Personal and Family Life

Julius "Steve" Kassovic taught in the Sociology-Anthropology Department at Dickinson from 1979 to 1984. This collection contains assignments from his popular Introduction to Folklore course, during which students gathered jokes, stories, myths, ethnic expressions and other pieces of folkore from encounters with their families, local communities, and Dickinson peers.

This collection consists of correspondence, journals, photographs, and other personal papers of Kerry Shawn Keys, poet, editor, translator, and cultural liaison. He has authored more than 40 books of poetry and prose and translated more than a dozen other works from Portuguese, Czech, and Lithuanian. (Publications can be found by searching the library online catalog.) He has taught at Penn State University, Harrisburg Area Community College, Dickinson College, and Vilnius University. He has received the Robert H. Winner Memorial Prize from the Poetry Society of America, the Translation Laureate Award from the Lithuanian Writers Union, and a National Endowment for the Arts Literature Fellowship.

Horatio Collins King was the son of Postmaster General Horatio King and the nephew of Dickinson College President Charles Collins. A graduate of Dickinson College, class of 1858, King was admitted to the bar in 1861 and saw active service in the Civil War from 1862 until 1865. A songwriter, King composed the Dickinson Alma Mater, among other works. The collection contains King's correspondence, diaries, and copies of his songs. Topics in correspondence and diaries include student life, Civil War, and democratic politics.

The journals in this collection are available for reading online (see links for related entries below).

The Jane Lee collection consists of the various papers, court dockets, government documents, and newspaper clippings collected by Lee in the years following the accident at Three Mile Island. Jane Lee, a farmer from Etters, Pennsylvania, became active in various public-awareness groups such as Three Mile Island Alert following the accident at the Three Mile Island Nucler Station on March 28, 1979. Over the years she dedicated a considerable amount of time and energy to the fight against the restart of Three Mile Island.

The collection consists of correspondence, genealogical materials, legal materials, printed and scrapbook materials relating to George Burt Lincoln. Correspondents include Abner Doubleday, Horace Greeley, Julia Ward Howe, and Elizabeth Cady Stanton. Of particular note is a letter from Julia Ward Howe discussing women's study clubs.

Zatae Longsdorff Straw (1866-1955) was the first woman graduate of Dickinson College as a member of the class of 1887; she went on to a successful career as a doctor and politician. The collection of her papers includes correspondence, printed and manuscript materials, scrapbooks and scrapbook materials, photographs, and artifacts. The bulk of the documents in this collection focuses on Zatae's life in Manchester, New Hampshire, both private and professional. There are some items, however, about her life at Dickinson, namely her dress and medal for the Pierson Prize in Oratory, 1886, and her writing desk.

The Elizabeth Anna Low collection contains fine china, glass plate positive photographs and other items donated by Elizabeth Anna Low, class of 1891.

Lonna Malmsheimer collection consists of assorted newspaper articles, transcripts of interviews and audiotapes collected during her work with various other Dickinson College professors and students concerning the public reaction to the Three Mile Island accident on March 28, 1979.

This collection primarily provides evidence of the personal and public life of Frank E. Masland Jr., environmentalist, preservationist, explorer, entrepreneur, author, and community leader.  Also found in this collection is correspondence from prominent twentieth-century figures such as leaders of the National Park Service, journalists, politicians throughout the world, and American presidents. Information on Dickinson College is featured prominently throughout this collection through the close association of Masland with the institution during most of his life. This collection offers information on a number of social, political, economic, and historic topics through the eyes of a man who witnessed nearly the entire twentieth century.  Some of these broader topics include the industrialization of the United States, south central Pennsylvania community, the rise of environmentalism, reactions to communism, the rise of the New Left, and twentieth-century exploration. The processing of this collection was made possible by a grant from the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.

The collection consists almost entirely of correspondence between Augusta McClintock and members of her family, including her step-sister (Maria Emory), her aunts (Jane and Pat), her father (John McClintock), and her elder brother (John Emory McClintock). There is also corresponendence between other members of the McClintock family not involving Augusta, a group of miscellaneous letters, a note, and two newspaper clippings.

Augusta was born in Carlisle, Pennsylvania in 1843. Her father was a Dickinson College professor at the time of her birth; her brother entered Dickinson College with the class of 1858, but he ultimately earned his bachelor's degree from Columbia University in 1859.

The collection consists of genealogical, financial, and scrapbook materials related to the McClintock and Wakeman families. Four ledgers concern research notes on George Washington. Also included in the collection are correspondence related to the Proeschel family. Julius N. Proeschel was secretary to Rev. John McClintock in Paris in the 1860's and a life long friend of Emory McClintock. The correspondence include a few letters by John McClintock and a large number by Emory, showing the personal side of both families.

These images date from 1906-1918 and are from a guestbook for The Haven located in Bay Head, New Jersey, an Atlantic coast resort town. The Haven was a summer home frequented by members of the McClintock and Longacre families. The book contains the names and dates of individuals who stayed at The Haven, as well as these images of summer life at the shore.

The photographs are from the J. Emory McClintock family papers. For more information this collection, see the links under related entries.

This collection is composed of photocopies of the papers of Ralph L. Minker, Jr., Class of 1947. These papers, currently held at the Historical Society of Delaware, pertain to Minker's service as a bomber pilot in World War II. These items include correspondence between Minker and his family and scrapbook materials.

The collection consists of correspondence and manuscripts of Marianne Moore (1887-1972), the famous American poet. The letters generally discuss her literary work, but some personal business is included as well. Manuscript copies of several of her poems comprise a part of the collection as well.

Julia Morgan (1891-1948), Class of 1911, served as a medical missionary in China from approximately 1924 to 1941. This collection contains correspondence written primarily by Julia to her father, James Henry Morgan, during her time in China. These materials also include photographs of members of the Morgan, Curran, and McElfish families dating from 1869 to 1947.

Jacob Simmons Mosher (1834-1883) was a prominent physician and professor of medicine in Albany, New York. Samuel L. Southard (1787-1842) was a lawyer, politician, and cabinet member from New Jersey. These papers contain correspondence and other materials that reflect the professional and personal lives of these two men, as well as genealogical materials regarding their families.

Hiester Henry Muhlenberg (1812-1886) was a member of the distinguished Muhlenberg family of Pennsylvania. He graduated from Dickinson College in 1829. This collection contains almost 200 letters, most of which were written by members of Muhlenberg's immediate family. These letters reflect American politics, European diplomacy, social life, and the student experience at Dickinson College. The collection also includes photographs and engravings of some members of the Muhlenberg family.

The collection consists of the papers of Charles Nisbet, first president of Dickinson College, and his family, particularly his son-in-law, William Turnbull. The majority of these papers is correspondence conducted between Nisbet and his daughter, and also between Nisbet and Lady Leven of Scotland. The business ventures of William Turnbull are reflected through legal, financial, and other miscellaneous documents; the collection's single artifact is Turnbull's leather wallet.

This collection consists primarily of the diary of Esther Popel Shaw (Class of 1919), the first African American woman to graduate from Dickinson College.  Esther kept this diary between the conclusion of her junior year in high school on June 10, 1914 and April 30, 1915 of her senior year.  The diary entries document her daily activities, particularly her interactions with family, friends, and neighbors. Esther routinely listed the names of the individuals she met each day and the people with whom she corresponded.  She also included accounts of her school days, the books she was reading, the lectures and social events she attended, and her membership in a basketball team named the Philanders.  It was during this time that Esther self-published her first collection of poetry, titled Thoughtless Thinks by a Thinkless Thoughter, which she sold to establish a college fund.  The diary traces the evolution of this publication, which was printed on February 26, 1915.  A transcription of this diary is housed with this collection. 

In addition to the diary, this collection includes a newspaper clipping from the July 20, 1954 Baltimore Afro-American newspaper that features a profile of Esther’s retirement activities. 

The collection documents the lives of the members of the Potter, Guererro, James, and Lord families from the 1850s to the 1940s, beginning with Henry Cardwell Potter (1822-1902), a Philadelphia businessman who through his business dealings became Consul of Nicaragua for the city. Potter's daughter married into the Guererro and James families; her daughter married into the Lord family. The bulk of the collections consists of correspondence; a large portion of these letters are addressed to Mary Agnes Guererro from her fiancé John Carlisle Lord, a professional ball player. The collection also contains a large amount of business materials, including papers relating to Potter's office as Consul, Dr. James' medical practice, and the sale of the family estate, La Hacienda Santa Enriqueta. A large scrapbook, maintained by Dr. James, contains newspaper clippings, correspondence, and programs of social events. The collection is supplemented by a large collection of photographs, some of which have been identified.

The collection documents several generations of the Poulson family and its role in publishing Poulson's American Daily Advertiser. It includes submissions, woodcuts, and sample issues from the Daily Advertiser; correspondence; genalogical materials; and financial and legal documents. Correspondents include Horace Binney, Benjamin Rush (1811-1877), Samuel Sartain, John Sargeant (1779-1852), and Noah Webster. The genealogical notes address the Poulson, Carlyle, Graham, Gurney, Knorr, and Wood families.

The collection consists of correspondence, legal and financial materials primarily related to Price's law practice, his service in the Pennsylvania State Senate (1854-1856), and as a commissioner for Fairmount Park Association. Also included in the collection are papers concerning the Fisher's Creek Improvement Company and from the files of Eli Kirk Price, Jr., correspondence and applications for the Keene Home for Women, a retirement home in Bristol, Pa.

Leon Cushing Prince (1878-1937) graduated from Dickinson College in 1898 and received his law degree from the Dickinson School of Law and his masters from New York University. Prince returned to Dickinson in 1907 to become a professor of history, where he would teach for thirty years until his death. He was elected a Pennsylvania state senator in 1928 and served for two terms. The collection contains material dated 1898-1937, and includes correspondence, legal documents, literary materials, printed materials, and other memorabilia. The bulk of the collection centers around manuscripts of Prince's research notes, sermons, speeches, and writings. Other materials in the collection include newspaper clippings, correspondence with other professors regarding lecture appearances, and printed material on the Kiwanis Club.

Julius N. Proeschel was a French immigant who was an employee and friend of John McClintock, a professor at Dickinson College. The Proeschel Family Collection is comprised entirely of correspondence and is housed in one document box. The Correspondence is divided by recipients: John Sanford Batchelor, Augusta McClintock Longacre, Julius N. Proeschel, Lily Proeschel (Mrs. Matthew Miller), and Margaret Proeschel (Mrs. John S. Batchelor). Most of the letters are from family members, but among the letters received by Julius N. Proeschel are a number of letters from Reverend John McClintock and his son Emory. A number of letters are written in French.

This collection contains the personal and legal papers of John Meredith Read, a Pennsylvania lawyer and state supreme court justice. The collection is housed in one document box and is divided into two categories: Correspondence and Legal and Financial Papers. The correspondence consists of letters sent to or from Read and his son, John M. Read, Jr.