Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: Freeda Summers letters
Abstract
Descriptive Summary
- Title
- Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: Freeda Summers letters
- Date
- 1912-1947, undated (inclusive)
- 1938 (bulk)
- Creator
- Summers, Freeda Birr
- Extent
- 0.22 Cubic Feet
- Subjects
- Letters.
- Correspondence.
- Family.
- Health
- Health care.
- Hospitals.
- Medical care.
- Travel.
- Death
- Friendship.
- Gossip.
- Arrangement
- Collection is arranged by subject. The Wade Hall Collection of American Letters has been processed into discrete collections based on provenance.
- Preferred Citation
- 2009ms132.0780: [identification of item], Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: Freeda Summers letters, 1912-1947, undated, University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center.
- Repository
- University of Kentucky
Collection Overview
- Biography / History
- Freeda (Birr) Summers (1890-1983) was born in Wisconsin to Ludwig Birr (1861-1934) and Bertha Birr (b. 1854). About 1912, she married Dona B. Summers (1884-1960). By 1920, the couple had moved to Jacksonville, Florida. No other biographical information available.
- 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 Freeda Summers letters (dated 1912-1947, undated; bulk 1938; 0.22 cubic feet; 11 folders) comprises letters sent to Freeda Summers that document daily life for friends and family in Wisconsin and Florida while she is at the Mayo Clinic Hospital in Minnesota in the twentieth century. The majority of the letters are written to Freeda from her husband, Dona. In his letters, he writes about having and looking for sales work, traveling to different cities for better prospects, his worries over her health, his desire for her surgery to go smoothly, and how she should not worry about the cost of anything while she is in the hospital. Other letters come from family and friends, wishing for her to have a speedy recovery, daily life, local gossip, personal health, birth and death announcements, trips taken, visits with friends and family, updates on her husband, and employment.
- The Freeda Summers letters collection is part 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
- 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
Dona B. Summers to Freeda Summers, 1912-1927
Dona B. Summers to Freeda Summers, 1938
Geneva Farmer to Freeda Summers, 1938
Ella Miskinnin to Freeda Summers, 1925-1938
John and Jo Riedl to Freeda Summers, 1938-1947
Mary Summers to Freeda Summers, 1938-1944
Grace Ticknor to Freeda Summers, 1938
Helen to Freeda Summers, 1938
Lena to Freeda Summers, 1930-1931, undated
Letters to Freeda Summers, 1914-1942, undated
Letters to Dona B. Summers, 1938
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.
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.
If you find description with problematic language that you think SCRC should review, please contact us at SCRC@uky.edu.
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.
