Women's Scrapbook/ Commonplace Book Collections (University of Virginia)

Content Description

High school memory scrapbook and photo album of Bessie Marie Africa of Kanawha, Iowa from 1923 to 1927. The scrapbook is in a "School Friendship Book binding" assembled by Bessie Marie Africa documenting her high school years at Sanborn High School. It includes correspondence, programs, and mementos from theater, basketball, and football, and a declamatory contest. There are two large dolls created out of crepe paper.

Content Description This collection features a memory book belonging to Miss Isabella Bain (1855-1934) of New Orleans, Louisiana. Various personal letters from friends and New Orleans community members addressed to Miss Bain are included. The cover of the memory book is composed of engraved Morrocan leather adorned with "Miss Isabella Bain" in gilt. Several chromolithographs of a variety of subjects, notably botany and female gender roles, are pasted throughout the book. Letter entries are not...

Content Description

This collection contains one friendship album with pink, yellow, and blue colored pages filled with verse, inscriptions, and original drawings and illustrations. The inscription at front reads: "To Bessie, Wishing her many happy returns of her birthday with love from Lena & Will, August 13, [19]08."

Content Description

This collection contains a single book with 29 pages of inscriptions, autographs, and verse dated between 1839-1841, from Hudson New York. The first inscription was written by Christine Best, owner of the album, and includes a color illustration and title, "Christine Best's Book Hudson July 22, 1839." Original black leather embossed boards, highly decorated; red leather spine with gilt decoration.

Content Description

A ladies album belonging to Lucy Bradbury Bruce of Worcester County, Massachusetts which contains five engraved plates, sentiments from friends and family, three calligraphy drawings, and a watercolor theorem of a rose. Most of the well wishes are signed and dated, and many include locations. Predominately the locations and many of the signers are women including two of her sisters.

Content Description

Annie C. Buckley Album of Memory with gift inscription from her father dated Christmas 1857. The album includes multiple entries from Annie's friends and relations, many of which are dated 1858, Easton. Most of the entries are in verse form about friendship, memory, and in some cases death. Most appear to be original, not copied from printed works. There are 11 entries.

Content Description This collection contains a friendship album for Malinda "Lin" Caperton (1842-1922) of West Virginia. The album contains approximately thirty pages of autographs with dates throughout, 1855-1861. The autographs are almost certainly all from young girls, some noted as likely classmates from the Virginia Female Institute, although a lengthy two-page poem is more likely a male student at the University of Virginia.Caperton was the daughter of Allen Taylor Caperton, 1810-1876, the...

Content Description This collection contains the friendship album belonging to a woman named Caroline. It is assumed from the locations of the authors of the entries that she was from Massachusetts as towns listed include Plymouth, Boston, Berkley, etc. The earliest note from this album dates from 1837 and is a loose page that was inserted into the front covers. The page has two original poems written in 1837 and 1838, by Ester Holmes of Plymouth, entitled "The Thunder Storm," and "Parting of a mother with...

Content Description This collection contains a friendship album belonging to Mattie Davis given to her by her father on Christmas Eve, 1861. The album entries date from 1861 to 1867 and the majority of entries are poetry or short verses with themes of morality and friendship. There is no identification of Davis location; however, most entries are from Taylorsville, Indiana, so it is likely she is from that area. In addition to Taylorsville, there are several entries from Dupont, Indiana and Wilmington, Ohio....

Content Description Julia A. Dennison memory album, 1862-1866, Milan, Indiana, in red morocco "The Pet Album" binding, published by Leavitt and Allen with black and white printed illustrations of children and their mother in activities such as bathing or playing. The album, which is a gift from her brother, contains personal advice about keeping the young mind pure and other sentimental notes from her brothers. There are signatures of acquaintainces from Indiana and Ohio, including Civil War infantry in the...

Content Description

Forget Me Not friendship album Owned by Amelia Donges, "affectionately dedicated by her friend William F. Harman." 42 pages used for autographs, inscriptions, and verse. Locations signed include Campbelltown, Cornwall, Harrisburg, Attica, Stroudsburg, York, Mechanicsburg, and Princeton.

Content Description This collection contains a "The Forget Me Not Album" belonging to Bettie A. Ford, of Lynchburg, Virginia. The album contains a mix of hand-written sentiments, poems, and remembrances written to Ford. The entries are mostly signed by initial or first name and many are dated. A few of the entries have annotations with additional information about the creator. In addition to these entries, there appear to be journal type jottings, possibly written by Ford. Also included are printed poems,...

Content Description

Roxana Foreman high school scrapbook in "My Memory Book" binding from Harriman, and Lenoir City, Tennessee in 1927. It contains pasted-in colorful handmade and printed ephemera and letters, related to football, theater and school. There are also candy wrappers, ribbons, hats, Camel cigarettes, and many pages of hand-written text and sentimental authographs that provide a "diary" of Roxana's high school experiences.