The collection includes the questionnaires, together with the original NEH grant proposal and correspondence.

Susan Groag Bell is a historian and Affiliated Scholar at the Stanford Institute for Research on Women and Gender. She has published numerous books and articles on women's history. Working with Barbara Kanner, a Los Angeles historian and specialist in British women's bibliography, volunteer readers were asked to read and assess autobiographies written or published by British women between 1780 and 1950, completing detailed questionnaires (366 questions) about the women which were developed by Bell and Kanner. "British" women were defined for the project as women who spent a considerable part of their lives in Britain, including women who were born there but later lived or became citizens elsewhere. The dates were chosen to insure full coverage of the 19th century. Roughly one thousand titles were included in the study. Thematic indices were used for such issues as work patterns, professions, lifestyles, spirituality, and politics. The work was funded in part by an NEH grant. As of the current date, 1997, research is still ongoing. Barbara Kanner has published a bibliography of the autobiographies and Bell is continuing to supervise and organize the completion of the questionnaires.

15.75 linear ft.

Property rights reside with the repository. Literary rights reside with the creators of the documents or their heirs. To obtain permission to publish or reproduce, please contact the Public Services Librarian of the Dept. of Special Collections.

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