mshm216 Barkhuff papers, 1910-1917, 1943, 1992 (bulk 1910-1914) Finding Aid Encoding funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Mount Holyoke College Archives and Special Collections

South Hadley, MA

Finding aid generated in MARC format from database, then encoded using Perl scripts and XSL stylesheet. 2003-05-20 Finding aid written in English. 2005-09-23 mshm216 converted from EAD 1.0 to 2002 by v1to02-5c.xsl (sy2003-10-15). Mount Holyoke College Archives and Special Collections Barkhuff papers, 1910-1917, 1943, 1992 (bulk 1910-1914) Finding Aid MS 0806 Encoding funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Collection Overview Barkhuff, Margaret Niles, 1892-1992. Barkhuff papers 1910-1917, 1943, 1992 1910-1914 MS 0806 LD 7096.6 1914 Niles 2 boxes (1 linear ft.) Mount Holyoke College Archives and Special Collections

South Hadley, MA

Barkhuff, Margaret (Margareta) Niles, 1892-1992; student. Mount Holyoke College graduate, 1914. Papers consist of a scrapbook, a photograph album, recollections, memorabilia, biographical information and a photograph; principally pertaining to her undergraduate years at Mount Holyoke. Also included are recollections of her childhood in Amsterdam, New York. English. Biographical Note

Margaret (Margareta) Marie Niles was born on October 6, 1892 in Amsterdam, New York. Her father was Charles L. Niles. She attended Amsterdam High School then went to Mount Holyoke College from 1910-1914. She received her B.A. in 1914 with a major in zoology and English literature. She married Raymond A. Barkhuff, a production manager, on January 19, 1917 and they had two children. She died on December 21, 1992 in Wethersfield, Connecticut, at the age of one hundred.

Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Margaret Niles Barkhuff Papers consist of a scrapbook, a photograph album, recollections, memorabilia, biographical information and a photograph. Most of the material relates to her years as a student at Mount Holyoke College, 1910-1914. The scrapbook consists of mementoes of her undergraduate years. It contains programs for events on campus and at local theaters, ticket stubs, dance cards, invitations to receptions and dances, class schedules, and an occasional sketched drawing of students. The scrapbook also contains correspondence from faculty and offices on campus regarding her academic status. There are frequent explanatory notes and asides in her handwriting. The photograph album chiefly dates from her undergraduate years and contains photographs of scenic views and interior and exterior shots buildings on campus, dormitory rooms, automobiles and carriages, a dramatic production of "As You Like It" from 1913, and students Yau Tsit Law, Class of 1916, and Helen "Hump" Humphrey Felber, Class of 1914. There are photographs of students entering the "Art "Nook" gift shop and of the Young Women's Christian Association camp in Silver Bay, New York on Lake George. The photograph album also contains photographs of student traditions including Mountain Day, Senior Mountain Day, senior traditions of top spinning and jumping rope, a May Pole dance, 1913 senior show, ivy planting, Commencement, Laurel Parade, and step singing. In addition, there are a few photographs taken at a reunion picnic, circa 1916. The recollections were written in 1992 and concern her childhood in Amsterdam, New York. They also explain the derivation of her nickname Gretchen. Memorabilia consists of report cards from her four years at Mount Holyoke, a tuition receipt from 1914, and an invitation for her son's wedding in 1943. Biographical information includes a biographical note circa 1917 and her obituary, 1992. The photograph in the collection is an informal snapshot taken in 1992 on her one hundredth birthday.

Material from this collection is available in an online digital format.

Organization of the Collection

This collection is organized into six series:

Scrapbook Photograph Album Recollections Memorabilia Biographical Information Photograph Information on Use Terms of Access and Use

Unrestricted

Preferred Citation

Please use the following format when citing materials from this collection:

Margaret Niles Barkhuff Papers, Mount Holyoke College, Archives and Special Collections, South Hadley, MA.

Search Terms Barkhuff, Margaret Niles, 1892-1992. Felber, Helen Humphrey, 1892. Law, Yau Tsit 1888-1961. Young Women's Christian Association (Mount Holyoke College). Mount Holyoke College - Buildings. Mount Holyoke College - Students. Mount Holyoke College - Buildings - Photographs. Women college students - Massachusetts. Automobiles - United States. May Day - Massachusetts - South Hadley. College students - Massachusetts. Family - United States - History - Sources. Student activities - Massachusetts - South Hadley. New York (State) - Description and travel. Mountain Day - Massachusetts - South Hadley. Dormitories - Massachusetts - South Hadley - Furniture, equipment, etc. Amsterdam, New York. Mount Holyoke College - Alumni and alumnae - Autobiography. Mount Holyoke College - Campus - Photographs. Mount Holyoke College - Plays, pageants, etc. Mount Holyoke College - Commencement - 1914. Mount Holyoke College - Furnishings. Mount Holyoke College - Traditions. Mount Holyoke College - Student life - 1910-1914. Scrapbooks. Photographs. Photograph albums. Autobiographies.