The Diary of Hannah Callender Sansom: Sense and Sensibility in the Age of the American Revolution (review)

Hannah Callender Sansom (As is done in the editors' essays, Hannah Callendar Sansom is abbreviated to HCS throughout this review) began her diary on January 1, 1758, the "1st Day of the Year 1758, 1st day of the first Month and 1st of the Week," for her "own Satisfaction, and to try to see if Retrospect of my time, will not make me husband it more" (HCS, 43). As a young single woman of a prominent Quaker Philadelphia family, her activities consisted of family and social obligations, attending meeting regularly, household tasks, needlework, and occasional recreational travel. Unlike some who make resolutions to keep an account of their days, HCS continued to write regular entries in her diary for almost four years. She returned to her diary for several years at a time over the course of the next thirty years as she married, became a mother and later a grandmother, and saw her native city, Philadelphia, and the world around her adapt through wars, disease, and cultural and political shifts.

The diary was saved and passed down through descendants, remaining in private hands until the 1990s when the family donated it to the American Philosophical Society. Family member George Vaux published some portions in 1888, but these were limited in scope to more traditional political and public themes and left out what may be regarded as some of the richest content today. The modern edition presents the complete work along with footnote references and expert essays to set the diary in context and remark on major events during the years the diary was set aside.

Editors Susan E. Klepp and Karin Wulf bring prior experience in editing writings of this period and a depth of knowledge about women in late eighteenth century mid-Atlantic America. In addition to the actual diary, they add supplemental material at the beginning of each of the three major sections that set the stage for what comes ahead. They also provide an overall introduction chapter, an interlude filling the lengthy gap from 1773 to 1784 when HCS did not keep a diary during the important years of the American Revolution, and an afterword bringing the life of HCS to a satisfying conclusion. As the subtitle might suggest, the editors frame the life of HCS within the context of recent scholarship on sensibility and sociability in the late eighteenth century. They also do an admirable job in their annotations of providing full citations for the many reading materials, such as novels of the day, histories, and classic literary works, which HCS references and quotes from regularly.

One cannot comment on this publication without comparison to the better known work of fellow Philadelphia Quaker diarist Elizabeth Drinker (1735-1807). The editors refer readers to this rich source in their preface and refer to it to fill gaps when HCS did not maintain her own diary. Drinker was a contemporary of HCS and, in fact, writes of socializing with HCS and reading from the diary. Both women began their diaries in 1758, with Drinker being inspired by HCS. Drinker wrote more consistently and over a longer period of time, resulting in a much longer and more comprehensive work. The two diaries work well together and inquisitive readers will appreciate consulting Elaine Forman Crane's impressive 1991 edition of Drinker's diary as a reference and companion work. Most useful is Crane's extensive Biographical Dictionary and Index of Names at the end of the third volume. Unfortunately, the index provided for the HCS diary is extremely limited and only includes items either in the editors' essays or referred to specifically in their annotations.

While the HCS diary itself is not as comprehensive as Drinker's, HCS presents another viewpoint and during some periods is more active in her writing that Drinker...