A View from the Vault: The Girl Graduate
by Petra Clark, Special Collections
Late spring brings with it the end of the school year and, for high school and college seniors, graduation. This rite of passage is celebrated with commencement ceremonies and graduation parties, and is commemorated with items like yearbooks and class rings. Another such keepsake is The Girl Graduate: Her Own Book, which was published by The Reilly and Britton Co. of Chicago and went through twenty or more editions between 1906-1923. With its attractive illustrations and color scheme of pearl gray and yellow, this blank gift book was meant to help young women record and preserve the memories of their school days.
Clockwise from the top, copies of The Girl Graduate belonging to Lloyd, Gibbins, MacDaniel, and Baillie. Gibbins’ book is a deluxe edition bound in purple ooze leather, while the other three are standard editions with quarter cloth bindings and paper-covered boards.
Special Collections at UD has four copies of The Girl Graduate which belonged to Edna H. MacDaniel, who graduated from Wilmington High School (Wilmington, DE) in 1912; Grace T. Lloyd, who graduated from Wilmington High School (Wilmington, DE) in 1913; Jessie A. Baillie, who graduated from Camden High School (Camden, NJ) in 1916; and Lillian Ann Gibbins, who graduated from St. Elizabeth Academy (Saint Louis, MO) in 1926.
Each book offers remarkable insight into the life of the girl who assembled it: they contain handwritten notes, quotes and inside jokes, as well as photographs, newspaper clippings, event programs, ticket stubs, cards, dried flowers and other ephemera related to each girl’s high school career. For instance, Grace Lloyd’s book includes many candid photos of her friends with humorous captions, like the ones shown here, along with memorabilia related to her participation in school plays, sports, dances and other activities.
Photographs of “Wifey,” “Cutey,” “Alice The Chaperon,” “The Officers” and other high school friends of Lloyd.
This page of Lloyd’s book includes a newspaper photograph of Wilmington High School as it appeared in the 1910s, along with a felt WHS pennant banner.
The existence of The Girl Graduate, and its apparent popularity, reflects the increasing number of girls and women who completed secondary and higher education in the United States at the beginning of the twentieth century, and the desire to celebrate their academic achievements. The book was designed and illustrated by artists Louisa Perrett and Sarah K. Smith, who were both educated at the Art Institute of Chicago and also studied under the famous Delaware illustrator Howard Pyle. Perhaps they would be glad to know that their book ended up in the hands of at least two girl graduates from Wilmington!
A graduation card received by Lloyd and pasted into her copy of The Girl Graduate.
A View from the Vault” showcases some of the unique, notable or rare items that are a part of the Special Collections and Museums holdings at the University of Delaware. Each month, we highlight a different work and share interesting facts or intriguing histories about it. If you are interested in seeing any of the materials featured in person or want to learn more about any work showcased in the series, please contact Special Collections and Museums at AskSpec or AskMuseums.