The following is a post by one of our most recent Simmons interns, Meg Rampton.
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I started at the Congregational Library very excited and anxious to process my very first collection after started my masters degree at Simmons College last fall. I had spent hundreds of hours in archives researching but had never been on the other side: preparing and organizing the documents. The library and archive are housed together in a wonderful environment overlooking the Granary Burial ground. I knew at the beginning I would enjoy this internship. 60 hours were required for my class but I knew I could spend much more time there.
My
project was to process the Blake-Goodsell Collection. Everett Blake married Lynda Goodsell in 1926
in Berkley, California. They followed
Fred and Lou Goodsell, Lynda’s parents, path and shortly after moved to Turkey
and spent most of their lives as missionaries in the Middle East. The
collection covered 5 generations of the Everett Blake and Fred Goodsell
Families. As I started there were boxes
of all sizes with many different documents inside. A majority was letters back and forth between
family members. After hours of sorting
and organizing the letters, I came to feel as if I knew the family. When I went through the correspondence about
Lynda’s death I felt the emotions as if I knew her.
The endless boxes of correspondence
Although I have never met any family member I felt grateful for the service they preformed for others as missionaries. As a returned missionary myself for my church, I knew the difficulties and sacrifice they went through. They were good people. And they sure did write a lot! When my project was completed there were over nine and a half boxes of correspondence.
One of my favorite finds in the collection was in one of Fred Goodsell’s journal. He had three original revolutionary war dollars. They were very tattered paper about 3 inches square and in the amount of 1/6th of a dollar, 20 dollars, and 30 dollars printed in 1776.
Thank you to the Congregation Church for allowing me to work with you!
Meg doing the final sort in the reading room
I am writing a book about my father, Khalil Totah, a Palestinian Quaker educator, who was an interim Congregational pastor in Mattapoisett, Mass, in 1945, and subsequently Director of the Institute of Arab American Affairs in New York, 1945-1950. A Fred Goodsell was on the Advisory Board of the Institute, and I am trying to find information about him. Can you help me? I identify with Meg Rampton's story!
Thank you,
Joy Totah Hilden
510-526-2266
Berkeley, CA
Posted by: Joy Totah Hilden | August 08, 2009 at 12:35 AM
In the early 70's, I bought a photograph at a thrift store in Turlok, Ca. The photo was a view through an open window. On the back it reads:
F.F. Goodsell Christmas 1927
An open window - Brousa Turkey
From E.S.
The internet is pretty cool, huh?
Posted by: Tim Avilla | December 19, 2009 at 03:58 PM