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Photo courtesy of E .Kostans

Pat O’Donnell, left, and Susana Morikawa, right, are the authors of the new borough book.

BY JACQUELINE SMALL

In print | Published September 17, 2009

Susanna Morikawa and Pat O’Donnell, both of whom work as archivists at the Friends Historical Library, have recently authored a book about Swarthmore College and the surrounding town. “Swarthmore Borough,” published by Arcadia Publishing Company, will be for sale in the campus bookstore and several other venues in about two weeks.

“We certainly hope the book is a success since we plan to donate all the sales proceeds to the town’s historical society,” O’Donnell said.

The publication of the book has also inspired an exhibit in the library called Swarthmore: Town and Gown, which displays many documents from the early days of the borough of Swarthmore.

The book is mainly composed of photographs and drawings of the town and college with lengthy explanations beneath them. It follows the development from a completely rural area to a quaint small town. The history of the college is also explored, from being entirely contained in Parrish, through its days as a football powerhouse capable of beating the Naval Academy, and culminating in its present condition as an academic authority.

This is far from the pair’s first foray into writing. In 1993, for the occasion of the town’s centennial anniversary, they collaborated to write and self-publish a book of photos and captions, entitled “Swarthmore Illustrated.”

“It was a little clunky. We thought we would be able to do it better,” Morikawa said.
“But we kept putting it off,” O’Donnell added.

Thanks to the donations of many people who had discovered their interest in the town’s past, the pair accumulated more original documents, including photographs and archival records, over the next several years. They also came to notice that many other local communities had published similar books of history through Arcadia. So when the company approached them with a contract offer, they chose to write an improved version.

“The contract was good motivation to stop procrastinating,” Morikawa said.

“This is a wonderful community, with a lot of texture, and we love doing the history of both institutions, which are so intertwined. It informs us about the future, too, knowing how the town is likely to continue to grow,” O’Donnell said.

Until the 1800s, the area that is now Swarthmore Township was regularly traversed by Native Americans and had very few established houses, the Benjamin West House and a two-story log cabin among them.

The location of the college was chosen largely because of its proximity to Philadelphia.

O’Donnell indicated that the train line enabled relatively easy access to the major city, but the distance prevented the students from indulging in the pool halls, a major moral concern of the time. With the establishment of the college by several Quaker communities, the town began to increase in size. “I like how the town just grew so organically. The college and the town and the people just merge together in so many ways,” Morikawa said.

O’Donnell is particularly fond of the warm relationship between the college and the town, pointing out that there is little delineation between campus and the Ville. “When you look at the downtown area of the borough, most of the original buildings are still there, just incorporated into the facades, so you have a constant reminder of Swarthmore’s past. That really intrigues me,” she said.

Both women, who live in Swarthmore, have plenty of experience working with local history. Morikawa, who has her Ph.D. in art history, was involved in town planning and wrote a brochure describing a walking tour of Swarthmore. She and O’Donnell, who has a master’s degree in education, were both very active in the original group that started the Swarthmore Historical Society, and they have since taken up positions on its board of trustees.

“We certainly hope that this book and the exhibit will get students and people from the town to become more aware and get a sense of this wonderful place. After all, the students live here for four years, and many of them never go into the Ville. Plenty of the townspeople never come see the college, either, and that’s such a shame when this area is so special,” Morikawa said.

According to Pamela Harris, the Outreach and Instruction Librarian of McCabe, the exhibit currently housed in the library will be in place until Oct. 9.

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