This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held in the Research Library at the Nantucket Historical Association. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available through the internet.
Summary
The Fragment Society was formed in 1817 by a group of young Nantucket, Mass., women for the purpose of opening a school for girls unable to pay for their education. When the public schools were established, the efforts of the Society turned to sewing and distributing clothing and quilts to sick and impoverished individuals and to the Nantucket Cottage Hospital. The Society also paid the tuition for two students at the Deaf and Dumb School in Hartford, Conn., and one student at the Blind Asylum in Boston, Mass. In November 1836, the Society merged with the Benevolent and Charitable Societies and became known as the Ladies Howard Society. They distributed clothing and money to the poor of Nantucket. The collection includes one volume containing minutes and treasurer’s reports that document the society’s sewing and distribution efforts and information relating to economic difficulties experienced by Nantucket residents following the War of 1812. The collection also includes annual reports as well as later recollections about the Fragment Society, likely written by Mrs. Harrison Peirce.
Collection Details
- Collection Number:
- MS69
- Title:
- Fragment Society Papers
- Date(s):
- 1819–1836, 1902
- Creator:
- Fragment Society.
- Repository:
- Nantucket Historical Association
- Language:
- Material is in English.
Information for Users
Restrictions to Access: No restrictions. Open for research.
Restrictions to Use: No usage restrictions.
Copyright Notice: Copyright is retained by the authors of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.
Preferred Citation: [identification of item], in the Fragment Society Papers collection, Nantucket Historical Association.
Acquisitions Information:
Folder 2 gift of Mrs. Maria L. Oliver.
Sensitive Materials Statement:Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations. Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in this collection without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual’s private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which the Nantucket Historical Association assumes no responsibility.
Subject Headings
-
Corporate Names
- Fragment Society.
-
Topical Terms
- Charities—Massachusetts—Nantucket.
Biographical Information
The Fragment Society was formed in 1817 by a group of young Nantucket, Mass., women for the purpose of opening a school for girls unable to pay for their education. When the public schools were established, the efforts of the Society turned to sewing and distributing clothing and quilts to sick and impoverished individuals and to the Town Hospital. The Society also paid the tuition for two students at the Deaf and Dumb School in Hartford, Conn., and one student at the Blind Asylum in Boston, Mass. In November 1836, the Society merged with the Benevolent and Charitable Societies and became known as the Ladies Howard Society. They distributed clothing and money to the poor of Nantucket.
Scope and Content
The collection includes one volume containing minutes and treasurer’s reports that document the society’s sewing and distribution efforts and information relating to economic difficulties experienced by Nantucket, Mass., residents following the War of 1812. The collection also includes annual reports as well as later recollections about the Fragment Society, likely written by Mrs. Harrison Peirce; these recollections are undated but were written before 1902.
Contents
Box 1 Folder 1: Annual reports, 1818–1821
Box 1 Folder 2: Recollections about the Fragment Society, undated
Box 1 Folder 3: Constitution, minutes, and bylaws, 1820–1836
Processing Information
Processed by Teddy Leane, July 2021. Finding aid by Teddy Leane, July 2021.