Alice Gorton Hart Papers, 1948-1988 : Scope & Contents of the Collection

Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Alice Gorton Hart papers consist of 2.5 linear feet (6 boxes) of correspondence, photographs, memorabilia, clippings, printed material and miscellaneous writings, which are contained within her extensive personal journals dating from 1948 to the day before her death in 1987. In addition, there are two poetry collections: Prints and Poems (1982), and To Fly Once More (1988). The latter was published posthumously to commemorate her life. Her obituary and the eulogies given at her funeral were appended to the last journal.

In a letter to the Sophia Smith Collection in 1983 Hart described her journal: "It spans a great deal of philosophical change in women's lives ... [the] impact of the women's movement on a well educated normal wife/mother in a conservative environment who read, wrote, raged and changed." Her undergraduate life at Smith is well documented, reflecting an active social life with many male friends and much dating. There are several class notebooks, some papers she wrote, college event programs, memorabilia, and photographs included in the collection. These provide an excellent insight into life at Smith in the 1950s. Although Alice Gorton was at Smith at the same time as Sylvia Plath, with the exception of some clippings and articles about Plath, there is no indication that the two knew each other.

Hart's later journals document her life as wife and mother and her struggle to come to terms with the constraints of her life. They provide an intimate view of her sometimes troubled marriage; a close relationship with her parents, especially her mother; and strong friendships with both men and women. She also recorded some of her dreams. The journals are intimate and personal. Among the subjects she explored were women's spirituality, the feminist movement and the raising of feminist consciousness, poetry, and daily life. The 1957 journal (page 11) contains a letter from Aldous Huxley. Entries made during the last six months of her life document her struggle with terminal illness.