Timothy Matlack

Timothy Matlack Marker
Pawlings Road near Audubon Road
Audubon, PA 19403

Timothy Matlack was a New Jersey born Pennsylvania Patriot during the American Revolution. Matlack was a controversial figure in Pennsylvania over the span of his adulthood. He enjoyed gambling, horseracing and cock fighting. After falling into debt, he was thrown into debtor's prison. The Quakers secured his release from prison, only to disown him after he failed to reform. Matlack's "hobbies" provided him with the opportunity to interact and socialize with people of all classes. These interactions would later serve him well as he proved to be a skilled organizer of men in his home colony and state.

Matlack served in a variety of positions during America's struggle for independence, to include clerk to the secretary of the Second Continental Congress, storekeeper of military supplies, delegate to the Pennsylvania Constitutional Convention, member of the state Council of Safety and militia officer. Matlack fought in the Battle of the Assunpink Creek (the Second Battle of Trenton) and the Battle of Princeton. Matlack is best known for his fine penmanship, and is believed to be the individual who inscribed the Declaration of Independence on parchment. Matlack passed away at age 93 in Holmesburg, PA. He is buried at the Wetherills Cemetery (aka Free Quaker Cemetery) in Audubon, PA.

Below is a write up on Timothy Matlack from the Explore PA History website, along with a few photos that I took of Timothy Matlack's marker:

"When Philadelphia's radical leaders organized their committees for resistance to British imperial policy in 1774, only one of them intended to instigate a revolution: former Quaker Timothy Matlack. Fiercely opposed to the conservative leadership of John Dickinson and the Pennsylvania Assembly, Matlack, a merchant and brewer turned revolutionary, served on the extra legal Council of Public Safety. A committed political and social radical, Matlack kept regular company with people from the 'poorer sorts.' In an era when wealthy Pennsylvanians worked hard to display refined cultural profiles, supported by goods and activities imported from England, Matlack reveled in the popular culture of the colony and its combative, competitive entertainments. For this reason, his ascent to political prominence is all the more interesting.

Born in New Jersey in 1736, Matlack grew up in a Quaker family. In the late 1740s, he moved to Philadelphia, where he developed a penchant for gambling, horseracing, and the lower-class sport of cockfighting. When his business affairs fell into ruin, wealthier Quakers redeemed him from debtor's prison. But Matlack's refusal to reform his ways - and his criticism of those Friends who held slaves - resulted in his disownment from the Society of Friends in 1765.

Matlack's poor record and restless temperament did not make him a good candidate for elective public service, but he took readily to the mechanical and organizational political tasks that all successful revolutions require to remain dynamic and vital. He became a clerk to Charles Thomson, the secretary of the Second Continental Congress. He thrived on committee work in the radical Philadelphia community that constructed a de facto shadow government that prepared to take over in the city and state if the regular provincial government faltered.

Matlack served as a delegate to the Pennsylvania provincial convention that wrote the radical 1776 state constitution, and associated with such confirmed radicals as James Cannon and David Rittenhouse. He also served with Philadelphia's artisan-dominated militia battalion, and saw some military service in New Jersey in late 1776 and early 1777. He became secretary to the powerful unicameral Pennsylvania assembly under the new constitution, and remained in that office until the end of the Revolution. He served in a similar capacity with Pennsylvania's Supreme Executive Council, which filled the function of a governor in more conventional political systems.

Driven from office by conservative enemies at the end of the war, Matlack became a leader of the Free Quakers, a group of disowned Friends who had supported the Revolution in violation of the Quaker Peace Testimony, and resumed his public diatribes against political foes. In 1781, his heckling of Whitehead Humphreys, a conservative member of the Pennsylvania Assembly, resulted in a public fistfight. The vengeful Humphreys subsequently wrote and distributed a poetic broadside that reflected some of the upper class's contempt for Matlack.

'Altho' dear Tim you've rose so great,
 From trimming cocks to trim the state;
 Yet to a brother, lend an ear,
 A moment - tho" in humble sphere . . .
 Did you forget in days of yore
 When you, like Price, was wretched poor?
 But all at once you've raised so high,
 Quakers can't safely pass you by!'

Although Matlack returned to public life in the 1790s, mostly in the capacity of a clerk and functionary, he was not as effective in building governments as he was in tearing them down. He spent his final years in rural Philadelphia County, where he died in 1829. He is buried in Audubon, on the Schuylkill River, not far from Valley Forge.

Timothy Matlack's contribution to American independence was critical in mobilizing public support for the patriot cause. Since the eighteenth century, every modern revolution in the western world has depended on actors like him, men of conviction and resilience willing to work on mundane tasks and smaller functions in the service of a greater goal."
(http://explorepahistory.com/hmarker.php?markerId=1-A-156)

MW

Upcoming Event - Burrowes Mansion Interview

The Matt Ward History Experience will travel to the Burrowes Mansion in Matawan, NJ on Sunday, July 19, 2015. This visit will be part of the launching of the blog's monthly podcast. Three Burrowes Mansion Museum docents will be interviewed. The interview will focus on the history of the Burrowes Mansion and the people who lived there. If you have any questions that you would like answered by the panel, please post them in the comments of this blog entry or send them to me via Twitter @RevWarBuff23.

The Burrowes Mansion is located at 94 Main Street in historic Matawan, NJ. The mansion will be open next weekend for tours from 2-4pm. For more information on the Burrowes Mansion, please visit the following links:

Burrowes Mansion Official Website:

http://burrowesmansion.org/

Matawan Historical Society Official Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Matawan-Historical-Society-NJ/278556882255492

Revolutionary War New Jersey:

http://www.revolutionarywarnewjersey.com/new_jersey_revolutionary_war_sites/towns/matawan_nj_revolutionary_war_sites.htm

MW

Philip Freneau's Grave

Philip Freneau's Grave
Poet Drive
Matawan, NJ 07747

Having grown up in Matawan, NJ, I am very familiar with the story of Philip Freneau. Freneau is known as the "Poet of the American Revolution." He wrote a number of poems during his lifetime, to include the History of the Prophet Jonah. He supported the Patriot cause as a militiaman and privateer. Freneau was a friend and supporter of Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. His work as a journalist following the American Revolution was partisan in nature and often attacked Federalist politicians to include George Washington and Alexander Hamilton. Washington in particular took a strong dislike to Freneau. Freneau froze to death at age 80 while trying to find his way home in a snow storm.

A section of my hometown is named in his honor, and his final home still stands in Matawan. Freneau's grave is located in the middle of a quiet residential street called Poet Drive in the section of the town that bears his name. I have had the opportunity to visit Freneau's grave site on numerous occasions over the years. The below photos were taken during a January 2014 visit.

Along with my photos, I included a write up on Freneau from the Poetry Foundation website:

"Known as the poet of the American Revolution, Philip Freneau was influenced by both the political situation of his time and the full, active life he led. He attended Princeton University, where James Madison was his roommate, and planned to become a minister. However, at Princeton he became engaged in political debates with fellow students and pursued his interest in writing.

Freneau was torn between his involvement in the social turmoil of his times and the more solitary life of writing. After graduation, he wrote a series of anti-British satires. In 1776 Freneau travelled to the West Indies, where he studied navigation and wrote, largely about his surroundings. In 1778 he returned to New Jersey, joined the militia, and served as a ship’s captain. He was eventually captured by the British and spent six weeks on a prison ship. By 1790, Freneau had published two collections of poetry. Encouraged by James Madison and Thomas Jefferson, Freneau established a newspaper, the National Gazette, in Philadelphia, which promoted Jefferson’s principles. By the early 1800s, Freneau had retired to his farm to write essays and poetry.

As a journalist and poet, Freneau was prolific. His poetry covers a variety of subjects, including the political situation, American Indians, nature, the sea, and naval battles. His political poems are often satiric, but his nature poetry is marked by lyricism and close observation of the details of the American landscape. Freneau’s work displays some of the characteristics of Romanticism—especially in its close attention to, and feeling for, nature."  (http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/philip-freneau)

MW

Richie Ashburn's Grave

Richie Ashburn's Grave

Gladwyne United Methodist Church Cemetery
316 Righters Mill Road
Gladwyne, PA 19035

If you are a fan of the Philadelphia Phillies, or baseball in general, you have heard the name Richie Ashburn. Don Richard Ashburn was a center fielder for the Phillies from 1948-1959, and later became a long time television and radio commentator for the team in 1963. Ashburn's accomplishments on the baseball field were recognized by the Baseball Hall of Fame when he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1995. Ashburn passed away in New York City on September 9, 1997, during a Phillies road trip against the New York Mets. I had the opportunity to pay my respects to Richie this past May. He is buried in the Gladwyne United Methodist Church Cemetery in Gladwyne, PA. His grave is located directly behind the main church building.

Below is a write up on Richie Ashburn from the Baseball Hall of Fame Museum website. I also included some photos I took at Ashburn's grave site of and of his Hall of Fame plaque at the Baseball Hall Fame Museum in Cooperstown, NY.

"A fleet-footed baseball player that used his athletic gifts to get on base and chase down fly balls on the field, then a broadcaster that used his oratory skills to become a much beloved voice off the field, Richie Ashburn would become a fixture on the Philadelphia sports scene for a half century.

Because he played in an era that featured such stalwart center fielders as Willie Mays, Mickey Mantle and Duke Snider, Ashburn was sometimes overlooked by fans of the game. But during a 15-year big league career, the lefty swinging Ashburn twice won the National League batting title, finished second three times, and nine times batted over .300. A lifetime .308 hitter, his 1,198 walks and 2,574 hits helped him finish with a .397 on-base percentage.

'Ashburn is the fastest man I’ve ever seen getting down to first base,' said Brooklyn Dodgers manager Leo Durocher in 1948. 'He’s even faster than Pete Reiser in his prime. Anybody who’s faster than Ashburn isn’t running. He’s flying.'

Short and slight, the 5-foot-10, 170 pound Ashburn excelled from 1948 to 1959 as the prototypical leadoff hitter and center fielder with the Phillies. In possession of an excellent eye at the plate, he led the league in walks on four separate occasions and his 1958 season marked the first time a leadoff hitter paced the league in both batting average and bases on balls. Defensively, Ashburn set outfield marks with nine years of 400 or more putouts and four years with 500 or more.

'Richie was very serious when it came to playing the game,' said longtime Phillies teammate and Hall of Fame pitcher Robin Roberts. 'He would play cards and was a fun guy off the field, but on the field he really teed it up.'

'The only complaint I have about him is he wasn’t tall enough to catch the balls that went into the seats,' he joked. 'He caught everything else.'

After spending two seasons (1960-61) with the Chicago Cubs, Ashburn ended his playing career as a member of the expansion New York Mets for their inaugural 1962 season. Despite hitting .306 and being the lone All-Star representative for a team that lost a record 120 games, he become one of the few regulars to ever retire following a season in which they batted at least .300.

Though he left the field of play, Ashburn soon began a second career when he returned to Philadelphia as a member of the media. He joined the Phillies’ television-radio broadcasting team in 1963, where he would combine perceptive commentary with a wry sense of humor for 35 years."

(http://baseballhall.org/hof/ashburn-richie)

MW

Happy 4th of July!

Happy 4th of July from the Matt Ward History Experience!

Be on the look out for new posts and photos from my recent visits to historic sites. I am also in the process of setting up a monthly or weekly podcast to discuss all things HISTORY!

MW

Jersey Joe Walcott's Grave

Jersey Joe Walcott's Grave
Sunset Memorial Park
1605 Union Ave
Pennsauken Township, NJ 08110

First off, my apologies for the lack of posts over the last two months. I have been very busy doing research for a paper I am writing for graduate school!

In honor of the research paper I am finishing up on Jersey Joe Walcott, I figured I would put together a post on the final resting place of boxing great Jersey Joe Walcott (aka Arnold Cream).

Jersey Joe Walcott had a boxing career that spanned from 1930-1953. Walcott became heavyweight champion on July 18, 1951 when he defeated Ezzard Charles in Pittsburgh, PA. He held this title until he was defeated by Rocky Marciano on September 23, 1952. Following his Hall of Fame boxing career, Walcott was elected as Sheriff of Camden County in 1971, becoming New Jersey's first black sheriff. Walcott passed away at the age of 80 in 1994.

Below is a write up on Jersey Joe Walcott from the International Boxing Hall of Fame website, along with some photos that I took of his gravesite:

"IN THE RING, Jersey Joe Walcott was the picture of perseverance. He won the heavyweight title in his fifth try, accomplishing the feat at the age of 37. He held the record for oldest heavyweight champion until 45-year-old George Foreman won the crown in 1994.

Born Arnold Cream in Merchantville, New Jersey, Walcott took the name of his boxing idol, Joe Walcott, the welterweight champion from Barbados. He turned pro in 1930 at the age of 16 and embarked on a slow, but steady, rise to the top.

Walcott wound up a loser in his early bouts against world-class competition. He lost a pair of fights to Tiger Jack Fox and was knocked out by contender Abe Simon. But that would change in 1945 when Walcott reeled off victories against such top heavyweights as Joe Baksi, Lee Q. Murray, Curtis Sheppard and Jimmy Bivins. He closed out 1946 with a pair of losses to former light heavyweight champ Joey Maxim and heavyweight contender Elmer Ray, but promptly avenged those defeats in 1947.

Walcott, considered an excellent boxer and slick defensive fighter, challenged Joe Louis for the title in December of 1947 at Madison Square Garden. He dropped the champion twice but lost a 15-round split decision to "The Brown Bomber." The very next year, Louis defeated him again, knocking Walcott out in 11 rounds. When Louis retired, Walcott and Ezzard Charles met for the vacant NBA heavyweight title in 1949 with Charles emerging victorious via 15-round decision.

Walcott beat future Hall of Famer Harold Johnson in 1950 and would duel twice more with Charles in 1951. Charles bested Walcott again in the first match earning a 15-round decision. But in the rematch, Walcott scored a seventh-round knockout, courtesy of his left hook, to finally win the heavyweight title.

Walcott would meet Charles a fourth time, earning a decision in his first title defense. But he would meet up with Rocky Marciano in his second defense and lost the title when the "Brockton Blockbuster" halted him in Round 13. After Marciano knocked him out in the first round of their 1953 rematch, Walcott retired.

After retiring, Walcott remained active in boxing as a referee and later as the chairman of the New Jersey State Athletic Commission."
(http://www.ibhof.com/pages/about/inductees/modern/walcottjersey.html)

MW

Hotel San Carlos

Hotel San Carlos

202 N Central Ave

Phoenix, AZ 85004

One of the great historic landmarks of downtown Phoenix is the Hotel San Carlos. The hotel was built in 1928 and has hosted a number of celebrities and political figures over the years. Every time I visit Phoenix, I make a point of passing by this historic hotel. A walk through the hotel lobby takes you back to the early 20th century, and contains a number of photos related to the history of the hotel and Phoenix. The hotel is also rumored to be haunted, and was featured on a television show about haunted hotels that aired on the Travel Channel.

Below is a write up on the hotel from the official Hotel San Carlos site, along with some photos I took this past January:

"The Nineteenth Century and "Turn" of the Twentieth

1874 - Our story begins with the construction of the first Phoenix school house on our location at Central Ave. and Monroe. The small one room adobe was built on a location where the local Native Americans were reported to have worshipped the God of Learning. A well was also dug for the school. In 1879 a larger two story brick structure was built with four rooms and a bell tower. This was Phoenix' fourth brick building and there were no other structures North of the school on what was then Center Street. The school was expanded in 1893 to sixteen rooms and served the school children of Phoenix for close to a quarter century.

1916 - The schoolhouse had again been outgrown and was condemned. In 1919 the entire block was purchased by the Babbitts (relatives of former Secretary of the Interior and Governor Bruce Babbitt) to make way for a major hotel, but those plans languished.

1927 - The Hotel San Carlos finally became the hotel project the growing city yearned for when Charles Harris, financed by Dwight B. Heard, purchased the hotel site and began construction. The design was done by nationally known architects, G. Witecross Ritchie of Los Angeles, in the Italian renaissance style.

1928 - The formal Grand opening March 20th, 1928 was boldly announced in the Arizona Gazette (now the Arizona Republic). Mr. Dwight Heard, a prominent figure in Phoenix real estate and development, and his partner, Charles Harris, were very proud of their state-of-the-art hotel. It was the most modern hotel in the entire Southwest United States, the first air conditioned, high-rise hotel in Phoenix, and the first high-rise hotel with elevators (hand operated) in the state. It had Italian tapestries, a card room, dancing, and an outdoor sun room. At a time when the latest automobile, the model "A" Ford, cost only $820, the Hotel San Carlos was build at a cost of nearly $850,000!

The original air conditioning compressor, belt driven, was a York model D-8. The unit was brought by train and wagon where it was installed in the basement. The well that was dug for the old schoolhouse was modernized to provide water to pre-cool the air via a pump and evaporator before being drawn across the air conditioning coils - A brilliant design that tamed the Phoenix summer heat. It also generated an extra 25� to $1.00 per night to sleep in the chilled air. Previously, hotel guests would drag their mattresses outside onto sleeping porches at night to get some relief from the heat.

The luxuriously appointed hotel with its Italian travertine-tiled lobby also featured steam heat with radiators in each room and re-circulating chilled ice water taps in every room. Many of these taps can be seen in our rooms to this day, although the system was discontinued in the early 1970's. The hand operated elevators remained in operation until the late 1970's. The steam heat radiator system is STILL in operation. Other notable elements are the lobby's original carved plaster crown moldings, Austrian crystal chandeliers and wall sconces, and copper-clad elevator doors and moldings.

When visiting the hotel, one should note the original architectural features. The entrances are decorated with vertical-ribbed terracotta tiles. Above the entryway, at the 2nd and 3rd floor levels, are neo-classical column ornamentations, with shaft and capitol. Textured concrete, scored to simulate stone masonry, is used on the first floor level. On the 4th floor level, a projecting balcony with lintels resting on corbel is seen. Lintels also project on both manor facades along the bottom of the 2nd story level. The lintels recur over the tops of the 2nd story windows, and are more richly decorated with scrolls and relief carvings. Above the 7th floor is a penthouse, of original construction. Charles Harris, the original owner and General Manager, resided in the penthouse with his family.

The Mid-Twentieth Century

1928-1960 - During this time the hotel continued to be a hub for the Phoenix elite, political and social, as well as a Mecca for Hollywood stars. Mae West stayed here in 1929 while performing at the Orpheum Theatre, 203 W. Adams, in "I'm no angel". It was reported she left orders with the front desk to "not be awaked until 3:00pm with a bottle of champagne and two glasses." The Phoenix Press Club was founded here.

Clark Gable and Carole Lombard spent much of their romantic time here in Arizona at the San Carlos. Gable often referred to Lombard as the "love of his life." Marilyn Monroe was a guest during her filming of Bus Stop. She wanted a room close to our pool on the third floor, so that she could slip out to the deck and sunbath with the least amount of attention. Other stars such as Spencer Tracy, Jean Harlow, Cary Grant, Ingrid Bergman, Gary Cooper, Humphrey Bogart, Gene Autry, and big band artists Kay Starr, Woody Herman and Harry James all spent time here over the years. Governors, senators, and countless other notables, also enjoyed the services of the San Carlos over the years.

From its inception, the French Cafe, the hotel's first restaurant, was immensely popular. The signature French Onion Soup was the "best in town." Adult libations were regularly embibed in the Palm Room off the lobby which served as the cocktail lounge. Anyone who was anyone routinely relaxed in the air conditioned comfort of the Palm Room. During World War II troops were housed in the hotel and our bar became known as "Base Operations" as more officers were present there than at Luke Air Force Base headquarters.

Historic Hotels of America

1974 - The hotel was recognized as a State Historic landmark. In continuous operation since it's opening, The Hotel San Carlos is the only operating historic boutique hotel in Phoenix.

1988 - Governor Rose Mofford proclaimed April 25th as "Hotel San Carlos Day".

1991 - Governor Fife Symington proclaim April 30th as "Hotel San Carlos Day".

1993 - The "Star Walk" was created to commemorate the hotel's 65th birthday and memorialize the movie stars and celebrities who frequented the hotel over the years.

2003 - The hotel underwent a multi-million dollar renovation that modernized hotel amenities, yet preserved its historic fabric." (http://www.hotelsancarlos.com/history.php)

MW