Lucy Wheelock Collection, 1871-2009 | Wheelock College Archives

The collection is organized in four series with the fourth series being organized into two sub-series:

Series I: Biographical and Personal, 1871-1989

Documents the life, work, and interests of Lucy Wheelock and contains artifacts believed to have once been owned by Miss Wheelock. Items include Miss Wheelock’s red cape, her doctoral hood, a weaving book, an honorary degree from the University of Vermont, notebooks, and a scrapbook of trade cards. Biographical information on the life of Miss Wheelock from personal papers and newspaper clippings to a diary of her travels can be found in this series as well. There is a small amount of information about Miss Wheelock's father Edwin, and brother George. The information on Edwin also contains letters from Thomas Cushing to Edwin Wheelock as well as from Henry H. Barnard. Much of the correspondence between the men is in reference to Miss Wheelock. This series also contains tributes to Lucy and a chapter of an autobiography by Miss Wheelock entitled My Life Story.

Series II: Images, 1877-1946

Contains photographs and images of Miss Wheelock, such as images from magazines and larger framed pictures. Images of Miss Wheelock date from the 1860s to the 1940s and include photographs with classmates and students throughout her life as an educator. Most Lucy Wheelock photographs located in the photograph collection have been relocated to this collection; however, one can also find pictures of Miss Wheelock in PC9, Oversized Box C. Photographs from the Froebel Pilgrimage are located in the Professional Work [box 7] series of this collection. Glass slides thought to have been purchased by Miss Wheelock during the Froebel Pilgrimage are located in Professional Work [box 8].

Series III: Correspondence, 1884-1946

Documents correspondence between Miss Wheelock and others during her time as the founder and President Emeritus of Wheelock College. While there are a few letters written by Miss Wheelock, the majority are written to Miss Wheelock from friends and colleagues. This series also houses Seasons Greetings cards from Lucy to others and a letter from Herbert Hoover.

Series IV: Professional Work, 1873-1967

Documents the professional work of Miss Wheelock at Wheelock College. Contains information relating to Lucy's work within the educational community and articles written by Miss Wheelock about education. The series is divided into two sub-series:

Subseries 1. Professional Affiliations and Activities, 1873-1967

Documents the professional work and affiliations in which Miss Wheelock was involved, and contains correspondence, programs, and reports relating to Miss Wheelock's work with professional organizations around the world. In particular, this series contains information relating to the International Kindergarten Union and the Committee of Nineteen, which consists of newspaper clippings, annual meeting programs, a scrapbook, and information on settlement houses. One can also find information about the Froebel Pilgrimage, which was organized by Miss Wheelock in 1911. The information preserved from this pilgrimage includes a travel diary, photographs, a book written by Miss Wheelock, audio and recording tapes of Lucy's writings, and many maps and ephemeral materials from Germany. This series also contains 59 glass slides believed to have been purchased by Miss Wheelock while abroad.

Subseries 2. Writings, 1882-1946

Documents the writings of Miss Wheelock on kindergarten and early childhood education. These writings consist of both unpublished and published writings, lecture notes, articles written for various Wheelock College publications, and professional education journals edited by Lucy. Check the Wheelock College Library Catalog at http://www.wheelock.edu/library/ for other writings by Lucy.

Lucy Wheelock was born February 1, 1857 in Cambridge, Vermont to Edwin Wheelock, a minister and descendent of John Adams, and Laura (Pierce). Lucy spent the early part of her life in Cambridge, Vermont where she studied at Underhill Academy and later moved to Reading, Massachusetts where she attended and graduated from Reading High School in 1874. After graduation, Lucy returned to her hometown in Vermont where she taught in the village school, but in a few years time, came back to Massachusetts to study at the Chauncey-Hall School in Boston. Here she learned the German language and became interested in early childhood education. The writings and works of Friedrich Froebel, the founder of kindergarten, particularly fascinated her. Miss Wheelock went on to train at the Kindergarten Training School as a kindergarten teacher, finishing in 1879. Upon completion of her education, she returned to the Chauncey-Hall School, this time as a kindergarten teacher, and began translating the works of Friedrich Froebel and Johanna Spyri, writer of the children's book Heidi.

In 1888, the Wheelock Kindergarten Training School was established as a department of the Chauncey-Hall School in Copley Square. The first class consisted of six students. Miss Wheelock's school eventually moved to Dartmouth Street in Boston's Back Bay in 1896. As the school continued to grow, it was forced to move into a larger building. The first move was to Newbury Street in 1904 and then again in 1914 to the Riverway, where Wheelock College is located today.

Throughout her life, Miss Wheelock was active in many professional activities related to the education of kindergarten teachers. She served as a member, and later as President, of the International Kindergarten Union (IKU). Her involvement with the IKU also included the title of Chairperson of the Committee of Nineteen commissioned by the IKU. As Chairperson of the committee, Miss Wheelock prepared a report on the current status of kindergarten methods and philosophy. Miss Wheelock was a member of the IKU Froebel Memorial House Committee and was instrumental in the planning of a pilgrimage for 70 American teachers to the birthplace of Friedrich Froebel in 1911. She was also active in the National Congress of Mothers (NCM).

Lucy Wheelock wrote many articles, book chapters, and edited journals related to the education of young children. In 1940, she was granted the title of Principal Emeritus of Wheelock College and died in 1946 in Massachusetts. Since 1888, Wheelock College has built upon the pioneering work of Lucy Wheelock to play a leading role in the preparation of early childhood and elementary school teachers and the formation of local and national education policy in America.

Consult the following sources for more information on the life of Lucy Wheelock:

Wheelock College 100 Years : 1888/89-1988/1989. Elizabeth Anne Liddle, Editor ; design: Diane Schaefer. Boston: Wheelock College. 1988. 372.2 W57

Wheelock, Lucy. Childhood Days. Boston: Wheelock College. ARCHIVES 920.7 W57c

Wheelock, Lucy. My Life Story. Boston: Wheelock College. 920.7 W57m