Born on 24 July 1900, the daughter of Jessie M. Fox and Rena Neve Fox, Anne Marie Fox Felt (1900-1974) spent her life in Salt Lake City working in the field of education. She attended public schools in Salt Lake, graduated from LDS High School, and went on to graduate from the University of Utah as a kindergarten and primary teacher. She taught in public schools from 1919 to 1931 and served as president of the State Kindergarten-Primary Association from 1927 to 1931. She was later to serve for three terms as president of the National Association for Childhood Education, during which time the organization joined the international Association for Childhood Education (ACE).
In addition to her work in public education, Mrs. Felt was associated with religious education as well. She served as director of kindergarten in the Granite and Grant Stakes of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and was appointed as a member of the General Board of the Deseret Sunday School Union in 1930. In addition she wrote and co-authored several religious books for children:
Mrs. Felt was also the founder of the Kiwanis Felt Center in Salt Lake City, an activity center designed to provide recreation for the city's youth.
During the 1960s she began to write a history of kindergartens in Utah as a thesis for a M.A. degree in the Department of Education at the University of Utah. Although the thesis was never completed, her work provides a good, if partial, history of the pioneering period in the kindergarten movement in Utah.
Mrs. Felt was married in 1931 to Joseph H. Felt, a prominent Salt Lake businessman. She died in 1974.
The Anne Marie Fox Felt papers (1874-1967) contain histories, research notes, correspondence, news articles, and scrapbooks documenting the development of kindergartens and kindergarten organizations in the late nineteenth century and the activities and expansion of the Utah State Association for Childhood Education (ACE) through the first half of the twentieth century. Also included are biographical materials regarding women associated with Utah kindergartens; the minutes, letters, and research notes of ACE branches; and other documents, such as programs and manuals.
Throughout her life, Marie Fox Felt involved herself in organizations and activities whose purposes lay in benefitting children. She was instrumental in establishing the Kiwanis-Felt Boys and Girls Clubs. As a teacher, author, and community figure, her contribution to the welfare of children in Utah has been significant. Her principal involvement was in the kindergarten movement in Utah, and more specifically, the ACE of which she served as president for three terms. This organization, established in Utah in 1937, grew out of previous kindergartens and kindergarten organizations. It was through the combined efforts of the early pioneers, the eventual support of the State Legislature, and the later leadership of women like Marie Fox Felt that Kindergartens in Utah became firmly established.
Since the opening of the first kindergarten in Utah by Camilla C. Cobb in 1874, the kindergarten movement has had a rich and interesting history. Leaders of the movement recognized this and many became involved in writing short histories of what they remembered of the early kindergartens and their involvement in them. In the 1940s, the ACE formed a committee whose function was to write a history of the kindergarten movement in Utah. As the instigator of this idea, Marie Fox Felt later continued this work as her thesis for her Master of Arts degree in Education. Although the thesis was not completed, she did write a partial history dealing with the pioneering period of the kindergarten movement and collected a great deal of research material from 1874 through the 1960s. These materials relating to the people and organizations of kindergartens in Utah comprise the bulk of the Anne Marie Fox Felt papers.
The collection contains original histories, research notes, correspondence, newspaper articles, and scrapbooks. The material is organized chronologically beginning with the first independent kindergartens and the various kindergarten organizations of the late nineteenth century. The collection follows the activities and expansion of the ACE through the first half of this century and although the ACE had several names prior to 1937, the materials relate to the growth of one organization.
Also included are biographical materials of several women associated with Utah kindergartens, the minutes, letters, and research notes of the branches of the ACE, and original documents of the movement such as programs and manuals.
The majority of the correspondence has been organized chronologically in one group, except where it is related to some other specific subject in the collection. For example, the correspondence of the Camilla C. Cobb branch of the ACE is to be found in those folders dealing with branch material rather than in general correspondence.
Although the collection is complete in many areas, there are gaps in the continuity of the kindergarten's history, especially after World War II. This is due primarily to the advanced age of many of the women who had been leaders in the 1930s and 1940s, and for this reason there is almost no material from the 1950s and very little of the 1960s.
As well as research materials and original documents, the collection contain Mrs. Felt's thesis proposal and her own history of the early kindergarten years, "History of Kindergartens in Utah During the Pioneering Period, 1874-1898." In addition, there is also material relating to the establishment of the Kiwanis-Felt Boys and Girls Clubs and other materials related to schools and kindergartens.
Twenty-four hour advanced notice encouraged. Materials must be used on-site. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.
The library does not claim to control copyright for all materials in the collection. An individual depicted in a reproduction has privacy rights as outlined in Title 45 CFR, part 46 (Protection of Human Subjects). For further information, please review the J. Willard Marriott Library's
Collection Name, Collection Number, Box Number, Folder Number. Special Collections, J. Willard Marriott Library, The University of Utah.
Processed by Della L. Dye and Barbara Dickey in 1977.
Forms part of the
See also the
General histories of the kindergarten movement in Utah and the establishment of several kindergartens in the Salt Lake area. Also, histories of various kindergarten associations from 1895 to 1936 with lists of officers.
Histories relating to the early kindergartens in Utah, including a reminiscence of all these kindergartens by Mary A. Parsons, one of the early leaders in the movement.
Short articles written by some pioneers of the early kindergarten movement that deal with the establishment of the Free Kindergarten Association in 1895, and make mention of several of the women associated with the organization.
Minutes of the Utah Kindergarten Assocation, from 1895-1896. Deals with the establishment of a kindergarten in 1895 to be under the direction of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Utah Kindergarten Association Rules and Regulations dealing with organization, membership, and duties of officers.
Utah State Kindergarten Association Constitution and By-laws as of 1910; a list of recommended books for teachers and children; state laws concerning the kindergartens, including articles of the State Constitution dealing with education; a copy of House Bill 135 passed in 1894 allowing school boards to establish kindergartens.
Utah State Kindergarten Association revised Constituion (1924) and Plan of Procedure for the extension of kindergartens throughout the state.
Utah State Kindergarten--Primary Association proposed Constituion (1928).
Histories concerning the establishment of the Utah State Kindergarten Association in 1897, the organization's activities to 1928, and a list of officers. Also includes notes taken from the personal journals and scrapbooks of some early kindergarten leaders dealing with the early period.
Articles pertaining to the mandatory-on-petition kindergarten bills of 1929, 1931, and 1933 including a copy of the bill, examples of letters written expressing arguments in favor of the bills, legislative committee reports relating the history of the bills as they passed through the State Legislature, and lists of organizations and individuals who supported the bill.
Utah State Kindergarten--Primary Association Annual Reports (1929-1936) which include listings of winter and summer kindergartens throughout the state, activities and accomplishments of each year, financial statements, and reports on the Logan and Ogden kindergartens.
Lists of members and officers of the Utah State Kindergarten Association and the Utah State Primary Kindergarten Assocation, 1923-1940.
Essays and statements dealing with the importance of kindergarten training to a child's education and healthy development.
Programs and certificates pertaining to kindergartens prior to 1900.
Original document of a program of a kindergarten recital dated 31 January 1884.
Autobiographical notes of her teaching experience in the early 1900s. President of the ACE, from 1931-1933.
Biographies of her life and work in the early kindergarten movement; a tribute to her from a former pupil; copies of three articles she wrote on "The Kindergarten" for the
A tribute written to her by Ida Smoot Dusenberry in 1936.
A listing of important events in her lifetime and the various offices she held.
Biographical sketch of her becoming a kindergarten teacher in 1889 and an autobiographical account of her involvement in the movement.
Outline of her educational background and her activities in the kindergarten movement from 1912, and tributes presented at her funeral. A tribute by Marie Fox Felt provides some history of the Utah State Kindergarten Association as well.
A biography of her life and work in the early kindergarten movement (1883). Written by her daughter.
Autobiographical account of her involvement with kindergartens and a copy of the program for her funeral in 1961 containing tributes and poems.
Two short biographical sketches of her life and involvement in kindergarten activities from 1892.
Autobiography focusing primarily on her contribution to the state Normal School until 1906.
Autobiographical notes on her life and teaching experiences. Also contains a tribute to her talents as a kindergarten teacher.
Biographies of her life as a kindergarten teacher, a medical doctor, and an elected representative to the Utah State Legislature.
Tributes to her work as a kindergarten teacher and organizer and a letter by Miss Wells written in response to a presentation made by Mary Fox to the Daughters of Utah Pioneers in honor of Camilla C. Cobb.
Biographical sketch covering her church work, civic work, and family life. An organizer of the Utah Kindergarten Association in 1895.
Letters and exchanges primarily between officers of the Utah Kindergarten Association on subjects of procedures and updatings of the kindergarten movement in the various areas of the state. Included are responses to a request from Irene Ehrich on information on the history of the kindergarten in Utah.
Letters dealing in exchanges of information on the progress of kindergartens in the state and a large group of letters dealing with the plan to hold the 1939 Annual Convention of the National Association of Childhood Education in Salt Lake City. These are primarily letters of support for the convention.
Correspondence dealing with a proposed history to be written of the kindergarten in Utah by a history committe of the Utah Association of Childhood Education (ACE).
Contains letters relating information on kindergartens in California, more information on the history of kindergartens in Utah, and the work of the association on a National and Inernational level.
Concerning the ACE including listings of important dates in Utah's kindergarten history; lists of officers; history sketches written in honor of its fiftieth anniversary (1946); a paper written on the establishment of the ACE, its work and organization; a report on the Great Plains Regional Conference for Childhood Education held in Salt Lake City in 1943.
Utah State Constitution and proposed constitution for the ACE, a list of branches from 1938-1944, and lists of past presidents from 1896-1947.
A list of ACE officers (1939-1940) and bulletins relating such information as resolutions, committee reports, branch reports, and national news.
ACE. A report on pre-school childcare; the "Legislative News" covering any bills before the legislature pertaining to education; programs and agendas of the Great Plains Regional Conference for Childhood Education in 1943; state newsletters updating activities and goals; lists of officers during the 1940s yearly reports; agendas for meetings and conferences; other miscellaneous material relating to ACE activities.
A personal evaluation of a course on the Curriculum of the kindergarten at Utah State College in 1958.
ACE lists of officers; newsletters; correspondence relating upcoming activities; other miscellaneous material relating to the ACE.
ACE. A list of Helen Cushing's
Original manuals, programs, and handbooks relating to the ACE, including "100 Years of Kindergarten," programs for meetings of the ACE, and yearly handbooks relating officer, membership, and branch information.
These folders contain items taken from a scrapbook of ACE, materials primarily from the 1930s. Much of this material is duplicated elsewhere in the collection.
General material relating to ACE branches in Utah, including a list of names associated with kindergartens outside Salt Lake City; short sketches on the history of various branches throughout the state; a few items concerning the University of Utah Kindergarten; ACE branch presidents.
History of its establishment, organization, and activites.
Brigham City, Box Elder, history of the kindergarten from 1895; minutes of meetings in 1926 and 1927; yearly accounts of the number of classes held.
These folders are taken from a scrapbook of materials on the Camilla Cobb branch of the ACE.
Constitutions and by-laws including those of 1964 and 1967.
Cash, books, and money receipts.
Material from 1939 through the summer of 1940 including lists of officers and attendance; the establishment of the Camilla Cobb branch; minutes of meetings; a report on a conference called "The Family Life Institute;" correspondence relating to the activities of the branch; many acceptances or rejections of invitations to become members of the branch.
Including attendence sheet; minutes of monthly meetings; letters submitting names as candidates for membership; official and some personal correspondence. Major interest in passing laws prohibiting the sale of fireworks and toy guns.
Membership lists; minutes; official correspondence. Program for the year focused on Utah's educational needs with the growing influx of defense workers.
List of members; minutes showing a different program for each meeting; official correspondence, including endorsement of childcare legislation before the U.S. Senate.
Program for the year focused on Child Accounting; facts about children. Included are minutes of monthly meetings and official correspondence.
Material from 1944-1947. Minutes for 1944-1945 shows emphasis placed on the forthcoming peacetime adjustments that would be necessary both at home and abroad entitled, "The Plan for Peace". Also included is a list of proposed programs for 1945-1946; some correspondence.
Meetings, only intermittent, contains minutes of occasionl meetings from 1963-1965 which demonstrate attempts to re-activate the group.
Notes on activities of kindergartens in Davis County.
Notes on yearly kindergartens and activities.
Jordan School District--notes on yearly kindergartens and activities.
Logan and Utah State University (Utah State Agricultural College), notes and written histories on the kindergarten movement from 1926-1947, financial statements, and a brief history of the ACE from 1892 to 1946.
Notes on the establishment and accomplishments of this kindergarten under the auspices of the Catholic Women's League.
Minutes of a few meetings concerned with the establishment of a kindergarten in Murray. Estimated date, early 1930s.
Notes on visits to other towns in Weber county interested in kindergartens; a listing of events and procedures of the Ogden kindergarten apparently taken from minutes; a written history of the movement in Ogden from 1895 to 1947; reports on activities for the re-establishment of kindergartens in 1935; a copy of the proposed ACE constitution for the Ogden Branch.
Provo and Brigham Young University, notes and written histories of the kindergarten in Provo and at BYU from 1891-1938, including an address by Governor Cutler welcoming the kindergarten into the public schools, 1906.
Scrapbook of collected postcards written to the Nita Gerber family
Autograph book belonging to Nita Gerber. Entries from friends.
Scrapbook of cards and appliques.
Scrapbook containing newspaper clippings, photographs, programs and other material relating to the kindergarten movement. Dr. John R. Park
Drawings of the Brigham Young schoolhouse.
Also contains two booklets of LDS songs for children.
"FFF" Society (Felicity, Fidelity, Fellowship). Contains constitution, by-laws, roll, and minutes of meetings.
Material relating to Frederick Froebels' life and philosophy of educating children, the manifestation of that philosophy in the formation of kindergartens in America, the establishment of the Froebel Society under Mary B. Fox in Salt Lake City in 1907, and the activities of the society in 1921.
Froebel Society constitution, finances, membership, and minutes of meetings.
Diploma of 1891, yearbooks from 1916 and 1917, and program of the 50th Anniversary Reunion of the 1917 class.
Miscellaneous membership lists of unknown organizations and a listing of kindergarten teachers, year uncertain.
A history of it's establishment and growth meet the needs of the population of children in Salt Lake City.
Articles associated with the kindergarten movement and obituaries of many kindergarten leaders.
Salt Lake City public schools graduation certificate from grammer school and a High School graduation program.
Materials related to the history of the Kiwanis-Felt Recreation Center, its establishment in 1939, and its growth into the Kiwanis-Felt Boys and Girls Club.
Miscellaneous items such as pamphlets, newsletters, a list of committees, and some offical correspondence.
Thesis proposal on the "History of Kindergarten Education in Utah" submitted to the Department of Education for a M.A. degree and later a doctor of education at the University of Utah. Also a proposed outline and tentative table of contents. Other bound folders in this box contain her written "History of Kindergartens during the Pioneering Period, 1874-1898," suggested corrections, several drafts of her thesis proposal and additional notes on the kindergarten movement.