1830, and again, when he spoke at North Meeting in 1832 shortly after Edward Bettle’s death.

Olney Hymns. A collection of hymns coauthored in 1779 by Anglican priest and hymnist John Newton (1725-1807) and his friend and parishioner, the poet William Cowper (1731-1800).

Overseers. Friends appointed to see to the pastoral needs of Quaker members and others who attended Quaker meetings. They also enforced the rules of the Society of Friends.

P

Pennsylvania system. This system of prison management, developed by Quakers, preceded the Auburn system. In this model, the incarcerated were kept in isolation from each other, the thought being that this would give them time for reflection and penitence without being subject to negative influences from other prisoners.

Perkins, Mary Foote Beecher (1805-1900). Assisted her sister Catharine Beecher in establishing the Hartford Female Seminary in 1823. Perkins also taught and helped administer the school. She and her husband Thomas had four children; they were the grandparents of writer and lecturer Charlotte Perkins Gilman.

Perkins Thomas Clap (1798-1870). A lawyer and politician, and the husband of Mary Foote Beecher Perkins.

Phillips, Dr. A Charleston acquaintance, whom Grimké encountered on her travels in July 1831.

Pillsbury, Amos (1805-1873). Son of Moses Pillsbury; also served as warden of the Wethersfield (Connecticut) State Prison.

Pillsbury, Moses (1778-1848). First warden of the Wethersfield (Connecticut) State Prison.

Pine Street Meeting. The meeting house was constructed in 1753; it was demolished ca. 1861. After the 1827 schism in the Society of Friends, Pine Street was an Orthodox meeting.

Pittfield, E. See, Pittfield, Elizabeth.

Pittfield, Elizabeth. Woman mentioned by Grimké as speaking in meeting on October 7, 1831.

Precious Sister. See Grimké, Sarah.

Professor. Grimké used this term to refer to those who professed the Christian faith.

R

R. See Singer, Rebecca.

RC [?]. An unidentified woman who held out her hand "in sympathy" to Angelina after a meeting on September 5, 1830.

RE. An unidentified woman with whom Angelina spent an evening on September 17, 1832.

RS. See Singer, Rebecca.

Rs, the. See Rains, below.

Rains. A Charleston couple whom Grimke assisted by doing their accounts.

Rebecca. See Singer, Rebecca.

Royce Smith, "Aunt." No information.

S

S. In 1829, "S" is most likely one of Angelina’s sisters-in-law, probably Henry’s wife Selina, who was living in the Grimké house at the time. In Angelina’s diary of July 1831, "S" is her traveling companion, Sarah Whittall.

S and JB. Samuel and Jane Bettle.

SB. See Bettle, Samuel.

SBT. Unidentified woman who sent a letter to Angelina Grimké and Sarah Whitall while they were on their travels in the northeast in July 1831. Also visited Grimké in the wake of Edward Bettle’s death.

SE. Sister Eliza. See Grimké, Elizabeth Caroline.

SM. Sister Mary. See Grimké, Mary.

SS. Sister Selina. See Grimké, Selina Simons.

SW. See Whitall, Sarah.

St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Charleston, South Carolina. A more evangelical church founded by a dissatisfied group of members from St. Philip’s, including Grimké’s father and brother Thomas. In the 1820s her mother and sisters Mary and Eliza attended this church. Mary Smith Grimké owned a box there. Angelina began attending services there after her cousin’s death in October 1825. (Source: Louise W. Knight.)

St. Philip’s Episcopal Church, Charleston, South Carolina. Founded in 1680. The Grimké family worshiped there until St. Paul’s was founded. Grimké’s brother Thomas returned to St. Philip’s sometime after his father’s death. (Source: Louise W. Knight.)

Sally. Nickname for Sarah Grimké. There was also a Sally who was an enslaved servant inthe Grimké household (see entry for September 8, 1829). In the July 1831 diary, "Sally" is Sarah Whitall.

Santee Canal Company. Founded by John Faucheraud Grimké and others to build a canal from the mouth of the Santee River to Charleston. The canal was completed in 1800. Both Grimké and his son Thomas served on the board. When Grimké died, his shares in the company were divided among his daughters. (Sources: "Santee Canal," in South Carolina Encyclopedia, https://www.scencyclopedia.org/sce/entries/santee-canal/; Louise W. Knight.)

Scott, Job (1751-93). An American Quaker, who became a traveling minister during the Revolutionary War. He traveled to France and England in 1793, where he contracted and died of smallpox. His Journal of the Life, Travels, and Gospel Labors of That Faithful Servant and Minister of Christ, Job Scott, was first published in 1797.

Shakers. Formally known as the United Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing, a Protestant Christian sect, founded in England in 1747, and established in the US in the 1770s by Ann Lee. Shakers practiced communal living, celibacy, pacifism, and simplicity of life. The Hancock Shaker Village, founded in the 1780s, was one of those communities. Its membership peaked at about 300 around the time of Grimké’s visit in July 1831.

Sigourney, Lydia Howard Huntley (1791-1865). Born and raised in Norwich, Connecticut, she opened a school for young ladies there; later, she did the same in Hartford. She married Charles Sigourney in 1819. She is best known as an author of both poetry and prose. Focusing on religion and morality, she published 52 books over the course of her lifetime; her writing also appeared in hundreds of periodicals.

Sing Sing Prison. Built in Mount Pleasant, New York, in 1825, by prisoners brought for that purpose from the Auburn (NY) Prison. Originally called Mount Pleasant Prison; later known as Sing Sing, after the name of the marble that the Auburn prisoners excavated from a local quarry to build it. The prison was operated on the Auburn system.

Silsby, Sally. A Charleston friend of Grimké’s.

Singer, Rebecca (b. 1804). Raised Lutheran, she was accepted into membership at the Twelfth Street Meeting (Orthodox) when she was just 22 years old. She was one of the first of Grimké’s new friends in her 1828 visit.

Sister. When Angelina refers to "Sister" as a stand-alone proper noun, she nearly always means Sarah Grimké. (On at least one occasion she referred to her sister Ann in that way.)

Sister Anna. See Frost, Ann Rutledge Grimké.

Sister E. Often, Angelina’s sister, Eliza Grimké. But, on one occasion (April 28, 1828), Angelina used that name in reference to Eliza Thompson, a friend from the Third Presbyterian Church who called to see Angelina’s mother, but then asked to see Angelina. (See letter from Angelina to Sarah Grimké, May 5, 1828). (Source: Louise W. Knight.)

Sister Sally. In the June 12, 1829 entry, likely a reference to Angelina’s sister-in-law, Sarah (married to brother Thomas).

Sister Sophia. In the June 12, 1829, entry, a reference to Angelina’s sister-in-law, Sophia (married to brother John).

Smith, Jane. Lived with her mother and two sisters in Philadelphia, next to the home of Anna Grimké Frost. She was disowned by the Quaker meeting because of her refusal to stand for vocal prayer. She was also decidedly antislavery and may have been the person who introduced Grimké to William Lloyd Garrison’s abolitionist newspaper, The Liberator. She and Angelina became very close friends and remained so for the rest of their lives. (Source: Louise W. Knight.)

Smith, N. A resident of New Haven, whom Grimké and her travel companions paid a call on, but who was "out riding" at the time.

Springfield Armory. Established in 1777, it was the first federal armory in the US, and was the major supplier of US military firearms from the Revolution until it was closed in 1968.

Stephanini, Joseph (b. 1803). A Greek man, enslaved to an Ottoman military commander after the Greek Revolution in 1821. He escaped from slavery and traveled to the United States twice in the 1820s. During his second trip, he visited Charleston. He published an autobiographical account of his experiences entitled The Personal Narrative of the Sufferings of J. Stephanini (1829). The book was read and recommended by some prominent Americans, including Angelina’s brother, Thomas S. Grimké.

Stephen. See Grimké, Stephen.

Stowe, Harriet Beecher (1811-96). Daughter of the evangelical clergyman Lyman Beecher and Roxana Foote Beecher. Attended her sister Catharine’s Hartford Female Seminary and then began teaching there in 1827, serving as its principal for some months in her sister’s absence. She moved to Cincinnati with her father in late 1831, and married Calvin Stowe, a professor at Lane Seminary, in 1836. Best known for her enormously influential antislavery novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin, or Life among the Lowly, published in 1851.

T

TK. See Kite, Thomas.

TP. See Perkins, Thomas.

Third Presbyterian Church (Charleston). The Reverend William McDowell was called to be the first pastor of this church in 1823. Grimké began attending Thursday evening services there with her mother and sister Mary, and then became a member in July 1826 (Source: Louise W. Knight). In 1852, the church was renamed the Central Presbyterian Church, and in 1881 it merged with another church to form the Westminster Presbyterian Church. In 1926, the church sold its building to Trinity United Methodist (Manuscripts Misc., South Caroliniana Library, University of South Carolina).

Thompson, Eliza. Friend from the Third Presbyterian Church.

Todd Eli (1769-1833). A physician who served as the first superintendent of the Hartford Retreat for the Insane until his death. He was influenced by European methods such as those pioneered at the York Retreat in England, which held that insanity had moral as well as physical causes.

Twelfth Street Meeting House. Constructed in 1813. It became one of the meeting locations for the Orthodox faction of the Philadelphia Friends.

V

Van Rensselaer family. Emigrated to North America from the Netherlands; among the first settlers in the Dutch colony, New Netherland, along the northeastern coast of what is now the United States. They acquired huge tracts of land in the Albany area and were among the wealthiest people in the country.

W

Wadsworth, Daniel (1771-1848). From a wealthy Hartford merchant family. He was an amateur artist and architect, and a patron of the arts. He founded the Wadsworth Atheneum, the first public art museum in the United States. In 1805, he and his wife purchased land on Talcott Mountain and created an estate called Monte Video, which they opened to the public so that people could enjoy the natural world.

Walton, E. See Walton, Elizabeth.

Walton, Elizabeth (1792-1832). Cousin of Edward Bettle. She suffered from tuberculosis. In a goodhearted gesture that was at least partly motivated by her hope of seeing more of Bettle this way, Grimké invited Walton to live with her at Anna Grimké Frost’s home, pledging to be Walton’s companion and nurse.

Webster, Noah. (1758-1843). Intellectual, ardent supporter of the American Revolution, and author. As an educational reformer, he published a textbook for helping students learn to read and spell, known as the "Blue-Backed Speller." He is best known, however, as the author of the 1826 American Dictionary of the English Language. Grimké and her travel companions called at his house in New Haven, and although he was not in, they were received "kindly" by his wife.

Well, J. J. A member of the Society of Friends in Hartford.

Wethersfield State Prison. Connecticut prison in operation from 1827 to 1963. Its method of treatment of its incarcerated population was modeled after the harsh Auburn system.

Whitall, John Siddon (1757-1843). Born into a wealthy Quaker family from Woodbury, New Jersey. In 1788, he married Sarah Mickle, who was herself from a wealthy family. They had 10 children. As an adult, he lost his fortune in 1815 through a bad investment in the West Indies. He and his wife moved their family at that time from his ancestral home to a farm she owned.

Whitall, Hannah (c. 1784-?). Daughter of John S. Whitall and sister of Sarah Whitall, with whom she opened a school for girls in Philadelphia in 1823.

Whitall, John Mickle (1800-77). Son of John Siddon Whitall and Sarah Mickle Whitall. He married Mary Tatum in 1830, and they settled in Philadelphia. He was a sea captain, merchant, and later, a glass manufacturer.

Whitall, Sarah(ca. 1803-38). A Philadelphia Quaker; daughter of John Siddon Whitall. She and her sister Hannah opened a school for girls in Philadelphia in 1823. It was her idea to visit Catharine Beecher’s Hartford Seminary to explore the possibility of enrolling in a six-month teacher training course there, and she invited Angelina to accompany her and her father on the trip. Whitall married in 1836 but died only two years later, likely of tuberculosis.

Whittemore, Amos (1759-1828). In 1797, invented and patented a machine that manufactured wool and cotton cards to prepare wool for spinning. He and his brothers were business partners selling the cards.

William. A man enslaved to the Grimké family in Charleston.

Wing, Elisabeth. Not identified.

Woolman, John (1720-72). An American Quaker minister, well known as an early abolitionist.

Work House. Nicknamed the "Sugar House." A place for the incarceration and punishment (torture) of enslaved persons. The first building used as a work house had been a building where sugar was stored previously, and after the city built a new workhouse elsewhere, the nickname stuck.  Slaveowners sent enslaved people there to be whipped or to walk on the treadmill, a large machine with log rows of steps that rotated, powered by the feet of many people.

Y

Yearly Meetings. Gatherings of local (monthly) meetings, coming together for the purpose of worship and business. The Philadelphia Yearly Meeting split in 1827 into Orthodox and Hicksite gatherings, both of which claimed to be the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting. The Orthodox faction met at Arch Street Meetinghouse, the meeting most frequently attended by the Grimké sisters. The Philadelphia area Hicksites met at Race Street Meetinghouse.

Young, Charlotte. A teacher at Catharine Beecher’s Hartford Female Seminary.