Ernest R. and Gladys Groves Papers

Collection

Identifier: Mss 169

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The Ernest and Gladys Groves Papers are comprised of eleven series: Legal Documents and Personal Background; Correspondence; Manuscripts/Books; Articles, Bibliographies and Book Reviews; Conferences and Organizations; Notes and Case Studies; Course Materials; School Bulletins; Newspaper Clippings; and Subject File. The collection is not complete and the original filing was either poor or was not retained. However, the collection does give a good indication of the type of work the Groves’ did and the attitudes of the general population with regards to relationships, sex, and the family during the 1920s to the 1940s. The Legal Documents and Personal Background Series is small. The legal documents are of Marriage and Family Council, Inc. only and are not a complete record of that organization. The personal backgrounds are not as complete as a researcher would like; the information on Gladys Groves is particularly lacking. The Correspondence Series spans the 1910s through the early 1960s. It is filed in chronological order and then when necessary, by alphabetical order by addressee. It includes letters which were not to or from Ernest and/or Gladys, although there is not a great deal of this “outside” correspondence. The correspondence was not separated by “Ernest” and “Gladys”, but that makes sense since so much of their work was done as a team. The correspondence was also not separated into “incoming” and “outgoing” mail. The majority of the letters are between the Groveses and those who wrote to them for advice and this is perhaps the most interesting and revealing part of the Series. The problems seem to give a good gross-section of the attitudes and concerns of the people of that time. The correspondence between Ernest and Thelma Betty Krussell may be of special interest. Their letters date from the1920s. Mrs. Krussell was an articulate and interesting but troubled woman who developed a special friendship with the Groveses. (There is also a case study of Mrs. Krussell filed in the Notes and Case Studies Series). A letter dated April 1, 1942 from Ernest Groves to Dean R. B. House includes two diverse letters received by the Groveses regarding their work. One praises them for their wise counsel and the other condemns them for their “crass and disgusting advice”. The Manuscripts/Books Series is just that. It includes the rough and final drafts of Ernest’s autobiography as well as drafts and galley proofs for the other titles. The autobiography was not submitted for publication until after Ernest’s death; it was never published. The Articles Series is divided into three subseries: Articles by Ernest and/or Gladys Groves; Articles by Other Authors; and the Man, Woman, & Child series. The Groves’ articles are in alphabetical order by title. All are drafts unless noted as the actual article or reprint. This section includes some of the columns by the Groveses including “Your Everyday Problems; and “Parent’s Problems” in Junior Home and Look magazine. It can be noted that the Groves focused their attention in the early 1940s to relationship problems which were specific to World War II. Articles by Other Authors are those which were retained by the Groveses. These are alphabetical by author. The Man, Woman, & Child Series, from 1929, consists of 75 numbered articles. These are filed in numerical order. A list of the titles precedes the actual articles. The only clue as to where these articles were published is a note on the list of titles which indicates “newspaper work” and gives a New Orleans, Louisiana address. The Bibliography and Book Reviews Series is subdivided into Bibliographies, and Book Reviews and Announcements. Both of the Groveses saved many bibliographies which are filed here. The book reviews consist of reviews about the Groves’ work as well as some reviews written by Ernest. There are also announcements and flyers regarding the publication of books by the Groves and their daughter, Catherine Groves Peele. The Conferences and Organizations Series has four subseries: Groves’ Annual Conference on Conservation of Marriage and the Family; North Carolina College for Negroes-Durham Annual Conference on Conservation of Marriage and the Family; Various Conferences; Organizations. The first three are in chronological order; the fourth is in alphabetical order by organization name. For the Groves’ UNC conference, information on the first, second, and third conferences are missing. From the fourth conference in 1938 through the twenty-first conference in 1958, there is some information for each year, although the papers retained each year are not consistent. In 1959 the literature announces the 25th anniversary, and subsequent conferences are numbered from that point. There is no obvious explanation for the 22nd, 23rd, and 24th conferences. Included for 1940, 1946, 1947, and 1949 are notes taken by Dorothea Beach. The conference of the same name held at North Carolina College for Negroes is complete for the first through the fifth conference, 1942 to 1946. At the sixth conference, in 1947, the name of the college changed to North Carolina College-Durham and there is the disclaimer, “in affiliation with the tenth conference” held at UNC. The 1948 program was issued as part of the program for the UNC Chapel Hill program. There are separate conference programs for the eighth, ninth, and tenth conferences, 1949 to 1951. The files for this conference consist only of the program bulletin; there is no additional information. The Various Conferences subseries consists of some of the groups to which the Groveses were members. A few of the files include membership lists and correspondence but none of the files are complete. The Notes and Case Studies Series is subdivided into those categories. The Notes subseries is in alphabetical order by subject heading. The notes are by Ernest and Gladys, or both (rarely is the distinction noted) and are for lectures. There are several files of notes on the subject, “Short History of Women”. This essay was written by Mrs. Groves upon the request of the editor of The American Mercury. Some of the notes seem to be the foundation for a book, but no such book was ever published. There are also several files of Gladys’ shorthand notes. When possible, these are filed by date. The Case Studies subseries includes case studies done by the Groves’ and their colleagues. Some were for publication; others were submitted for study at conferences and workshops. The Course Materials Series consists of materials from the wide variety of classes taught by the Groveses. The series is in alphabetical order by course/number or course/title. The files hold general information unless specified as book lists or student papers. Gladys particularly saved student papers and these may be of special interest because the topic is usually autobiographical or the student’s opinion. The School Bulletin Series is in alphabetical order by college or university and also includes a yearbook and alumni information. The Newspaper Clippings Series is in alphabetical order by subject heading and primarily includes articles about Ernest or the annual conferences. The Subject Files Series is in alphabetical order by subject heading. Among the files are the Groves’ card files of case studies, Gladys’ 1910 diary, a live voice message from 1949 (content unknown), various questionnaires and statistical findings from marriage and sex surveys, and two radio scripts from broadcasts done by Gladys. There is also a copy of “The Children’s Charter” from the 1931 White House Conference on Child Health and Protection, signed by President Herbert Hoover. There is a file of incomplete papers; there are one or two pages which must belong with other notes, letters, or lists. There is also a summary of meetings between Gladys and Dr. Howard Odum of the University of North Carolina in which he informs her she is to be honored by being asked to quit her faculty position because of her age.

Dates

1917-1962

Creator

Groves, Ernest R. (Ernest Rutherford), 1877-1946. (Person)

Access

The collection is open under the rules and regulations of the Institute.

Copyrights

The Institute does not own the copyrights.

Biography

Ernest Rutherford Groves was born May 6, 1877 in Framingham, Massachusetts to Henry Hunt and Hannah Sweard Groves. He received his B.D. from Yale Divinity School in 1901 and his A.B. from Dartmouth College in 1903. Professor Groves later received honorary doctorate degrees from Florida Southern College in 1942 and from Boston University in 1946. Although Professor Groves served for a short time as a pastor in Maine, he soon began the teaching and research, which would be his life’s work. Among the schools where he served as a faculty member were New Hampshire University, Dartmouth College, Boston University, Duke University and the University of North Carolina. He served as Dean of the Liberal Arts College at New Hampshire University from 1914 to 1920. Professor Groves taught at the University of North Carolina from 1927 until the time of his death. He was also often a visiting lecturer at various schools. A sociologist, Professor Groves developed the first college credit course in preparation for marriage (at Boston University in 1922, and at UNC in 1927). He wrote the first college text on the subject, “Marriage,” in 1933. A prolific author, Professor Groves wrote more than twenty books and nearly 200 articles and became one of the leading and most respected family life educators in this country. Professor Groves’ work appeared in the popular journals of the day (Look, Good Housekeeping, Parents Magazine) as well as the academic journals (Social Forces, Journal of Educational Sociology). He served on the editorial boards of many of these publications. Professor Groves was the first president of the North Carolina Mental Hygiene Society, serving from 1936 to 1938. He was president of the National Conference on Family Relations in 1941. From 1938 to 1940, Groves was chairman of the committee on the Family for the Federal Council of Churches of Christ in America. Throughout his career, Professor Groves was an active member in numerous national and state organizations for marriage, family life, and mental hygiene. Mr. Groves began the successful annual conferences on the Conservation of Marriage and the Family; at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Mrs. Groves had begun the conference at the North Carolina College for Negroes. They became affiliated in 1947. It will be apparent, when reviewing the correspondence particularly, that Professor Groves was well loved and most respected. He was a compassionate, thoughtful man who gave generously of his time and expertise. Professor Groves devoted a great deal of his time to counseling patients, in person and via the mail. His work was progressive for its time; his advice is most often still applicable today. Ernest Groves married Dorothy Doe, daughter of New Hampshire Chief Justice Charles Doe, in 1906. They had two daughters, Catherine Groves Peele, and Ernestine Groves O’Kane. Catherine also became a well known educator and author, and occasionally collaborated with her father and stepmother. Dorothy Doe Groves died in 1916. On February 25, 1919, Ernest married Gladys Hoagland. They also had two daughters, Ruth Elva Petrillo Groves, and Lois Mary Groves McGill. Ernest Groves died August 29, 1946 in Arlington, Massachusetts, where he was on vacation from teaching summer school at Boston University. Gladys Hoagland was born April 3, 1894 in Boston, Massachusetts to Rev. Napoleon Stage and Julia Ann Comley Hoagland. She received a B.A. from the University of New Hampshire in 1918. After graduation, she lived in Minneapolis where she began work on a Master’s degree at the University of Minnesota. She did not complete that degree, but instead moved back to the East where she married Ernest Groves on February 25, 1919. Mrs. Groves was an instructor at several colleges and universities, including the University of North Carolina, North Carolina College for Negroes (later North Carolina College-Durham), the University of Connecticut, and North Dakota State University (1964-1967). However, she was better known as an author and lecturer. She presented many seminars and workshops nationally. She served as the Executive Director of the Marriage and Family Council, Inc., which was founded by her and Ernest Groves. The Marriage and Family Council, Inc. sponsored lectures, workshops, and offered counseling services. Its goal was “to do charitable and educational work in the field of premarital and domestic problems.” Mrs. Groves was an active member of many national and state organizations including the National Conference on Family Relations, of which she was an honorary life member. She co-authored more than ten books, and wrote the college textbook, Marriage and Family Life in 1942. She wrote many articles and was a columnist (with Ernest Groves) for, among others, Junior Home, and Look magazine. Gladys and Ernest Groves were a writing-teaching-counseling team and this is most apparent when reviewing this collection. Although there is no personal correspondence between the two, there are references to the solid, loving marriage the two of them shared. They were able to live as they taught others to live. When Ernest died in 1946, Gladys continued their work on her own, including the Annual Conferences of Marriage and the Family. Although the amount of correspondence diminishes after Ernest’s death, that may be a sign that Gladys did not keep the same records that Ernest did, rather than that she necessarily slowed down in her work. There is little information past the 1940s but, what is here shows that Gladys remained active in professional organizations and in her teaching. Gladys and Ernest Groves had two daughters, Ruth Elva Groves Petrillo, and Lois Mary Groves McGill. Gladys was also the stepmother of Catherine Groves Peele, and Ernestine Groves O’Kane. Gladys retired to Virginia Beach, Virginia where she died July 11, 1980 at the age of 86.

Extent

11.6 Linear Feet (11.6 linear feet)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

Groves and his wife, Gladys Hoagland, were pioneer University of North Carolina educators in the areas of sex and marriage, and were writers on the American family.