Alice Van Ess Brewer Papers
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> Scope and Contents of the Collection
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Scope and Contents of the Collection
The Alice F. Van Ess Brewer Papers consist of correspondence, course records, Silver Bay Association materials, memorabilia, biographical information, and photographs. These documents chiefly date from her years as a student at Mount Holyoke College, 1937-1941. Most of the material in the collection consists of correspondence with her parents, Dorothy Firman Van Ess and John Van Ess. The letters by Brewer, who signed herself "Kitty," date from September 28, 1937-December 11, 1940. She discusses her involvement with Debate Club, Glee Club, and other student organizations, dating and dances, college traditions such as Junior Prom, Founder's Day, May Day Pageant, and hazing, and her struggles to balance her coursework and social life. She also discusses the hurricane of September 1938, and her summer jobs at Silver Bay, a summer camp of the Young Women's Christian Association. Letters by Brewer's parents were written in Basrah, Iraq, where they were stationed as missionaries at a boys' school. These letters date from December 18, 1937-January 19, 1941 and discuss topics such as missionary work, religion, and the pre-war atmosphere in Iraq. Brewer's course records consist of papers from English (1938-1940), religion (1939-1940), and music (1940-1941) classes; these academic papers include poetry, short stories, essays, and a composer's manuscript folio. Materials from the Silver Bay Association consist of a newsletter from 1939, variety show schedules, a constitution of the organization, and Baylights yearbooks. Her memorabilia includes a certificate of membership and letter from Delta Sigma Rho (the honorary debate society), commencement programs, a Junior Show script, and lyrics to Christmas carols. Biographical information includes her United States Foreign Service application and newspaper clippings related to Brewer's life, including her obituary. Photographs consist of portraits and snapshots of Brewer and her Mount Holyoke classmates, circa 1937-1941. This collection is organized into six series:
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