Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: John and Adele Stratman letters

Abstract

The John and Adele Stratman letters (dated 1938; .01 cubic feet; 2 folders) comprise correspondence that document an eleven-day period in November 1938 when Adele Stratman, and her children, were separated from her husband in Louisville, Kentucky while he was away on a business trip in New York.

Descriptive Summary

Title: Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: John and Adele Stratman letters

Date: 1938 (inclusive)

Creator: Stratman, John Frank, 1905-1994

Extent: .01 Cubic Feet

Subjects: Business travel; Letters.; Families.; Business schools

Arrangement: Collection is arranged by sender name. The Wade Hall Collection of American Letters has been processed into discrete collections based on provenance.

Finding Aid Author: Ida Lucille Mangum

Preferred Citation: 2009ms132.1092: [identification of item], Wade Hall Collection of American Letters: John and Adele Stratman letters, 1938, University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center.

Repository: University of Kentucky

Collection Overview

Biography / History: Kentucky native, John Frank Stratman (1905-1994) was an auditor for Gulf Oil Company. John married Adele Francis Bellway (1902-1983) in 1929. The couple had three children: Jane, John, and Robert.; 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 John and Adele Stratman letters (dated 1938; .01 cubic feet; 2 folders) comprise correspondence that document an eleven-day period in November 1938 when Adele Stratman, and her children, were separated from her husband in Louisville, Kentucky while he was away on a business trip in New York. John F. Stratman wrote letters to his wife almost daily while in New York City, and at the International Business Machine Corporation (IBM) Homestead business school in Endicott, Johnson City, New York. John gives details about site-seeing and accomodations on his trip. The letters from Adele Stratman describe daily life with her three young children, Jane, John and Bobby, and her sister, Florence, who is staying with the family while John is away. Adele's letters also include notes from the children telling their father how much they miss him.; The John and Adele Stratman 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

Adele Stratman to John F. Stratman, 1938 November 16-21

Box WH-152, folder 6

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John F. Stratman to Adele Stratman, 1938 November 12-23

Box WH-152, folder 7

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Abstract
Descriptive Summary
Collection Overview
Preferred Citation
Restrictions on Access and Use
Contents of the Collection

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