Doris K. Eldred Papers: Finding Aid mssEldred
Kelly Kress
The Huntington Library
June 2023
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, California 91108
Business Number: (626) 405-2191
reference@huntington.org
Contributing Institution:
The Huntington Library
Title: Doris K. Eldred papers
Creator:
Eldred, Doris K., 1925-2022
Identifier/Call Number: mssEldred
Physical Description:
3.33 Linear Feet
(3 boxes)
Date (inclusive): 1947-2005 (bulk 1947-1948)
Abstract: Materials related to Doris K. Eldred's time as a teacher in China, including correspondence, photographs and photograph albums,
teaching materials, and some collected ephemera.
Language of Material: Materials are in English and Chinese.
Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at the Huntington Library for more
information.
The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material,
nor does it charge fees for such activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and
obtaining necessary permissions rests with the researcher.
[Identification of item]. Doris K. Eldred papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Karen El-Kara, April 2023.
Doris K. Eldred was an American teacher. She was born May 5, 1925, to Delos and Helen Eldred, and grew up in San Marino, California,
graduating from South Pasadena High School and Occidental College. In 1947, Eldred traveled to Bejing, China, to teach at
the Peking American School, a day school for the children of missionaries and children whose families were in China for business.
A year later, however, she and other Americans were evacuated by the US Navy when fighting escalated between the Kuomintang
government and the Chinese Communist Party during the Chinese Civil War. After evacuation, Eldred spent the summer in Europe
and taught in Italy and England before returning to the United States. Back in California, Eldred taught in Temple City and
volunteered at Lake Avenue Church in Pasadena. She died April 28, 2022.
Correspondence, photographs and photograph albums, and teaching materials related to Doris K. Eldred's time as a teacher in
China, as well as art and ephemera she collected. Correspondence includes letters she wrote to her parents in San Marino,
California, and letters she received from friends and family, many detailing her experiences in China and the subsequent evacuation.
Two photograph albums document Eldred's experience sailing to China from San Francisco and her life and activities there.
Teaching materials include a gradebook and some documentation of school activities. Also included are a few small artworks
she acquired.
Processed at the time of accessioning by Kelly Kress in June 2023.
A copy of Samuel Victor Constant's Calls, Sounds and Merchandise of the Peking Street Peddlers was transferred to The Huntington
Library's Rare Book Collection. The volume is individually cataloged and can be found by searching the Huntington Library
Catalog.
Arranged by type of material.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Americans -- China -- History -- 20th century
China -- Description and travel
China -- History -- Civil War, 1945-1949
China -- Social life and customs
Teachers, Foreign -- China
Letters (correspondence)
Photograph albums
Photographs
Scrapbooks
Eldred, Doris K., 1925-2022
Peking American School
Box 1
1947-2005
Letters and telegrams, invitations, teaching materials, and a few photographs. Correspondence from others indicates concern
for Doris K. Eldred during the 1948 evacuation from China. Also included is a 2005 issue of the Peking American School's alumni
newsletter, The Dragon, which includes information about Eldred.
Box 2