Collection ID: C413
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Collection context

Summary

Creator:
Hendricks, Cecilia Hennel, 1883-1969
Abstract:
This collection consists of the family papers of Indiana University professor Cecilia Hennel Hendricks spanning the period from 1839 through 1970. Included are papers relating to the academic careers of Cecilia, Associate Professor of English, and her sister Cora, Professor of Mathematics at Indiana University, as well as manuscripts and writings by both women. Also found in the collection are papers and correspondence of family members: father Joseph B. Hennel, mother Anna M. Thuman Hennel, Cecilia's husband John Hendricks, and sister Edith Hennel Ellis.
Extent:
16.3 cubic feet (19 boxes)
Language:
Materials are in English and German
Preferred citation:

[Item], Cecilia Hennel Hendricks family papers, Collection C413, Indiana University Archives, Bloomington.

Background

Biographical / Historical:

Cecilia Barbara Hennel was born in Evansville, Indiana on March 2, 1883, to Joseph H. and Anna Marie Thuman Hennel. The Hennels moved from Evansville to Bloomington in 1905 so that their daughters - Cora, Cecilia, and Edith - could attend Indiana University. Cecilia earned her bachelor's degree in 1907 and her master's degree in 1908, both in English. While a student at IU, Cecilia edited The Arbutus and contributed articles to numerous professional journals. After graduating, she joined the IU faculty as an Instructor of English from 1908-1913 and served as Dean of Women at IU during the summers of 1912-1913. In 1913, Cecilia moved to Powell, Wyoming to marry John Hendricks who was a member of the Shoshone Federal Irrigation Project team assigned to cultivate a bee farm. While in Wyoming, Cecilia and John had three children - Cecilia Barbara, Jules Ord, and Anne Carolyn. During her time in Wyoming, Cecilia was a homesteader, wrote for several regional news publications, served informally and formally the interests of public education, and campaigned for Governor Nellie Tayloe Ross. In 1931, Cecilia returned to IU as a member of the IU English faculty. While on faculty at IU, she was involved with the Mortar Board Society, the Hoosier Folklore Society, and the Phi Beta Kappa academic society. In 1940, Cecilia founded the Indiana University Writers' Conference as a way of fostering the study of creative literary traditions in the Midwest. In 1950, she took a sabbatical leave and was an educational advisor in teaching English to schoolteachers at Koror, in the Palau Islands in the Pacific. After retiring from IU in 1953, Cecilia served as the John Hay Whitney Professor at Coe College. In 1961, she received the IU Distinguished Alumni Service Award, and in 1963, Theta Sigma Phi awarded her a medallion for more than 50 years of service to journalism. Hendricks died on July 15, 1969, at the age of 87.

Cecilia's husband John Hendricks was born on November 27, 1874, in West Franklin, Indiana. He attended Valparaiso University and Northwestern University. John fought during the Spanish-American War and was injured. In 1911, John moved to Powell, Wyoming where he started an apiary. He was active in the community and served as a member of the Wyoming State Board of Agriculture. John died on December 14, 1936.

John and Cecilia's daughter Cecilia Barbara Hendricks was born on October 26, 1916. She graduated from IU in 1938. Cecilia married Henry E. Wahl in 1939. Henry served as an officer in the U.S. Navy and worked in business and for the IU Halls of Residence. Cecilia worked as a secretary for the Department of Speech and Theatre at IU and for the IU Board of Trustees. She edited a collection of her mother's letters from her time living in Wyoming and compiled the letters into a book, Letters from Honeyhill, which was published in 1986. Cecilia Hendricks Wahl died on January 28, 1998.

John and Cecelia's son Jules Ord Hendricks was born on June 4, 1921. Jules received a Bachelor of Arts in Government in 1942 from IU and a master's degree in public administration from Wayne University in 1949. He served as an Army Company Commander during WWII. After the war, Jules worked as a counter-intelligence agent in Austria until 1948. He later worked for the Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce, the Bloomington Chamber of Commerce, the Indiana State Budget Agency, and the IU Treasurer's Office. From 1965 to 1967, Jules served as a financial advisor in Afghanistan. Jules married Lois Armstrong in 1943, and the couple had three daughters: Sue Anne, Ellen, and Nancy. He died on September 30, 1996.

John and Cecilia's youngest child, Anne Carolyn Hendricks, was born on August 12, 1923. She attended IU where she received a bachelor's degree in French in 1944. Anne married John DeCamp in 1947, and the couple had two sons, Arthur and John Jr. Her husband John was a well-known sports announcer for Purdue University. Anne was active in the Purdue University and West Lafayette community including being a member of the Tippecanoe School Board. She died on December 29, 1985.

Cecilia's sister Cora Barbara Hennel was born on January 21, 1886. Cora received a bachelor's degree in 1907, a master's degree in 1908, and a Ph.D. in 1912 from Indiana University. She was the first person to receive a Ph.D. in Mathematics at IU. While a student at IU, Cora was an assistant in the English Department, on the Arbutus stuff, in plays, a member of the Indiana Club and the Euclidian Circle, and class poet for her undergraduate class. Cora became a teaching fellow in the Mathematics Department at IU in 1908 and an instructor in 1909. She became an Assistant Professor in Mathematics in 1916, an Associate Professor in 1922, and a full Professor in 1936. She remained a professor at IU until her death on June 26, 1947.

Cecilia and Cora's sister Edith Amelia Hennel was born on August 23, 1891. She attended Indiana University where she received a Bachelor of Arts in Botany in 1911 and a Master of Arts in Botany in 1912. While a student at IU, she was a member of the Indiana Club, the English Club, the Spanish Club, and the Botany Club and was on the Y.W.C.A cabinet and the Arbutus staff. Edith taught botany at IU for two years before she left in 1914 to take up social service work with the Charity Organization Society in Indianapolis. In 1915, Edith went to Gary where she served as a probation officer for the juvenile court. She married Edward Ellis in Chicago in 1917. The couple primarily lived in Boulder, Colorado but lived for a time in Greybull, Wyoming. They had two daughters: Edith Rhoda and Janet Cora. Edith Hennel Ellis died on May 13, 1988.

Cecilia, Cora, and Edith's parents were Joseph B. and Anna M. Thuman Hennel. Joseph Hennel was born on January 28, 1842, in Cincinnati, Ohio. He worked as a schoolteacher until the Civil War began. Joseph enlisted in April 1861 in the 14th Indiana Volunteer Infantry and served three and a half years as a member of Company E, 14th Indiana Infantry. After the war, Joseph returned to Evansville and worked in the real estate and abstract business. He held local political positions and was one of the charter members of Farragut Post No. 27, G.A.R., a fraternal organization of Union veterans of the Civil War. On March 19, 1882, Joseph married Anna Thuman. Anna Marie Thuman was born on January 6, 1854, in Evansville, Indiana. Joseph and Anna had three daughters: Cecilia, Cora, and Edith. In 1905, they moved to Bloomington to be close to their daughters as they pursued degrees at Indiana University. The Hennels were friends of both students and faculty. Joseph was known for providing financial assistance to students and Anna was called "Mother" by many students who came to her for help with their problems. Anna died on December 25, 1925, and Joseph died on January 25, 1934.

The Biographical Note and other detailed folder level descriptions were Written by Professor Tarez Samra Graban, Amanda Hudson, and Kasey Lloyd in 2010 in conjunction with a class project.

Scope and Content:

The Cecilia Hennel Hendricks family papers collection is organized into seven series: Correspondence, Cecilia Hennel Hendricks papers, Cora Hennel papers, John Hendricks papers, Joseph Hennel papers, Hennel family papers, and Funeral and estate matters. The collection contains papers and other materials created or collected by Cecilia Hennel Hendricks, Cora B. Hennel, John Hendricks, and Joseph Hennel. Included are family papers, correspondence, and memorabilia.

When the collection arrived at the Archives, much of the collection had already been arranged by Cecilia's daughter. While her scheme was useful in guiding the arrangement of the collection, further refinement and arrangement was necessary, as the entire collection was organized strictly chronologically.

The first series, Correspondence, 1855-1969, is further organized into the various Hendricks family individuals: Anne Hendricks DeCamp, Cecilia Hennel Hendricks, Cecilia Hendricks Wahl, John Hendricks, Jules Ord Hendricks; and the Hennel family: Anna Thuman Hennel, Cora Hennel, Edith Hendricks Ellis, and Joseph Hennel. The subseries are all arranged chronologically within family and family member divisions. It contains handwritten and typed letters from Cecilia, Cora, Edith and the family. The bulk of the correspondence is between the three sisters - Cecilia, Cora, Edith - as well as over a decade of correspondence between Cecilia and John after she had returned to Bloomington and he remained in Powell, Wyoming. The correspondence and the diaries (of both Cecilia and Cora) together provide a robust description of the life of academic women in Bloomington, Indiana and the life of homesteading in Powell, Wyoming from 1908 to 1959.

The Cecilia Hennel Hendricks series spans 1879-1969 and consists of seven subseries: Diaries & date books, 1896-1968; Finances, 1897-1969; Indiana University Bloomington, 1907-1969; Miscellaneous ephemera, 1890-1968; Service & volunteer work, 1922-1967; Writing & publications, 1898-1963; Pamphlets & newspaper clippings, 1879-1965. The papers document all of Cecilia's work in public education in Wyoming, her work for the Nellie Tayloe Ross campaign (first woman governor in the United States), her significant administrative work for the English department, her founding of and participation in the IU Writers' Conference, her sabbatical work in Palau Islands, and her extra-curricular and post-retirement lecture activity. Also included are her faculty vitae and a list of her plays and published works. Of special note is the full manuscript of the "History of Indiana University," completed by Cecilia in 1963 at the request of Herman B Wells. Note that while there is a folder of Cecilia and Cora's rejection slips, some publication rejection and acceptance slips can also be found with the manuscripts themselves in other folders.

The next series, Cora Hennel, 1873-1968, is arranged alphabetically. Cora's diaries and date books provide a glimpse into the life of a single female in academia and of the first female recipient of a PhD in Mathematics at IU. Her interactions with her students are frequently documented in her diaries and correspondence. Included in this series is the completed textbook she co-authored, A Course in General Mathematics, as well as her PhD dissertation and Master's thesis. Also in this series is a file on the Cora B. Hennel Scholarship at IU, which was created by Cecilia Hennel Hendricks in honor of her late sister.

The fourth series, John Hendricks, 1898-1936, consists largely of business and personal financial matters and correspondence, which is arranged alphabetically and then chronologically, as well as other papers and materials related to John's service in the Spanish-American War. This series also contains nearly a lifetime of correspondence regarding his veteran's pension and disability from wounds received in battle in 1898. Note that there is one folder of legislative correspondence; however, correspondence of a similar nature is also found throughout the chronologically arranged business correspondence files.

The Joseph Hennel series, 1843-1912, consists of financial and business matters related to Joseph's time spent as a real estate agent and land surveyor, as well as a teacher. It also includes materials from the period he lived Evansville, Indiana during and after serving in the Civil War. These materials are largely arranged alphabetically by folder heading, and then chronologically when further delineation occurs. Of particular note are two files containing property abstracts for land in Evansville, Indiana and Vanderburgh County, which date the land's ownership as far back as possible, often to land grants given by the United States, and includes property sketches and longitude/latitude boundaries. In addition, this series includes a land grant certificate on vellum from 1839 to John Edgar, namesake of Edgar County, Illinois. Note that some items in this series were retained due to Joseph Hennel's interest in acquiring teaching materials, including three volumes of "The Elocutionist's Journal" from the late 1870s.

The Hennel family series spans the period from 1869-1971 and is further organized into two subseries: General family files, 1869-1955, chronologically arranged and largely related to the family's life in Evansville, Indiana; and the "Ellis Annuals," 1943-1971, arranged chronologically, and consisting of yearly scrapbooks made by Edith Hennel Ellis depicting the goings on and lives of the family throughout the previous year via clipped magazine columns and newspaper cartoons.

The final series, Funeral and estate matters, 1925-1970, consists of files concerning the deaths of Anna Thuman Hennel in 1925, Joseph Hennel in 1934, John Hendricks in 1936, Cora Hennel in 1947, and Cecilia Hennel Hendricks in 1969, arranged chronologically. This series contains death certificates, funeral guest books, condolence cards and letters, and records on estate matters.

Acquisition information:
Accessions 9142-9161.
Appraisal information:

The collection as it came to the Archives included many materials collected by the family, but some were deemed by the Archives as unnecessary to retain as part of the collection. These items included:

  1. One scrapbook dated 1930s containing poems, jokes, and sentimental clippings
  2. Indiana University publications not relevant to the collection were removed and placed within other archival collections.
  3. A wide variety of monographs and newspapers that did not document the family were removed and given to the Wells Library for consideration of inclusion in its collection
  4. John's Northwestern University year books and catalogs
  5. Wyoming newspapers in poor condition
Custodial history:

Donated by Cecilia Hendricks Wahl, Jules Ord Hendricks, and Anne Hendricks DeCamp July 6, 1979 and 1980.

Processing information:

Processed by Tarez Samra Graban, Amanda N. Hudson, Kasy Lloyd 2010; Heather J. Stone 2011; Anna Rimel 2013.

Completed in 2013.

Arrangement:

Collection is organized into seven series: Correspondence, Cecilia Hennel Hendricks papers, Cora Hennel papers, John Hendricks papers, Joseph Hennel papers, Hennel family papers, and Funeral and estate matters.

Online content

Access

RESTRICTIONS:

Collection is open for research. Advance notice required.

TERMS OF ACCESS:

The donor(s) of this collection have transferred their copyrights for the materials to the Trustees of Indiana University through a Deed of Gift. For more information, please contact the Indiana University Archives staff.

The Indiana University Archives respects the intellectual property rights of others and does not claim any copyrights for non-university records, materials in the public domain, or materials for which we do not hold a Deed of Gift. Responsibility for the determination of the copyright status of these materials rests with those persons wishing to reuse the materials. Researchers are responsible for securing permission from copyright owners and any other rights holders for any reuse of these materials that extends beyond fair use or other statutory limitations.

Digital reproductions of archival materials from the Indiana University Archives are made available for noncommercial educational and research purposes only. If you are the copyright holder for any of the digitized materials and have questions about its inclusion on our site, please contact the Indiana University Archivist.

PREFERRED CITATION:

[Item], Cecilia Hennel Hendricks family papers, Collection C413, Indiana University Archives, Bloomington.

CAMPUS:
Indiana University Bloomington
LOCATION OF THIS COLLECTION:
Herman B Wells Library E460
1320 East Tenth Street
Bloomington, Indiana 47405-7000, United States
CAMPUS:
Indiana University Bloomington
CONTACT:
812-855-1127
archives@iu.edu