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| Field name | Value |
|---|---|
| Title | Giambattista Scandella. Series I Journals, No. 4 |
| Author | Scandella, Giambattista |
| Date | 13 Dec 1797 - 14 Jan 1798 |
| Document Type | Personal Account |
| Reference | MSS 101, Series 1, Folder 4 |
| Library / Archive | Historical Society of Pennsylvania |
| Collection Name | Giambattista Scandella Papers, 1787-1798 |
| Description | Describes the behaviour of English people in Philadelphia and observations of American women. Mentions the progress of the French revolution and the refugees who have come to America (including comparisons with the American War of Independence), beliefs and activities of Quakers, politics, the United States Constitution, the course of the Kentucky river, the debate over universal suffrage, the condition of slavery in Virginia (and unlikelihood of it improving), prisons and the justice system, foreign policy and global trade. Copies out extracts from Mr. Brissot's work on the debts of the United States (including figures relating to domestic debt, loans, foreign debt, and amount spent on consumables such as coffee, salt and cocoa) and the policies for dealing with these. |
| Series Description | The collection includes a diary and commonplace books containing impressions of America, and medical case records. Journal and commonplace books are both rich in detailed observations about the United States at the end of the 18th century. Scandella's comments touch on a broad range of topics, such as Quakers, race relations, U.S. political culture and system, physical features of the land, Americans' character, and U.S. foreign relations. His notes also discuss a number of prominent Americans he met or befriended, including Washington, Jefferson, and Benjamin Latrobe. Journals and commonplace books include a few American newspaper clippings, which lack citations. The commonplace books also include small drawings of things he observed, such as farm equipment or dams, as well as margin doodles. |
| Biographical Note / History | Scandella was born in Italy and was educated as a physician. He came to America c.1796 and settled in Philadelphia in 1797. |
| Theme(s) | Politics, Legislation and Governance; Religion, Ethnic Identity and Community Relations |
| Places | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Louisiana, Virginia, Detroit, Michigan, United States; Paris, France; London, England; Venice, Naples, Florence, Italy; Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Calcutta, India |
| Nationality | Italian; American; French; English |
| People | Jefferson, Thomas; Washington, President George |
| Keywords | religion, war, politics, women, geography, trade, commerce, debt, economics, agriculture, American War of Independence, cold weather, shipping, slavery, prison, medical staff |
| Additional Information | Please note: Some of the metadata for this document has been taken from the Historical Society of Pennsylvania catalogue. |
| Language | Italian; French; English |
| Copyright | Historical Society of Pennsylvania |
