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Helen McKelvey Oakley papers, 1963-1967

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Oakley, Helen McKelvey, 1906-2003
Title
Helen McKelvey Oakley papers
Dates
1963-1967 (inclusive)
Quantity
0.5 cubic feet
Collection Number
MG 217
Summary
The collection, An Alphabet of Christmas Words, spans the years 1963-1967. Included in the collection are preliminary research notes, early drafts, manuscript, galley proofs, mock-up, and three copies of the printed booklet, two signed by the author; also, correspondence with the publisher Oxford University Press and letters commenting on the booklet.
Repository
University of Idaho Library, Special Collections and Archives
Special Collections and Archives
University of Idaho Library
875 Perimeter Drive
MS 2350
Moscow, ID
83844-2350
Telephone: 2088850845
libspec@uidaho.edu
Access Restrictions

Collection is open for research.

Languages
English
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Historical Note

"An Alphabet of Christmas Words" is a Christmas keepsake booklet published by Oxford University Press in 1966. It was written by author Helen McKelvey Oakley and illustrated by Ursula Seuss.

Helen McKelvey Oakley was born in 1906 in New York, New York to Ralph Huntington McKelvey and Helen A. Fairchild. In 1928, she completed a degree from Bryn Mawr College; the following year, she founded a bookstore in New York City, which she worked at for twelve years. In August 1938, she married Walter T. Oakley, with whom she moved to Manhasset, New York and had two daughters. In her later career, she wrote and published several books. Under the name Helen Oakley, she published The Horse on the Hill (1957); The Ranch by the Sea (1959); The Enchanter's Wheel (1962); and Freedom's Daughter (1968). In 1966, as Helen McKelvey Oakley, she published the booklet An Alphabet of Christmas Words through Oxford University Press. As Helen McK. Oakley, she published the booklet "Christopher Morley on Long Island" (1967), and the biography "Three Hours for Lunch: The Life and Times of Christopher Morley" (1976). She died in Manhasset, New York in 2003.

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Content Description

The collection, An Alphabet of Christmas Words, spans the years 1963-1967. Included in the collection are preliminary research notes, early drafts, manuscript, galley proofs, mock-up, and three copies of the printed booklet, two signed by the author. The collection also includes correspondence between author, Helen McKelvey Oakley, and her publisher, Oxford University Press, as well as letters from readers and colleagues commenting on the booklet.

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Use of the Collection

Preferred Citation

FOR PHOTOS Photographer, "Title," date. Collection name, object ID. University of Idaho Library Special Collections and Archives, Moscow, ID.

FOR DOCUMENTS Author, Description or "Title" of item, date. Collection name, collection number, box, folder. University of Idaho Library Special Collections and Archives, Moscow, ID.

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Administrative Information

Acquisition Information

Materials were found in Special Collection stack area in December 1989.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

  • Series 1: An Alphabet of Christmas Words

    • Description: Correspondence: OUP
      21 items : Contains correspondence with the publisher Oxford University Press.
      Dates: 19 December 1963-9 August 1966
      Container: Box 1, Folder 1
    • Description: Correspondence: Comments on the Book
      17 items : Contains newspaper clippings and correspondence from readers commenting on the booklet.
      Dates: 10 December 1966-13 February 1967
      Container: Box 1, Folder 2
    • Description: Preliminary Notes
      46 items : Contains preliminary notes, research, and writings for the booklet.
      Dates: undated
      Container: Box 1, Folder 3
    • Description: Notes for 1st Draft
      64 items : Contains early draft of the booklet with notes and edits.
      Dates: undated
      Container: Box 1, Folder 4
    • Description: Final Manuscript, Unconnected Carbon
      35 items : Contains final draft of the booklet, with minor notes and edits.
      Dates: 1966
      Container: Box 1, Folder 5
    • Description: Final Manuscript with Publisher's Corrections and Annotations
      35 items : Contains final draft of the booklet, with publisher's notes and copyedits.
      Dates: 1966
      Container: Box 1, Folder 6
    • Description: Galley Sheet
      6 items : Contains galley sheets of the booklet with copyedits.
      Dates: 1966
      Container: Box 1, Folder 7
    • Description: Mock-up
      1 item : Contains mock-up for the booklet.
      Dates: 1966
      Container: Box 1, Folder 8
    • Description: Printed Copies
      3 items : Contains three final printed copies of the booklet, two signed by the author.
      Dates: 1966
      Container: Box 1, Folder 9

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Subject Terms

  • Books
  • Correspondence
  • research (function)
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