Collections : [University of Michigan William L. Clements Library]

Phyllis Johnson kept this pocket diary while attending grammar school and high school in Hartford, Connecticut, from January 1, 1925-February 4, 1929. She composed entries almost daily between January and September 1925, and commented on her experiences at school, her activities and travels during summer vacation, and her friends.

Phyllis Johnson kept this pocket diary while attending grammar school and high school in Hartford, Connecticut. She composed most of her brief entries from January 1, 1925-September 22, 1925, and wrote further entries sporadically between June 15, 1926, and February 4, 1929. She commented on her experiences at school, her activities and travels during summer vacation, and her friends.

Johnson had just turned 12 when she received her pocket diary, and wrote regularly about her experiences at school, church, and home throughout much of 1925. Though she succeeded academically and at one point achieved the highest marks in her grade, Johnson's teachers frequently reprimanded her for excessive talking. She often mentioned her male friends and acquaintances, and occasionally commented on her romantic feelings for them. Her social activities included attending baseball games, traveling to the beach, and dressing up with female friends. During the summer of 1925, she discussed her family's trips to the Mohawk Trail and the state of New York. She mentioned the Scopes trial in her entry of July 15, 1925 (pp. 196-197), suggesting a brief satirical prayer for atheists. After February 1926, Johnson wrote less frequently, but continued to list the names of her friends and significant changes in her life. The final pages of Johnson's diary contain notes, addresses, and sketches.

• Arm patch (May 22, 1925, p. 271)
• Pair of eyes (July 6, 1925, p. 187)
• Phyllis Johnson dressed in fancy clothing and accompanying hat (July 9, 1925, p. 190)
• Two girls dressed in circus uniforms (July 29, 1925, p. 210)
• Floor plan of the Johnson family's new house (June 15, 1926, p. 271)
• Three women's heads, shown in profile, and a woman's leg (undated, end of volume)

• A paper with her initials written in blood (see entry of January 12, 1925)
• Diagrams of two classrooms, showing students' seats
• A torn portion of an advertisement for Merriam cash boxes
• Several blank sheets of paper from a small notepad

This collection is made up of personal letters related to the immediate and extended family of Philip Mason Sears, including his wife, Zilla MacDougall; his children, Charlotte and Philip Sears; Zilla's sister, Charlotte MacDougall; and Zilla's brother-in-law, Danish diplomat Henrik Kauffmann. Family members wrote about foreign travel, service in the United States Navy, and daily life in the United States and abroad from the mid-1910s to the mid-1960s.

This collection is made up of personal letters related to the immediate and extended family of Philip Mason Sears, including his wife, Zilla MacDougall; his children, Charlotte and Philip Sears; Zilla's sister, Charlotte MacDougall; and Zilla's brother-in-law, Danish diplomat Henrik Kauffmann.

Much of the early correspondence revolves around Zilla MacDougall Sears, including letters that she wrote to her parents, grandparents, and sister about her foreign travels and life in the United States in the 1910s and 1920s. She visited London, England, in 1916 and 1917, and went to Copenhagen, Denmark, and Berlin, Germany, in the early and mid-1920s. In 1925, she described her travels in China, particularly her experiences in Peking (Beijing). Zilla also discussed her life in Syracuse, New York, and family life in Dedham, Massachusetts, after her marriage to Philip Mason Sears in 1924. In December 1924, the couple received congratulatory telegrams. The collection also contains many telegrams from the 1920s and 1930s concerning family health and family travels, including items sent by William MacDougall and Philip Mason Sears.

Additional early items include letters that Henrik Kauffmann wrote to Philip Mason Sears in the 1910s and 1920s, and letters that Charlotte MacDougall Kauffmann wrote to her parents and sister in the 1920s. Henrik and Charlotte's correspondence, often written on Danish stationery, concerns their travels and lives in China, India, Thailand, Japan, Denmark, and other locations. Prior to their marriage, Henrik discussed his excitement about Charlotte's upcoming visits and otherwise commented on their relationship. Correspondence from the 1930s includes additional travel letters and telegrams, and a group of letters to Zilla MacDougall Sears regarding her desire to purchase a Sicilian donkey from a company in Palermo in 1933. Zilla also wrote a letter to her mother on "swastika" stationery from Cuernavaca, Mexico (March 7, 1936).

Much of the material from the World War II era concerns the naval service of Philip Mason Sears and Philip Sears, Junior. The Sears children wrote a small number of V-mail letters to their father while he was stationed on the USS Fuller in the Pacific in 1942. From 1944 to 1946, Philip Mason Sears, Jr., wrote to his parents and sister about his experiences in the navy, including his participation in the V-12 Navy College Training Program at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, and his later experiences on a base in the Nevada desert. He often discussed his desire and attempts to gain entry into the aviation service and/or gunnery school. Additional correspondence from the early to mid-1940s includes letters that Charlotte Sears ("Poppin") wrote to her family about her studies and other experiences at the Foxcroft School in Middleburg, Virginia. Many of her letters feature cartoonish doodles and drawings. Zilla MacDougall Sears also received letters her nieces and nephews, including David and "Liza Jane" (who included colored drawings of horses in her letter postmarked from Lake Placid, New York, on July 18, 1942). The Sears children also received letters from their aunt, Charlotte MacDougall Kauffmann, then living in Washington, D.C.

After the war, the bulk of the collection is comprised of letters from Henrik and Charlotte MacDougall Kauffmann and Charlotte Sears (later Look) to Zilla MacDougall Sears. The Kauffmanns wrote to Zilla after returning to Denmark in 1946; among other topics, they discussed some of the lingering effects of the war. In the early 1950s, Charlotte Sears and her husband, David T. Look, wrote to Zilla about their experiences in Washington, D.C., including their work and leisure activities. In 1953, Charlotte described her travels in southern California and in Europe. The final items largely consist of Charlotte Kauffmann's letters to Zilla Sears from Switzerland and Denmark as late as 1963; while in Switzerland, she mentioned her participation in winter sports.

Additional materials include newspaper clippings about the death of Clinton MacDougall and the atomic bomb, the Sears children's school essays, and other miscellaneous manuscripts. A small number of picture postcards are present throughout the correspondence. The collection's photographs and negatives pertain to United States sailors and to people at leisure indoors and outdoors.

Marion Shipley compiled this volume while a pre-adolescent and teenager in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. She made collages and colored pencil drawings of domestic scenes, exteriors of residences and gardens, animals, and more. The volume also includes diary entries relating to her social life, humor, and experiences at a school at or near the Naval Academy in Portsmouth. She wrote about getting in trouble in class, passing notes, and flirtatious or romantic relationships. Shipley also pasted and laid in correspondence sent to her by young men courting her, and she added brief comments in the volume speaking to her current romantic interests. Several newspaper clippings also feature male actors and royalty, providing additional information about teenage romantic exploration.

Marion Shipley compiled this volume while a pre-adolescent and teenager in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. She made collages and colored pencil drawings of domestic scenes, exteriors of residences and gardens, animals, and more. The volume also includes diary entries relating to her social life, humor, and experiences at a school at or near the Naval Academy in Portsmouth. She wrote about getting in trouble in class, passing notes, and flirtatious or romantic relationships. Shipley also pasted and laid in correspondence sent to her by young men courting her, and she added brief comments in the volume speaking to her current romantic interests. Several newspaper clippings also feature male actors and royalty, providing additional information about teenage romantic exploration.

The first page is inscribed "Marion Shipley's Picture Book. Naval Academy, November 1898," and is followed by a section of drawings and collaged scenes. The collages include colored pencil drawings of the exterior of residences and gardens; a river scene with boats, bridges, and monuments; a church; a tent (an exhibition tent?); a circus; a kitchen; and living rooms. These have printed clippings of animals, furniture, boats, women and children, crowds, circus entertainers, cars and wagons, and vegetation pasted in. One loose page tipped into the volume is titled "THE FAMILY NEXT DOOR!!!" and features clippings of young children crying, swearing, and being spanked, with added pencil annotations. Other pages are filled with colored pencil drawings of birds and animals, a fishing boat, a horse-drawn vehicle, buildings, a decorated tree, and faces.

Shipley also documented the social life of adolescent boys and girls in her circle, in particular their play at school and their emerging romantic interests. Page 35 is dated June 1, 1907, and is labelled "PRIVET. NO TRESPASSING. ALL RIGHTS RESERED [sic]. For Spelling & Writing." It is followed by a diary entry dated June 7, 1907, describing Shipley's day at school, where she commented on having a substitute teacher, getting in trouble, disliking spelling, and drawing pictures of each other's backs and passing it in the class. The passed note is laid into the volume, featuring six pencil drawings of the back of girls' heads to show their hairstyles, each identified by the girl's names and age. One is of Shipley. She used rebus drawings and numerical substitutes to replace foul language (e.g. "7734" for "Hell"). On page 39, Shipley recorded her favorite expression of 1907, "23 SKIDOO & STUNG," and noted students in her school passing slips pairing boys and girls who apparently liked each other. She claimed to not "like any of the boys in the whole school" of about 400 students. This is followed by two columns of names, one for boys and the other for girls.

Shipley included a number of love letters sent to her. On pages 37 and 38 she affixed five letters (by pasting in the envelopes) from Ralph Dana, sent during his stay at the Hawthorne Inn of Gloucester, Massachusetts, from July to September, 1906. He wrote of local entertainments, engagements with friends, his romantic interest in her, guarded concerns about her activities and who she was spending time with, and his suspicion that she did not reciprocate his feelings. Shipley wrote beneath the letters: "These are some letters I got from who was my best fellow. He is not now. My letter were just as bad to his as his were to me. Now I just love H. S. C. (His picture is in the back of my watch) & have every since June of 1907 & this is Jan. 1908." Shipley also laid in nine pieces of correspondence from a suitor named John, mostly dated from early February 1908. They profess his love for her, ask if she loves him, and request kisses. One is on a piece of paper cut in the shape of a heart, and three others include hearts and arrows painted in gold metallic paint. One letter signed "Fred" is addressed to "K," expressing excitement about her upcoming visit and requesting a photo of a beautiful girl. A doily and a page from a calendar with a quote from the Merchant of Venice is also tipped into the volume.

The final diary entry is written on page 41, where Shipley notes attending Hamlet, which she mentioned liking almost as much as Peter Pan. Elsewhere in the volume, Shipley tipped in newspaper clippings of the actor E. H. Sothern and Dom Manuel II, King of Portugal.

Ina L. Cooper kept this notebook to record her notes on Physiological Psychology in the spring term of 1889 and on Language Method in the fall term of 1890, likely reflecting training she was receiving to become a teacher. The Physiological Psychology section includes information about different bodily processes and their impact on pedagogy and student learning. Some of the physiological concepts noted include the nervous system, digestion, the senses, apperception and reproduction, attention and interest, among others. In the Language Method section, Ina Cooper kept notes regarding methods for instruction, ethics, and particulars relating to spelling, botanical study, and grammar.

Ina L. Cooper kept this notebook to record her notes on Physiological Psychology in the spring term of 1889 and on Language Method in the fall term of 1890, likely reflecting training she was receiving to become a teacher. The Physiological Psychology section includes information about different bodily processes and their impact on pedagogy and student learning. Some of the physiological concepts noted include the nervous system, digestion, the senses, apperception and reproduction, attention and interest, among others. In the Language Method section, Ina Cooper kept notes regarding methods for instruction, ethics, and particulars relating to spelling, botanical study, and grammar.

The Morgan-McKoon correspondence primarily contains letters to May McKoon of Long Eddy, New York. Julia Morgan (later Royal), McKoon's sister, and Margaret A. McKoon, McKoon's daughter, wrote the majority of the letters from Portland, Oregon, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Julia discussed her experiences as an aspiring artist and her everyday life after her marriage, and Margaret McKoon wrote of her education, social activities, and other topics while living with her aunt and uncle.

The Morgan-McKoon correspondence (67 items) primarily contains letters to May McKoon of Long Eddy, New York, from her sister, Julia Morgan (later Royal); her brother-in-law, Osmon Royal; and her daughter, Margaret A. McKoon. Julia Morgan and Osmon Royal lived in Portland, Oregon, and Margaret McKoon lived with them in the early 1890s. The women discussed education, social activities, local travel, and their daily lives.

Julia Morgan wrote letters (often several pages in length) to May McKoon from December 1, 1886-February 5, 1912. Her early correspondence pertains to her experiences in Portland as she attempted to establish an artistic career, and she commented on exhibits, a studio, teaching classes, and aspects of her everyday life in Portland. After her marriage to Osmon Royal in 1888, her letters focused on her domestic life, including mentions of her son, also named Osmon. The elder Osmon Royal occasionally contributed to his wife's letters and individually wrote a few letters to his sister-in-law. In one, he commented on their recent move and he drew a floor plan of their new lodgings (March 22, 1891).

Margaret A. McKoon wrote regularly to her mother from February 28, 1889-January 5, 1893, while living with the Royal family in Portland, Oregon. She often discussed educational topics, such as her private instruction with Julia, her experiences at school, and her desire to attend Portland University. She also mentioned dresses and dressmaking, and described visits to Astoria, Oregon (September 12, 1891), and San Francisco, California (letter beginning January 15, 1892). Two of her letters mention a large Chinese funeral (October 26, 1890) and a presentation by an Eskimo woman (February 9, 1891). Other items are a letter from May McKoon to Margaret McKoon during a visit to Portland (September 21, 1905); a personal letter to May McKoon from a family member (August 25, 1909); and a letter from Harry Robbins to Don Viele of Buffalo, New York, about cross-country travel (June 5, 1907). The collection has a gap from 1893-1903.

This partially printed, annual daily diary was kept by 12-13 year old Alice L. Gardner of Warren, Rhode Island, over the course of 1886. Her brief entries reflect on social matters, local news, church activities, games, school, dance, theater, and musical lessons.

Alice L. Gardner noted her family's travels to Providence, Boston, and other nearby locales, for social visits, shopping, and other matters. She remarked on her and her family's attendance of theatre and musical performances. While at times she only notes going to "the Opera," she occasionally names the performances. Some of the shows she mentioned include The Mikado (January 2), Francesca da Rimini (January 16), Victor, the Blue-Stocking (May 8), The Old Homestead (October 9), The Merry Wives of Windsor (October 27), and The Jilt (December 18).

Alice Gardner's entries relating to her schooling pertain to exercises, exams, absences of teachers and classmates, and more. At times she names the texts assigned to her for school work or pieces she was to learn for musical lessons. She noted playing piano, taking up banjo lessons, dancing, and singing. She also frequently mentioned playing games with family friends, including whist, backgammon, casino, among others.

The diary also includes brief mentions of notable events, such as the marriage of Grover Cleveland (June 2) and the Charleston earthquake (September 22). At least two entries reflect racial attitudes. Her entry for October 22nd described a party which included racial and ethnic costumes. Alice also noted when Le Bing, a Chinese man, opened a laundry (November 9).

The section for "Cash Accounts" at the back of the diary includes several entries, principally for October to December for purchases of candy, food, and ribbon. Several addresses are also included at the back of the volume, as well as one entry in the section to record letters received and answered.

Four disbound notebook pages are housed in the pocket at the back of the volume. They include a musical notation, mathematical notes, a tongue-twister about snuff, a list of birthdays, quotations and proverbs, and drawings. Drawings represent a six-pointed star, a small pig and donkey, clocks and wall hangings, and a "Newport Girl," "Crescent Park Girl," and "Boston Girl" wearing different styles of dress.

A clipping of hair bound in a pink ribbon and a sample of grass are laid in the volume.

Lila Moran kept this notebook while a student in Norwich, Connecticut, in 1889. The bulk of the volume consists of compositions relating to British history and vocabulary terms and their definitions. Other content includes two drawings of women, a partial tracing of a hand, and directions for two supernatural rituals or games relating to predicting the future.

Lila Moran kept this notebook while a student in Norwich, Connecticut, in 1889. The bulk of the volume consists of compositions relating to British history and vocabulary terms and their definitions. Other content includes two drawings of women, a partial tracing of a hand, and directions for two supernatural rituals or games relating to predicting the future. They read:

"Start from bed and walk to the door reading 3rd. verse 3rd. chapter amor when you reach the door walk backwards to the bed still reading get in to bed backwards put the book under your pillow wish blow out the lamp without getting out of bed and go to sleep, you must sleep alone you will dream of your future husband"

"Put three saucers in a row put dirt in one a ring in another and watter in the other blindfold any body who wants to try it change the saucers round then lead the person up turn her round three times and stand her before the saucers which must be in a row then let her put her finger in one if she puts it in the one with watter in it she will take a voyag on the watter before a year if she puts it in the one with a ring in it she will be married before a year if she puts it in one with the dirt in it she will die before a year."

Two receipts and one bank notice for Samuel Moran of Norwich, Connecticut, dated between 1883 and 1905, are laid into the volume.

This collection contains Ella St. John Whallon's personal correspondence, including letters from friends and family members in Michigan and love letters from her husband, James M. Whallon of Dowagiac, Michigan. The collection also has letters to Lizzie Wittle of Columbia, Pennsylvania, from Edward E. Seifred, a member of the United States Army's 18th Infantry Regiment who served in the Philippines during the early twentieth century. Other items include financial documents, tintype photographs, a commemorative ribbon, and a leather postcard.

This collection (63 items) contains Ella St. John Whallon's personal correspondence, including letters from friends and family members in Michigan, as well as love letters from her husband, James M. Whallon of Dowagiac, Michigan. The collection also has letters to Lizzie Wittle of Columbia, Pennsylvania, from Edward E. Seifred, a member of the United States Army's 18th Infantry Regiment who served in the Philippines, and another correspondent, dated between 1903 and 1909. Other items include financial documents, tintype photographs, a commemorative ribbon, and a leather postcard.

The Correspondence series (58 items) contains correspondence related to Ella St. John Whallon and Lizzie Wittle. During the final years of the Civil War, Philena Hood of Saline, Michigan, wrote to Ella St. John about her experiences in school; one of her letters encloses a small piece of fabric (October 16, 1864). Several of Ella's cousins wrote to her during the late 1860s, mostly about family news from Clinton and Lansing, Michigan. One cousin, Wallace J. Hunt, commented on his experiences while serving with the Union Army in Winchester, Virginia; his letter of January 31, 1865, encloses a tintype photograph.

From 1871-1874, James M. Whallon wrote 27 letters and postcards to Ella St. John, pertaining to his life in Dowagiac, Michigan, his feelings for Ella, and their anticipated marriage. After their wedding, he sometimes wrote brief postcards while traveling. In 1872, Ella wrote 1 letter to James and received 2 letters from her mother. In August 1876, a relative wrote to Ella about his experiences at the Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia. She received a postcard from her brother Frank in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 1917, and a partial letter from a friend in 1923.

The second group of correspondence is comprised of 5 letters to Lizzie Wittle of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Edward E. Seifred wrote 3 letters while serving with Company I of the United States Army's 18th Infantry Regiment in Manila, Philippines, in 1903 and 1904. He discussed his feelings for Wittle, proposed marriage, and reflected on his life as a soldier. In 1909, she received 2 letters from "Andrew," who explained his decision to delay marriage until achieving financial security and reported on a couple who had eloped in York, Pennsylvania. Undated items include a leather postcard addressed to Lizzie Wittle with an ink drawing of a bulldog on the back.

Five receipts are integrated with the correspondence, including documentation of wages paid to James M. Whallon during his Civil War service (October 24, 1863) and 4 receipts for Samuel St. John's contributions to a church building (1869-1872).

The Photographs series (3 items) contains a tintype portrait of Ella St. John Whallon, a tintype portrait of Samuel St. John, and a carte-de-visite portrait of Ella St. John Whallon.

Ephemera items include a poem that Philena Hood wrote for Ella St. John, with a pencil drawing of a bird on the back, and a ribbon from the 11th Michigan Cavalry Regiment's 1889 reunion in Battle Creek, Michigan.

This collection primarily consists of 44 letters exchanged between members of the Hunter family of Wiseburg, Maryland, in 1859. Eliza Hunter ("Lida") received 19 letters from her parents, Margaret and Pleasant Hunter, when she was studying at Linden Hall Seminary in Lititz, Pennsylvania; she responded with 4 letters and 1 brief note. Other letters between female cousins and sisters concern various aspects of their lives, such as education, travel, and family news.

This collection primarily consists of 44 letters exchanged between members of the Hunter family of Wiseburg, Maryland, in 1859. Eliza Hunter ("Lida") received 19 letters from her parents, Margaret and Pleasant Hunter, when she was studying at Linden Hall Seminary in Lititz, Pennsylvania; she responded with 4 letters and 1 brief note. Other letters between female cousins and sisters concern various aspects of their lives, such as education, travel, and family news. Also included are 2 newspaper clippings and a receipt. With the exception of 1 letter written in 1856, 2 written in 1866, and 2 undated items, the letters all date between January 16, 1859, and December 8, 1859.

The Hunters provided Eliza with family and social news from their home in Wiseburg, Maryland. They often commented on health issues, deaths, and correspondence with cousins and other family members. In her letter of May 27, 1859, Eliza's mother described two deaths caused by railroad accidents. Eliza discussed some of her experiences while in school, and included details about her studies and about her social life.

Other female cousins and family members also wrote to unidentified members of the Hunter family, commenting on education, social news, visits to Baltimore, and other aspects of their lives. Eliza Hunter's cousin Annie wrote a letter from Natchez, Mississippi, about her upcoming journey home and about the recent explosion of the steamboat Princess (March 13, 1859); she also mentioned an African American man who wanted to return home with her. In 2 letters to her sister (September and December 1859), a woman named Clara mentioned her five miscarriages, her elderly mother's affairs, and the cost of feeding herself and her household (which included a nurse and food for her "woman" and 4 slaves).

Eliza also received brief letters from female acquaintances she knew from Linden Hall, who wrote of their journeys home from the school in the summer of 1859. Two newspaper clippings, one of which is dated 1866, discuss Byron Sunderland, former chaplain to the United States Senate, and a political speech by Frederick Douglass.

The Semantha Atkeson papers consist of three antebellum letters of a Buffalo, Virginia (now West Virginia), teenager. The fourth item is a journal excerpt describing in detail Atkeson's experiences during the opening stages of the Civil War, and the last item is a school essay written by Atkeson.

In the collection's three letters, each one page long, Semantha Atkeson corresponded with cousins and acquaintances about daily life in antebellum Buffalo, Virginia. In her letter of August [1856], written to a cousin, Semantha discussed the teachers at her school and related the burning of her Uncle Crawford's house, as well as her grandmother's close brush with death: "…it got set afire by granmother's pipe she let a coal drop on the bed in her room there…but she did not know it till she heard the ceiling crack…and when she seen the fire she was so bad scared that she could not holloar [sic]." Semantha shared further details of her studies, which she generally enjoyed, in a short letter to Mary Pattin (March [1859]). In the third, and final, letter in the collection, dated October 27, 1860, Semantha listed and described five 1859 deaths "in our family," including two "little negro boy[s]" and "old aunt Nanny…an old negro woman who had been helpless as a child for 2 years." Semantha also provided a detailed account of the illness and death of a brother, who died of an "inflammation of the brain."

The collection also contains 8 pages from Semantha's journal, written in October and November 1861, in which she recounted her experiences during the beginning stages of the Civil War. The Atkeson family staunchly supported of the Confederacy, and Semantha's writing vividly reflected their political opinions. Semantha often mocked Union soldiers and twice wrote about taunting them by cheering for Jefferson Davis. She also witnessed a gathering of hundreds of troops for the Confederate cause, and was subject to a Union search of her family's home. Her acquaintance Mary Pattin assisted in nursing wounded soldiers during this time, and Semantha wrote about Mary's experience with two soldiers who, despite both being seriously wounded, "still continued to fight they talked and argued, until they become so excited, that they were injuring their health."

Additionally, the collection holds a school essay entitled "The Bear," written by Atkeson for an assignment and received as "very good" by an instructor.