Call Number:

Caldwell

Repository:

Bryn Mawr College

Extent:

1 folders

Language:

English

Date:

1894-11-14-1897-04-04 (inclusive)

Creator:

Bryn Mawr College

Abstract:

Elizabeth Miller Caldwell (1874-1945) was a member fo the Class of 1897 who took her A.B. in English and Latin. She lived in Merion Hall during her first three years at Bryn Mawr and then moved into Pembroke West for her senior year. Originally from Pittsburgh, she studied at Miss Baldwin's School in Bryn Mawr prior to enrolling at BMC. She married Gerard Fountain in 1898 and later sent her two daughters to Bryn Mawr College (Audrey Fountain, A.B. 1922, and Olivia Caldwell Fountain, A.B. 1924). The Letters of Elizabeth Miller Caldwell comprise a collection of eight letters written by Elizabeth Caldwell to her parents, Mr. and Mrs. John Caldwell. The letters span from November 14, 1894 to April 4, 1897, and discuss a wide range of topics, from student protests to SGA meetings.

Elizabeth Miller Caldwell (1874-1945) was a member fo the Class of 1897 who took her A.B. in English and Latin. She lived in Merion Hall during her first three years at Bryn Mawr and then moved into Pembroke West for her senior year. Originally from Pittsburgh, she studied at Miss Baldwin's School in Bryn Mawr prior to enrolling at BMC. She married Gerard Fountain in 1898 and later sent her two daughters to Bryn Mawr College (Audrey Fountain, A.B. 1922, and Olivia Caldwell Fountain, A.B. 1924).

According to her daughter, Olivia, Elizabeth had written home every day at the insistence of Mrs. Caldwell. However, Elizabeth later went through the letters, selected a handful to keep for Olivia, and either discarded or destroyed the rest.

The Letters of Elizabeth Miller Caldwell comprise a collection of eight letters written by Elizabeth Caldwell (class of 1897) to her parents, Mr. and Mrs. John Caldwell. The letters span from November 14, 1894 to April 4, 1897, and discuss a wide range of topics, from student protests to SGA meetings. The collection is comprised of one folder holding eight letters. The letters are arranged in chronological order. Many of the letters describe fairly mundane details of Caldwell's life, but a few events are of note. Her November 14th, 1894 letter describes a student protest to M. Carey Thomas against hall rules, and the ensuing demonstration on campus wherein printed copies of the rules were burned. Her April 24th, 1895 letter describes training for basketball, fighting during basketball games, and an SGA meeting concerning the necessity of banning secret societies. In her November 20th, 1895 letter Caldwell describes and sketches the microorganisms she has been seeing in lab. Her final letter, on April 4th, 1897, anticipates the end of college life and the "mournful feeling" amongst her classmates. The collection is small, but provides an interesting, intimate view into the early days of Bryn Mawr. Discussion of SGA is particularly notable, since it had only been founded in 1892.