Conditions Governing Use

Copyright restrictions may apply. Unpublished manuscripts are protected by copyright. Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository and the copyright holder.

Preferred Citation

[Box Number, Folder Number], MS-9, Marguerite Roberts Collection, Book Arts, Archives, & Rare Books, Boatwright Memorial Library, University of Richmond, Richmond, Virginia.

Processing Information

Processed by Elizabeth Dickie, Special Collections Cataloging and Preservation Associate.

Biographical / Historical

Dr. Marguerite M. Roberts, Professor of English, was the second Dean of Westhampton College, from 1947 to 1965. Born in Rockport, Indiana on March 15, 1904, she was the daughter of the Hon. Judge Ralph Elmer and Alice Enfield (nee Saunders) Roberts. She was educated at Evansville College where she earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in 1924. She received her Master's and Ph.D. degrees from Radcliffe College in 1928 and 1943 respectively. From 1928 to 1936, she taught in Central and Bosse High Schools in Evansville, and also at Evansville College. She did graduate work at Indiana University and Cambridge University during the years 1925-1929. In 1937, Dr. Roberts became Dean of Women and Assistant Professor of English at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, and served in that capacity until 1946. She lectured in English at Toronto University from 1946 to 1947, when she came to Westhampton College as Dean and Professor of English. In 1965, she left the position as Dean and continued as a Professor of English until her retirement in 1975.

Dr. Roberts' most notable quality as a teacher was always her strong demand for excellence from her students, something she certainly mirrored in her tenacity in her research and writing. Her personal grace and charm were also mentioned many times, as was her ability to put faculty and students at ease in social settings.

Dr. Roberts was a leading Thomas Hardy scholar and actually lived for a year in 1935 at Max Gate, Dorset, the Hardy estate, with Hardy's widow, Florence. Her doctoral dissertation was titled Thomas Hardy and the Theater . She continued with this theme in two of her scholarly publications, Tess in the Theater , 1950, and Hardy's Poetic Drama and the Theater , 1965. A third book, Florence Hardy and the Max Gate Circle , was eventually published in the Thomas Hardy Yearbook, no. 9 (1980).

During the Vietnam War, Dr. Roberts was appointed by the Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara, to the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services, 1965-68. In addition to being a Virginia Cultural Laureate, Dr. Roberts was also associate editor of the Journal of the Deans of Women , 1942-50; member of Phi Beta Kappa, American Association of University Professors, Modern Language Association, the Canadian Author's Association, and the Virginia Writer's Association. She was also president of the Women's Club of Richmond, 1970-1971. Health issues forced her to return to Indiana, where, after a long illness, she died on March 25, 1988.

Scope and Contents

This collection encompasses Dr. Roberts' research and writing about Thomas Hardy. It includes her research for her books and articles, collected information about Hardy and Wessex, England, as well as her manuscripts, journal articles and dissertation. What is interesting about this collection is the extent to which Dr. Roberts pursued her subject, leaving no stone unturned, and the relationships that grew during her research and lasted long after. Most notable was her long-term relationship with Florence Hardy.

Series I, The Dynasts, contains materials relating to Hardy's drama in verse, The Dynasts . This material is of note since this seems to have been a little studied piece. This series includes a leather-bound copy of The Dynasts arranged by Harley Granville-Barker. (Box 1)

Series II, Hardy's Dramatic Poetry and the Theater, focuses on the work Hardy's Poetic Drama and Theater . Materials include research and manuscripts in various states of editing, and notes of the various productions of Hardy's plays. (Box 2)

Series III, Tess and the Theater, includes materials on Tess and the Theater , originally part of Roberts' dissertation. Hardy's book, Tess of the D'Urbervilles , was first dramatized by Hardy. Several versions of his play were produced and documented here. Ronald Gow and Lorimer Stoddard attempted their own versions, copies of which are in the collection, along with information and playbills about their productions. (Boxes 3, 4, and 5)

Series IV, Hardy and the Theater, focuses on Dr. Roberts's dissertation, Hardy and the Theater . This series contains correspondence from actors and historians about the Hardy Players, permission requests, research notes, drafts of the dissertation, and a bound copy of Hardy and the Theater . (Boxes 6, 7, and 8)

Series V, Max Gate Circle, contains her work on the Max Gate Circle. Hardy's home, Max Gate, drew many famous and even infamous people. With Hardy's advancing age and infirmity, it was often Florence, his second wife, who held things together. This series includes letters and vignettes of Florence's conversations with Dr. Roberts, along with memories, copies of letters and various drafts of the finished piece. (Boxes 9, 10, 11, 12, and 13)

Series VI, General Research, is a collection of Dr. Roberts's general research and information on Thomas Hardy, Florence Hardy, Dorset, and those certain of Hardy's contemporaries. (Boxes 14, 15, and 16)

Series VII, Manuscripts and Journals, includes manuscripts of Dr. Roberts which are not in her books, and journals in which her articles appear or are related to her Hardy scholarship. (Boxes 17 and 18)

Series VIII, Personal, contains items that do not really fit with any of the other series and have been classed as Personal. There are papers from her visit to the House of Commons, letters from friends and former professors. (Box 18)

Arrangement

The collection is arranged into 8 series:

Series I: The Dynasts Series II: Hardy's Dramatic Poetry and the Theater Series III: Tess and the Theater Series IV: Hardy and the Theater Series V: Max Gate Circle Series VI: General Research Series VII: Manuscripts and Journals Series VIII: Personal

Related Material

The rare book collection at Boatwright Library has volumes that were gifted to Dr. Roberts and items that were gifts of Dr. Roberts. Those items are noted in the library catalog records and may be located by searching her name. Dr. Roberts also did an oral history interview on 14 April 1976 that is available as part of the Westhampton College Oral Histories in audio and transcription.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Clippings (Books, newspapers, etc.)
• Hardy, Florence Emily, 1879-1937
• Hardy, Thomas, 1840-1928
• Manuscripts
• Nonbook Materials
• Photocopying
• Roberts, Marguerite M., Dr., 1904-1988
• Thomas Hardy Society