Sarah Logan Wister Starr
Encyclopedia
Sarah Logan Wister Starr (1873 - August 21, 1956) was a prominent member of Philadelphia society in the early 1900s and a dedicated humanitarian
.
, near Philadelphia. Her father, John Wister, was descended from the wealthy Wisters of Philadelphia, while her mother was descended from James Logan
, Secretary to William Penn
during the early colonial period.
Sarah had three sisters. The first, Jane Boas, died in 1869 at age three before any of the others were born. Elizabeth was born next, followed by Sarah and the youngest, Margaret. Sarah was a figure admired by her sister Margaret, and was seen as the opposite of Elizabeth who was more wild and unpredictable. Even as a young woman, Sarah was dignified and proper and "held high the banner of family morality."
in 1891 and later earned a degree of Mining Engineering
from Towne Scientific School in 1892. James was most well known for his collection of Chinese
stamps
.
Mary Meigs
, Sarah’s niece, describes Sarah’s and Elizabeth’s choices in husbands:
Later, Meigs describes Sarah’s marriage as "dreary…like a man and wife yoked
together like a couple of oxen, plodding along in gloomy silence or to the sound of a monologue
."
, a Philadelphia homestead that had been passed down through the Wister family for years, and which had once been owned by the artist Charles Willson Peale
. Elizabeth, the oldest sister was extremely upset that she was not given possession of Belfield, and her desire led to a feud between the two sisters that lasted for 30 years, until the death of Sarah’s husband brought them partially back together.
When Sarah took possession of the estate, a number of changes were made. Telephone and electricity were added by means of underground wires, so as not to disturb the beauty of the garden. Belfield saw the opening of Twentieth Street, which led to a restraining wall nine hundred feet long and in some places fourteen feet high in order to provide security and protection from heavy traffic and passersby. James added a series of water and rock gardens. Sarah herself added a garden of 100 hybrid tea
roses. After their return from China
in 1933, a section of the garden was dedicated to the Chinese taste. “A plastered stone wall, separated by a tiny hip roof and an entrance to it is made through a large vase-shaped gate, on one side of which appears, in red, the Chinese characters which denote the year, month, and day of its erection.” The garden also holds an orange and a lemon tree taken from the orangery of Butler Place when Owen Wister
sold it. Belfield Estate is now part of La Salle University’s
campus.
. She was the President of the Colonial Dames
for many years, as well as President of the Women’s Permanent Emergency Association of Germantown
, which was founded over 60 years earlier by her grandmother, and revived during World War II
.
She gained honorary degrees from both Ursinus College
in 1933 and the University of Pennsylvania
in 1941.
She was an Associate Trustee of the Board of Libraries at Penn. She founded the Zoe Valley Library at Chester in Nova Scotia
, where her family had summered since 1874.
She also served as the State Vice-Chairman of the World-War-One-era National League for Woman's Services, as well as the chairman of the Germantown Branch. Her efforts gained over 2 million dollars for the relief of Belgian
children. She was also chosen to become the chairman of the Women’s Committee of the Liberty Loan for the Federal Reserve District. As president of the Woman’s Medical College of Pennsylvania, she set up a $300,000 Wister Fund in honor of her parents. This fund was used for the erection of new buildings on the site purchased in 1953 at Falls of Schuylkill
by the College.
With Frances Anne Wister and her cousin Anne Wister, she helped produce a magazine called "The Sparrow." In June 1917, Mrs. James Starr, chairman of the Germantown women’s committee, led the first loan parade for the Liberty Loan campaign, where several hundred women marched from the Woman’s Club of Germantown to the grounds of the Germantown Academy. For the first time, women had charge of booths on the streets where loan subscriptions were received. In 1937 she was an emissary of Pennsylvania Tercentenary Commission of Sweden
and was later honored there by the King.
Along with all of these high-ranking positions, Sarah was also a former Chairman of the Germantown Branch of the Civic Club, and belonged to the Acron Club, the Print Club, Sedgely Club, Germantown Historical Society, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, The Philadelphia Assembly, Athenaeum Society, Fountain Society and the Society for the Preservation of Landmarks.
” which records the genealogy of those who lived at Stenton, the Logan family estate, and tells of the importance of the mansion in American History, citing her chief source as her grandmother and other relatives. Most important, however, would be her "History of Belfield", a brief pamphlet which records the history of the Belfield Estate from the time of Charles Willson Peale, until it came into her possession.
Humanitarianism
In its most general form, humanitarianism is an ethic of kindness, benevolence and sympathy extended universally and impartially to all human beings. Humanitarianism has been an evolving concept historically but universality is a common element in its evolution...
.
Family
Named after her grandmother, Sarah Logan Fisher, Sarah Logan Wister was born in Pierre County, DuncannonDuncannon, Pennsylvania
Duncannon is a borough in Perry County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,508 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Harrisburg–Carlisle Metropolitan Statistical Area. The center of population of Pennsylvania is located in Duncannon. It is named after the coastal town of...
, near Philadelphia. Her father, John Wister, was descended from the wealthy Wisters of Philadelphia, while her mother was descended from James Logan
James Logan
-People:* James Logan , colonial American statesman* James Richardson Logan , British lawyer and amateur ethnologist* James Harvey Logan , American horticulturist...
, Secretary to William Penn
William Penn
William Penn was an English real estate entrepreneur, philosopher, and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, the English North American colony and the future Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. He was an early champion of democracy and religious freedom, notable for his good relations and successful...
during the early colonial period.
Sarah had three sisters. The first, Jane Boas, died in 1869 at age three before any of the others were born. Elizabeth was born next, followed by Sarah and the youngest, Margaret. Sarah was a figure admired by her sister Margaret, and was seen as the opposite of Elizabeth who was more wild and unpredictable. Even as a young woman, Sarah was dignified and proper and "held high the banner of family morality."
Married Life
In 1901, at age 28, Sarah married James Starr, a mining official also descended from James Logan. James graduated from the University of PennsylvaniaUniversity of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
in 1891 and later earned a degree of Mining Engineering
Mining engineering
Mining engineering is an engineering discipline that involves the practice, the theory, the science, the technology, and application of extracting and processing minerals from a naturally occurring environment. Mining engineering also includes processing minerals for additional value.Mineral...
from Towne Scientific School in 1892. James was most well known for his collection of Chinese
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
stamps
Stamp collecting
Stamp collecting is the collecting of postage stamps and related objects. It is one of the world's most popular hobbies, with the number of collectors in the United States alone estimated to be over 20 million.- Collecting :...
.
Mary Meigs
Mary Meigs
Mary Meigs was an American-born painter and writer.-Early life:Meigs was born in Philadelphia and raised in Washington, DC. She studied at Bryn Mawr College, and subsequently taught English literature and creative writing at that school...
, Sarah’s niece, describes Sarah’s and Elizabeth’s choices in husbands:
“They selected for husbands, businessmen who were as much alike as Tweedledum and TweedledeeTweedledum and TweedledeeTweedledum and Tweedledee are fictional characters in an English language nursery rhyme and in Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There. Their names may have originally come from an epigram written by poet John Byrom. The nursery rhyme has a Roud Folk Song Index number...
. Their names were Stewart and Jim, both had benevolent faces and handlebar moustaches, and, at parties, chewed on their cigars and listened to their wives… ‘Jim of course never speaks if he can help it…speaking is against his principles’… ‘Jim actually interrupts!’ But his little flare of rebellion was quickly extinguished and I remember only his good-natured silences while Aunt Sarah’s tongue reeled out like a string with a colourful kite dancing at the end.
Later, Meigs describes Sarah’s marriage as "dreary…like a man and wife yoked
Yoke
A yoke is a wooden beam, normally used between a pair of oxen or other animals to enable them to pull together on a load when working in pairs, as oxen usually do; some yokes are fitted to individual animals. There are several types of yoke, used in different cultures, and for different types of oxen...
together like a couple of oxen, plodding along in gloomy silence or to the sound of a monologue
Monologue
In theatre, a monologue is a speech presented by a single character, most often to express their thoughts aloud, though sometimes also to directly address another character or the audience. Monologues are common across the range of dramatic media...
."
Homestead
After the death of her mother in 1922, Sarah received ownership of the Belfield EstateBelfield Estate
Belfield Estate was a area of land in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, much of which is now a part of La Salle University’s campus. The estate is most notable for being the estate of American painter and naturalist Charles Willson Peale from 1810 to 1826....
, a Philadelphia homestead that had been passed down through the Wister family for years, and which had once been owned by the artist Charles Willson Peale
Charles Willson Peale
Charles Willson Peale was an American painter, soldier and naturalist. He is best remembered for his portrait paintings of leading figures of the American Revolution, as well as establishing one of the first museums....
. Elizabeth, the oldest sister was extremely upset that she was not given possession of Belfield, and her desire led to a feud between the two sisters that lasted for 30 years, until the death of Sarah’s husband brought them partially back together.
When Sarah took possession of the estate, a number of changes were made. Telephone and electricity were added by means of underground wires, so as not to disturb the beauty of the garden. Belfield saw the opening of Twentieth Street, which led to a restraining wall nine hundred feet long and in some places fourteen feet high in order to provide security and protection from heavy traffic and passersby. James added a series of water and rock gardens. Sarah herself added a garden of 100 hybrid tea
Hybrid Tea
Hybrid Tea is a cultivar group of roses, created by cross-breeding two different types of roses, initially by hybridising Hybrid Perpetuals with Tea roses...
roses. After their return from China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
in 1933, a section of the garden was dedicated to the Chinese taste. “A plastered stone wall, separated by a tiny hip roof and an entrance to it is made through a large vase-shaped gate, on one side of which appears, in red, the Chinese characters which denote the year, month, and day of its erection.” The garden also holds an orange and a lemon tree taken from the orangery of Butler Place when Owen Wister
Owen Wister
Owen Wister was an American writer and "father" of western fiction.-Early life:Owen Wister was born on July 14, 1860, in Germantown, a well-known neighborhood in the northwestern part of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His father, Owen Jones Wister, was a wealthy physician, one of a long line of...
sold it. Belfield Estate is now part of La Salle University’s
La Salle University
La Salle University is a private, co-educational, Roman Catholic university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. Named for St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle, the school was founded in 1863 by the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools. As of 2008 the school has approximately 7,554...
campus.
Service to the Community
Throughout her life, Sarah Logan Wister Starr maintained a life dedicated to service of her country and humanity. From 1921-1941, Sarah served as President of the Women’s Medical College of PennsylvaniaDrexel University College of Medicine
Drexel University College of Medicine is the medical school of Drexel University. The medical school has the nation's largest enrollment for a private medical school, and represents the consolidation of two medical schools: the nation's first medical school for women and the first U.S. college of...
. She was the President of the Colonial Dames
The National Society of the Colonial Dames of America
The National Society of the Colonial Dames of America is an American organization composed of women who are descended from an ancestor "who came to reside in an American Colony before 1750, and whose services were rendered during the Colonial Period." The national headquarters of the society is at...
for many years, as well as President of the Women’s Permanent Emergency Association of Germantown
Germantown, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Germantown is a neighborhood in the northwest section of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, about 7–8 miles northwest from the center of the city...
, which was founded over 60 years earlier by her grandmother, and revived during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
She gained honorary degrees from both Ursinus College
Ursinus College
Ursinus College is a liberal arts college in Collegeville, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.-History:1867Members of the German Reformed Church begin plans to establish a college where "young men could be liberally educated under the benign influence of Christianity." These founders were hoping to...
in 1933 and the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
in 1941.
She was an Associate Trustee of the Board of Libraries at Penn. She founded the Zoe Valley Library at Chester in Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
, where her family had summered since 1874.
She also served as the State Vice-Chairman of the World-War-One-era National League for Woman's Services, as well as the chairman of the Germantown Branch. Her efforts gained over 2 million dollars for the relief of Belgian
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
children. She was also chosen to become the chairman of the Women’s Committee of the Liberty Loan for the Federal Reserve District. As president of the Woman’s Medical College of Pennsylvania, she set up a $300,000 Wister Fund in honor of her parents. This fund was used for the erection of new buildings on the site purchased in 1953 at Falls of Schuylkill
Schuylkill
Schuylkill may refer to the* Schuylkill River, Pennsylvania, United StatesPlaces:* Schuylkill, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, neighborhood in South Philadelphia* Schuylkill Expressway, portion of I-76 in Philadelphia* Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania...
by the College.
With Frances Anne Wister and her cousin Anne Wister, she helped produce a magazine called "The Sparrow." In June 1917, Mrs. James Starr, chairman of the Germantown women’s committee, led the first loan parade for the Liberty Loan campaign, where several hundred women marched from the Woman’s Club of Germantown to the grounds of the Germantown Academy. For the first time, women had charge of booths on the streets where loan subscriptions were received. In 1937 she was an emissary of Pennsylvania Tercentenary Commission of Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
and was later honored there by the King.
Along with all of these high-ranking positions, Sarah was also a former Chairman of the Germantown Branch of the Civic Club, and belonged to the Acron Club, the Print Club, Sedgely Club, Germantown Historical Society, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, The Philadelphia Assembly, Athenaeum Society, Fountain Society and the Society for the Preservation of Landmarks.
Historical Preservation
Sarah valued the presence of historical landmarks for their place in American history as well as in her personal history. In 1938, she wrote an article entitled, “History of StentonStenton (mansion)
Stenton, also known as the James Logan Home, was the country home of James Logan, colonial Mayor of Philadelphia and Chief Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court....
” which records the genealogy of those who lived at Stenton, the Logan family estate, and tells of the importance of the mansion in American History, citing her chief source as her grandmother and other relatives. Most important, however, would be her "History of Belfield", a brief pamphlet which records the history of the Belfield Estate from the time of Charles Willson Peale, until it came into her possession.