Madeleine Neel diaries

1914-1937

The Madeleine Neel diaries date from 1914 to 1937 and consist of 22 volumes. The diaries document the experiences of a British immigrant living in the United States during World War I, the Great Depression, and the interwar period. Each volume covers one year and contains near complete one page entries for each day of the year, recounting Neel's daily housekeeping activities, her husband's work, news of her family in Britain, social engagements, local weather, and her reactions to current events. Most volumes feature address lists and household expenses in the front and back of each book. In addition to diary entries, the volumes also hold news clippings, poems, obituaries, ticket stubs, telegraphs, recipes, photographs, and programs for music and theatre performances interleaved or pasted onto individual entry pages.

The collection covers the periods in which Neel and her husband resided in New York City; Morristown, New Jersey; Syracuse and Onondaga, New York; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Neel's varied experiences—of being an immigrant, a house wife, and separated from her family abroad—are briefly touched upon in one or two sentences in many entries. Her enduring connection to Britain and Europe during periods of tumult is evident, as she discusses news from abroad reported through newspapers and letters from family, with her personal reactions to these events often included. Neel's travels to Europe are also detailed. Her daily decisions in running her household are shown with expense lists, recipes, notes on chores, and her descriptions of meals prepared for the day. The Neels' active social life is illustrated in programs and ticket stubs of events attended as well as discussion of their visits with neighbors, colleagues, and fellow church members. Neel's entries also trace the arc of her husband's career as a teacher, translator, and professor and the daily tasks he undertook with these jobs.

Diaries for 1917 and 1918 are not present.