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Mary Margaret Frank Papers
Collection Overview
Title: Mary Margaret Frank Papers
ID: OGLMC1362
Primary Creator: Frank, Mary Margaret (French) (1912-2012)
Extent: 1.25 Linear Feet
Date Acquired: 06/30/1997. More info below under Accruals.
Subjects: Genealogy and Family History, University of North Dakota - Alumni, Women's History
Languages: English
Abstract
Scope and Contents of the Materials
The Mary Margaret Frank Papers include a number of items relating to the genealogy of the French family. Two different books, Ancestors and Descendants of Samuel French the Joiner, and The Family of David Scott French, examine the history of the French family from the 1600s through the 1900s. The Mallory and French papers establish a connection between the two families four generations before Mary Margaret French Frank was born in 1912. This folder is followed by one which contains material related to French Frank’s immediate family.
Those folders that do not deal specifically with the genealogy of the French family include a folder on Samuel S. Townsley, who was French Frank's maternal grandfather. Mary Margaret French Frank contributed one of her mother’s letters which was used in the publication Humanities on the Frontier. Blanche Harding was a friend of both Mary Margaret French Frank and her mother, Mabel. John French Jr.’s connection to the other French family could not be established, while the folder on Skulda Banér, an author who wrote about a woman who left home to become a teacher in North Dakota, has no relation to the French Family. Also included is one folder of Frank's correspondence, one scrapbook, and biographical information regarding Buron Townsley French.
One oversize folder was placed in the Oversize File Cabinet. The folder contains an original deed for land owned by a “John Whitney” in the Province of Upper Canada, 1804. Whitney’s relation to the French family is unknown.
Collection Historical Note
Mary Margaret French Frank was born August 8, 1912, in Grand Forks, North Dakota, to Harley and Mabel (Townsley) French. She was a 1930 graduate of Grand Forks Central High School. During that time she was involved in Glee Club, was the program chair of the Student Club, assistant editor of the school newspaper and was also a member of the volleyball and soccer teams.
Mary Margaret French graduated from the University of North Dakota in 1934 with a Bachelor of Arts Degree from the College of Liberal Arts. She was a member of the women's social sorority, Kappa Alpha Theta, and the honors society, Phi Beta Kappa. She taught in North Dakota and Iowa from 1934 to 1941. She also received a Master of Arts degree in English Literature from Wellesley College in 1937. She moved to Nashville, Tennessee, in 1943 to continue teaching, before returning to Grand Forks in 1945 to teach piano. In 1955, she earned a Master's Degree in Library Science from the University of Illinois and was named the head of the Grand Forks Public Library. She was married to Richard Frank in 1957 and lived with him in Grand Forks until his death on March 1, 1995. She died October 4, 2012, in Grand Forks.
Subject/Index Terms
Administrative Information
Repository: Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections
Additional material was donated by:
Mary Margaret Frank (via the UND Alumni Association) in November 2006 (2006-2871)
Unknown donor in 2013 (2013-3227)
Transferred from the UND Alumni Association in October 2018 (2018-3391)
Access Restrictions: Open for inspection under the rules and regulations of the Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections.
Acquisition Source: Mary Margaret Frank, Grand Forks, North Dakota
Acquisition Method: Donation; 98-2195
Related Materials:
Dr. Richard Frank Papers, OGLMC 1382
Dr. Harley E. French Papers, OGLMC 142
Preferred Citation: (Description of Item). Mary Margaret Frank Papers. OGLMC 1362, Box #, Folder #. Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections, Chester Fritz Library, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks.
Finding Aid Revision History: Finding aid added to Archon in March 2014.
Box and Folder Listing
Browse by Box:
[Box 1],
[Oversize Folder :],
[All]
- Box 1
- Folder 1: Ancestors and Descendants of Samuel French the Joiner by Mansfield Joseph French, 1940
- Folder 2: The Family of David Scott French, 1958
- Folder 3: Mallory and French Family Papers
- Folder 4: French Family Papers - Mary Margaret, Harley, and Burton, 1905-1945
- Folder 5: Samuel S. Townsley, 1974
- Folder 6: Humanities on the Frontier, Country School Legacy Project, 1981
- Folder 7: Blanche Harding, 1935-1991
- Folder 8: John French Jr. By Henry B. Wright, Oakham Historical Society, 1914
- Folder 9: Skulda Banér, 1960-1962
- Folder 10: Correspondence
- Item 1: From Dr. James Grassick, March 17, 1926
- Item 2: From Dr. James Grassick, July 16, 1938
- Item 3: To Lucy Johnston Sypher, December 18, 1974
- Item 4: From Lucy Johnston Sypher, December 31, 1974
- Item 5: To Lucy Johnston Sypher, January 13, 1975
- Item 6: To Lucy Johnston Sypher, June 11, 1975
- Item 7: From "Jessie" in Hales Corners, Wisconsin, February 14, 1976
- Item 8: To Lucy Johnston Sypher, December 31, 1976
- Item 9: From Lucy Johnston Sypher, January 17, 1977
- Item 10: From Lucy Johnston Sypher, May 13, 1977
- Item 11: From Lucy Johnston Sypher, August 13, 1978
- Item 12: From unknown, June 4, 1980
- Item 13: From UND President Thomas Clifford, November 19, 1984
- Item 14: From Lucy Johnston Sypher, undated
- Item 15: From Lucy Johnston Sypher, June 16, unknown year
- Folder 11: "Tow" by Mary Margaret Frank, ca. 2004
- Four page, typed biography of Burton Townsley Frank written by his sister, Mary Margaret Frank. The document is undated but refers to the death of "Tow" in February 2004.
- Folder 12: Untitled autobiography by Burton Townsley Frank
- 10 typed pages; the author was living in Jaffrey, New Hampshire, when he created the document
- Folder 13: Photographs
1362-1: David S. French, ca. 1865-1867
1362-2: Hiram L. Perkins in Civil War uniform, ca. 1865
1362-3: Carrie Lorinda (Slack) French, ca. 1885
1362-4: Albert Alvin French, ca. 1893
1362-5: Minnie Adelle French, ca. 1900
1362-6: Delbert Delvin French, 1903
1362-7: Harley with his mother and Mary Margaret, 1916
1362-8: Hulda Mallory and Burton L. French, September 8, 1936
1362-9: Albert, Delbert, Minnie, Roy, (Mrs.) Albert, Burton French, September 10, 1936
1362-10: Mansfield and Burton L. French, September 10, 1936
1362-11: Clarence, Burton, Mary, Roy, Ethel, Frank, Ruth, Clara, Clara, Minnie, Nellie, Albert, Delbert, Ruth Ester, Marion, Mary Elizabeth, Alvin Eugene, John Albert (at the home of Albert A. French, Theresa, New York), ca. August 10, 1937
1362-12: Roy, Harold, Clarence, Mary, Ruth, Clara, ca. August 10, 1937
1362-13: French Family, August 1, 1937
1362-14: Old home of David S. French, undated
1362-15: Burton and Harley French, undated
1362-16: Mary Margaret Frank later in life, undated
- Item 1: Black Scrapbook: "Photo Album"
- Contains photographs, correspondence, newspaper clippings, and ephemera from Frank's time as a UND student, 1930-1934
- Oversize Folder :
Browse by Box:
[Box 1],
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