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Diary and Scrapbook of Kay Thompson

1 box (0.5 linear feet)

(1953 – 1954)

Edward H. Nabb Center for Delmarva History and Culture, Salisbury, University, Salisbury, Maryland

Identifier SC2016.009
Creator(s) Thompson, Kathleen
Acquisition

Acquired by Dr. Beatriz Hardy (Dean of SU Libraries and Instructional Resources) in 2016.
Language(s) English
Use Records are open for research. Copyright, including literary rights, belongs to the author(s) or their legal heirs. Permission to publish or reproduce must be obtained from the Nabb Research Center which extends beyond "fair use."
Preferred Citation "Item, collection title and identifier, box # and folder # (if applicable), Edward H. Nabb Research Center for Delmarva History and Culture, Salisbury University, Salisbury, Maryland."
Attribution Finding aid written by Ian Post.
Related Materials

Diaries of Becky Anne McGrath (1957 – 1959)

Curtis and Helen Williams' Playbill Collection (1983 – 2019)
Separated Materials See Nabb Center Staff
Abstract

This diary and scrapbook were created by Kathryn “Kay” Thompson between 1953 and 1954. The scrapbook documents her college life and extracurricular activities. Thompson’s diary was written in 1953 and details her personal life and relationships. The collection also contains a collection of photographs.

Biographical History

Kathryn Allegra Thompson Ellis Lowman was born on July 14, 1938 in St. Louis, Missouri. She was the daughter of James Baxter Thompson (1911 – 2004) and Allegra Mildred Shive Thompson (1913 – 1987).

Kathryn graduated from Clarksville High School. She then attended the University of Tennessee and Austin Peay State College, a public university in Clarksville, Tennessee.

On March 26, 1956, Kathryn married Bobby Matthew Ellis, a member of the Air Force. The couple had two children together, William Ellis and James Ellis.

Kathryn died on February 22, 2012 at the age of 77. She is buried in the Sothern Palms Memorial Gardens in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

Scope and Content Note

This diary and scrapbook were created by Kathryn "Kay" Thompson between 1953 and 1954 while she was a student at Austin Peay State College in Clarksville, Tennessee. The scrapbook documents her college life and activities, including theatre productions and running for student government. There are newspaper clippings that provide biographical informations on her friends when they were married. Her diary, which was written in 1953, contains entries about dating, attending parties, friends' engagements, and emotional drama, most of which was caused by her on and off relationship with Bobby Ellis, her future husband. At one point, Bobby discovered that his friend "Jimmie" proposed to Kay. There is also one envelope containing photographs.

Arrangement Statement See Nabb Center Staff

Subject Terms

  • Topical Terms
    • Diaries
    • Diaries (Women)
    • Education
    • Scrapbooks
    • Youth
  • Location Terms
    • Tennessee

Inventory List

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Artifacts

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Attachments

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