Collection: Francis C. Renner papers

Francis Calvin Renner (1840-1914) was an inventor, businessman, farmer, New Midway Postmaster, and minister in the Church of the Brethren. The collection contains correspondence, financial records, a ledger, legal documents, and a bankbook, documenting Renner's involvement in the Rose Jelly Manufacturing Company and the Woodsboro and Double Pipe Creek Turnpike Company. The papers relate chiefly to Rose Jelly Manufacturing Company with particular emphasis on agreements made with various business partners and on legal issues concerning patents.

Dates

1881-1915 and undated
Majority of material found within 1885-1892

Use and Access to Collection

This collection is open for research.

Duplication and Copyright Information

Photocopies of original materials may be provided for a fee and at the discretion of the curator. Please see our Duplication of Materials policy for more information. Queries regarding publication rights and copyright status of materials within this collection should be directed to the appropriate curator.

Extent

0.25 Linear Feet

Additional Description

Scope and Content of Collection

The papers of Francis Renner include materials dating from 1881 to 1915 with the bulk of items dating from 1885 to 1892. The collection contains correspondence, financial records, a ledger, legal documents, and a bankbook, documenting Renner's involvement in the Rose Jelly Manufacturing Company and the Woodsboro and Double Pipe Creek Turnpike Company. The papers relate chiefly to Rose Jelly Manufacturing Company, with particular emphasis on agreements made with various business partners and on legal issues concerning patents.

Biography

Francis Calvin Renner was an inventor, businessman, farmer, New Midway Postmaster, and minister in the Church of the Brethren. He also managed the Rose Jelly Manufacturing Company of New Midway, Frederick County, Maryland, and was one of six directors of the Woodsboro and Double Pipe Creek Turnpike Company.

Renner was born on June 14, 1840, to Isaac Renner and Sophia Wolfe in Smithsburg, Washington County, Maryland. His four siblings were: Wilford Abraham (1842-1912); Milton Overholtz (1846-1915); George Isaac (1850-1907); and Laura Manora (1853-1935). Around 1861, Renner married Joanna Martz (1841-1867), and the couple had two children, Ida Mae (1862-1939) and Newton Daniel I. (1863-1949). Joanna Renner died in childbirth in 1867. In December 1868, Renner married Hannah Amanda Harshman (1848-1920). He had eleven children with his second wife: Anna Mary (1869-1920); John William (1870-1907); David Christian (1872-1950); Lottie Sophia (1874-?); Emma Laura (1876-?); Grace Jane (1879-?); Jason Calvin (1882-1968); James and Peter, twins, who survived only one day (1885); Samuel Morgan (1886-1974); and Jesse Isaac (1888-1948). Francis Renner died on December 15, 1914.

Arrangement

The collection is organized as two series.

Series 1: Rose Jelly Manufacturing Company
Series 2: Woodsboro and Double Pipe Creek Turnpike Company

Custodial History and Acquisition Information

The University of Maryland Libraries purchased the papers from Carmen Valentino in 1987.

Related Material

Much of the Renner family history was compiled from the Renner-L listserv sponsored by Rootsweb.com. Copies of these Internet pages are available in the collection's control folder. The Renner family is also mentioned in History of Western Maryland by John Thomas Scharf (1968) and History of Frederick County Maryland by T. J. C. Williams and Folger McKinsey (1967 reprint).