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Little Family Papers, 1853-1956

By Archives Staff

Collection Overview

Title: Little Family Papers, 1853-1956

ID: RG 30/007

Creator: Little, Alice (1865-1958)

Extent: 1.2 Linear Feet

Arrangement:

SERIES DESCRIPTIONS

Series I. Correspondence

Subseries 1. Class of 1888 Letters, 1927-1956, n.d.

This subseries consists of four files of letters written to Alice Little regarding the 50-year reunion of the Class of 1888. The last set of letters contains a wealth of information on the activities of members of that class and their families since their graduation.

Subseries 2. Cowles-Little Family Letters, 1858-1949

The Cowles-Little Family correspondence contains several personal letters to Sarah, Alice, and Bessie Little, some regard the Tank Home and others came from missionaries around the world. Also included are letters sent and received by Clara Little Simpson and Elizabeth Lord.

Subseries 3. Dart-Leonard Family Letters, 1867-1917

The Dart-Leonard family correspondence consists mainly of letters from Sidney and Clara Dart in Africa to his family in the United States, 1911-1927; 11 of these were written by Clara. Also included is correspondence between other members of the Dart-Leonard family and with friends, l867-1905. There are a few letters from other women missionaries in Africa.

Series II. Miscellaneous, 1879, 1883, 1895, 1903-07, n.d.

This series contains materials relating to the education of Helen Dart and Clara Helen Little, and a photogaph of two women taken in Burma in 1883. A folder including grades and attendance records of Helen Dart while she was a student in the Oberlin Public School system has been marked restricted. Another folder holds a book account notebook for an Oberlin Theological Seminary student (1879), pages of notes from a religion course, and an algebra workbook belonging to Clara H. Little (1895).

Series III. Printed Matter, 1879-1927, n.d.

This series includes printed matter from various women’s and missionary organizations, including the Women’s National Sabbath Alliance, and a coverless volume on Christian influence in Micronesia titled The Old and the New in Micronesia (Chicago: WBMI, 1907), by Florence A. Fensham and Beulah Logan Tuthill. The miscellaneous printed materials include receipts, invitations, newspaper clippings, and a memorial book collected by Sarah Cowles Little and Clara Helen Little.

Series IV. Talks and Lectures, 1853, 1908

A talk and notes on a set of lectures by individuals outside the Little family are included in this series. “The Early College Buildings,” typewritten and edited on several note cards, was read in the College Chapel by Oberlin College President King in the Spring of 1908. Marcellus Emery copied seventy-eight pages of Professor Parker Cleveland’s chemical lectures at Bowdoin College (1853) in the included notebook.

Series V. Writings by Sarah C. Little, 1905, 1883

The writings series contains two published writings of Sarah C. Little. A manuscript of Sarah C. Little’s 1883 essay “Oberlin and the Education of Women” is included which was later published in Oberlin Jubilee, 1833-1883, pp. 146-58. The series also includes a biography of “Mrs. Elizabeth W. Russell Lord” and a letter concerning the Living Endowment Union which appeared in pp. 89-91 and 98, respectively, of the January 1905 Oberlin Alumni Magazine.

Date Acquired: 12/05/1967

Languages: English [eng]

Scope and Contents of the Materials

The Little collection spans several generations of Oberlin residents. The correspondence series, comprising the bulk of the collection, contains letters demonstrating the interest in missionary work by members of the Cowles-Little and Dart-Leonard families, and the correspondence relates to the activities of Class 1888 members. The remainder of the collection provides glimpses into the educational and activist lives of members of the Little family via school notes, talks, and published and printed works.

Administrative Information

Accruals: Accessions: 26, 1994/089, 1995/014, 1995/015, 1995/100.

Access Restrictions: One file restricted, see inventory for details.

Acquisition Method: The Little Papers were received from various individuals and organizations in five accessions in 1967, 1994, and 1995.

Related Materials: See also the Alice H. Simpson Papers (RG 30/240) and the Francis Henry Dart Papers (RG 30/161).

Finding Aid Revision History: Processed by Archives staff, March 2003. Revised May 2012.


Box and Folder Listing

Series I: Correspondence, 1858-1956, undatedAdd to your cart.
Subseries 1: Class of 1888 Letters, 1927-1956, undatedAdd to your cart.
Box 1Add to your cart.
Folder 1: Class of 1888 Letters, 1927-1956, undatedAdd to your cart.
Folder 2: Class of 1888 Letters, 1927-1956, undatedAdd to your cart.
Folder 3: Class of 1888 Letters, 1927-1956, undatedAdd to your cart.
Folder 4: Class of 1888 Letters, 1927-1956, undatedAdd to your cart.
Subseries 2: Cowles-Little Family Letters, 1858-1949Add to your cart.
Box 1Add to your cart.
Folder 1: Correspondence with members of the Little Family, 1888-1949Add to your cart.
Folder 2: Letters Received by Henry and Sarah Cowles, 1858-1870Add to your cart.
Folder 3: Letters Sent and Received by Sarah Cowles Little, 1862-1908Add to your cart.
Folder 4: Letters Sent and Received by Sarah Cowles Little, 1862-1908Add to your cart.
Folder 5: Circular Letter from Sarah Cowles Little, 1903 May 20Add to your cart.
Folder 6: Clara Little Simpson, 1887-1917Add to your cart.
Folder 7: Letters Sent from Elizabeth Lord to Mrs. Little, 1906-1908Add to your cart.
1906, 1908
Subseries 3: Dart-Leonard Family Letters, 1867-1927, undatedAdd to your cart.
Box 2Add to your cart.
Folder 1: Correspondence Between Members or Friends of Dart-Leonard Families, 1867-1911, undatedAdd to your cart.
Folder 2: Correspondence Between Members or Friends of Dart-Leonard Families, 1867-1911, undatedAdd to your cart.
Folder 3: Correspondence Between Members or Friends of Dart-Leonard Families, 1867-1911, undatedAdd to your cart.
Folder 4: Letters Sent by Frank H. Dart, 1875-1905, undatedAdd to your cart.
Folder 5: Letters Sent and Received by Helen Dart, 1912-1917Add to your cart.
Regarding employment.
Folder 6: Letters Sent by Sidney Dart, 1904-1913, undatedAdd to your cart.
Folder 7: Letters Sent by Sidney Dart, 1904-1913, undatedAdd to your cart.
Folder 8: Letters Sent by Sidney and Clara Dart, 1911-1927Add to your cart.
Folder 9: Letters Sent by Sidney and Clara Dart, 1911-1927Add to your cart.
Folder 10: Letters Sent by Sidney and Clara Dart, 1911-1927Add to your cart.
Folder 11: Letters Sent by Sidney and Clara Dart, 1911-1927Add to your cart.
Folder 12: Other Letters Sent to Members of the Dart Family, 1907-1913Add to your cart.
Series II: Miscellaneous, 1879-1907, undatedAdd to your cart.
Box 3Add to your cart.
Folder 1: Miscellaneous Student Notebooks and Notes, 1879-1895, undatedAdd to your cart.
Folder 2: Helen Dart, Oberlin Public School Grades and Attendance, 1903-1907Add to your cart.
Restricted.
Series III: Printed Matter, 1879-1927, undatedAdd to your cart.
Box 3Add to your cart.
Folder 1: The Old and New In Micronesia, Florence Fensham and Beulah Tuthill, 1907Add to your cart.
Folder 2: Miscellaneous Printed Materials, 1879-1927, undatedAdd to your cart.
Folder 3: Miscellaneous Printed Materials, 1879-1927, undatedAdd to your cart.
Series IV: Talks and Lectures, 1853-1908Add to your cart.
Box 3Add to your cart.
Folder 1: "The Early College Buildings," Henry Churchill King, 1908Add to your cart.
Folder 2: Notes by Thomas Little of Lectures by Parker Cleaveland at Bowdoin College, 1853Add to your cart.
Series V: Writings by Sarah C. Little, 1883-1905Add to your cart.
Box 3Add to your cart.
Folder 1: "Oberlin and the Education of Women," Manuscript, 1883Add to your cart.
Folder 2: "Mrs. Elizabeth W. Russell Lord," in Oberlin Alumni Magazine, 1905 JanuaryAdd to your cart.