Marian Emmett Colman Papers

Collection — Box: 1809

Identifier: MSS 2006-002

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The Colman Papers document the history of Florida State College for Women (FSCW) and student activities prior to and during the World War I years. The collection consists mostly of letters Colman wrote as an FSCW student to her parents in Lake Alfred.

The letters describe the campus buildings and a fire at "East Hall" in 1916, her activities in campus organizations such as the Young Women's Christian Association, the Minerva Club (a literary society), the Anvil Literary Society, and the FSCW Glee Club; participation in Field Day athletic competitions, an Odds vs. Evens basketball game on Thanksgiving morning, and learning how to play the piano and the ukelele.

She also discusses her encounters with William Dodd, Professor of English and later Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences; Ella Opperman, Dean of the School of Music; FSCW President Edward Conradi, English instructor Rowena Longmire, and other faculty. In addition, the letters describe Colman's thoughts about World War I and its impact on the campus. The letters were a significant primary source used by Dr. Robin Sellers in her book Femina Perfecta. Some letters are incomplete and undated (or partially dated), but have been kept in their original order.

Dates

Created: 1914-1918
Other: Majority of material found in 1916-1918

Creator

Colman, Marian Emmett (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open to all researchers.

Conditions Governing Use

To request permission to quote, publish, broadcast or otherwise reproduce from the archives, please contact Heritage & University Archives, Florida State University Libraries, Tallahassee, Florida. Researchers must obtain separate permission from the copyright holders of material held within University Archives collections for which the institution does not hold copyright.

Biographical or Historical Information

Marian Emmett Colman was an alumna of the Florida State College for Women (FSCW), Tallahassee, FL. She lived in Lake Alfred, FL and attended FSCW from 1914-1918. Colman was a member of the FSCW Glee Club, and an active member of the Classical Club. She also wrote poems, some of which were published in The Flambeau, the college newspaper. One of the poems she wrote, "The Gates," was published in the March 1919 Bulletin of the FSCW Alumni Bulletin. As evident from her letters, she also took piano and singing classes, and participated in several class recitals.