Joseph Delaplaine correspondence

Joseph Delaplaine (1777-1824)

In honor of the upcoming Independence Day celebration, where we all remember the many patriots who helped found this country we know and love today, L. Tom Perry Special Collections is pleased to announce the availability of a new digitized collection: Joseph Delaplaine correspondence (Vault MSS 450). This collection includes handwritten correspondence, written between 1813-1824, between Joseph Delaplaine and popular American figures of the early nineteenth century. The majority of items concern information for Delaplaine’s book, “Repository of the Lives and Portraits of Distinguished Americans.” Includes handwritten autobiographical sketches of Oliver Wolcott Sr. and William Pinkney and letters from prominent political figures such as William Henry Harrison and Richard Mentor Johnson.

Joseph Delaplaine was born in December 20, 1777 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He married Jane Anne Livingston and throughout his life was interested in history, especially that of the United States and the early patriots who shaped it. He wrote and had published a book in 1815, titled Delaplaine’s Repository of the Lives and Portraits of Distinguished American Characters. In this book, Delaplaine wrote on figures such as Christopher Columbus, George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, and other American patriots. Joseph Delaplaine died on May 31, 1824 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.