Mabel H. Austin (Converse) diaries

The Diaries of Mabel H. Austin is comprised of nine volumes spanning from 1897-1905. The diaries chronicle her daily life, from her years at Friends Central School to her career at Bryn Mawr College.

The collection is comprised of nine page-a-day diaries.

Austin describes the blizzard of 1899, notes that her father heard McKinley speak, and makes reference to the Boer War. Additionally, information about the early days of Bryn Mawr is abundant. Austin describes her matriculation exams, her consultation with "Dean Thomas" about her courses, classes assignments, conferences with faculty, and her reading; as well as the Denbigh fire in 1902 and the installation of electricity the following year; the glee club and mandolin clubs; meetings of the Self Government Association and the Christian Union; hearing Yeats read his poetry; and Henry James’ Commencement speech.

The years between 1901 and 1905 were formative and eventful for Bryn Mawr, with M. Carey Thomas acting as Dean and later, President, and the construction of Rockefeller dormitory, and the Denbigh fire. Austin’s record of her experience at Bryn Mawr is one of the most detailed in the College Archives for these years, and would be of interest to any researcher studying early women's education, or the history of Bryn Mawr College in particular.