Marble Hill Nursery School collection
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Abstract
A small collection documenting the early history of the Marble Hill Nursery School, a parent-cooperative nursery school established in 1953 to serve families living in the Marble Hill Houses, a NYCHA development in Bronx Community District 8. The material here stems from Evelyn I. Lowell (1918-2016), first president of the school, who sought to parlay the expertise she gained during its founding into an educational television program for children.
Historical note
The Marble Hill Nursery School was founded in 1953 as a non-profit, parent-cooperative nursery school to serve families living in the Marble Hill Houses, a NYCHA development in the Bronx. (Although it is technically the northernmost neighborhood of Manhattan, Marble Hill is physically and politically connected to the Bronx as Bronx Community District 8.) Parents assist in school fundraising activities, volunteer in the classrooms, serve on committees, and may choose to serve on the board of directors. The school celebrated its 70th anniversary in 2023. (For more information, see marblehillnurseryschool.org.)
Arrangement
The collection is housed in five folders, the first four of which are sorted chronologically. The fifth folder holds print matter of a wider date range.
Scope and Contents
This collection stems from Evelyn I. Lowell (1918-2016), first president of the Marble Hill Nursery School, and contains foundational documentation she preserved, such as agendas, notes, drafts of committee assignments, correspondence, and budgetary requirements. Also included are proposals for a television program—tentatively titled "Wonderland Playground" and based on the Marble Hill Nursery School model—that Lowell hoped to sell to the CBS and DuMont networks. The collection includes drafts of an article "Playing is Children's Work," a guide for parents interested in establishing nursery schools in their communities, which Lowell unsuccessfully submitted to various publications. A small group of publications on child welfare supplements the collection.
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Access Restrictions
This collection is stored offsite. To arrange to consult it, please go to www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.
Use Restrictions
Taking images of documents from the library collections for reference purposes by using hand-held cameras and in accordance with the library's photography guidelines is encouraged. As an alternative, patrons may request up to 20 images per day from staff. Application to use images from this collection for publication should be made in writing to: Department of Rights and Reproductions, The New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024-5194, rightsandrepro@nyhistory.org. Phone: (212) 873-3400 ext. 282. Copyrights and other proprietary rights may subsist in individuals and entities other than the New-York Historical Society, in which case the patron is responsible for securing permission from those parties. For fuller information about rights and reproductions from N-YHS visit: www.nyhistory.org/rights-and-reproductions.
Preferred Citation
The collection should be cited as the "Marble Hill Nursery School Collection, MS 3227, New-York Historical Society."
Location of Materials
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Waverly B. Lowell (daughter of Evelyn I. Lowell), 2016 (accession no. MS-2016-05).
About this Guide
Processing Information
Archivist Joseph Ditta arranged and described this collection in July 2023.