Collection Summary
Alexander Jeffrey McKelway Papers
1814-1942
1900-1918
1814-1942
1900-1918
MSS32235
McKelway, Alexander Jeffrey, 1866-1918
5,600 items
9 containers
3.4 linear feet
English
Collection material in English
Manuscript Division, Library of Congress
Washington, D.C.
Clergyman, reformer, and Southern
secretary of the National Child Labor Committee. Correspondence, telegrams, speeches,
articles, notes and drafts of a biography of St. Clair McKelway, longtime editor of the
Brooklyn Eagle and uncle of Alexander, family papers,
financial material, printed matter, a scrapbook, and other papers relating mainly to
child labor legislation and to the McKelway family.
Selected Search Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the LC Catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed alphabetically.
People
Catt, Carrie Chapman, 1859-1947--Correspondence.
Daniels, Josephus, 1862-1948--Correspondence.
Hapgood, Norman, 1868-1937--Correspondence.
Keenan, Henry F. (Henry Francis), 1850- --Correspondence.
Kelley, Florence, 1859-1932--Correspondence.
McKelway family--Correspondence.
McKelway family.
McKelway, Alexander Jeffrey, 1866-1918.
McKelway, Benjamin Mosby, 1895-1976--Correspondence.
McKelway, St. Clair, 1845-1915.
Pinchot, Amos, 1873-1944--Correspondence.
Pinchot, Gifford, 1865-1946--Correspondence.
Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919--Correspondence.
Smith, Hoke, 1855-1931.
Tumulty, Joseph P. (Joseph Patrick), 1879-1954--Correspondence.
Wilson, Woodrow, 1856-1924--Correspondence.
Organizations
Georgia Historical Association.
National Child Labor Committee (U.S.)
Subjects
Child labor--Southern States.
Child labor--United States.
Prohibition--United States.
Women--Suffrage--United States.
Places
United States--Politics and government--1865-1933.
United States--Social conditions--1865-1918.
Titles
Harper's weekly.
Occupations
Clergy.
Reformers.
Acquisition Information
The papers of Alexander Jeffrey McKelway, clergyman, reformer and Southern secretary of
the National Child Labor Committee, were deposited in the Library of Congress by his
widow, Lavinia Rutherford McKelway, in 1931 and converted to a gift in 1947.
Processing History
The McKelway collection was processed in 1963. The finding aid was revised in 2011. The
finding aid was updated in 2023 by Maria Farmer as part of a division-wide remediation
project by the Inclusive Description Working Group.
Additional Guides
An index to the Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson letters within the general
correspondence and indexes to parts of the speech, article, and book file are available
for use in the Manuscript Reading Room. All are available in a [PDF] document.
Copyright Status
The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Alexander Jeffrey McKelway is
governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.).
Access and Restrictions
The papers of Alexander Jeffrey McKelway are open to research. Researchers are advised
to contact the Manuscript Reading Room prior to visiting. Many collections are stored
off-site and advance notice is needed to retrieve these items for research use.
Preferred Citation
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information:
Container number, Alexander Jeffrey McKelway Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of
Congress, Washington, D.C.
Biographical Note
Date
Event
1866, 6 Oct.
Born, Salisburyville, Pa.
circa 1870
Moved to Charlotte County, Va.
1886
Graduated, Hampden-Sydney College, Hampden-Sydney, Va.
1891
Graduated, Union Theological Seminary
Ordained by the Albemarle Presbytery in North Carolina
Married Lavinia Rutherford Smith
1892
Became minister of First Presbyterian Church, Fayetteville, N.C.
1898
1905
Editor,
North Carolina Presbyterian
(later
Presbyterian Standard
)
1902
Became active in support of child welfare legislation
1903
Became editor of
Charlotte News
, Charlotte, N.C.
1904
Became Southern secretary of the National Child Labor Committee
1907
1911
Lived in Atlanta, Ga.
1911
Moved to Washington, D.C.
1918, 16 Apr.
Died, Washington, D.C.
Scope and Content Note
The papers of Alexander Jeffrey McKelway (1866-1918) span the years 1814-1942, with the
bulk of the material concentrated from 1900 to 1918. The collection includes
correspondence, telegrams, speeches, articles, notes and drafts of a biography of St.
Clair McKelway, longtime editor of the
Brooklyn Eagle
and uncle of Alexander, financial papers, printed matter, and a scrapbook of
obituary notices and condolence letters.
The papers relate primarily to child labor reform, particularly McKelway's role as
Southern secretary of the National Child Labor Committee. Other topics include women's
suffrage, prohibition, national political affairs, the Hoke Smith-Georgia Historical
Association correspondence of 1917, and McKelway family matters. Correspondents include
Carrie Chapman Catt, Josephus Daniels, Norman Hapgood as editor of
Harper's Weekly
, Florence Kelley, Henry F. Keenan, Amos Pinchot, Gifford Pinchot, Theodore
Roosevelt, Joseph P. Tumulty, and Woodrow Wilson. In the family correspondence are
boyhood letters of Benjamin Mosby McKelway, editor of the
Washington Star
, and other papers pertaining to the life of St. Clair McKelway.
Arrangement of the Papers
The collection is organized by type of material.
Catalog Record: [https://lccn.loc.gov/mm82032235]
Container List
Container
Contents
1
General correspondence [
See Appendix A for index of Theodore Roosevelt and
Woodrow Wilson letters (in PDF of appendices)
]
1
1898, Jan.-1917, June
1898, Jan.-1917,
June
2
1917, July-1918, Apr.
1917, July-1918,
Apr.
2
Personal and family correspondence
2
1814, 1860-1916, Nov.
1814, 1860-1916,
Nov.
3
1916, Dec.-1942
1916,
Dec.-1942
3
Speech, article, and book file, 1893,
1904-1919, undated
1893, 1904-1919,
undated
3
Child labor [
See Appendix B for list of titles (in PDF of
appendices)
]
3
Nos. 1-49
4
Nos. 50-143
5
Kelway, Kate Comfort
5
Prohibition [
See Appendix C for list of titles (in PDF of
appendices)
]
5
Miscellaneous [
See Appendix D for list of titles (in PDF of
appendices)
]
6
"Life of St. Clair McKelway"
6
Editorial bibliography
6
Editorials (typescripts)
7
Research notes
7
Source material
7
Drafts
8
"St. Clair McKelway, Newspaper Man"
8
Final draft
8
Miscellaneous
8
Miscellany
8
Genealogical material
8
Listing of Alexander Jeffrey McKelway papers by
Mrs. McKelway
8
Newspaper clippings
8
Notes and receipts
9
Scrapbook of obituaries and condolences,
1918-1922
1918-1922