Olga Holcombe papers
Scope and Contents
This collection houses the papers of Olga Johnson Holcombe, a Whitman College graduate of 1909. It includes 2 memento boxes (early 20th c.), a trinket (early 20th c.), a diary (1923), a checkbook (1917), a manuscript called "Digestive System of Hydrolagus Colliei" (early 20th c.), a Lincoln High School program for the class of 1950 (1950), two gradebooks (1954), holiday greeting cards (early 20th c.), school photos (early 20th c.), two Liberty Loan posters (early 20th c.), financial/business slips (1919, 1945), bodybuilder photos (early 20th c.), miscellaneous photos (early 20th c.), school and teaching documents (1924-1956), travel postcards (1958-1969), personal correspondence (1890-1950), business correspondence (1941-1950), correspondence with Nell Adams (1944-1950), programs (1925), news clippings (1953 and early 20th c.), miscellaneous writings and poems (early 20th c.), two newspapers (1909, 1937), and a photo album (1909). The collection also includes 27 family photographs, eight negatives, and seven blank postcards.
Dates
- Creation: 1890-1969
Creator
- Holcombe, Olga Johnson (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research.
Biographical Note
Olga Johnson Holcombe was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on July 25, 1886 to Frank G. Johnson and Hanna Johnson, two Swedish immigrants. She attended Whitman College, where she was involved in Phi Beta Kappa and the Women’s University Club, and graduated magna cum laude with degrees in english and history in 1909. She married Harold Holcombe in Spokane on March 9, 1912 and he was enlisted in World War I on September 12, 1918, at which point they were living at 1712 Oak Street, Spokane. In 1920 the couple were living with her parents at 1408 West Maxwell Avenue, Spokane, but by 1928 they had moved to Seattle where they both worked as high school teachers, she at Lincoln High School and he at Broadway High School. They lived for the remainder of their lives in Seattle, along with their summer house on Whidbey Island. The couple had no children, and Harold died in 1954. Olga continued to be heavily involved with Whitman alumni activities throughout her life. She died on September 21, 1986 in Seattle as the oldest living Whitman alumna at the time.
Extent
1.8 Linear Feet (3 boxes)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
This collection houses materials, dating from 1890 to 1969, related to Olga Johnson Holcombe's life and career.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated to the Whitman College and Northwest Archives by Olga Johnson Holcombe on June 8, 1977. The accession number is retro-369.
Subject
- Adams, Nell (Person)
- Title
- Guide to the Olga Holcombe papers
- Date
- 2013
- 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