Sally Wister (1761–1804)

Sarah "Sally" Wister was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her grandfather John Wister emigrated from Germany and became a successful wine merchant and landowner. Sally was born in his house, but not much else is known of her early life. She attended a Quaker girls' school where she met Deborah Norris, later Logan, future historian and memoirist. In 1777, during the American Revolutionary War, the British Army moved to take Philadelphia, the capital and principal city of the colonies. The Wister family fled to the home of Hannah Foulke, a relative in North Wales, Pennsylvania. Sally, then aged 16, began keeping a journal of her daily life written in the form of letters to her friend Deborah. The journal covered a period of nine months, a time when Continental Army officers were billeted at the Foulke home, and Gen. William Smallwood, commander of the Maryland troops, made the house his headquarters. Sally described her occasional adventures and her mild flirtations with various officers and soldiers. The Wister family returned home to Philadelphia in July 1778 and on the death of Sally's grandfather, took up residence in the family summer house in Germantown. Sally lived there the rest of her life. The journal remained at the house until about 1830, at which time Sally's brother Charles Wister loaned it to Deborah Norris Logan. It was published in 1902, and remains both a valuable resource for scholars of the period and a charming souvenir for visitors to the Museum of the American Revolution.