Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: Daniels family papers
Abstract
The Daniels family papers (dated 1865-1960, bulk 1933-1945; 1.58 cubic feet; 6 boxes) comprise letters, diaries, and photographs that document the Daniels family of Louisville, Kentucky from the 1860s to the 1960s.
Descriptive Summary
- Title
- Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: Daniels family papers
- Date
- 1865-1960 (inclusive)
- 1933-1945 (bulk)
- Extent
- 1.58 Cubic Feet
- Subjects
- African American churches -- Kentucky.
- African Americans -- Education.
- African Americans -- Religion.
- African American soldiers.
- African American women -- Kentucky
- Letters.
- Racism
- Women in church work -- Kentucky.
- Arrangement
- Collection is arranged by format. The Wade Hall Collection of American Letters has been processed into discrete collections based on provenance.
- Preferred Citation
- 2009ms132.0103: [identification of item], Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: Daniels family papers, 1865-1960, bulk 1933-1945, University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center.
- Repository
- University of Kentucky
Collection Overview
- Biography / History
- The Daniels family is an African-American family who were based primarily in the Louisville, Kentucky area from the mid-1800s to the 1960s. Hattie M Daniels (b. 1888), her brother William Everett Daniels (b. 1890), and his two children, John Everett Daniels III (b. 1918) and Betty Elizabeth Daniels (b. 1920) are the focus of the collection. Hattie Daniels was a school teacher and very active with the Quinn Chapel Church in Louisville for many years. She was also an active businesswoman; she owned not only her own home in Louisville, but also rental property in the early to mid-1900s.
- William Daniels worked primarily as a salesman, selling everything from insurance to refrigerators to shirts in the Kentucky region. He was married to Katura Daniels until their divorce in 1929, and later corresponded with Alma B. Dil who became his paramour. His son, John, was a writer, poet, painter and graphic artist; he attended art schools in Los Angeles and Chicago in the 1930s, served in the Army in World War II, and later settled with his own family in New York City in the 1940s. Betty Daniels, William's daughter, attended schools in both Los Angeles and Chicago like her brother, and later lived in New York City with John's family, supporting herself with a series of office jobs and factory shift work.
- American Letters collector Wade Hall (1934-2015) was a native of Union Springs, Alabama. Starting in 1962, he lived in Louisville, where he taught English and chaired the English and Humanities/Arts programs at Kentucky Southern College and Bellarmine University. He also taught at the University of Illinois and the University of Florida. He held degrees from Troy State University (B.S.), the University of Alabama (M.A.), and the University of Illinois (Ph.D.). He served for two years in the U.S. Army in the mid-fifties. Dr. Hall was the author of books, monographs, articles, plays, and reviews relating to Kentucky, Alabama, and Southern history and literature. His most recent books include A Visit with Harlan Hubbard; High Upon a Hill: A History of Bellarmine College; A Song in Native Pastures: Randy Atcher's Life in Country Music; and Waters of Life from Conecuh Ridge.
- Scope and Content
- The Daniels family papers (dated 1865-1960, bulk 1933-1945; 1.58 cubic feet) comprises letters, diaries, and photographs that document the Daniels family of Louisville, Kentucky from the 1860s to the 1960s. The majority of the letters are between William Everett and his children, and the letters discuss financial hardships, family news, war news, and health problems; there are also several letters to Everett from Alma B. Dil of Arkansas who would later become a paramour of Everett's. Many letters discuss Hattie's church activities as well as her business dealings, and other letters between family members discuss the floods of Louisville (1937) and Los Angeles (1939), a flu epidemic in Louisville in 1920, family news, and current events. Photographs in this collection date from the late 1890s through the early 1900s. Additionally, there are many documents included in the collection that showcase different flyers and programs for church and community activities, local elections, receipts for Hattie Daniels' rental properties, and many graduation ceremony programs from various African American high schools and colleges in the Kentucky region from the early part of the twentieth century.
- The Daniels family papers are of the Wade Hall Collection of American letters, which includes correspondence and diaries from all over North America covering the time period of the Civil to Korean Wars. The materials were collected by Wade Hall and document everyday men and women.
Restrictions on Access and Use
- Conditions Governing Access
- The collection is open to researchers by appointment.
- Use Restrictions
- The physical rights to the materials in this collection are held by the University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center.
Contents of the Collection
Autograph book, 1936-1938
Board minutes - Quinn Chapel Church, 1940-1944
Books and pamphlets, 1875-1944
Correspondence, 1887-1958, undated
Daniels family letters, 1887 May 17-1914 November 24
Daniels family letters, 1915 March 21-1921 June 29
Daniels family letters, 1922 August 6-1934 December 3
Daniels family letters, 1935 March 22-1936 December 12
Daniels family letters, 1937 February 9-1938 June 21
Daniels family letters, 1939 January 25-1944 May 25
Daniels family letters, 1944 June 2- December 31
Daniels family letters, 1945 January 7- December 10
Daniels family letters, 1946 January 14-April 24
Daniels family letters, 1946 May 2-1958 March 19
Daniels family letters, undated
Deeds, death policies and relief certificate, 1876-1945
Diary, 1936-1937
Daniels family papers, 1866-1960, undated
Receipts and invoices, 1865-1913
Photographs, 1897, 1908-1918, 1943-1948, undated
Photo postcard of girl holding pitbull puppy. Addressed to R. R. Stanton, undated
Image of Sam Daniel, broken matting, undated
African American soldier, WWI uniform, circa 1914-1918
Samuel Daniel, 1908 Jauary 22-1918
Two African American women, circa 1918
"Mr. Daniel." Image of Samuel Daniel, circa 1918
African American woman in dark dress, undated
African American woman in dark dress no.2, undated
African American woman in white dress, sitting. "Sept-1917", circa 1917
African American boy and girl posed on a wicker chair. "Rudolf and Virginia [undecipherable]", undated
African American boy and girl, note reads: "Greetings", undated
African American woman in white dress, standing note reads "Sept-1917", circa 1917
Man in suit standing by high-backed chair, undated
Woman reclining on couch, undated
Woman sitting at piano, undated
Woman and man standing on front porch of a house, undated
Image of Samuel Daniels, circa 1918
Woman in chair wearing white polka-dot dress, undated
Young African American woman in graduation robe, undated
Elderly African American woman with a toddler, undated
John Everett Daniels, III, Seattle, Washington, 1918
African American woman with white scarf, undated
Image of infant John E. Daniels, III,, circa 1918
"Lillian Oliver", undated
"To Papa July 7th, 1918" John E. Daniels, III, Seattle, Washington, 1918
Graduation portrait of Howard D. Daniel, undated
"The American Christian Ashram, Freelake, Wis. [Wisconsin]", 1948 August 2-12
Elderly African American woman and boy [possibly John E. Daniels, III] sitting on bench, undated
African American woman and girl with hairbow, undated
"A. Matthews to S. C. [Sam] Daniel", undated
Image of woman wearing a white peaked cap in a tree, undated
Woman standing on a porch; measles quarantine sign visible over left shoulder, undated
[L to R] Hattie Daniel, Howard, Margaret Bradish, undated
"Photograph to accompany application of Marion A. Martin, age 29, Ht. 5'11". A. B. University of Illinois '29", undated
Woman with long hair sitting in a doorway., undated
Young African American woman, undated
"Maggie H. Helms to S. c. Daniel [indecipherable]. Kentucky ", undated
Two women standing in a river, undated
Two young African American girls, undated
Young African American girl in a dark dress, undated
Autograph of Louis Jordan, note reads "Best Wishes, Louis Jordan", undated
Group photo on porch of home, undated
"1897 S. C. Daniel" Image of Samuel Daniels., 1897
Two women sitting on a log in a river, undated
Woman holding infant, sitting in swing, border collie in foreground, undated
"1897 S. C. Daniel" Image of Samuel Daniels., 1897
Woman in white blouse on sidewalk., undated
"Jamie M. Brown to S. C. Daniel, [indecipherable] Lewisport, Kentucky", undated
"1897 S. C. Daniel" Image of Samuel Daniel, 1897
"B Company, 562 Quartermaster Corps Battalion, Camp Campbell, KY", 1943 June 30
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Table of Contents
You may come across language in UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center collections and online resources that you find harmful or offensive. SCRC collects materials from different cultures and time periods to preserve and make available the historical record. These materials document the time period when they were created and the view of their creator. As a result, some may demonstrate racist and offensive views that do not reflect the values of UK Libraries.
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UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center is open Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 4:00pm. Appointments are encouraged but not required. Schedule an appointment here.
Researchers must have an SCRC Researcher Account to request materials. View account set-up and use instructions here.
Questions? Contact SCRC via our Contact Form.
Requests
No items have been requested.
You may come across language in UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center collections and online resources that you find harmful or offensive. SCRC collects materials from different cultures and time periods to preserve and make available the historical record. These materials document the time period when they were created and the view of their creator. As a result, some may demonstrate racist and offensive views that do not reflect the values of UK Libraries.
If you find description with problematic language that you think SCRC should review, please contact us at SCRC@uky.edu.
