Edith Gerselda Lynch autograph book
Scope and Contents
This item is a 1935 autograph book that belonged to Edith Gerselda Lynch, a student in the class of 1937 at Howard High School in Wilmington, Delaware. The book contains signatures and messages from Lynch's friends, acquaintances, and family, including a signature from Howard High School teacher and librarian Pauline A. Young. The pages provide a glimpse of student life at a Delaware-based African American high school prior to desegregation.
The beginning of the autograph book contains some information about Howard High School at the time of Lynch's attendance. Several other pages are in keeping with the tradition of friendship albums, as they contain messages consisting of poems and quotations written by classmates and others--many of which are humorous, and some of which are more serious or supportive. Most are written in English, several in French, and a few in Latin. In addition to classmates, unspecified individuals, and Pauline Young, there are messages from both of Lynch’s parents, as well as janitors “Bip” Maynard Watson and “Bing” Braxton.
Dates
- Creation: 1935
Creator
- Lynch, Edith Gerselda (Person)
Language of Materials
Materials in English, French, and Latin.
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
Use of materials from this collection beyond the exceptions provided for in the Fair Use and Educational Use clauses of the U.S. Copyright Law may violate federal law. Permission to publish or reproduce is required from the copyright holder. Please contact Special Collections Department, University of Delaware Library, https://library.udel.edu/static/purl.php?askspec
Biographical Note
Edith Gerselda Lynch (1919-1991) was a Wilmington resident and student at the historically Black Howard High School (now Howard High School of Technology). She lived at 418 Lombard Street and her parents were John H. and Gerselda H. Lynch (née Baxter). Writer and activist Alice Dunbar-Nelson had been a teacher at Howard High School for almost two decades, and her niece, Pauline A. Young, was on the staff at the time Lynch was a student. After high school, Lynch was subsequently known as Edith Gerselda Foster, Edith Lynch Delaney, and Edith G. Walker. Toward the end of her life, she resided in Cheyney, Pennsylvania.
Ancestry Library, 2018, accessed April 11, 2018, https://www.ancestrylibrary.com/.
”The Morning News from Wilmington, Delaware: Page 20.” Newspapers.com, 2018 (first published September 15, 1987), accessed April 11, 2018, https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/159742555/.Other biographical information derived from collection.
Extent
1 volume
Abstract
This item is a 1935 autograph book that belonged to Edith Gerselda Lynch, a student in the class of 1937 at Howard High School in Wilmington, Delaware. The book contains signatures and messages from Lynch's friends, acquaintances, and family, including a signature from Howard High School teacher and librarian Pauline A. Young. The pages provide a glimpse of student life at a Delaware-based African American high school prior to desegregation.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Timothy Murray, March 2002
Shelving Summary
Shelved in SPEC MSS 0093 medium
Rights Statement
The text of this web page can be reused and modified under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
Processing Information
Processed and encoded by Frank Desiderio, April 2018. Updated by Shelby Daniels-Young, December 2021.
Subject
- Lynch, Edith Gerselda (Person)
- Young, Pauline A., 1900-1991 (Person)
- Howard High School (Wilmington, Del.) (Organization)
- Title
- Finding aid for Edith Gerselda Lynch autograph book
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- University of Delaware Library, Special Collections
- Date
- 2018 April 12
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the University of Delaware Library Special Collections Repository