Nancy S. Taylor papers

The Nancy S. Taylor papers contain the personal correspondence and ephemera of Anna “Nancy” Solcum Taylor, Bryn Mawr class of 1941. The papers consist of letters, envelopes, postcards, notes, telegrams, newspaper clippings, cards, invitations, photographs, and ephemera from 1929 to 1980, most of which is from Taylor’s family members, friends, and future husband, William “Bill” L. Tracy. The bulk of the papers is comprised of correspondence from 1940 to 1941 that document the personal, academic, and social life of Taylor and her loved ones during and immediately after Taylor’s time as a Bryn Mawr student.

The majority of the correspondence in these papers consists of love letters between Taylor and Tracy, where daily accounts of their lives, including Taylor’s academic coursework, her extracurricular activities at Bryn Mawr, and Tracy’s work as a mechanical engineer, are shared alongside their declarations of love and their hopes and plans for their engagement, wedding, and married life. The papers also include letters sent between 1929 and 1941 from Taylor’s parents, siblings, aunt, and friends that detail their daily lives and personal thoughts. Some of these letters include tales from Taylor’s friends and Bryn Mawr students, Anne “Slug” Robins, Maragaret “Peggy” Weltzein, and Mary Mason, that highlight some of the coursework, social events, extracurricular activities, and happenings and conversations that took place around campus during Taylor’s four years at Bryn Mawr. The papers also include ephemera from various Bryn Mawr social events adding to the picture of student life at Bryn Mawr in the late 1930s and early 1940s created in these papers. As much of the correspondence covers the daily lives of Taylor, Tracy, and their friends and family, the papers also offer a glimpse into the lives, thoughts, and concerns of white American families and college students in the late 1930s and early 1940s. Both the love letters and letters from Taylor’s family and friends include conversations that cover topics on marriage and relationships, family dynamics, academics, women’s roles, popular entertainment, and travel. Current events, such as the draft, the Presidential election of 1940, and events on the European front, are also alluded to in some letters from Taylor’s friends, family, and future husband. The personal anecdotes in which these current events are relayed provide a window into how particularly young, college-aged individuals’ plans for their future were impacted by the growing concerns of the Second World War.

The papers are divided up into three series, "Series 1: Correspondence," “Series 2: Event Ephemera,” and “Series 3: Miscellany.”

“Series 1: Correspondence" makes up the bulk of the collection, and is composed of letters, postcards, telegrams, and printed materials that focus on the personal lives of Taylor, her family, her friends, and her future husband, Tracy. This series covers the period between 1929 and 1941 with the bulk of the materials dating from 1940 to 1941, and it covers topics including Taylor's academics, her extracurricular activities and social events (including those she attended at Bryn Mawr), her postgraduation plans, her and Tracy's dating and engagement periods, and the personal news and life updates of Tracy, Taylor's family, and Taylor's friends. This series is divided into four subseries, “Subseries 1: Family and Friends Correspondence,” “Subseries 2: Academic Studies Letters,” “Subseries 3: Employment Opportunities Letters,” and “Subseries 4: Nancy and William ‘Bill’ Tracy Correspondence.”

"Subseries 1: Family and Friends Correspondence” contains incoming letters, postcards, telegrams, notes, cards, invitations, and newspaper clippings that document the personal news, daily lives, and thoughts of Taylor's family and friends during the period of 1929-1941. Correspondents represented in these letters include Taylor’s parents, Edwin and Elizabeth Taylor; her siblings, Olivia and Josie; her aunt, Susan N. Pulsifer; and her friends, Donna Beal, Anne “Slug” Robins, Margaret “Peggy” Weltzein, and Bob (no last name). The bulk of these letters were sent between 1938 and 1941 and include correspondents' tales and thoughts related to topics of marriage and relationships, academics, travel, social events and popular entertainment, job prospects, and current events like the October 1940 draft drawing and the Second World War more broadly. In covering these topics, these letters illuminate the lifestyles, interests, and concerns of white American families and college students right before American became involved in World War II. It should be noted that some of the correspondents represented in this subseries are Taylor's friends from Bryn Mawr, including Robins and Weltzein, who discuss events, academics, activities, and funny stories that occurred at Bryn Mawr. Between the letters from Taylor's Bryn Mawr friends and the few letters in this subseries that Taylor wrote to her parents about her early days at Bryn Mawr, this subseries offers glimpses into the coursework, activities, and thoughts of Bryn Mawr students in the late 1930s and early 1940s. This subseries is arranged chronologically, and any undated material is placed in a folder at the end of the subseries.

“Subseries 2: Academic Studies Letters” includes incoming letters, envelopes, pamphlets, and printed material that document Taylor’s scholarship funding for her studies at Bryn Mawr in the 1938-1939 and 1940-1941 academic year and her plans to study chemistry at another academic institution in the summer of 1940. Correspondents in this subseries include the Office of the Dean at Bryn Mawr, professors and staff at the University of Michigan and the University of Wisconsin, and an agent from the Chicago, Milwaukee, At. Paul and Pacific Railroad Company. Letters that refer to Taylor’s plans to take a summer chemistry course include information on course offerings at universities other than Bryn Mawr, enrollment requirements, travel and board accommodations and costs, and available work opportunities. This subseries is arranged chronologically.

“Subseries 3: Employment Opportunities Letters” consists of incoming letters sent between June and July 1941 that document Taylor's search for a job in the chemistry and medical fields after graduating from Bryn Mawr, a topic discussed in more personal detial in the 1941 letters of the "Nancy and William 'Bill' L. Tracy Correspondence" subseries. Correspondents include the Bureau of Recommendations at Bryn Mawr as well as doctors and staff members from different hospitals and medical institutions, including Massachusetts General Hospital, Frontier Nursing Service, and Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons. Correspondents relay information about open positions, provide a status update on positions Taylor inquired about, or respond to Taylor’s acceptance or rejection of a position offer. This subseries is arranged chronologically.

“Subseries 4: Nancy and William ‘Bill’ Tracy Correspondence,” the largest of the series in the papers, is made up of handwritten, typed, and illustrated letters, envelopes, telegrams, postcards, newspaper clippings, printed materials, and photographs sent between Taylor and her future husband, Tracy, from July 1940 to 1941. Beyond the professions of love and longing expressed in these letters between the young couple, their correspondence records personal details about their daily lives. As part of her daily accounts, Taylor’s letters provide the most extensive look at her life as a Bryn Mawr student, particularly focusing on her studies as a chemistry major. Taylor mentions the readings, quizzes, problem sets, exams, comprehensive conferences, and lab work for her Chemistry and Biology coursework, providing an insight into her workload and study habits. Taylor also describes Bryn Mawr social events and traditions, such as Parade Night, the Freshman show, May Day, graduation events, and Bryn Mawr dances, as well as activities she participated in for fun. Taylor’s letters from December 1940 through June 1941 repeatedly include a specific focus on her job prospects post-graduation. This focus includes her interactions with Bryn Mawr’s Bureau of Recommendations and her concerns about wanting to obtain a job as an assistant chemist while also being newly married. As a part of his daily accounts, Tracy’s letters describe his work, first in a factory making planes for the British, alluding to American aid provided to US Allies prior to American’s entrance in to the war, and then as a mechanical engineer working on directional gyroscopes at Sperry Corporation in New York. Tracy’s letters include additional mentions of World War II in both his description of registering for the draft in his letters from September and October 1940 and in brief reactions to radio broadcasts of news from the European front in some of his 1941 letters.

The correspondence between the couple, particularly letters sent in late 1940 and 1941, also include discussions regarding their plans, concerns, and hopes for their future as a married couple. Major topics discussed include their financial situation and their job prospects, particularly as they relate to Taylor. These discussions, along with the news about their family and friends included in their correspondence, offer glimpses into the lives, social roles, and thinking of young, white Americans prior to America’s entrance into World War II. Some of the individuals frequently mentioned in their correspondence include Taylor’s roommates, Mary Mason and Margaret “Peggy” Weltzein; Tracy’s aunt and uncle, Lucy and George Riggs; Tracy’s siblings, Alice, Dennie, and Reine; Taylor’s aunt, Susan N. Pulsifer; and their mothers, Elizabeth Taylor and Alice Tracy. This subseries is arranged chronologically, and any undated material is placed in a folder at the end of the subseries.

“Series 2: Event Ephemera” contains ephemera from events held at the U.S. Military Academy and at Bryn Mawr College, the latter of which Taylor discusses in some of her correspondence with Tracy. The material in this series includes a program, announcement card, and invitation from the 1941 commencement and two other graduation events, the Baccalaureate sermon and the Commencement Garden Party, respectively. This series also includes a ticket from the class of 1944 Freshman Show “Fantasia Forty-Four” and dance cards with dance partners’ names written in from the U.S. Military Academy’s 1939 Spring Hops Dance and Bryn Mawr’s 1940 Annual Fall Dance, 1941 Annual Spring Dance, and 1941 Junior Promenade. This series is arranged chronologically by the date of the event that the ephemera is from.

“Series 3: Miscellany” contains additional materials, including a professional organization brochure, catalog, fabric swatches, and printed cards sent to Taylor by businesses, organizations, or from anonymous sources; incoming correspondence addressed to members of Taylor’s family or her friends from other individuals; and biographical information about Taylor. The materials in this series are predominately from 1940, 1941, or undated, and they relate to topics and events mentioned in the correspondence contained in these papers. Of note in this collection is a letter from Taylor’s Bryn Mawr roommate, Mary Mason, to Taylor’s sister, Olivia, regarding setting up a memorial fund in honor of Taylor for the Class of 1941’s 40th reunion. This series is organized alphabetically by material type.