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Abigail Mason and Colgate Family correspondence collection

Collection 2017-088-MASON-SCPA

Staff Only

Abigail Gregory Mason (1797-1889), wife of prolific hymn composer and music educator Lowell Mason, was born into one of the most influential families in the nineteenth century. After marrying Lowell Mason in Savannah, Georgia, the family moved to Boston and were highly involved in the music education efforts in the city schools. Throughout their lifetimes, Mr. and Mrs. Lowell Mason were in contact with a third prominent family, the Colgates. This collection includes two notecards and their original envelopes, as well as a longer autograph letter signed by Abigail Mason, in correspondence with three members of the Colgate family.

Dates

June 1888 - circa 1900
Majority of material found in 1888

Extent

6 Items

Additional Description

Content Description

The Abigail Mason and Colgate Family Correspondence is solely from the year 1888, with the exception of the unknown date for the label, written later by another family member. The collection consists of personal correspondence in the form of notecards, their original envelopes, and a letter. These items revolve around the occasion of Mr. and Mrs. Gilbert Colgate’s marriage and include two notecards addressed to the newlyweds, as well as a letter to Gilbert Colgate’s mother, Elizabeth Ann Morse Colgate. The letter to Elizabeth Colgate is written in the last year of Abigail’s life, and, according to the letter, during a time of poor health.

Historical Note

Abigail Gregory Mason was the wife of Lowell Mason (1792-1872), a prolific hymn composer and music educator. She married and resided in Savannah, Georgia before moving to Boston for her husband’s growing musical career. Abigail was the mother of four sons, one of whom, Henry Mason, went on to be a co-founder of the successful Mason and Hamlin Company. These letters were sent from their last residence, Silverspring, in Orange, New Jersey.

Lowell Mason was a successful composer and music educator, establishing the first music curriculum in American public schools. While his compositional and educational output was geared toward American congregations and students, his compositional style reflected that of established European composers such as Mozart and Haydn. He is recognized as the founding father of music education in America and many of his compositions, especially his hymns, are still performed today.

Arrangement of Collection

This collection is organized into one series.

Correspondence

Custodial History and Acquisition Information

Purchased from a manuscript dealer by Vincent Novara, Curator for Special Collections in Performing Arts in May 2017.

Related Materials

Lowell Mason collection, Special Collections in Performing Arts, University of Maryland (finding aid)

Mason, Lowell, and Michael Broyles. A Yankee Musician in Europe : The 1837 Journals of Lowell Mason. Studies in Music, No. 110. Rochester, N.Y.: University of Rochester Press, 2010. (Available from Michelle Smith Performing Arts Library)

Administrative Information

Title: Abigail Mason and Colgate Family correspondence collection
Status: Completed
Author: Evangeline Athanasiou
Date: May 2017
Description rules: Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description: English
Script of description: Code for undetermined script
Language of description note: English

Library Details

Part of the Michelle Smith Performing Arts Library

http://www.lib.umd.edu/mspal

Contact:
University of Maryland Libraries
8270 Alumni Drive
College Park MD 20742 United States
scpa@umd.edu

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