A Quaker childhood

"Helen Thomas' family were Quakers. Her ancestors, among the original settlers of Maryland, bankrupted themselves in 1810 by freeing some hundred slaves. Exiled from plantation life, they settled in Baltimore where they regained prosperity and aristocratic position. Helen's father played an important role in establishing The Johns Hopkins University and its Medical School, and Bryn Mawr College, of which Helen's older sister, Carey, became president. Helen's mother's family, the Whitalls, was characterized by women with strong feminist and religious beliefs."--Google Books.