Mercy C. Jackson was born February 4, 1875 at Hazelton, Iowa, one of several children of Robert G. and Amelia Taylor Jackson. In 1880, the Jackson family moved to Bozeman, Montana, traveling overland in a wagon caravan for an eighty-six day journey. The Jacksons moved again in 1884 to Lewistown where Mercy grew up attending the public schools. At the age of seventeen she began her teaching career, continuing until 1937 when a back injury forced her retirement. She began writing short historical articles and flower gardening at her father's home thereafter. Mercy Jackson died at Lewistown on November 6, 1964.
The Mercy Jackson collection consists of three reels of audiotape produced by MSU library personnel from an original recording of Jackson made by Eleanor and Robert George Jackson sometime prior to 1964. The tapes did not duplicate well, and only a partial transcription of the first reel was made. The collection also consists of photocopied typed and handwritten historical essays written by Mercy Jackson that were loaned for duplication by her sister, Elenor Jackson Gardner. These essays include the following titles: "History of Fergus County," "Lewistown," "Robert George Jackson," "Lewistown Public Schools," "The Old Time School," "Public and City Schools of Fergus County," "History of the first M. E. Church," and "History of the Ladies Aid and W.S.C.S." Additional photocopies include newspaper clippings and a letter to Eleanor Gardner from Ruth Saxton regarding Lewistown history topics, particularly education history.
This collection is open for research.
Oral history interview of Mercy Jackson of Lewistown, Montana was loaned to Montana State University for copying by Margaret Seilstad in October 1967. Original handwritten and typed essays by Mercy Jackson were loaned for duplication at the same time by Eleanor Jackson Gardner, also of Lewistown, Montana.
This collection was processed 2012 April 3