Mary McHenry Papers, 1933-1996
General International Standard for Archival Description
Mount Holyoke College Archives and Special Collections South Hadley, MA
Finding aid encoded in NoteTab Pro. Encoded by Danielle Ryan. 2006-10-03
Encoded Archival Description
Encoded Archival Description (EAD) Version 2002
collection
Mary McHenry Papers
Creation of Mary McHenry Papers
Time of Creation of Mary McHenry Papers
McHenry, Mary, 1933-
Biographical History for: Mary McHenry Papers
Biographical Note Mary Elizabeth Williamson Murphy McHenry, Mount Holyoke College graduate and Mount Holyoke College professor of English, was born on January 23, 1933 in Washington DC to Alphonso Williamson, a supply officer at the Library of Congress, and Elizabeth Bennett Williamson, a teacher. She attended high school at the Oakwood School in Poughkeepsie, New York from 1946-1950, Mount Holyoke College from 1950-1954 and graduated with a bachelor's degree in English, received a master's degree in English Literature from Columbia University in 1960 and did graduate work beyond the master's level at George Washington University from 1961-1964. She married Harry Saunders Murphy, Jr. on July 31, 1954 and divorced circa 1959. She married Donald F. McHenry circa 1962 and divorced on August 18, 1976. She had one son with Murphy and two daughters with McHenry. McHenry taught as an instructor of English at Howard University from 1960-1963 and at George Washington University from 1964-1969. She was a Professor of English at Federal City College (now the University of DC) from 1969-1974. McHenry was an English professor at Mount Holyoke College from 1974-1998 and was also a member of the American Studies and the Black (later African-American) Studies departments.
Scope and Contents of the Collection The papers of Mary Elizabeth Williamson Murphy McHenry (1933- present) span the years 1933-1996 (bulk dates 1946-1954 and 1972-1993) and are organized into the following series: correspondence, writings and speeches, course records, yearbooks, calendars and planners, subject files, family papers, biographical information, memorabilia, photographs, scrapbooks. The correspondence and course records are the largest and most complete portions of the collection. The bulk of the collection details her time as a student at the Oakwood School and Mount Holyoke College and her professional career at Mount Holyoke College. The collection is primarily in English, with some correspondence in French. The Course Records detail McHenry's education from elementary school through the graduate level with transcripts, graded work and notebooks, as well as documenting her career as a professor at Federal City College (1969-1974) and Mount Holyoke College (1974-1998) with syllabi, notes and graded student work from courses she taught. The Correspondence series is mainly personal before 1960 and professional thereafter. The bulk of the series is personal correspondence detailing her time as a student at the Oakwood School and Mount Holyoke College. This personal correspondence includes letters to and from her parents from her childhood through adulthood, as well as many letters from other family members including her husbands and children. The professional correspondence in the series documents her career and includes letters and memos to and from her bosses, colleagues and students. The Family Papers contain biographical material in the form of resumes, obituaries and diaries of several of McHenry's family members. The Biographical Information contains McHenry's birth certificate, academic transcripts, resumes, job applications and newspaper articles about her. The Memorabilia contains mementos saved by McHenry from piano recitals she gave, events she participated in and honors she was awarded such as a script from the 1952 Mount Holyoke College Junior show and a Phi Beta Kappa initiation sign. The Yearbook series contains McHenry's high school yearbooks. The Calendars and Planners series contains daily planners from McHenry's time as an undergraduate. The Subject Files contain programs from symposia she attended, instructions for grading Education Testing Services exams and lists of people and addresses arranged by McHenry. The Scrapbook contains birthday cards from her birth through age 10. The Photographs series contains photographs of McHenry and others 1933-1990s. Material from this collection is available in an online digital format.
College teachers - Massachusetts - South Hadley
lcsh
English Literature - study and teaching (Higher) - Massachusetts - South Hadley
English teachers - Massachusetts - South Hadley
France - Description and travel
Ireland - Description and travel
Student activities - Massachusetts - South Hadley
Women college students - Massachusetts - South Hadley
Women college teachers - Massachusetts - South Hadley
Women graduate students - New York - New York
African American college students
African American women college students
McHenry, Mary
lcnaf
Coleman, Sarah Williamson
Hendrie, Don
Irving, John, 1942-
McHenry, Christina
McHenry, Donald F.
McHenry, Elizabeth
McLean, Sydney R. (Sydney Robertson), 1900-1973
Murphy, Harry Saunders, Jr.
Williamson, Alphonso, 1902-1993
Williamson, Elizabeth Bennett, 1905-1999
Mount Holyoke College - Students
Mount Holyoke College - Faculty
Mount Holyoke College - African-American alumnae
Mount Holyoke College. African American Studies Department
Mount Holyoke College - Curricula
Mount Holyoke College. English Department
Mount Holyoke College - Student life - 1950-1954
Mount Holyoke College - Student notebooks - 1950-1954
Mount Holyoke College - Student papers - 1950-1954
Mount Holyoke College - Student papers - 1974-1996
Mount Holyoke College - Traditions
Oakwood Friends School - Poughkeepsie, New York
Federal City College - faculty
Howard University - Faculty
Columbia University - Students
aat
series
Correspondence 1940-1996, n.d.
The Correspondence Series contains both professional and personal correspondence from elementary school through her career at Mount Holyoke College including letters to and from her parents, letters from her children, her husbands, friends, students and colleagues. There are some letters to her parents from other people and to each other. Letters from the 1940s through 1954 mainly detail her life as a high school and college student through correspondence with her parents. This portion of the correspondence series is particularly extensive. Topics from this time period including her adjustment to the schools, her academic progress, her social life and her courtship with Harry Saunders Murphy, Jr.. There are also letters to her parents detailing her experiences living with the family of a wealthy doctor and then with the family of a miner during her 1950 trip to France through the "Experiment in International Living" program. Letters from 1954 through the 1960s are mainly addressed to friends and family members and describe her adjustment to married life and motherhood, the difficulties and concerns of juggling family and career, her search for teaching jobs and her struggle to gain graduate education while caring for a family. Letters from the 1970s through the 1990s primarily describe her professional career, first at Federal City College and more extensively at Mount Holyoke College. There is also correspondence detailing her weeklong 1972 visit to Mount Holyoke College as an "alumna in residence." The correspondence from her career at Mount Holyoke includes letters to many faculty and staff, often about standard college and departmental news and information, but also discussions of topics such as the status of African-American students, the general campus environment and the role of women's colleges in higher education. Additionally, there is much correspondence with students including praise of her teaching, updates about their lives after graduation and requests for recommendations. The material from this time span also includes personal correspondence such as letters to and from her daughters Christina and Elizabeth, her parents, Donald McHenry and many other friends and family members.
Writings and Speeches 1952-1987
The Writings and Speeches series contains unpublished essays and manuscripts by McHenry as well as a speech she delivered at the Oakwood School and two speeches she delivered as a professor at Mount Holyoke College events. These materials include her 1953 writings in Mount Holyoke College's Tempo Magazine, a report given at Federal City College about the English placement exam, notes; draft and a manuscript of a style guide co-authored by McHenry in 1972 (apparently unpublished), drafts of a work called "My Black Childhood," McHenry's proof reading corrections to a manuscript of John Irving's The World According to Garp, a small written work titled "Why I teach," a speech given by McHenry at the Oakwood School in 1952 about her trip to France, a transcript, program and sound recording of a speech given by McHenry at the 1972 Mount Holyoke College conference "Escape from the Circle: An Exploration of the Effect and Effectiveness of Education in Determining the roles of Women," and a speech given by McHenry at the conferring of an honorary doctoral degree to Maya Angelou.
Course Records circa 1944-1996, n.d. (bulk 1946-1954 and 1974-1993)
The Course Records contain documents both from McHenry's time as a student and from courses she taught as a professor of English. McHenry's student records document her elementary education through her master's work at Columbia. These records include graded work, notebooks, report cards and transcripts. The records of classes taught by McHenry span her early career at Federal City College, Howard and George Washington through her time at Mount Holyoke from the 1970s-1990s. These records include syllabi, her notes from the classes and graded student work.
Yearbooks 1946-1950
The yearbooks series contains McHenry's 1946-1948 and 1950 yearbooks from the Oakwood School.
Calendars and Planners 1946-1954
The Calendars and Planners Series contains a 1946 telephone and address book, a daily planner from 1949, and daily planners of the 1950-1954 academic years which record assignments and events.
Subject Files 1950s-1980
The subject files series contains programs and information from events attended by McHenry including the 1979 Consortium on Financing Higher Education: Conference on Campus Climates for Minorities, the 1972 Education Policy Symposium, and Speech 101 at Southern Illinois University, instructions and policy regarding grading exams for Educational Testing Services and lists of people and addresses arranged by McHenry.
Family Papers 1917-1980s
The Family Papers Series contains biographical information about several of McHenry's family members. This material includes telegraphs of sympathy and the funeral registry related to the death of McHenry's maternal grandfather Franklin Bennett, a diary, eulogy and passport of McHenry's paternal aunt or great aunt Sarah Williamson Coleman, an elementary school transcript, teaching evaluations, pamphlet about the "Futurist Club" (which she co-founded) and a brief, handwritten memoir by McHenry's mother Elizabeth Bennett Williamson, college transcripts and employment applications of McHenry's second husband Donald F. McHenry, grades, articles and school information about McHenry's daughter Elizabeth McHenry and some financial information and travel planning information belonging to McHenry's parents Alphonso and Elizabeth Williamson.
Biographical Information 1933-1985
The Biographical information Series includes McHenry's 1933 birth certificate, transcripts of her academic work from elementary school through college, a marriage license for her marriage to Harry Saunders Murphy, Jr., a divorce summons for her divorce from Donald F. McHenry, letters of inquiry and applications for numerous teachings jobs in the 1950s, different versions of her resume from 1970-1973, forms indicating her official acceptance of and/or resignation from jobs at the Library of Congress, Federal City College and Mount Holyoke College, an evaluation of her teaching at Federal City College in 1972 including descriptions of her courses, a self-evaluation and an evaluation of her students, applications for Fellowships from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Whitney Foundation and newspaper and magazine articles about McHenry from the 1950s-1980s with topics as varied as notices of her marriages and awards she won in college to profiles and interviews about her experiences teaching at Mount Holyoke
Memorabilia 1940s-1970s
Memorabilia contains programs from McHenry's childhood piano recitals in the 1940s, pamphlets and souvenirs from a 1950 trip to France, programs from the Mount Holyoke college Freshman, Sophomore and Junior shows 1950-1953 in which McHenry performed, church bulletins announcing McHenry's gifts to the Calvary Episcopal Church and All Saints Church in honor of her grandfather, an announcement for McHenry's 1954 graduation from Mount Holyoke College, a Phi Beta Kappa sign from McHenry's initiation in 1954, a script for the 1952 Mount Holyoke College Junior Show, a small, hand-made book containing a humorous poem about McHenry called "A Book for MEW," a program from the 1973 Black Alumnae Conference and a program from the 1976 Mount Holyoke College reunion.
Photographs 1933-1990s
Contains photographs of McHenry from infancy through 1983, photographs of McHenry with other people and photographs of friends, family and colleagues including her parents, husbands and children.
Scrapbooks 1933-1943
This series contains one scrapbook with birthday cards for McHenry from family and friends from her birth through age 10.
1940-July 1945
August-September 1945
January-September 1946
October 1946
November 1-11 1946
November 12-31 1946
December 1946
January-April 1947
April-October 16 1947
October 17-December 1947
January 1948
February-March 1948
April-May 1948
June-December 1948
January-March 1949
April-October 1949
November-December 1949
January-April 1950
May-June 1950
July 1950
August-October 1950
November-December 1950
January-March 1951
April-December 1951
January-July 1952
August-September 1952
October-December 1952
January-April 1953
May-June 1953
July-October 1953
November-December 1953
January-February 1954
March-April 1954
May-September 1954
August-December 1954
January-April 1973
May-June 1973
July-September 1973
October-December 1973
January-July 1976
August-December 1976
January-July 1977
August-December 1977
January-May 1978
June-December 1978
no date
Speech on France at Oakwood School 1952
Tempo Magazine 1953
Federal City College English Placement Examination Report circa 1971
Theme and technique: The Vision of the Black Novelist circa 1972
Notes and Drafts of Style Guide 1972
Notes and Drafts of Style Guide, cont.'d 1972
Manuscript of Style Guide 1972
"Escape from the Circle" Notes and Sound Recording 1972-1973
"My black Childhood" circa 1973
Various Writings 1975-1978
Edited Manuscript of The World According to Garp circa 1977
"Why I Teach" 1985
Maya Angelou's Honorary Degree Conferring 1987
History Notebooks circa 1944
1946, cont.'d
circa 1947-1948
English 1948-1949
French Impressionist Art circa 1946-1950
circa 1940s
circa 1940s, cont.'d
Chemistry B1 Fall 1950
English B1-B2 "Reading and Writing" Spring 1951
English B4 "Great English Writers" Spring 1951
English 209 Fall 1951
English 223 Fall 1951
English 231 Fall 1952
English 231, cont.'d Fall 1952
English 204 "Elizabethan Drama" Spring 1953
English 234 Spring 1953
English 339 "James Joyce" Fall 1952
English 371 Fall 1953
English "Notes from Honors Work 'A Study of Herman Melville's Mardi'" 1954
English "Honors Thesis Bibliographic Notes" 1954
English "Honors Thesis: Notes, Drafts, papers" 1954
English "Honors Thesis, misc." 1954
English "Honors Examination" 1954
English, misc. circa 1950-1954
French 207,208 Spring 1952
French 308 Spring 1953
Geology B1, B2 Fall 1951
German 213 Fall 1953
German 213 Spring
Philosophy B1-B2 1950-1951
Philosophy 242 Spring 1954
Philosophy 325 Fall 1953
Various Subjects 1951-1952
Various Subjects 1950-1954
Various Subjects 1953
Various Subjects circa 1953
Columbia "American cultural Thought" circa 1955-1960
Columbia "American cultural Thought" cont.'d circa 1955-1960
Various Subjects circa 1955-1960
Master's Degree Work circa 1957
Master's Degree examination 1957
Master's Thesis 1960
1962, cont.'d
circa 1962
circa 1963
English 122 "Chaucer" Spring 1963
circa 1964-1969
circa 1964-1969, cont.'d
Summer, 1970
HE 101, HE 103, HE 104, HE 321 Fall 1970
circa 1970-1974
HE 215 "Critical Writing" Summer 1971
HE 101 Fall 1973
English 102-20 1973
English 102 1973
English 105 1974
English 231 "Description" 1974-1975
English 102 "American Literature II: The American Quest for Personal Freedom" Spring-Fall 1975
English 200 Spring 1975
English 170 Fall 1975
English 225 "Black American Writers: Prose Fiction" Fall 1975
English 225 "Black American Writers" circa 1975
English 105 "Exposition" Spring 1976
English 102 "Masks and Voices" Fall 1976
English 225 "Major Black American Writers: Poetry and Drama" Fall 1976, 1978
C100 "Workshop/Writing" 1977
English 170 1977
English 231 "Description" 1977
English 393 "Autobiography" Spring 1977
English 100-04 "Writing Workshop" Spring 1978
Spring 1978
Work by Penny Gill Spring 1978
English 101 1978
English 101, cont.'d 1978
English 170 Spring 1979
English 393 Fall 1979
Miscellaneous circa 1970s
English 101 circa 1970s
Notes on Critical Introduction and Essays circa 1970s
Miscellaneous circa 1970s or 1980s
Miscellaneous 1979-1989
Macy Summer Program 1979-1980
Miscellaneous circa 1979-1980
Unknown Science Course 1980
English 155 "Approaches to Literature: Analysis and Criticism" Spring 1980
English 325 "Major Black American Writers: Prose and Fiction" Spring 1980
English 102 "Masks and Voices" Spring 1981
English 325 "Black American Writers: Poetry and Drama" Spring 1981
English 372 Spring 1981
English 231 Fall 1981
English 282 "Intro to Short Story Writing" Fall 1981
English 155 "Tellers and Tales" Fall 1982
English 155 1982-1983
English 102 "Masks and Voices" Spring 1983
English 155 B (02) "Approaches to Literature: Analysis and Criticism: Worlds, Images and Metaphors" Spring 1983
English 102 "Tell me a Story" Fall 1983
English 155 C (020) "Tellers and Tales" Fall 1983
English 367 Fall 1983
English 101-102, 155 "misc. assignment sheets" 1984-1986
Miscellaneous 1984-1991
Miscellaneous circa 1984-1985
English Independent Study "Black Voices" Spring 1986
English 101 Fall 1986
Miscellaneous 1986
Miscellaneous circa 1987-1988
Miscellaneous Spring 1988
Amy Zuckerman Independent Study Fall 1988-1989
Miscellaneous circa 1988-1993
English 102 "Reading, Writing and Reasoning" Fall 1989
English "Misc. Assignment Sheets for 200, 394, 231" circa 1980s
circa 1980s
English 254 "Irish Literature" Spring 1993
English 231 "Descriptive Writing" Fall 1993
English 231 "Descriptive Writing" cont.'d Fall 1993
English 251 "African American Literature" Fall 1993
English 251 "African American Literature" cont.'d Fall 1993
Miscellaneous 1993-1994
Miscellaneous 1993-1996
Miscellaneous 1994-1996
unidentifiable notes no date
unknown student work no date
unknown notes no date
unknown no date
Consortium on Financing Higher Education: Conference on Campus Climates for Minorities 1979
Education Policy Symposium 1972
Educational Testing Services 1970
Educational Testing Services, cont.'d 1970
Lists of People and Addresses no date
Speech 101, Southern Illinois University circa 1980
Bennett, Franklin 1944, 1947
Coleman, Sarah Williamson 1973, 1984, 1987
McHenry, Donald F., Transcripts and College Material 1932-1962
McHenry, Donald F., Employment Applications 1959-1963
McHenry, Elizabeth 1976-1983
Williamson, Alphonso and Elizabeth Bennett, Travel and Financial Information 1966, 1974, 1982-1983
Williamson, Elizabeth Bennett 1917, 1938, 1953, 1981
Williamson, Elizabeth Bennett, Memoir circa 1980s
Birth Certificate 1933
Employment Information 1951, 1952, 1974, 1979
Grant and Fellowship Applications 1954-1973
Grant and Fellowship Applications, National Endowment for the Humanities 1972-1974
Job Search Materials 1957
Job Search Materials, cont.'d 1957
Marriage and Divorce Records 1954, 1976
Newspaper Clippings and Articles 1952-1985
Resumes 1970-1973
Teaching Evaluation 1972
Transcripts 1938-1950
Transcripts 1950-1957
Miscellaneous 1940s
"Mary's French Material" 1950
"Mary's French Material" cont.'d 1950
Miscellaneous 1950-1954
Junior Show Script 1952
"A Book for MEW" 1953
Miscellaneous 1970s
Photographs of McHenry 1933-1970s
Photographs of McHenry with Others 1940s-1982
Photographs of McHenry with Others "Mount Holyoke College Graduation" May 1954
Photographs of Others circa 1940s-1954
Photographs of Others 1954-1957
Photographs of Others 1982-1983
Photographs of Others "From Nancy Watkins Denig" 1984
Photographs of Others "Liz Kennan's Hunt Party" January 1984
Photographs of Others "Family Photographs" October 1984
Photographs of Others "Photos from Ireland" 1988
Photographs of Others circa 1988
Photographs of Others: "Mother and Daddy at the Beach..." circa 1980s
Photographs of Others circa 1980s-1990s
Photographs of Others, cont.'d circa 1980s-1990s
negatives n.d.
Birthday Card Scrapbook