Brown, Nancy,
Brown papers,
1892-1948
Manuscript Collection: MS 0679
12
boxes
Agency History/Biographical note:
Annie Louise Brown was born in Perry, Maine on December 11, 1870
(some sources say 1869) to Levi Prescott Brown, a Civil War veteran,
and Annie R. Lincoln Brown. She attended high school in
Middleborough, Massachusetts before entering Mount Holyoke College in
1888. After her graduation in 1892, she taught school in White River
Junction, Vermont; Rockville, Connecticut and Mount Clemens,
Michigan. In 1904 Brown married James Edward Leslie, a Sunday editor
and drama critic for the "Pittsburgh Dispatch" in Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania. Leslie died in 1917. Brown succeeded her husband at
the "Pittsburgh Dispatch" for a short time before beginning work at
the "Detroit News" in Michigan. Brown launched her advice column,
"Experience," on April 19, 1919. She wrote under the pseudonym Nancy
Brown and as Mrs. J.E. Leslie. In 1929 Brown's readers (the
"Experience Column Family") raised money for the reforestation of 560
acres in Michigan. In 1930 Brown hosted a party for her readers at
the Detroit Institute of the Arts attended by more than 30,000
people. In 1934 Brown's column hosted its first annual sunrise
service on Belle Isle, a park in the Detroit River. In the following
years, the column readers raised money to build a monument to Brown
on Belle Isle. The Nancy Brown Peace Carillon was dedicated in 1940.
Brown retired in 1942 and died in Detroit on October 7, 1948 at age
seventy-seven.
Scope and Content:
The Annie Louise "Nancy" Brown Papers consist of writings, the Nancy
Brown Peace Carillon material, correspondence, biographical
information, and photographs. The most significant parts of this
collection are the articles reflecting Brown's work as an advice
columnist and journalist for the "Detroit News." Brown was one of
the first advice columnists in the United States and, unlike others,
she was middle-aged and did not treat readers' problems lightly.
Brown's "Experience" column began on April 19, 1919 and was written
under the pseudonym Nancy Brown and her married name, Mrs. J. E.
Leslie. Brown's readers also wrote to her under pseudonyms. The
writings date from 1917 to 1942 and contain clippings, eight
published collections, and twenty-two scrapbooks with copies of
Brown's editorials and "Experience" columns. Readers asked for
advice about marital problems, financial worries and unemployment,
coping with grief and death, and other matters, and these columns
thus concern a variety of social issues and problems in the United
States. Readers from all over the world also submitted their life
stories. Brown wanted to help improve the lives of her readers, and
her columns were known for their sincerity. She supported community
projects and encouraged her readers to familiarize themselves with
modern art, especially by visiting the Detroit Institute of Arts.
One series of articles, dating from January 24-29, 1924, describes a
visit to Mount Holyoke College. Another series, dating from October
1-13, 1928, describes a train trip through Minneapolis, Minnesota,
North Dakota, Canada, and the Pacific coast. The Nancy Brown Peace
Carillon was a tower dedicated to peace in Brown's honor.
Constructed on Belle Isle, a park in the Detroit River, the tower was
supported by Brown and funded by contributions from her readers. The
Nancy Brown Peace Carillon material, dating from 1934 to 1941,
consists of newspaper and magazine clippings, a brochure, and a
postcard. The material documents the Peace Carillon project from its
conception after the start of the annual sunrise services on Belle
Isle in 1934 through the fundraising efforts and completion of
construction in 1940. The correspondence contains two letters. The
first is a short letter, dated June 2, 1937, from the Queen of Great
Britain's Treasurer acknowledging the receipt of a page from the
"Detroit News." The other letter, written on a Christmas card in
1945 to Mount Holyoke classmate Sarah French Lee, describes her
retirement. The biographical information, dating from 1917 to 1948,
consists of a biographical note, newspaper clippings, obituaries, and
a "Mount Holyoke Alumnae Quarterly" article by Brown's Mount Holyoke
roommate Bertha E. Blakely. The clippings document Brown's work on
the "Experience" column and her retirement. The obituaries are for
both Brown and her husband, James E. Leslie. The photographs series
contains two formal portraits of Brown as a younger woman. The first
is Brown's senior portrait from Mount Holyoke, ca. 1892, and another
was taken when she was older. There are six photographs of the Peace
Carillon, and there is one photograph of Brown breaking ground on the
tower. These photographs are from 1939-ca. 1940. The last
photograph is of Brown at her fiftieth Mount Holyoke class reunion in
1942.
Cite as: Nancy Brown Papers, Mount Holyoke College
Archives and Special Collections, South Hadley,
Massachusetts
Access Restrictions: Unrestricted
Series List:
- Writings
, 1917-1942
, 11 boxes
- Nancy Brown Peace Carillon Material
, 1934-1941
, 2 folders
- Correspondence
, 1937, 1945
, 1 folder
- Biographical Information
, 1917-1948
, 1 folder
- Photographs
, ca. 1892-1942
, 2 folders
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