Collection context
Summary
- Creator:
- Abrell, Faye Calvert, 1909-2003
- Abstract:
- Faye Calvert Abrell attended Indiana University and graduated with both a BS in Education in 1936 and a MS in Education in 1941. Following her time at Indiana University, Abrell spent 1946-1947 teaching in the Dependents School Service in war-torn Frankfurt, Germany and was involved in the Allied Forces mission of effecting a permanent peace. The majority of the collection reflects Abrell's year spent teaching abroad and includes correspondence, photographs, scrapbooks she made and souvenirs she collected while in Germany.
- Extent:
- 1.6 cubic feet (3 boxes) and 1.6 cubic feet (3 boxes)
- Language:
- Materials are in English ; some postcards in German .
- Preferred citation:
[Item], Faye Calvert Abrell papers, Collection C592, Indiana University Archives, Bloomington.
Background
- Biographical / Historical:
Faye Calvert Abrell was born on February 20, 1909 in Freedom, Owen County, Indiana to Foster and Amy V. Abrell. Faye attended Indiana University and graduated with a BS in Education in 1936 and a MS in Education in 1941. Following her time at IU, Abrell sought employment with the U.S. Army as a War Department civilian employee in the U.S. Forces European Theater. As a result, she spent 1946-1947 teaching in the Dependents School Service, established in 1946, in war-torn Frankfurt, Germany, and was involved in the Allied Forces mission of effecting a permanent peace.
At the Dependents School, Abrell spent the year in the American occupied zone of Germany teaching American children who had moved overseas with their military families. During her periods of leave from teaching, Abrell travelled around Europe and during this time, visited Adolf Hitler's home (also known as "The Eagle's Nest) and attended some of the Nuremburg Trials.
The photographs taken by Abrell document the resiliency of the German people to continue forward and rebuild after World War II. Abrell photographed numerous views of the bombed buildings and countryside she witnessed during her year abroad. Abrell described the apartment building she lived in during her time in Frankfurt as "half bombed away," and the city of Frankfurt itself over 65% destroyed. In one of the journals within this collection, Abrell comments that she later returned in 1967 just to see the city of Frankfurt rebuilt.
Abrell was an elementary school teacher for Monroe County Schools until her retirement in 1975. She was actively involved in the community and in many organizations. Abrell died on March 8, 2003 at age 94.
- Scope and Content:
The Abrell papers are organized into four series: Biographical, Correspondence, Photographs, and Souvenirs.
The Biographical series (1922-1999) contains documents related to Abrell's work as a War Department civilian employee, journals she kept while in Germany, a biography of one of her friends, and certificates related to Abrell's academic and community involvement accomplishments. The files are arranged alphabetically by folder titles.
The Correspondence series (1944-1953) contains letters, postcards, cards, and telegrams that were exchanged during Abrell's year spent in Frankfurt, Germany. The bulk of the letters are between Abrell and her mother. The files are arranged by letters sent to Faye C. Abrell and letters from Faye C. Abrell to friends and family. The letters are further arranged within folders chronologically.
The Photographs series (1946-1947) contains photographs taken by Abrell during 1946-1947 and begin with photographs taken on the boat trip to Europe and ending with photographs from the boat trip back to America. Abrell also created several scrapbooks of her photographs, tickets, and souvenirs collected while teaching and travelling in Europe. Within the largest scrapbook Abrell kept, she pressed a flower she claims she took from a bouquet on Hitler's table and a piece of broken marble from his mantelpiece. Nearly every photograph has been labeled with details of the location, date, and names of individuals as described by Abrell. The photographs are arranged alphabetically by locations as labeled by Abrell.
The Souvenirs series (1944-1990) contains blank postcards, pamphlets from the Nuremburg Trials, a German-English/English-German Dictionary, restaurant menus, play billets, maps of Germany, and other miscellaneous pamphlets and articles collected during Abrell's year in Frankfurt, Germany. The files are arranged alphabetically by locations as labeled by Abrell.
- Acquisition information:
- Accension 2008/084
- Custodial history:
Transferred in October 2008.
- Processing information:
Processed by Rachel E. Hancock.
Completed in 2015.
- Arrangement:
The collection is organized into four series: Biographical, Correspondence, Photographs, and Souvenirs.
Indexed Terms
Access
- RESTRICTIONS:
-
Collection is open for research. Advance notice required.
- TERMS OF ACCESS:
-
The donor(s) of this collection have not transferred their copyrights for the materials to the Trustees of Indiana University. 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], Faye Calvert Abrell papers, Collection C592, Indiana University Archives, Bloomington.
- CAMPUS:
- Indiana University Bloomington
- LOCATION OF THIS COLLECTION:
-
Herman B Wells Library E4601320 East Tenth StreetBloomington, Indiana 47405-7000, United States
- CAMPUS:
- Indiana University Bloomington
- CONTACT:
-
812-855-1127archives@indiana.edu