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Charles Austin Beard and Mary Ritter Beard papers

 Collection
Identifier: MSD-1898-002

Scope and Contents

The collection includes numerous articles, correspondence, programs and photographs.

Dates

  • Creation: 1874 - 1976

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Legal title, literary rights, including copyright reside with the creators of the documents or their legal heirs and assigns. All requests to publish or quote must be submitted to the DePauw University Archives and Special Collections. The publisher must also obtain permission from the copyright holder.

Biographical Sketch

Charles A. Beard was born on November 27, 1874 in Knightstown, Indiana. Charles graduated from DePauw University in 1898, where he also received his master's degree in 1903. He received his Ph.D. from Columbia University in 1904. Charles was the author of over thirty books on American history. He married Mary Ritter (DePauw, class of 1897) in March 1900. Mary was born on August 5, 1876 in Indianapolis, Indiana. She was an American historian, author, women’s suffrage activist and a Progressive Era reformer, alongside her husband, in both labor and women’s rights movements. Mary collaborated on several history books with Charles and also published over fifteen books. In 1936, she proposed a World Center for Women's Archives, a women’s history organization in New York City. Charles and Mary had two children, William and Miriam.

Charles died on September 1, 1948 in New Haven, Connecticut. Mary died on August 14, 1958 in Phoenix, Arizona. Their remains are interred in Ferncliff Cemetery at Hartsdale in Westchester County, New York.

Full Extent

9.785 Cubic Feet (27 document cases, 5 microfilm reels) : DC 1292 and DC 1493 contain papers in two separate series.

Language of Materials

English

Related Materials

DC829, Folder 7 - Winter Term Project on Charles A. Beard by Nancy Allen, 1974-1975; DC3900, Item 52 Poster on the Centernnial of the Birth of Charles A. Beard, 1974 (Oversize Item)

Beard–Vagts Family Archives Website. "Overview of Archives for Charles Austin Beard, Mary Ritter Beard, Miriam Beard Vagts, and Alfred Frederick Vagts" by Karen Vagts: https://karenvagts.com/2019/10/27/overview-of-archives-for-charles-austin-beard-mary-ritter-beard-miriam-beard-vagts-and-alfred-frederick-vagts/

Separated Materials

Microfilm 139, 480, 521, 599 and 964

Title
Charles Austin Beard and Mary Ritter Beard papers
Status
Completed
Author
Ashlyn Cox Cudney and Sheraya Smith
Date
01/14/2019
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Code for undetermined script
Language of description note
Description is in English.

Repository Details

Part of the Archives of DePauw University and Indiana United Methodism Repository

Contact:
Roy O. West Library
405 S. Indiana St.
Greencastle Indiana 46135 United States