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Mary Whitall Worthington papers
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Held at: Bryn Mawr College [Contact Us]Bryn Mawr College Library, 101 N. Merion Avenue, Bryn Mawr 19010
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Bryn Mawr College. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.
Overview and metadata sections
Mary Whitall Worthington was a 1910 graduate of Bryn Mawr College and the president of the Bryn Mawr chapter of the Woman's Equal Suffrage League. She was the niece of Bryn Mawr president M. Carey Thomas, being the daughter of Thomas's sister, Grace Thomas Worthington. She grew up with her mother in England, after her parents' divorce in 1896, and returned to England during the summers while she was in college. Worthington was an ardent suffragist who met with several prominent suffragists of the day, including Anna Howard Shaw. She was highly involved with several on-campus activities, serving as the Secretary and President of the Equal Suffrage League, Vice-President and Treasurer of the Philosophical Club, Secretary of the Science Club, and general member of the Sunday Evening Meeting Committee. After graduation, she attended the Johns Hopkins Medical School, but died as the result of congenital heart failure in January 1912.
The Mary Whitall Worthington papers houses the personal papers and four diaries of Worthington, class of 1910. Her diaries, which cover April 1907 to November 1911, describe her time at Bryn Mawr College from late in her first year to her graduation, and then during her first year of medical school at Johns Hopkins University. They are extensive and eloquent reflections on Worthington's life as a young woman attending college in the early 20th century. Her personal papers range from 1906-1911, and likewise provide insight into the life of an intelligent, perceptive early 20th century college woman.
The collection is comprised of two boxes. The first of these houses the four diaries kept by Worthington during her years at Bryn Mawr, while the second box holds Worthington's personal papers.
Worthington's diaries are arranged chronologically. The first covers her freshman year at Bryn Mawr in the spring of 1907. In it, she describes College traditions, athletic events and plays, and the early stages of working with the Bryn Mawr chapter of the College Women's Equal Suffrage League. She discusses her interest in biology and her advocacy for women's suffrage and social reform. Her second diary covers 1907 to 1908, and gives further description of the College's traditions and her involvement with the College Women's Equal Suffrage League. Additionally, she discusses playing on the hockey team, concern over her grades, her repeated stays in the infirmary, and her relatives (including her aunt, M. Carey Thomas. Her third diary is from her junior year at Bryn Mawr College, in 1908-1909. She describes her travels in England and Ireland over summer vacation. Her passion for women's suffrage flourishes: she describes the meetings of the Bryn Mawr Chapter of the College Equal Suffrage League (of which she was president; her attendance at the 40th Annual convention of the North American Woman Suffrage Association in Buffalo, NY; and the talks she attends regarding suffrage, including one by Anna Howard Shaw. She says, of this convention: "All the great people in the suffrage world were there." She also writes about her friends, family members, and hockey. Her fourth diary dates from her senior year, 1909-1910. She describes her summer vacation, during which she sailed from New York to Europe on board the RMS Lusitania. During her stay in England, Worthington had tea and attended a "suffragette raid" on the House of Commons with Inez and Vida Milholland, leaders in the National Women's Party. This diary also describes Emmeline Pankhurst's later talk at the Merion Cricket Club, and Worthington's subsequent conversation with her. Finally, the diary is filled with talk of her friends, hockey games, club lectures, play and glee club rehearsals, and traditions. Among her best friends were Peggy James, the daughter of William James, and Mary Nearing, the sister of Scott Nearing.
The second box contains Worthington's personal papers: these include a small amount of correspondence from 1906 to 1911, including several letters from M. Carey Thomas; loose jounal pages that were likely intended to be eventually transcribed into a bound volume like the diaries in Box 1; manuscripts of Worthington's speeches on suffrage and other topics; and a handwritten manuscript of an untitled play that takes place on a college campus.
The years during which Mary Whitall Worthington attended Bryn Mawr College were critical for reimagining the role of women in the 20th century. Worthington's attendance at an elite women's college and her involvement with the women's suffrage movement gave her a unique perspective on the capabilities, duties, and possibilities of women. This collection provides an intimate view into the life of a unique individual. It would be of use to any researcher interested in women's education, college women's involvement in the suffrage movement, or Bryn Mawr College during the early 20th century.
The Mary Whitall Worthington diaries have been digitized and can be found on Triptych at http://triptych.brynmawr.edu/cdm/landingpage/collection/BMC_MWW
- Publisher
- Bryn Mawr College
- Finding Aid Author
- Cassidy Gruber Baruth
- Finding Aid Date
- 2018 October 2
- Access Restrictions
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The collection is open for research.
- Use Restrictions
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Standard Federal Copyright Laws Apply (U.S. Title 17)
Collection Inventory
Mary Whitall Worthington's diary during her freshman year at Bryn Mawr in the spring of 1907. Mary Worthington, M. Carey Thomas's "dear, intelligent niece," recorded descriptions of many College traditions including May Day, her class dinner, a bonfire, and the garden party. She writes about attending athletic events and plays at both Bryn Mawr and Haverford, spending time with friends, and the early stages of working with the Bryn Mawr chapter of the College Women's Equal Suffrage League. This diary also includes a recounting of her summer vacation, giving a good idea of her several groups of friends. In her diary she talks about her interest in biology as well as her advocacy for women's suffrage and social reform. Throughout her diary, Mary Whitall Worthington includes photographs of friends, place cards and programs from events, drawings and poems by friends, and a letter from her brother.
Mary Whitall Worthington's diary during her time at Bryn Mawr College from 1907 to 1908. In it she gives vivid descriptions of her day to day life including interesting lectures she attends, time with friends, class plays, and traditions such as rush night, lantern night, May Day, and her class dinner. She discusses her extracurricular activities including playing on the hockey team and her involvement with the College Women's Equal Suffrage League. Miss Worthington writes of her interest in philosophy and pens in an address (possibly for a meeting of the College Women's Equal Suffrage League) entitled "Women and Progress." In this diary, Miss Worthington occasionally expresses concern about her grades and academic performance and mentions her health and repeated stays in the infirmary and visits to doctors. She talks about her relatives, particularly her aunt, M. Carey Thomas, and her brother Babe who attends Haverford College (class of 1911). Throughout her diary, Mary Whitall Worthington includes photographs of friends, programs from events, exam questions, drawings, and letters from family members. Miss Worthington also keeps a list of the books she has read throughout the year at the front of the diary and an index of topics she discusses at the back.
Mary Whitall Worthington's diary from her junior year at Bryn Mawr College. The diary begins during her summer vacation while she is visiting friends and family in Europe. She describes visiting Newnham College and sneaking into play rehearsals, hearing engaging speakers on women's suffrage, and traveling around Ireland. Miss Worthington has a deep interest in the women's Suffrage movement and this passion can be seen throughout her diary. In her junior year at Bryn Mawr she is the President of the College Equal Suffrage League and attends the 40th Annual convention of the North American Woman Suffrage Association in Buffalo, NY in October of 1908. She writes about the experience of attending the convention, of hearing M. Carey Thomas speak, of meeting other women dedicated to the cause, and of her unfavorable opinion of Harriot Stanton Blatch. Her diary includes accounts of other meetings of the Bryn Mawr chapter of the College Equal Suffrage League and her thoughts on the many talks she attends regarding suffrage, including two (one given at Bryn Mawr) by Anna Howard Shaw. She also writes about playing on the hockey team (including a particularly memorable game between the classes of 1909 and 1910 played in "fancy dress"), performing in and and attending plays and other cultural performances, and about traditions including rush night and the garden party. Miss Worthington writes about her different friend groups and their interactions, giving more detail especially as more of them get engaged and some experience the loss of loved ones. She talks about her relatives, particularly her aunt, M. Carey Thomas. Throughout her diary, Mary Whitall Worthington includes photographs of friends, programs from events, exam questions, drawings, and letters from family members. Miss Worthington also includes an index of topics she discusses at the back of the diary.
Mary Whitall Worthington's diary from around the time of her senior year at Bryn Mawr College, 1909-1910. The diary begins with a description of Miss Worthington's summer vacation in which she goes first to Baltimore to visit with family and friends, and then to New York before sailing to Europe on board the RMS Lusitania. In England she attends a number of parties and social engagements and makes new friends. She goes to the World's Student Christian Federation Meeting in Oxford and is moved by the religious devotion she witnesses. Miss Worthington is particularly interested in the suffrage movement, and while in England she has tea with Inez and Vida Milholland. They attend a "suffragette raid" on the House of Commons together, and Miss Worthington gives a detailed description of the demonstration and includes newspaper clippings with her own thoughts. Later in the year, when Emmeline Pankhurst gives a lecture at the Merion Cricket Club and tours Bryn Mawr, Miss Worthington is able to speak with her about the movement and privately marvel that she dressed in purple, white, and green – suffragette colors.
This diary is filled with Miss Worthington's high praise of her friends, descriptions of hockey games, club lectures, play and glee club rehearsals, and traditions such as rush night, lantern night, May Day (for which she was elected the May Queen), and bonfire night. Throughout her diary, Miss Worthington talks about her relatives, in particular her aunt, M. Carey Thomas. She also includes programs from events, exam questions, drawings and photographs, and letters from family members. Miss Worthington also includes an index of topics she discusses at the back of the diary.