Dorothy Burr Thompson Papers

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Dorothy Burr Thompson (1900-2001) was a graduate of Bryn Mawr College class of 1923 and the first student to earn a degree in classical archaeology and Greek. She studied under Rhys Carpenter, who sparked her interest in Hellenistic sculpture. She earned the prestigious European Fellowship, which helped fund her graduate studies at the American School of Classical Studies in Athens (ASCSA). This collection contains seven of Thompson’s diaries, 1919-1925, during Thompson’s time at Bryn Mawr and the ASCSA.

Collection Guide for the Dorothy Burr Thompson papers
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7 items [showing 1 - 7]
Dorothy Burr Thompson diary, November 16, 1924-July 14, 1925
Title:
Dorothy Burr Thompson diary, 1925
Description:
Dorothy Burr Thompson’s post-college diary in which she writes about her travels.
Date:
1924-11-16 - 1925-07-14
Collection:
Dorothy Burr Thompson Papers
Dorothy Burr Thompson diary, November 25, 1923-November 15, 1924
Title:
Dorothy Burr Thompson diary, 1924
Description:
Dorothy Burr Thompson’s post-college diary in which she writes about her travels.
Date:
1923-11-25 - 1924-11-15
Collection:
Dorothy Burr Thompson Papers
Dorothy Burr Thompson diary, September 9, 1924-September 24, 1925
Title:
Dorothy Burr Thompson diary, 1925
Description:
Dorothy Burr Thompson’s post-college diary.
Date:
1924-09-09 - 1925-09-24
Collection:
Dorothy Burr Thompson Papers
Dorothy Burr Thompson diary, July 26-November 24, 1923
Title:
Dorothy Burr Thompson diary, 1923
Description:
Dorothy Burr Thompson’s post-college diary in which she writes about her travels.
Date:
1923-07-26 - 1923-11-24
Collection:
Dorothy Burr Thompson Papers
Dorothy Burr Thompson diary, August 8, 1920-April 9, 1922
Title:
Dorothy Burr Thompson diary, 1922
Description:
Dorothy Burr Thompson's diary, in which she writes about her sophomore through junior years at Bryn Mawr College. She records her impressions of and interactions with friends, classmates, and teachers. She discusses books and authors she is reading (Wilde, Hedda Gabler, Moliere, the Iliad, the Odyssey) while rarely making the distinction between classwork and books she reads for pleasure. She writes of trips into Philadelphia to see the ballet, opera, concerts, as well as performances at Bryn Mawr. She also discusses her struggle to settle on a course of study, her concerns about being at the top of her class, and her anxieties about developing and maintaining friendships.
Date:
1920-08-08 - 1922-04-09
Collection:
Dorothy Burr Thompson Papers
Dorothy Burr Thompson diary, September 22, 1919-June 14, 1920
Title:
Dorothy Burr Thompson diary, 1920
Description:
Dorothy Burr Thompson's diary, in which she writes about her social life, summertime adventures, and academic endeavors. Entries begin during Thompson's first year at Bryn Mawr College. She discusses her very eventful summer of exploration, sailing, dining, hiking, picnicking, reading, and writing with many friends, neighbors, and family members. The bulk of entries regarding her time at Bryn Mawr College evidence her challenges and doubts as a student as well as difficulties in choosing friends, a major, and a life path. Many of these entries also document general student life at Bryn Mawr College with mentions of the dormitories, College traditions, professors, and well-known figures, such as Carpenter, Rhys, 1889-1980. Thompson also sporadically includes insight into world events of this time and includes mentions of President Wilson's illness, American trade deals, the plummeting stock market and economy, growing prices, and a general world view of the economic backlash that will only continue to worsen.
Date:
1919-09-22 - 1920-06-14
Collection:
Dorothy Burr Thompson Papers
Dorothy Burr Thompson diary, April 12, 1922-August 24, 1924
Title:
Dorothy Burr Thompson diary, 1924
Description:
Dorothy Burr Thompson's diary in which she writes about her junior and senior years at Bryn Mawr College. She discusses her time at the American School in Athens on a European Fellowship. She discusses her social activities, such as having tea with her professors and friends, as well as her feelings towards academics, including her pride at receiving Summa Cum Laude and worry about passing her exams.
Date:
1922-04-12 - 1924-08-24
Collection:
Dorothy Burr Thompson Papers