Collection ID: LMC 1982
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Collection context

Summary

Creator:
Smith, Hannah (Whitall)
Abstract:
The Smith, H.W. mss., 1817-1987, consists of the letters of reformer Hannah Whitall Smith, 1832-1911, her daughters, art historian Mary Berenson, 1864-1945, and relief organizer Alys Whitall Pearsall Russell, 1867-1951, and her granddaughters, suffragist Ray Strachey, 1887-1940, and psychologist Karin Stephen, 1889–1953.
Extent:
30500 Items
Language:
English .
Preferred citation:

[Item], Smith, H.W. mss., Lilly Library, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana.

Background

Biographical / Historical:

Hannah Whitall Smith (1832-1911), American evangelist, writer, and reformer, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She grew up in a strict Quaker home and from childhood had a passion for religion and introspection. Hannah married Robert Pearsall Smith (1827-1899) in 1851 and settled in Germantown, Pennsylvania. In 1864 they moved to Millville, New Jersey, where they joined the Wesleyan-based Holiness movement. They had two daughters, Mary (1864-1945) and Alys (1867-1951), and one son, Logan Pearsall (1865-1946). In the late 1860's Hannah began preaching and writing on religious subjects, and later became involved in the temperance and suffrage movements, founding the Woman's Christian Temperance Union in 1874. When Mary married English barrister Frank Costelloe in 1888, the family moved to England where Hannah continued her work. It was there that Alys married philosopher Bertrand Russell. Alys joined her mother in working for women's rights and had a keen interest in political issues.

Meanwhile Mary's marriage to Frank Costelloe failed soon after the birth of their second daughter Karin. Mary left England to tour the museums and cathedrals of Europe with her future husband, art critic Bernard Berenson. Mary's daughters Ray and Karin stayed in England with their father and thrived under the influence of their grandmother Hannah. Ray became the third generation of "Whitall" women to devote her life to women's issues, while Karin became a pioneer in Freudian psychoanalysis and one of Britain's first psychoanalysts. The circle of friends and relatives broadened further when Ray married into the Strachey family and Karin wed Virginia Woolf's brother Adrian Stephen.

Scope and Content:

Consists primarily of letters of Hannah Whitall Smith, her two daughters Mary Berenson and Alys Whitall Pearsall Russell, and Mary's two daughters Ray Strachey and Karin Stephen. The correspondence is mostly among these five women, but included is correspondence with other members of the Smith family, extended relations and friends both in the U.S. and Europe.

Other correspondents include: Bernard Berenson, Dorothy Bussy, Frank Costelloe, Jane Ellen Harrison, Bertrand Russell, Geoffrey Scott, Logan Pearsall Smith, Robert Pearsall Smith, Lady Henry Somerset, Adrian Stephen, Alix Strachey, Barbara Strachey, Julia Frances Strachey, Oliver Strachey, M. Carey Thomas, Frances Elizabeth Willard, and Virginia Woolf.

Also present in the collection are juvenalia, writings, clippings, scrapbooks, diaries, photographs, and other miscellaneous papers.

Note on Indexing Term - "Bloomsbury Group": The family had many connections with the British literary intellectual community. Alys married philosopher Bertrand Russell. Ray married into the Strachey family and Karin wed Virginia Woolf's brother Adrian Stephen. In the collection there are letters from Clive Bell, Edward Morgan Forster, Roger Eliot Fry, John Maynard Keynes, Giles Lytton Strachey and Virginia Woolf.

Note on Indexing Term - "Art": Of interest is material concerning the art critic Bernard Berenson and his wife, Mary (Smith) Berenson.

Note on Indexing Term - "Travel": Of interest are the letters and diaries of Mary Smith Berenson who traveled extensively in Europe.

Acquisition information:
Purchased: 1989
Arrangement:

Arranged in the following series: I. General correspondence. II. Correspondence from family members. III. Miscellaneous. IV. Photographs. V. Bound volumes.

Physical location:
ALF (Auxiliary Library Facility) - OVFlat; Lilly - Stacks

Access

RESTRICTIONS:

This collection is open for research.

Many collections are housed offsite; retrieval requires advance notice. Please make an appointment a minimum of one week in advance of your visit.

TERMS OF ACCESS:

Photography and digitization may be restricted for some collections. Copyright restrictions may apply. Before publishing, researchers are responsible for securing permission from all applicable rights holders, then filling out the Permission to Publish form.

PREFERRED CITATION:

[Item], Smith, H.W. mss., Lilly Library, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana.

CAMPUS:
Indiana University Bloomington
LOCATION OF THIS COLLECTION:
1200 East Seventh Street
Bloomington, Indiana 47405-5500, USA
CAMPUS:
Indiana University Bloomington
CONTACT:
(812) 855-2452
liblilly@indiana.edu