mshm305 Thyra Jane Foster Papers, 1917-1984 Finding Aid Finding aid prepared by Danielle M. Ryan. Mount Holyoke College Archives and Special Collections
South Hadley, MA
© 2005

Mount Holyoke College. All rights reserved.

 Finding aid encoded in NoteTab Pro. Encoded by Patricia J. Albright. 2005-12-14 Finding aid written in English Mount Holyoke College Archives and Special Collections Thyra Jane Foster Papers, 1917-1984 Finding Aid MS 0836 Danielle M. Ryan October 2005

© 2005 Mount Holyoke College. All rights reserved.

 Collection Overview Foster, Thyra Jane, 1898-1984 Thyra Jane Foster Papers 1917-1984 MS 0836 LD 7096.6 1921 Meyers 1 box ( 5 linear in.) English Mount Holyoke College Archives and Special Collections Foster, Thyra Jane Meyers, 1898-1984; secondary school teacher, author, and archivist. Mount Holyoke College graduate, 1921. Papers contain course records, a scrapbook, writings by Foster, correspondence, memorabilia, biographical information, and photographs. Primarily concern her friends and social activities as a Mount Holyoke student and alumna as well as her childhood, family members, and Quaker history. Include Christmas cards, notes, and photographs from Marion Kendall Parsons, Mount Holyoke College Class of 1923. Biographical Note

Thyra Jane Meyers Foster, a secondary school teacher, author, archivist and Mount Holyoke College graduate, was born on March 12, 1898 in West Branch, Iowa to Joseph E. Meyers, a dairy farmer, and Mary Meyers. She attended Westtown Preparatory School in Westtown, Pennsylvania and went to Mount Holyoke College from 1917-1921, graduating with a B.A. in chemistry and minors in zoology and physiology. She married Henry C. Foster, a farmer, on September 5, 1924 and had three children. She taught high school chemistry, physics and Latin for seventeen years. She worked at the Barnesville Friends Boarding School in Barnesville, Iowa from 1921-1924 and at Coventry High School in Coventry, Rhode Island from about 1945-1960. She subsequently founded the New England Friends Archives (housed at the Rhode Island Historical Society Library) and worked there from 1960-1980. She was very active in the Quaker religion and held numerous state and local offices in the American Friends Association. She died in Warwick, Rhode Island on June 29, 1984 at the age of eighty-six.

 Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Thyra Jane Foster Papers are comprised of course records, a scrapbook, writings by Foster, correspondence, memorabilia and photographs. Most of the material in the collection relates to her years as a Mount Holyoke College student, 1917-1921. Course records consist of a notebook, examinations, and papers for a zoology course on chick embryology and compositions written for her freshman English course. Her scrapbook contains photographs of Mount Holyoke students, faculty and buildings as well as programs to several college events such as Faculty Show, Junior Show and Debating Society events. Writings by Foster consist of copies of three of her publications: Rhode Island Quakers in the American Revolution 1775-1790 (1976), A Tribute to Elizabeth Foster, Member of an Uncommon Family (circa 1980), and Growing Up in a Friends Family in Iowa 1902-1907 and Growing Up in a Friends Family on an Ohio Farm 1907-1915 (1983). Correspondence includes letters from Mount Holyoke administrators concerning her scholarships and remunerative work and letters from friends, 1918-1983, as well as Christmas cards and notes from Marion Kendall Parsons, circa 1940-1967, a member of the Mount Holyoke College Class of 1923. Most of these cards are illustrated with photographs of Parsons' children. Memorabilia includes notes and greeting cards from friends and copies of College songs. Biographical information consists of newspaper articles about Foster and a copy of her obituary, 1968-1984. Photographs in the collection include one of Foster taken at a Mount Holyoke reunion in about 1971, slides taken at reunions, 1958-1981, and photographs of several Mount Holyoke classmates.

 Organization of the Collection

This collection is organized into seven series:

Course Records (1917-1921) Scrapbook (1917-1921) Writings (1976, circa 1980, 1983) Correspondence (1918-1983) Memorabilia (circa 1917-1921) Biographical Information (1968-1984) Photographs (circa 1920-1981) Arrangement of the Collection

Materials are chronologically arranged within each series.

 Information on Use Terms of Access and Use

Unrestricted.

Use of the collection is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.).

 Preferred Citation

Please use the following format when citing materials from this collection:

Thyra Jane Foster Papers, Archives and Special Collections, Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, Massachusetts, USA

 History of the Collection

These papers were processed by Danielle M. Ryan, 2005.

 Search Terms Foster, Thyra Jane, 1898-1984. Parsons, Marion Kendall, 1903-1967. Mount Holyoke College--Students. Mount Holyoke College--Curricula. Mount Holyoke College--Faculty. Mount Holyoke College--Traditions. Mount Holyoke College--Campus-Views. Mount Holyoke College--Buildings--Views. Mount Holyoke College--Student papers--1917-1921. Mount Holyoke College-Student notebooks--1920-1921. College students--Massachusetts. Women college students--Massachusetts. Student activities-Massachusetts--South Hadley. English language--Study and teaching (Higher)--Massachusetts-South Hadley. Zoology--Study and teaching (Higher)--Massachusetts--South Hadley. Quakers--United States. Scrapbooks. Letters. Photographs. Slides. Christmas cards. Notebooks. Course Records 1917-1921 1 1 Themes for English 1(a) 1917 1 2 Notebooks, examinations, and papers for Zoology 4 1920-1921 Scrapbook 1917-1921 1 3 1917-1921 Writings 1976, circa 1980, 1983 1 4 Rhode Island Quakers in the American Revolution 1775-1790 1976 1 5 Tribute to Elizabeth Foster, Member of an Uncommon Family circa 1980 1 6 Growing Up in a Friends Family in Iowa 1902-1907 and Growing Up in a Friends Family on an Ohio Farm 1907-1915 1983 Correspondence 1918-1983 1 7 1918-1983 1 8 circa 1940-1967: Christmas cards from Marion Kendall Parsons Memorabiliacirca 1917-1921 1 9 circa 1917-1921 Biographical Information 1968-1984 1 10 1968-1984 Photographscirca 1920-1981 1 11 Of Foster circa 1971 1 12 Of Mount Holyoke College classmates circa 1920-1921 1 13 Slides taken at Mount Holyoke College reunions 1958-1981