1882-1961; bulk: 1890-1961
Guide to the Collection
Restrictions on Access
The Mary Bowditch Forbes papers are stored offsite and must be requested at least two business days in advance via Portal1791. Researchers needing more than six items from offsite storage should provide additional advance notice. If you have questions about requesting materials from offsite storage, please contact the reference desk at 617-646-0532 or reference@masshist.org.
Abstract
This collection consists of the papers of Mary Bowditch Forbes of Milton, Mass., an ardent anti-suffragist, conservative Republican, anti-pacifist, anti-socialist, amateur poet, and admirer of Abraham Lincoln.
Biographical Sketch
Mary Bowditch Forbes was the daughter of James Murray Forbes and Alice Bowditch Forbes. Her siblings were Dorothy Murray Forbes and Allan Forbes. She was a horse and dog enthusiast, admirer of Abraham Lincoln, amateur poet, political conservative, anti-pacifist, and anti-suffrage lobbyist. She was single, resided in Milton, Mass., and summered at a family home in Dark Harbor, Islesboro, Maine, and sometimes at Nantucket.
Collection Description
This collection consists of correspondence; account books; scrapbooks containing Mary Bowditch Forbes's poetry and material concerning pacifism, World War I, women's suffrage, socialism, and other political subjects; papers related to her anti-suffrage work, including correspondence with Clara Vezin of the New Jersey Association Opposed to Woman Suffrage; poetry of Forbes and others; papers related to Abraham Lincoln and a replica of his birthplace that Forbes had built in Milton, Mass.; and financial papers, including checkbooks, bank statements, and bills and receipts. Among Forbes's correspondents are her parents James Murray Forbes and Alice Bowditch Forbes, siblings Dorothy Murray Forbes and Allan Forbes, Theodore Roosevelt, F. Lauriston Bullard, Buckminster Fuller, Vivian T. Pomeroy, and Walter G. Page.
Acquisition Information
Gift of H. A. Crosby Forbes of Cambridge, Mass., 1992.
Restrictions on Access
The Mary Bowditch Forbes papers are stored offsite and must be requested at least two business days in advance via Portal1791. Researchers needing more than six items from offsite storage should provide additional advance notice. If you have questions about requesting materials from offsite storage, please contact the reference desk at 617-646-0532 or reference@masshist.org.
Detailed Description of the Collection
Expand allI. Correspondence, 1882-1961
Arranged chronologically.
The correspondence in this series relates to Mary Bowditch Forbes's many interests, in particular Abraham Lincoln; anti-suffrage and other conservative political stances, including strong anti-FDR and anti-pacifist beliefs; family conflicts, notably her sister Dorothy's alcoholism; and the expenses of the family property in Milton, Mass.
Undated, 1882, 1900-1927
Among the correspondents are Forbes's mother and father, anti-suffragist Clara Vezin (23 Nov. 1907), diplomat W. Cameron Forbes (25 Sep. 1916), Theodore Roosevelt (4 Jan. 1917; 8 Aug. 1918), Clement H. Norton (30 Dec. 1919), the secretary to the president (26 Jan. 1924), Louis A. Coolidge (7 Feb. 1924), Gen. William H. Bisbee (3 Aug. 1924), and Henry R. Rathbone (3 June 1926). Subjects include World War I, anti-suffrage, the Lincoln Cabin (a replica in Milton, Mass.), and the death of Richard S. Fay.
1928-1935
Among the correspondents is Walter Gilman Page (28 May 1929). Subjects include the Lincoln Cabin, trust funds, family correspondence, financial matters (particularly the Milton estate), and Dorothy Murray Forbes's alcohol abuse.
1936-1944
Included is a copy of a Franklin Delano Roosevelt letter (25 Feb. 1937). Among the correspondents are Robert Washburn (29 Apr. 1940), Wendell L. Willkie (30 Nov. 1940), the secretary to Winston Churchill (3 Feb. 1941), Pearl S. Buck (19 Aug. 1942; 26 Oct. 1942; 11 Jan. 1943), and editor Virginia Pennington (from 8 Apr. 1944). Subjects include Forbes's support of Alf Landon and her antagonism towards Roosevelt; a family dispute over the expenses of the Milton estate; Abraham Lincoln's birthday and the Lincoln Cabin; insurance policies; Forbes's anti-socialist and anti-communist views; the Islesboro (Maine) property; the death of James Murray Forbes (1937); Mary Bowditch Forbes's contribution to a proposed book entitled Lincolniana in Private Collections, compiled by Virginia Pennington (of Hobbies Magazine); the treason trial of Elizabeth Dilling (22 May 1944); the launching of the ship R. B. Forbes (14 Sep. 1944); the National Cathedral Association; and the death of Dorothy Murray Forbes (Nov. 1944).
1945-1961
Among the correspondents are Helen Keller (25 Mar. 1946), Virginia Pennington of Hobbies Magazine, Unitarian minister and writer Vivian T. Pomeroy (20 Dec. 1946), MHS director Stewart Mitchell (12 Mar. 1947), Dwight D. Eisenhower (20 Feb. 1948), R. Buckminster Fuller (Sep. 1949), F. Lauriston Bullard (17 Oct. 1949), the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists (12 Nov. 1949), and musician, lecturer, and writer Boris Goldovsky (11 Dec. 1957). Subjects include financial matters and insurance, Abraham Lincoln, the proposed Lincolniana book, and appeals to charities.
II. Volumes, 1892-1955
A. Miscellaneous volumes, 1892-1955
Arranged chronologically.
Memorandum book, schedule for piano lessons, undated
This volume apparently did not belong to Mary Bowditch Forbes.
Telephone number book, undated
History notebook, 1892
Account book, 1899-1908
This volume was kept by James Murray Forbes for Mary Bowditch Forbes.
Account book, 1911-1919
This volume was kept by James Murray Forbes for Mary Bowditch Forbes.
Record of birthdays, 1931 to ?
Address book for Christmas cards, 1939
Account book, 1954-1955
B. Scrapbooks and guest books, 1910-1955
Arranged chronologically.
Scrapbook, undated
Included are papers related to U.S. presidents through Benjamin Harrison.
The Clamshell, 1910-1919
This volume contains photographs, signatures of guests, poetry, and newspaper clippings. Included are suffrage/anti-suffrage clippings and poetry, World War I clippings and memorabilia, and a signed Marcel Duchamp print of "Nude Descending a Staircase" on the last page.
The Pebble, Dark Harbor, Islesboro, Maine, 1913-1928
This volume contains photographs, newspaper clippings, signatures of guests, and poetry. Subjects include World War I, suffrage/anti-suffrage, and Forbes's anti-socialist views.
The Clamshell, 1920-1944
This volume contains signatures of guests, photographs of dogs, etc., poetry, and newspaper clippings. Subjects include the golden wedding anniversary of James Murray Forbes and Alice Bowditch Forbes.
The Lincoln Cabin, 1923-1926
This volume contains only signatures of guests.
Scrapbook, 1927-1950
Included are clippings, correspondence, and photographs from family vacations at Nantucket.
Scrapbook, 1936-1938
This volume contains newspaper clippings of Mary Bowditch Forbes's poetry and clippings related to her political and personal interests.
Scrapbook, 1938-1940
This volume contains newspaper clippings of Mary Bowditch Forbes's poetry and clippings related to her political and personal interests.
Anchors Aweigh, Islesboro, Maine, 1940-1955
This volume contains signatures, poetry, photographs, and newspaper clippings. Included is a poem by painter Margaret Fitzhugh Browne with her signature, as well as a photograph and a newspaper clipping.
III. Miscellaneous papers, 1887-1961
Anti-suffrage papers, 1914-1922
Included are letters; notes, etc.; papers related to the National Women's Party meeting in Boston (1919); anti-suffrage newspaper clippings (1914-1920); printed anti-suffrage literature, including pamphlets, flyers, etc.; and a scrapbook of telegrams, newspaper clippings, correspondence, postcards, and other printed items.
Writings and Abraham Lincoln memorabilia, 1887-1961
This box contains poems and writings by Mary Bowditch Forbes and others, including Forbes's autobiography; pencil drawings by Forbes; ephemera; and Abraham Lincoln memorabilia, including notes, clippings, and items sent to her by other Lincoln enthusiasts. Forbes's property in Milton, Mass., was an exact replica of Lincoln's birthplace, and she usually had a celebration there on the anniversary of his birth.
Greeting cards, postcards, and miscellaneous newspaper clippings, 1916-ca. 1961
IV. Financial papers, 1901-1961
A. Bills and receipts, 1901-1961
Arranged chronologically.
1901-1940
1941-1959
1960-1961
B. Financial statements, 1924-1960
Arranged chronologically.
1924-1945
1946-Mar. 1956
Apr. 1956-Aug. 1959
Aug. 1959-1960
Income taxes, 1955-1960
C. Checkbooks, 1923-1960
Arranged chronologically.
1923-1956
1956-1960
V. Printed matter, 1883-ca. 1961
This series contains signed Buckminster Fuller printed items, Theodore Roosevelt Club circulars with engravings and original packaging, two maps, and a copy of Extending the Right of Suffrage to Women: Hearings Before the Committee on Woman Suffrage, H.R. Res. 200 (1918).
Preferred Citation
Mary Bowditch Forbes papers, Massachusetts Historical Society.
Access Terms
This collection is indexed under the following headings in ABIGAIL, the online catalog of the Massachusetts Historical Society. Researchers desiring materials about related persons, organizations, or subjects should search the catalog using these headings.
Persons:
Organizations:
Subjects:
Materials Removed from the Collection
Photographs from this collection have been removed to the MHS Photo Archives. One glass-plate negative has been removed to Misc. Glass Plate Negatives (Box 2).