Ruth Gill Hammond Papers

This collection consists of correspondence, photographs, scrapbooks, Home Economics books, and ephemera. The collection is organized chronologically within each respective category. The bulk of the papers consist of correspondence to and from Ruth Gill Hammond. Subject matter of the correspondence covers the daily activities of Ruth Gill Hammond and others, family matters, business and professional matters, and brief descriptions of historical events in Siam (Thailand), China, and the United States. Boxes 1 and 2 contain correspondence to and from Ruth's family, friends, and professional associates. Bertha (Blount) McFarland and Ava (Milam) Clark contribute a bulk of the correspondence. Box 3 of the collection contains notable correspondence between Ruth Gill Hammond and A.R. Hammond which recounts their relationship and thoughts about one another in great detail. Their correspondence also provides details of their daily activities and major events in their lives. Other notable correspondences include letters to and from Ava Bertha (Milam) Clark or "Auntie Muz," who was a very close friend to Ruth Gill and A.R. Hammond. She was also a well-known Home Economics professor and dean at Oregon State University. The collection also contains a few correspondences noting historical events in Siam (Thailand), China, and the United States (1932, June 18; 1932, July 2; 1935, Apr. 27; 1935, Nov. 27; 1940, Mar. 18). Other frequent and notable correspondence names include: Myrtle Viola Candell, Charles Keyser Edmunds, Clara H. Groesbeck, Lucille Barnard Hanaford, James M. Henry, Faye Kilpatrick, Catherine E. Reed, Mildred L. Sipp, and M. Ellwood Smith.

The collection also consists of scrapbooks about Ruth Gill Hammond that recounts a number of different events in her life from her childhood to raising a family of her own. The scrapbooks contain typed copies of various correspondences written by and to Ruth Gill Hammond; several photographs of Ruth, the Gill and Hammond family, China and Lingnan University, Siam (Thailand); and various memorabilia. The scrapbooks provide a detailed description of the life of Ruth Gill Hammond through narration and photographs. The Volume 2 scrapbook contains notable information about William Harrison Gill including an article by Bertha Blount McFarland and copies of letters written to Ruth from her father. One entire scrapbook is devoted to the relationship between Ruth Gill Hammond and A.R. Hammond and their wedding (Red scrapbook with jade circle).

The manuscripts and ephemera include the genealogy papers of Ruth Gill Hammond that provides research information about the Gill family. Ephemera include various pamphlets and handwritten notes pertaining to the life of Ruth Gill Hammond and include a Lingnan University Newsletter, an article by Ruth Gill Hammond on home management, a brief history of the College of Home Economics at Oregon State University, the menu aboard the S.S. President Hoover, The William Harrison Gill Trust pamphlet, and letter envelopes. Also included in the collection are photographs of Ava Bertha (Milam) Clark and Ruth Gill Hammond as well as old passports belonging to Ruth Gill Hammond.

The collection also contains two books that were given to Ruth Gill Hammond by Ava Bertha (Milam) Clark. The books contain handwritten notes on the inside pages by Ruth and Ava. "The Care and Guidance of Children" contains photographs of Ruth's children as book illustrations and examples. "Adventures of a Home Economist" is authored by Ava Milam Clark and contains a signed note addressed to Ruth.