IOWA WOMEN'S ARCHIVES

UNIVERSITY OF IOWA LIBRARIES

IOWA CITY, IOWA

EVELYN CRARY BACON (1916-1997)

PAPERS, 1917-2000

2.3 linear feet and audiovisual material

ACQUISITION:	The papers» (donor no. 742) were donated by Franklin Bacon in 2000.
ACCESS:		The »papers are open for research.
ARTIFACTS		In boxes 2-5.
AUDIOVISUAL:		One audiocassette shelved in audiocassette collection [AC835].
COPYRIGHT:		Copyright held by the donor has been transferred to the University of Iowa.
PHOTOGRAPHS:		In Box 1.
PROCESSED BY:		Emily Broeckling, 2003 [BaconEvelyn.doc]

»Biography

Evelyn Crary Bacon, teacher, decorated veteran nurse and pioneer in the field of nursing education, was born in Grundy Center, Iowa in 1916. Crary earned a B.A. in political science from the University of Iowa in 1938, a G.N. in nursing from the University of Iowa in 1940, and an M.S. in nursing education from the University of Chicago in 1946. From 1942 to 1946, Crary served as captain in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps, acting as head nurse supervisor and participating in the invasion of Normandy.

In 1950, Crary married Franklin Bacon. The couple moved to Richmond, Virginia, where Bacon was active in the nursing program at the University of Virginia. Bacon’s extensive teaching career includes positions at the University of Iowa, UCLA, University of Virginia, and the Medical College of Virginia. Bacon led the movement to establish the School of Nursing at the University of Virginia. In 1972, Bacon became associate professor and program head of Nursing at J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College in Richmond. In 1981, Bacon was elected chairman of the Richmond Red Cross organization, becoming the first woman to hold the position. Bacon also served as President of the Richmond League of Women Voters and enjoyed positions in many other organizations, including the Commission on the Status of Women, Governor’s Advisory Council, Richmond area community council, and the Virginia Nurses Association.

After Bacon’s retirement, she volunteered as historian for the Virginia Nurses Association, organizing the papers of early nursing leaders. Bacon was posthumously recognized by this organization as an Outstanding Nurse in 1999, and in 2000 was named a Virginia Pioneer Nurse.

Scope and Content Note

The Evelyn Crary Bacon» papers date from »1917 to 2000 and measure 2.3 linear feet. The papers are arranged in three series: Biographical, Julia Crary, and Artifacts.

The Biographical series consists of a collection of certificates and certification papers; correspondence; newspaper clippings; photographs; two programs from the centennial celebration of the Virginia Nurses Association; a set of notes from Bacon’s college courses, and notes from Bacon’s unfinished dissertation, which examined the viability of the “health team” model—including physicians, nurses, pharmacists, therapeutic dietitians and social workers—which was widely utilized in the medical field. The audiocassette contains an interview with Bacon on the fiftieth anniversary of the Normandy invasion.

The Julia Crary series comprises a collection of six diaries, dating from 1917-1942, belonging to Evelyn Crary Bacon’s older sister, Julia Crary, who became a performer in the Chautauqua traveling circuit. The diaries begin in 1917, when Crary was fifteen years old, documenting her day-to-day activities, including school, church, piano lessons, and social occasions. In the fall of 1920, Crary started college, and soon after, joined a sorority. By 1924, Crary’s classes included Dancing, Voice, Dramatic Arts, and Stage Craft. In addition, she was involved in numerous stage productions. By 1926, Crary’s diary entries detail her experiences in the traveling Chautauqua show. These entries are generally very brief, and include the location of the show, and a few words to describe the tenor of the crowd. By 1936, Crary was a faculty member in the Drama department at Pomona College in California, teaching Storytelling, Speech, Movement and Stage Make-up.

The Artifacts series includes a nurse’s cape, an army jacket, a helmet, a pair of binoculars, a canteen, boxed military medals, Bacon’s high school diploma, a Bible, part of Bacon’s nursing uniform, a nameplate, two Red Cross paperweights, a key chain, several pieces of jewelry, and three folders of medals and pins. »

:»Box no. Description

Box 1

Biographical

Certificates and certification papers, 1940-1997

Oversized certificates [shelved in map case]

Correspondence, 1975-2000

Diploma, Grundy High School, 1934 [shelved in map case]

Newspaper clippings, 1959-1998

Photographs, 1938-1990

Virginia Nurses Association programs

A Century to Celebrate Outstanding Nurses (1999)

Virginia Pioneer Nurses: A Century to Celebrate (2000)

Dissertation notes, 1968-1970 (2 folders)

Interview with Evelyn Crary Bacon [shelved in audiocassette

collection AC835 ]

Julia Crary

Diaries (2 folders)

1917

1919

1920-1924

1926

1930

1936

Box 2

Artifacts

Nurse’s cape

Box 3

Army jacket

Box 4

Medals (boxed)

European-African-Middle-Eastern Campaign

Commemoration of the allied armies’ liberation of France

Good conduct

World War II victory

Two white linen nurse’s uniform accessories

Nameplate

Two American Red Cross paperweights

University of Iowa college of nursing key chain

Set of gold cufflinks

Gold identification bracelet

Jewelry box

Class ring, 1934

Gold dog charm

Gold cathedral charm

Gold charm (unknown organization)

Medals and pins (3 folders)

Box 5

Canteen

Helmet

Binoculars