Samuel Chew (1832-1887) was one of eight offspring born to Henry B. and Harriet (Ridgely) Chew, Samuel studied law at the University of Pennsylvania. After his father's death, he became the primary executor of the Chew estate. Samuel spent a considerable amount of time at Cliveden with his aunt Anne, developing a close relationship with her and a devotion to the family's home. He married Mary Johnson Brown in 1861, daughter of textile manufacturer David Sands Brown (1800-1877), who moved to Philadelphia from Dover, New Hampshire in 1817, and married Elizabeth Jones Johnson in 1831. Brown was in great part responsible for the industrial development of Camden County, New Jersey during the second part of the nineteenth century. Samuel Chew and his wife Mary split their time between Vanor (the Brown family mansion in Radnor), the family's townhouse at 1716 Walnut, and Cliveden. Samuel worked for his father-in-law administering the family textile operations in Gloucester City, New Jersey. He used the occasion of the 1876 Centennial celebration to recast the family's Revolutionary War credentials and re-establish the Chews in their role as colonial elites. In this endeavor, he began to emphasize the family genealogy, safeguarding the family documents that make up this collection more as a means to affirm the Chew's heritage than as legal records. This concentration in preserving the family story continued through the gifting of the records to the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. At the same time that Samuel was working on his Centennial project, his wife Mary became very active in the restoration of Independence Hall and Stenton. Samuel and Mary had six children; Anne, Elizabeth, David, Samuel, Benjamin, and Oswald. The close bonds between these children and their great aunt Anne helped soothe the tensions between their mother and Anne. As the children reached adulthood, most began to go their separate ways. Anne (1862-1930) married Vere Speke Alston in 1898. Alston worked for the British government in Court of Appeals of the Native Tribunal in Egypt, and the couple split their time between Cairo and England. David (1866-1934), the eldest son and namesake of his grandfather, attended law school at the University of Pennsylvania and managed the family's real estate ventures in Radnor Township and Camden County. He was also actively involved in Philadelphia politics, served in the National Guard and the First Troop of Philadelphia Cavalry, and was a member of various associations, including the University Barge Club, Philadelphia Gun Club, and the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. His marriage to Bertha (Daisy) Walton produced two children, David Jr. and Mary Evelyn. Both Samuel (1871-1919) and Oswald (1880-1950) attended Harvard as undergraduates and studied law at the University of Pennsylvania. They served in the Red Cross Ambulance Corps in France during World War I, along with Oswald's wife Ada Knowlton Chew. Oswald received the Croix de Guerre award for his service in France, and when he returned to Philadelphia, he managed the family's trust and worked in the real estate business. Following his military service, Samuel practiced law in Philadelphia, acting as an assistant city solicitor. He inherited the Cliveden estate after his Aunt Anne's death, but chose not to live there, instead residing near Boston and renting the home to his siblings. After Anne Sophia Penn Chew's death in 1892, Mary Johnson Brown Chew and her daughter, Elizabeth Brown Chew (1863-1958), became the primary guardians of the Germantown mansion.
From the description of Chew Family papers : Series 10. Samuel Chew (1832-1887), 1797-1889. (Historical Society of Pennsylvania). WorldCat record id: 435804081
