mnsss408 Dorothy Woodruff Hillman Papers, 1916-1996 Finding Aid Finding aid prepared by . Sophia Smith Collection
Smith College Northampton, MA
2008 Finding aid encoded in NoteTab Pro. Encoded by Carrie Baldwin. 2008-06-04 Finding aid written in English Collection Overview Hillman, Dorothy Woodruff, 1887-1979 Dorothy Woodruff Hillman Papers1916-1996 MS 570 2 boxes (.75 linear ft.) English Sophia Smith Collection
Smith College Northampton, MA
Teacher. Photographs, correspondence, and printed materials describing one year (1917-18) spent teaching the children of homesteaders at the Elkhead School in Routt County, Colorado. Biographical Note

Dorothy Woodruff (Hillman) was born in Auburn, N.Y., January 13, 1887, the daughter of Caroline Porter Beardsley and John Herman Woodruff. She attended Rye Seminary in Rye, N.Y., and graduated from Smith College in 1909. In 1916 she went to Routt County, Colorado with childhood friend and Smith College alumna, Rosamond Underwood, to teach for a year at the Elkhead School, built for the children of homesteaders who had come to settle in the Rocky Mountains. Woodruff later married Lemuel Serrell Hillman, with whom she had two daughters, Caroline and Hermione, and two sons, Serrell and Douglas. Throughout her life, Woodruff was active in civil and charitable work; she was executive director of the Grand Rapids (MI) chapter of the American Red Cross, and later became regional director for western Michigan. She died May 13, 1979.

 Scope and Contents of the Collection

Photographs, correspondence, and printed materials describing one academic year (1917-18) Woodruff and fellow Smith College alumna, Rosamond Underwood, spent teaching the children of homesteaders at the Elkhead School in Routt County, Colorado. The materials offer a small, compelling glimpse into rural life in the Rocky Mountains, as seen from the perspective of a young woman from the eastern United States.

The papers are open to research according to the regulations of the Sophia Smith Collection. This collection has not been fully processed and therefore may be difficult to use.

The Sophia Smith Collection owns copyright to materials created by Dorothy Woodruff Hillman. Copyright to other materials may be owned by the creators, or their heirs or assigns. It is the responsibility of the researcher to identify and satisfy the holders of all copyrights. Permission to publish reproductions or quotations beyond "fair use" must also be obtained from the Sophia Smith Collection as owners of the physical property.

Please use the following format when citing materials from this collection:

Dorothy Woodruff Hillman Papers, Sophia Smith Collection, Smith College, Northampton, Mass.

Accessioned by Burd Schlessinger, 2007.

The Dorothy Woodruff Hillman Papers were donated to the Sophia Smith Collection Caroline Hillman Backlund and Hermione H. Wickenden in 2007.

Colorado--History--20th century--Sources Rural schools--Colorado--History--20th century--Sources Teachers--Colorado--Biography--Sources Carpenter, Rosamond Underwood Hillman, Dorothy Woodruff, 1887-1979 Carpenter, Rosamond Underwood 1 1 Information provided by donor 1 2 Photographs of Dorothy Woodruff 1917-18 1 3-5 Reminiscences by Woodruff: transcriptions n.d. Correspondence 1 6-7 Woodruff, Dorothy to family 1916-17 (originals and photocopies) 1 8 Woodruff, John Herman (father) to Dorothy Woodruff, and to family 1903-17 1 9 Third party 1916, 1974-76 Elkhead School 1 10 Description by Dorothy Woodruff circa 1917 1 11-12 Surveys 1917 1 13 Student publication: ""Manhana" 1920 1 14 Carpenter Ranch: article, and pamphlet 1948, 1996 1 15 Underwood, Rosamond: eulogy, and photograph 1944, 1974 Oversize Materials 2 Saturday Evening Post: article about Carpenter Ranch 12 Apr 1952 2 Western Farm Life: article about Elkhead School 1 Aug 1918