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Elizabeth Clarke Papers

 Collection
Identifier: WCMss-455

Scope and Contents

The Elizabeth Clarke Papers contains the personal diary of Clarke from when she attended Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington, as well as the scrapbook she put together seemingly from her time in attendance from 1934-1936. The personal diary provides insight into student life at Whitman College at this time, while the scrapbook has newspaper clippings, dance cards, images, and various notes that further speak towards student life and politics of the period.

Dates

  • circa 1934-1936

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research.

Biographical Note

Elizabeth Clarke Blodgett was born in 1917 and attended Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington for roughly two years (from circa 1934-1936), leaving after her father died to move to Seattle, Washington with her mother and finish at the University of Washington. Afterwards, she became a high school teacher, working on the Olympic Peninsula and in Seattle until after World War Two. Then, Blodgett taught in Austria, where she met her husband, and later received her degree in Library Science from Columbia University. She then became the director of the Pioneer Library System which encompassed the Ontario, Wayne, Wyoming, and Livingstone countries in the Finger Lakes, New York, area. There, she was a driving force in the establishment of the Naples Public Library, where she raised substantial funds for the library, leading them to name the genealogy section of their library after her. Elizabeth Clarke Blodgett died around 2003.

Extent

0.2 Linear Feet (1 manuscript box)

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

The Elizabeth Clarke Papers contains the personal diary and scrapbook of Elizabeth Clarke, who was a Whitman College student from circa 1934-1936 and later went on to be a founding member of the Naples Public Library.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Donated to the Whitman College and Northwest Archives by Charles W. Claire in November 2008. The accession number associated with this donation is 2008-021.

Title
Guide to the Elizabeth Clarke Papers
Author
Mira Skladany
Date
2018
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid written in English.

Repository Details

Part of the Whitman College and Northwest Archives Repository

Contact:
345 Boyer Avenue
Walla Walla WA 99362 United States
509-527-5922