1905 MANUSCRIPT DIARY OF A YOUNG WOMAN LIVING A FUN, SOCIAL, AND LIBERAL TEENAGE SCHOOLING LIFE, HANDWRITTEN BY THE FUTURE FOUNDER OF THE BRITISH UNITARIAN WOMEN’S LEAGUE
On offer is a historically significant diary from the main founder of the British League of Unitarian and Other Liberal Christian Women (commonly known as the British Unitarian Women’s League), Helen Brooke Herford. In addition to founding the organization, Herford worked as Secretary from the League’s inception in 1908 until 1929 accomplished a tremendous amount of good due to her tireless effort and enthusiasm. She helped set up the Correspondence Bureau during the First World War, oversaw the publication of many pamphlets, and help set up District Leagues, establish the organization’s Monthly Letter and the League Annual Meeting and much more. By the time of Herford’s death, 171 Branches, 11 District Leagues, and 2 Neighbourhood Leagues were in existence. This diary is from 1905, three years before she would found the organization, when Herford was only 19 years, living in Watertown, Massachusetts, and attending the Cambridge County School. It details the parties, dances, gossip, crushes, concerts, church visits and many other aspects of the life of a liberal 19 year old female student. It certainly shows a different and very formative side of a woman who would go on to do so much good in her life. In addition to the normal entries of student life, Herford also spends a significant amount of time traveling by train across America, from Massachusetts to Portland, Oregon, stopping in Billings, Montana for two weeks to stay with family. Helen goes to church often, but does not speak too much on her personal beliefs. Like many young women her age, she is more concerned with friends, boys, and school than she is with her religious beliefs. This diary contains approx 70 pages of handwritten entries, some pages of which are full and double sided, others just a few lines or paragraphs. Also included is a hand drawn floor plan of her house in Watertown, Massachusetts. Her enthusiasm for the landscape of Montana would be realized when, later in life, she ended up owning a dude ranch near Limestone (Stillwater County) Montana. The book’s leather cover shows some wear, but is generally in good condition. All pages are intact and free of any major damage or discoloration. The diary is not full but does contain some interesting background information about her early life. TEXT: “Jan 1, 1905. Went to bed this morning very early after Nannies party. Nannie and L went back with Whitney & Scott to sleep at the Henderson’s because there were so many to sleep at the Whitneys. We decided we would not go in the any house again until next year so as it was only 15 past eleven we walked slowly to the station sat there for awhile that went to H’s and sat on the door step unit 12 Saturday 31 was Nannies birthday.”; “Jan 5, 1905. School begun today and most of the girls are back but Edith Stor hasn’t come yet and I wish she would come. We played around after noon and at dinner I had my presents Crawford from the four Rodgers Pride and Prejudice from Alice and Patty Sense & Sensibility from miss Hays and Miss Holbrook.”; “Jan. 13, 1905. Went to Cambridge to see Rose with Elizabeth, Mabel was there and we had tea. At the square waiting for a car Mr R. Moot came up and spoke to Elizabeth. Nell Murphy was here for the dance when we got back. Dressed after dinner Helen was here for the first one she has been down to only two of all the boys.”; “July 19, 1905. Arrived in Billings Stayed in Billings for two weeks then started West for Portland Tacoma. The scenery from Livingston is very good some places in the mountains we could see three tracks below us where we had been. The prettiest scenery at Livingston and Bozeman and along the Green River. From Livingston we had two engines in front of and one behind part of the way. Spent the night in Tacoma and then took a train to Centralia and changed there for Hoquiam where we took the boat off to West Port Had met mother Mrs. Armstrong – Brooke & Jack half way there from West Port Edina visited on going through to life saving station…” (Backround: Helen Brooke Herford was the main founder of the British Unitarian Women’s League. Helen Brooke Herford worked as Secretary from the League’s inception in 1908 until 1929 and much had been accomplished due to her tireless effort and enthusiasm – the setting up of the Correspondence Bureau during the First World War, the publication of pamphlets, the setting up of District Leagues, establishing the Monthly Letter and the League Annual Meeting and much more. 171 Branches, 11 District Leagues, and 2 Neighbourhood Leagues were in existence and the Executive Committee had become the Central Committee. Members were encouraged to keep in touch with voting women who left home to take up work, firstly in this country, and then isolated women overseas. Work developed in many directions, including the issuing of a monthly newsletter. With the advent of World War I branches rose to the special needs of the time, including necessary articles made and distributed, serving men welcomed into homes or visited in hospital. She was also the granddaughter of Unitarian minister and noted preacher, and author, who served several important churches in Great Britain and America. Her younger brother Oliver (1860-1935), a poet, writer and illustrator in the USA was popularly known as “the American Oscar Wilde.” Her sons, John “Jack” Herford and William Herford were sheep ranchers in New Mexico and later ran a dude ranch in Yellowstone County, Montana. Beatrice Herford (1867–1952), a daughter, became a Broadway actress. Following her education in Germany and Boston, Massachusetts, Helen Herford returned to Montana where she taught school in Carbon County and worked on her parents’ ranch. Herford gained much of her experience in the Alliance of Unitarian Women in the USA. In 1929, she and a cousin, Helen Underwood Wellington, entered into a partnership to establish a dude ranch near Limestone in Stillwater County, Mont. The Swinging H Ranch operated until 1937 when financial pressures forced Helen Herford to suspend operations and sell. She returned to teaching afterwards and died in Columbus, Montana in 1972. Her archive of papers and correspondence is held at the Montana State University Library.)