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Alice Carey Traver Libby Kennedy Papers, 1903-1959

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Kennedy, Alice Carey Traver Libby, 1876-1959
Title
Alice Carey Traver Libby Kennedy Papers
Dates
1903-1959 (inclusive)
Quantity
3 Linear feet of shelf space, (6 Boxes)
Collection Number
Cage 32 (collection)
Summary
The collection includes a large newsclipping file covering a wide range of subjects related to Pacific Northwest history and development.
Repository
Washington State University Libraries' Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections (MASC)
Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections
Terrell Library Suite 12
Pullman, WA
99164-5610
Telephone: 509-335-6691
mascref@wsu.edu
Access Restrictions

This collection is open and available for research use.

Languages
English
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Biographical Note

Alice Carey Traver, born in 1876 in Olympia, Washington of pioneer parents, Miles E. (1834-1902) and Stella W. Traver (1842-1914), was educated in Spokane and at the Cheney Normal School. Between 1908 and 1912 she was employed by the Western Union office in Spokane and following that she worked for the city as a labor agent in what became the Women's Free Employment Bureau until 1919. In 1917 she became the second wife of Dr. Isaac Chase Libby (1852-1923) a pioneer Spokane educator. Dr. Libby died in 1923 and following his death Alice became a housemother at the Montana School for the Deaf and Dumb. She later married James C. Kennedy. Throughout her life Alice contributed many pamphlets, books and other material on the history of the Pacific Northwest to the Washington State University Library and to the Eastern Washington State Historical Society. Alice Kennedy died in Spokane in 1959.

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Historical Note

Many terms historically used to describe individuals and communities with disabilities are offensive and were used to dismiss, discount and dehumanize these individuals and communities. Terms often focused on a perceived impairment and not the person. MASC recognizes the harm caused by these terms. We retain the language in this finding aid to document history and preserve context.

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Content Description

Acutely conscious of her pioneer heritage, Alice Kennedy began the compilation of scrapbooks and clipping files which document much of the history of the Inland Empire through the Spokane newspapers. These clippings comprise the largest bulk of this collection and include: 3 scrapbooks covering Kennedy's employment at Western Union and the Women's Free Employment Bureau; negatives and photographs; and nearly 300 postcards. In addition there is a small file of personal and family correspondence, clippings, postcards, brochures, periodicals and other papers. Also included are materials from the personal experiences of Alice's sister, Edith G. Traver (born 1881), a Baptist missionary in China for thirty years preceding World War II.

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Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Use

Copyright restrictions may apply.

Preferred Citation

[Item description]

Alice Carey Traver Libby Kennedy Papers, 1903-1959 (Cage 32)

Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections, Washington State University Libraries, Pullman, WA.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

The collection is organized in five series. Arrangement is primarily alphabetical within each series.

Acquisition Information

The papers were a bequest to the Washington State University Library from the estate of Alice Kennedy in 1959. Mrs. Kennedy's sister, Edith G. Traver, assisted in arranging for the transfer of the papers and added some of her own material.

Processing Note

In 2022, in response to evolving standards regarding the language used to describe individuals and communities with disabilities, Gayle O’Hara added a Historical Note to this finding aid.

Related Materials

Miles Edwin Traver Papers, 1859-1965 (Cage 190)

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Detailed Description of the Collection

Finding aid prepared by Lorraine Burchfiel
2022

CC Attribution
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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