John Ritter
Birth and Baptismal Certificate

Public Domain

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Printer John Ritter (American, 1779–1851)American, 1779–1851

CultureAmerican

Titles

Birth and Baptismal Certificate

Datec. 1850

PlaceReading, Pennsylvania, United States

MediumWood engraving with watercolor

DimensionsSheet: 16 × 13 1/16 in. (40.6 × 33.2 cm)

Credit LineThe Bayou Bend Collection, gift of Miss Ima Hogg

Object numberB.63.147

Not on view

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Department

Bayou Bend

Object Type

PRINTS

DescriptionElaborate birth and baptismal certificates were important markers of these milestones in Pennsylvania German communities. While earlier examples were drawn and written entirely by hand, by the late 1700s some began to incorporate preprinted text. This example was made for a boy named Johannes David Schiltz, who was born on July 15, 1843 in Heidelberg Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania. John Ritter printed this certificate in Reading, Pennsylvania.
Provenance[Hattie Klapp Brunner (1889–1982), Reinholds, Pennsylvania]; purchased by Miss Ima Hogg, 1963; given to MFAH.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks

[no inscriptions]

[no marks]

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