Helena C. Koiner letters

Access and use

Location of collection:
College of William and Mary
Special Collections Research Center
Earl Gregg Swem Library
College of William and Mary
400 Landrum Drive
PO 8795
Williamsburg, VA 23187-8795
Contact for questions and access:
Phone: (757) 221-3090
Fax: (757) 221-5440
Restrictions:

Collection is open to all researchers. Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, such as the Virginia Public Records Act (Code of Virginia. § 42.1-76-91); and the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (Code of Virginia § 2.2-3705.5). Confidential material may include, but is not limited to, educational, medical, and personnel records. If sensitive material is found in this collection, please contact a staff member immediately. The disclosure of personally identifiable information pertaining to a living individual may have legal consequences for which the College of William and Mary assumes no responsibility.

Terms of access:

Before publishing quotations or excerpts from any materials, permission must be obtained from the Curator of Manuscripts and Rare Books, and the holder of the copyright, if not Swem Library.

Preferred citation:

Helena C. Koiner papers, Special Collections Research Center, William & Mary Libraries.

Summary

Extent:
0.1 Linear Feet
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

Helena C. Koiner papers, Special Collections Research Center, William & Mary Libraries.

Background

Scope and content:

Three letters from Helena C. Koiner, a Virginia-born missionary working in China, to Elizabeth Van Dyck. The first letter details Koiner's departure from San Francisco to Yokohama for China. Describes the people on the boat with her in great detail, including missionary families, Chinese and Japanese families heading home, a few unattached men, and a group "trying to drink themselves to death" before they left port. She also gossips about a nice Dutch scientist with whom she has been playing Bridge and the musical entertainment on board the ship.

The second letter is decorated with hand-painted images of bamboo and waterfowl. Koiner congratulates "Van" on her school going strong, and thanks her for her last letter. She writes at length about the entertainment available in her area and the "good looking men." Koiner then transitions into discussing her own work in a school.

The third letter has a print of a girl standing next to a tree on each page. Koiner opens by thanking Van Dyck for her Christmas present and talks about how much she has enjoyed her time in China. She details the parties she has attended and the military officers she has met.

The three letters are accompanied by their envelopes and two documents related to language translation.

Acquisition information:
Purchased from Tim Abbott Americana with the assistance of Nelle Richardson Tonkin Fund.
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard