It's wonderful to have archival records such as this, which establish the @therosenbach portrait as the cornerstone visual representation of Girard.

#materialculture #libraries #archives #specialcollections #PortraitofaCitizen

Note the portrait of Girard as well as the line beneath it, which hails Girard as "the architect of his own fortune." "Portrait of a Citizen" interrogates the extent to which this claim is true, but this document is a wonderful artifact of the public interest in Girard's will.

Judging by the printing history of the will, many Philadelphians and other during years following Girard's death took an interest in reading the document as well. Here you see an early printing of the will.

The move caused political and legal strife. Did Pennsylvania state law allow for this sort of private entity? Ultimately, it was determined that the enterprise was legal; the law forbade associations of persons from operating a bank without a charter...not an *individual* person from doing so.