Description
Correspondence, photographs, greetings, and
published ephemera, 1917-1935, primarily illustrating the World War I Era narrative
of the French Genay family and their involvement with the charitable organization,
Fatherless Children of France [Fraternite Franco-Americaine].
Background
The Genay Family Correspondence is composed almost entirely of the correspondence of
Madame L. Genay, widow of Captain Eugene Genay, and her elder daughter, Camille
(1901-circa 1925), with an American friend, Miss Mildred Veitch (later Mrs. R. K.
West). The family, which included a younger daughter, Marie Louise, resided in
Versailles, and maintained a country home in the village of Saint-Sauveur. Captain
Genay was killed in April 1915, fighting for the Allies in Belgium. Miss Veitch
acted as a benefactor to the family through an organization with which all of the
women were involved, the Fatherless Children of France [Fraternite
Franco-Americaine]. Because of Madame Genay’s work as a teacher and the family’s
involvement in charitable war efforts, the women were connected to the events around
them and are able to provide unique insights into life in wartime France, women’s
war roles, American aid to foreign families, and many others. The bulk of the
material focuses on the war years.