Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: Carol Thomas diaries
Abstract
Descriptive Summary
- Title
- Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: Carol Thomas diaries
- Date
- 1937, 1951-1983 (inclusive)
- Creator
- Thomas, Carol (1919-1990)
- Extent
- 2.70 Cubic Feet
- Subjects
- Diaries.
- Librarians.
- Travel.
- Families.
- Friendship.
- Alcoholism.
- Health
- Photographs
- Clippings (Books, newspapers, etc.)
- Thomas, Carol (1919-1990)
- Arrangement
- Collection is arranged chronologically. The Wade Hall Collection of American Letters has been processed into discrete collections based on provenance.
- Preferred Citation
- 2009ms132.1148: [identification of item], Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: Carol Thomas diaries, 1937, 1951-1983, University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center.
- Repository
- University of Kentucky
Collection Overview
- Biography / History
- (Wanda) Carol Thomas (1919-1990) was born in Baraboo, Wisconsin to Herbert H. Thomas (1875-1954) and Wanda E. Ellison (1877-1962). The family eventually settled in Madison, Wisconsin where Herbert worked as an attorney. Carol worked as a librarian, relocating multiple times for her career. She lived in Wisconsin, Minnesota, New Mexico, Michigan, New York, and Nebraska working for various public libraries and worked for the US Army as a librarian in Germany. She never married.
- 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 Carol Thomas diaries (dated 1937, 1951-1983; 2.70 cubic feet; 6 boxes) comprises twenty-three diaries that document the life of Carol Thomas working as a librarian and traveling across the globe during the twentieth century. The diary entries detail Carol's daily life, duties completed at the library, her opinions of staff, making friends, attending American Library Association (ALA) meetings, dealing with city and county officials over library services, visiting family, traveling to new states and countries, her struggles with alcoholism and sobriety, personal health diagnoses and fears, resigning and finding new positions, moving, money concerns, and current events. Included in many pages of the diaries are photographs of trips and friends, along with newspaper clippings of local and national news.
- The Carol Thomas diaries 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
Carol Thomas diary, 1937
Carol Thomas diary, 1951
Carol Thomas diary, 1952
Carol Thomas diary, 1957
Carol Thomas diary, 1958
Carol Thomas diary, 1960
Carol Thomas diary, 1961
Carol Thomas diary, 1962
Carol Thomas diary, 1963
Carol Thomas diary, 1964
Carol Thomas diary, 1965
Carol Thomas diary, 1966
Carol Thomas diary, 1967
Carol Thomas diary, 1968
Carol Thomas diary, 1970
Carol Thomas diary, 1971
Carol Thomas diary, 1972
Carol Thomas diary, 1973
Carol Thomas diary, 1974
Carol Thomas diary, 1975
Carol Thomas diary, 1976
Carol Thomas diary, 1977
Carol Thomas diary, 1983
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.
