Josiah Sleeper (18??–1946) was an American businessman who founded

Sleeper's College Sleeper's College (sometimes referred to as Sleeper's Business College) was a college founded by Josiah Sleeper in Chester, Pennsylvania Chester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. Located within the Philadelphia Metro ...

(sometimes referred to as Sleeper's Business College) in

Chester, Pennsylvania Chester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. Located within the Philadelphia Metropolitan Area, it is the only city in Delaware County and had a population of 32,605 as of the 2020 census. Incorporated in 1682, Chester is ...

, in 1910. Sleeper's College

Sleeper attended grammar, or perhaps high school, at The Old Academy, located on West 2nd Street between Fulton and Franklin Streets in Chester. Sleeper became well known in Delaware County. In the 1890s, he had at least partial control of a

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

team in Marcus Hook, some three miles southwest of Chester. He brought the team to Chester's 12th Street Park, which was bounded by 12th, Upland and Potter Streets. He eventually passed control of the team to local baseball impresario Jesse Frysinger, and it moved in 1900 to

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington ( Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...

. In October 1921, Sleeper bought part of the "Brow O' the Hill" estate at 8 Irving Road,

Wallingford, Pennsylvania Wallingford is an unincorporated community in Nether Providence Township, Pennsylvania, Nether Providence Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, Delaware County in Pennsylvanias. Founded in 1687, it is named for Wallingford, Oxfordshire, Wallin ...

, from D. Edwin Irving for $4,250. He acquired the rest on March 18, 1930, from Samuel Lloyd Irving and his wife and Jeanette Irving Stull and her husband.Real estate listing for 643 S. Orange Street, Media, Pa.
Retrieved 16 November 2007. Sleeper died August 20, 1946. His will allowed his sister, Lottie Sleeper Hill, to live in "Brow O’ the Hill" until her death. But she had, in fact, already died and so the property was sold for $43,000 ($ today) to James H. Gorbey, who would go on to be

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

of Chester (1964 to 1967) and

U.S. District Court The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district, which each cover one U.S. state or, in some cases, a portion of a state. Each district cou ...

judge from 1970 until his death in 1977. Sleeper was a member of the

Rotary Club Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, profe ...

and donated funds to support the Josiah Sleeper Award for recognition of patriotic service of foreign born Americans.

References

{{reflist People from Delaware County, Pennsylvania