Salem Marine Society Records, 1760-1994

Collection

Identifier: MH 206

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The Salem Marine Society Records document the administrative and financial activities of the Society and its work with members and the greater maritime and Salem communities. Records date from the 1760s through the 1990s.

Series I. Administrative records documents the founding of the society and its daily operations. Records include correspondence, meeting minutes and agendas, by-laws, membership lists, committee reports, and other administrative records. Subseries A. By-laws and acts of incorporation includes printed and manuscript by-laws and by-law revisions as well as amendments to the acts of incorporation. Subseries B. Meeting and committee records includes meeting notices, meeting agendas and minutes, and committee minutes and reports. Subseries C. Correspondence includes correspondence of Marine Society Masters and Clerks including Nathan Batchelder, Nathaniel Brown, Jonathan Fiske, Jonathan Gardner, Jr., Benjamin Jenkins, and Philip Chadwick Foster Smith. This subseries also includes requests for assistance. Subseries C. Other administrative records and documents includes membership lists, property deeds, anniversary menus and speeches, clippings, work contracts, estate decrees, and property inventories.

Series II. Financial records documents the financial activities of the marine society and includes receipts, bills, orders, insurance policies, treasurer reports, bank statements, cancelled checks, account books, ledgers, audits, roll books, financial correspondence, and cash books.

Series III. Publications documents the production of Salem Marine Society publications including files relating to the 200th anniversary book A history of the Marine Society at Salem and the member portrait book Portraits of the Marine Society at Salem in New England.

Series IV. Member papers and records documents the individual lives of members and includes funeral programs, member wills and will extracts, member questionnaires, member biographical scrapbook, and other personal papers donated by members.

Series V. Reference materials, objects, and other items includes printed and manuscript maritime and historical materials collected and used by the society, objects owned by the society, and other collected items.

Dates

1760-1994

Creator

Marine Society at Salem (Corporate Entity)

Language of Materials

These materials are in English.

Conditions Governing Access

Restricted to the following officers of the Society: Master, Treasurer, and Clerk.

All other individuals seeking access to these records must first obtain permission from the Society's Clerk. Please contact Phillips Library reference librarian for assistance.

Biographical / Historical

The Marine Society at Salem was founded in 1766 (incorporated in 1772) by sea captains to provide relief for disabled and aged members and their families; to promote knowledge of the Salem coast; and to communicate observations for making navigation safer. The society's moto is "Where virtue reigns the unfortunate find relief."

Early efforts of the Society included the 1791 erection of a 57 foot warning beacon on Bakers Island and the placement of 7 buoys in Salem harbor the following year. In 1830, Thomas Perkins bequeathed his land and property to the society. The Franklin building, formerly Franklin Place, became the new headquarters of the Society and, despite several building fires, they continue to hold quarterly meetings in the Cabin, located atop Salem's historic Hawthorne Hotel.

Membership includes descendants of the original Salem sea captains and ship owners as well as working mariners. The Society continues to fulfill its original mission in addition to providing scholarships for aspiring mariners as well as offering support for local maritime and historical programs.

Extent

13.35 Linear Feet (30 boxes)

Additional Description

Abstract

Series List

Series I. Administrative records

By-laws and acts of incorporation
Meeting and committee records
Correspondence
Other administrative records and documents

Series II. Financial records

Series III. Publications

Series IV. Member papers and records

Series V. Reference materials, objects, and other items

Physical Location

Phillips Library Stacks

Custodial History

Acquired by the Peabody Essex Museum.

Provenance

This material was placed on deposit by the Salem Marine Society.

Notices of meetings, 1855-1856. Gift of Richard P. Waters, 1935.

Invitation for 100th anniversary, 1871. Gift of L. W. Jenkins, 1938.

Thomas Perkins will extract, undated. Gift of Richard P. Waters, 1935.

Elbridge G. Kimball will extract, circa 1849. Gift of Richard P. Waters, 1935.

Bibliography and Related Collections

Marine Society at Salem. A history of the Marine Society at Salem, established 1766 : incorporated 1772. Together with the laws of the Society, the Acts of incorporation and a list of members, 1766-1966. Salem, Mass.: The Marine Society at Salem, 1966.

Copyright

Requests for permission to publish material from the collection must be submitted in writing to the Clerk of the Salem Marine Society.

Processing Information

The material was placed in acid-free folders and acid-free containers; clippings were photocopied onto acid-free paper; fasteners were replaced with plastic clips; brittle items were placed in mylar enclosures; photographs and negatives were sleeved in plastic enclosures.