Converted to EAD3 : Encoded Archival Description (EAD), Version 3 : Release: 1.1.1 : Release Date: 2019-12-16. Validating against latest version of schema.
Contact information: https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/mss.contact
Catalog Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/mm76023523
Collection material in English and French
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.
The papers of Florence Deakins Becker, nurse and volunteer worker, were given to the Library of Congrss by her grandniece, Mrs. George F. White, in 1969.
The papers of Florence Deakins Becker were arranged and described in 1977 by Angela Lombardi. The finding aid was revised in 2011 by Joseph K. Brooks.
Some photographs have been transferred to the Prints and Photographs Division where they are identified as part of the Florence Deakins Becker Papers.
Related collections in the Manuscript Division include the papers of her husband, George F. Becker .
The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Florence Deakins Becker is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.).
The papers of Florence Deakins Becker 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.
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Container number, Florence Deakins Becker Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
The papers of Florence Deakins Becker (1878-1969) span the years 1891-1963, with the bulk of the material dating between 1910 and 1963. The papers document her activities as a volunteer worker for several medical causes. Becker devoted her time and energies to combating cancer and tuberculosis. Her papers consist of the following seven series: Diaries, Family Papers, General Correspondence, Speeches and Writings File, Subject File, Miscellany, and Oversize.
The Diaries cover 1924, 1929, and 1944, with some undated entries. Subjects in the diaries and engagement calendars include the Michigan Tuberculosis Association and American efforts to render medical aid to French refugees during World War I.
Most information about Becker's personal life is in the Family Papers. Included is correspondence with various relatives and with her husbands, geologist George F. Becker (died 1919) and John Campbell Forrester, a British national who was a businessman and politician in Scotland and Bengal (India). Following her divorce from Forrester in 1930, Becker resumed her former married name.
The General Correspondence series includes business and personal letters as well as letters exchanged with prominent contemporaries. Business correspondence ranges from the American Public Health Association to professional associates such as Joseph Colt Bloodgood and Thomas E. Rush. Correspondence with friends includes letters exchanged with Clarence W. Barron, Suzanne Bartlett, W. Norman Brown, and Florence Keen. Other correspondents include William Edgar Borah, Edward T. Devine, William P. Dillingham, and William H. Taft.
The Speeches and Writings File provides insight into Florence Becker's extensive work in cancer prevention. Among the most significant material in this series are speeches about protective measures for women against cancer.
Becker was involved in a number of medical organizations, and there is considerable material on these activities in the papers. The Subject File documents her work with the Tuberculosis Association of Bengal, Urgent Relief for France, and the Ligue du Nord Contre la Tuberculose. Becker also studied and reported on medical conditions within veterans' hospitals. Other interests documented in the Subject File include the Maryland tercentenary, her founding of the George Ferdinand Becker Memorial Library in Independence, Virginia, and the Washington Animal Rescue League.
The Miscellany series contains scrapbooks, clippings, miscellaneous printed matter, financial papers, and memorabilia. There are also honors and awards, including La Medaille de la Reconnaissance Lilloise and a citation from the French Committee for Defense Against Tuberculosis.
This collection is arranged in seven series:
Diaries and engagement calendars.
Arranged chronologically.
Letters sent and received between family members, including files of Becker's correspondence with her two husbands, biographical information, estate files, memoirs, and printed matter.
Arranged by name of family member and thereunder chronologically.
Letters received, copies of letters sent, and memoranda.
Arranged alphabetically by correspondent and thereunder chronologically.
Speeches, class compositions, literary fragments, and writings by others.
Arranged alphabetically by title or type of material.
Topical files, reports, printed matter, correspondence, photographs, biographical material, and notes.
Arranged alphabetically by subject or type of material.
Financial papers, printed matter, passports, memorabilia, and newspaper clippings.
Arranged alphabetically by type of material.
Scrapbooks, awards, honors, photographs, and printed matter.
Arranged and described according to the series, containers, and folder from which the items were removed.