Deborah Fisher Wharton

Deborah Fisher Wharton (1795–1888) was an American Quaker minister, suffragist, social reformer and proponent of women's rights. She was one of a small group of dedicated Quakers who founded Swarthmore College along with her industrialist son, Joseph Wharton. She was a contemporary and friend of Lucretia Mott and had many of Mott's sympathies but did not actively pursue the women's rights cause, rather she was a proponent of liberal Quaker spirituality. Early years Deborah Fisher was born into a wealthy Philadelphia Quaker family. Her grandfather was Joshua Fisher, who was involved in early transatlantic trade and started the first packet line of ships regularly carrying goods between Philadelphia and London. Her father was Samuel R Fisher, who took on the shipping business and a large mercantile business in downtown Philadelphia. Her mother was Hannah Rodman, of a Quaker family from Newport, RI, also associated with shipping. She was a descendant of Thomas Cornell. Family, estate Fisher grew up in downtown Philadelphia at 110 S Front Street. The neighborhood was busy and wealthy, and she remembered seeing famous neighbors including George Washington stroll along the street. The family enjoyed the countryside and often visited their country estate called "The Cliffs" several miles north of Philadelphia on the Schuylkill River. Marriage As a young woman Fisher was pious and interested in the cause of equal education and treatment of women. She married William Wharton in 1817 and together they pursued their interest in Quaker spirituality and simplicity, becoming part of the Hicksite Quaker movement. The Hicksite Friends favored simplicity and directness in their daily lives, contrasting with the more "worldly" urban (Orthodox) Quakers. In this respect the Fishers and Whartons stood out because they were wealthy and urban, but were nostalgic about living the farming life. Deborah's father Samuel bought a house at 336 Spruce Street in downtown Philadelphia as a wedding gift. Deborah raised her family in the house and lived there the rest of her life.