Discovering the library of David Library

BOOK NOTES by Joan Ruddiman: Strange how knowledge recently gained can be put immediately to use.

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   Strange how knowledge recently gained can be put immediately to use. Within days of Suzanne telling me about the amazing David Library of the American Revolution, I had a good reason to call on their services. First some background as taken from The David Library’s informational pamphlet.
   The David Library is located in Washington Crossing, on the Pennsylvania side. It is a privately endowed, nonprofit foundation devoted to the study of American history from 1750 to 1800. Their mission is "the collection and dissemination of information on the period and the support of related programs."
   Sol Feinstone (1888-1980), a businessman, philanthropist and collector of Americana, founded the library in 1959. He named the library as a tribute to his grandson David. Mr. Feinstone donated his extensive collection of Revolutionary War manuscripts, his farm on which the library and auxiliary buildings stand, and an endowment.
   The David Library is primarily a microfilm archive of approximately 10,000 reels, which is supported by a reference collection of 40,000 books and pamphlets. In recent years, materials on the French and Indian War and early national periods have been added. Some collections are in CD-ROM format.
   The library is particularly strong in British materials, some of which are not available elsewhere in this country. Documents have been gathered from British repositories such as the Public Record Office, Canadian and German archives.
   The David Library also has a formidable collection of early American government and military records from the National Archives, the Library of Congress, state and local historical societies, and other institutions. Microfilm collections also include official and personal correspondence, diaries, business records, church records, and selected British and American doctoral dissertations on their period of specialization.
   The Sol Feinstone manuscript collection of about 2500 original items is indexed and also available to researchers. The David Library offers research fellowships for the study of America in the last half of the 18th century to qualified doctoral candidates and postdoctoral researchers. The library also sponsors an ongoing lecture series that focus broadly on early American history and culture.
   For details on any of The David Library collections or programs, visit the homepage at www.dlar.org.
   The intent in this column is not just a acknowledgment of a great library, but also a paean to librarians. Librarians are the most remarkable people. Kathie at The David Library was no exception when I called to see if she could find any information on Gilbert Imlay’s service as a solider in the Continental forces. Lyndall Gordon e-mailed from Oxford that she had conflicting information on what side Imlay might have been on during the Revolutionary War. His family has him listed in their Imlay Papers as a British captain. Yet other evidence found in Faragher’s book on Daniel Boone identifies Imlay as a member of the colonial force’s New Jersey line.
   It was important to know to which side he gave his allegiance in the Revolution War. That prompted my call to The David Library that I had just heard about two days before. Kathie listened with interest to the Imlay story and replied, "I am between projects just now. I’ll see what I can find out today."
   Kathie called back that afternoon, as excited as I at having hit "pay-dirt." Using the tidbits about his life — the Wollstonecraft and Daniel Boone connections — she "worked backwards" in tracing his life. ("He was quite a character, wasn’t he?" she observed. Quite!)
   The David Library has the land deeds from his dealing in Kentucky. She found references to the books he wrote (obscure as they are). But, the real find was hard evidence that Gilbert Imlay was on the side of the patriots found in the lists of all those who fought in the American Revolution. I was stunned that such a document would exist.
   "Oh, it is just one line, with their name, rank and unit," Kathie demurred. That’s good enough. What Kathie found is that Imlay was a first lieutenant, and a paymaster for the Founders unit, an early New Jersey regiment.
   I thought this was good evidence not only that Imlay was indeed a patriot, but also of his virtue. They let him handle the money. However, John the CPA who by vocation looks beyond the stated, observed that the fact Imlay was the paymaster could also be seen as his shrewdness in positioning himself to be close to the money. "Those colonial coins could slip into his jacket rather easily," was his auditor’s take.
   Hmmm. I can leave it to Lyndall Gordon and others to ferret out the truth. It was just fun to be on the receiving end of some fancy librarian footwork, done at a real gem of a library.
Joan Ruddiman is a teacher and a friend of the Allentown Public Library.