A Little "Frightening" Family History, "The Old Man."

A little more family history today! I know this picture frightened you as a child and you have told me that you don't want to keep it but maybe sell it. In fact, I remember that when you were in 3rd grade and we went to your parent-teacher conference, Mrs. Aiken asked us about "the picture"! Apparently, you had either written about it, or told her about how it scared you! This is your sixth great grandfather. His name is Pearson Parvin, and as you might guess from his attire, he was a Quaker. I have been looking at this portrait as long as I can remember. It always was prominently displayed in our house while I was growing up. Now you will recall, it resides in our den. Underneath the portrait is a framed copy of his marriage certificate.You can't read it from the picture, but according to this document he was from Barbados. He married Sarah Care from Philadelphia on June 14, 1792. The marriage certificate was witnessed by all in attendance at the ceremony. This included many prominent Philadelphia families including the Biddles. Owen Biddle was in attendance. He fought in the Revolutionary War, had a brother who was a delegate to the Continental Congress, and one his relatives was Nicholas Biddle who became the President of the 2nd National Bank (we had these before the Federal Reserve).

The portrait was painted by Bass Otis, a famous Early American artist. There is a matching portrait of his wife Sarah, which resides with the Blanchards. The Parvins became a prominent Philadelphia family themselves, and Aunt Tiz has the original wedding certificate.