Mary, Viscountess Eccles
Encyclopedia
Mary Morley Crapo Hyde Eccles, Viscountess Eccles (8 July 1912–26 August 2003) was a book collector and author. She was renowned for establishing one of the biggest private collections of 18th century literature with her first husband, Donald Hyde (1909-1966). This include works from Samuel Johnson
and James Boswell
. She also created an Oscar Wilde Collection which was bequeathed to the British Library in 2003. Her second marriage (in 1984) was to the British peer, David Eccles, 1st Viscount Eccles
, with whom she co-founded the Eccles Centre for American Studies at the British Library
in 1992.
, USA in 1912. She attended Vassar College
in New York State where she became friends with novelist Mary McCarthy
. She later attended Columbia University
where she undertook her PhD
in English literature
. The dissertation from her doctorate was later developed into a book, entitled Playwriting for Elizabethans.
lawyer. The couple bought Samuel Johnson
's silver teapot in 1941 and threw a tea party in its honour. Over the next 25 years, they became avid collectors of Johnson's
belongings, including hundreds of his letters, several of his diaries and a collection of his poems.
Mary Hyde—as she was then known—bought Four Oaks Farm in Somerville
, New Jersey
in 1943. Here they bought up surrounding land and added a library to the property, filling the house with their Samuel Johnson collection. Hyde also published The Thrales of Streatham Park in honour of Mrs Thrale who had previously collected many of Johnson's belongings.
During the following years, Hyde became well acquainted with many influential figures, including business tycoons, politicians and English aristocrats
.
Donald Hyde died in 1966. His wife later wrote The Impossible Friendship, a study of Mrs Thrale and James Boswell
. She also wrote Bernard Shaw and Alfred Douglas: A Correspondence and developed an Oscar Wilde
collection that was second in size only to that of the University of California
. She donated this collection to the British Library
to form the Lady Eccles Oscar Wilde Collection
there. The collection relating to Samuel Johnson and his circle was bequeathed to Houghton Library
at Harvard University
.
in 1984, becoming Mary, Viscountess Eccles. They founded the Eccles Centre for American Studies at the British Library
in 1992 as Lord Eccles had previously been its Chairman.
, Pembroke College
.
She was also Benjamin Franklin Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts
.
She was a member of The Roxburghe Club
, an exclusive society of bibliophiles, from 1985-2003.
Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson , often referred to as Dr. Johnson, was an English author who made lasting contributions to English literature as a poet, essayist, moralist, literary critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer...
and James Boswell
James Boswell
James Boswell, 9th Laird of Auchinleck was a lawyer, diarist, and author born in Edinburgh, Scotland; he is best known for the biography he wrote of one of his contemporaries, the English literary figure Samuel Johnson....
. She also created an Oscar Wilde Collection which was bequeathed to the British Library in 2003. Her second marriage (in 1984) was to the British peer, David Eccles, 1st Viscount Eccles
David Eccles, 1st Viscount Eccles
David McAdam Eccles, 1st Baron Eccles and 1st Viscount Eccles, CH, KCVO, MP, PC was an English Conservative politician....
, with whom she co-founded the Eccles Centre for American Studies at the British Library
British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom, and is the world's largest library in terms of total number of items. The library is a major research library, holding over 150 million items from every country in the world, in virtually all known languages and in many formats,...
in 1992.
Early life and education
Eccles was born Mary Morley Crapo in Detroit, MichiganMichigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, USA in 1912. She attended Vassar College
Vassar College
Vassar College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college in the town of Poughkeepsie, New York, in the United States. The Vassar campus comprises over and more than 100 buildings, including four National Historic Landmarks, ranging in style from Collegiate Gothic to International,...
in New York State where she became friends with novelist Mary McCarthy
Mary McCarthy (author)
Mary Therese McCarthy was an American author, critic and political activist.- Early life :Born in Seattle, Washington, to Roy Winfield McCarthy and his wife, the former Therese Preston, McCarthy was orphaned at the age of six when both her parents died in the great flu epidemic of 1918...
. She later attended Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
where she undertook her PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in English literature
English literature
English literature is the literature written in the English language, including literature composed in English by writers not necessarily from England; for example, Robert Burns was Scottish, James Joyce was Irish, Joseph Conrad was Polish, Dylan Thomas was Welsh, Edgar Allan Poe was American, J....
. The dissertation from her doctorate was later developed into a book, entitled Playwriting for Elizabethans.
Literary collections
In 1939 she married Donald Hyde, a New YorkNew York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
lawyer. The couple bought Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson , often referred to as Dr. Johnson, was an English author who made lasting contributions to English literature as a poet, essayist, moralist, literary critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer...
's silver teapot in 1941 and threw a tea party in its honour. Over the next 25 years, they became avid collectors of Johnson's
Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson , often referred to as Dr. Johnson, was an English author who made lasting contributions to English literature as a poet, essayist, moralist, literary critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer...
belongings, including hundreds of his letters, several of his diaries and a collection of his poems.
Mary Hyde—as she was then known—bought Four Oaks Farm in Somerville
Somerville
-Places:United States*Somerville, Alabama*Somerville, Indiana*Somerville, Maine*Somerville, Massachusetts*Somerville, New Jersey**Somerville Circle, a traffic circle near Somerville, New Jersey*Somerville, Ohio*Somerville, Tennessee*Somerville, Texas...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
in 1943. Here they bought up surrounding land and added a library to the property, filling the house with their Samuel Johnson collection. Hyde also published The Thrales of Streatham Park in honour of Mrs Thrale who had previously collected many of Johnson's belongings.
During the following years, Hyde became well acquainted with many influential figures, including business tycoons, politicians and English aristocrats
Aristocracy (class)
The aristocracy are people considered to be in the highest social class in a society which has or once had a political system of Aristocracy. Aristocrats possess hereditary titles granted by a monarch, which once granted them feudal or legal privileges, or deriving, as in Ancient Greece and India,...
.
Donald Hyde died in 1966. His wife later wrote The Impossible Friendship, a study of Mrs Thrale and James Boswell
James Boswell
James Boswell, 9th Laird of Auchinleck was a lawyer, diarist, and author born in Edinburgh, Scotland; he is best known for the biography he wrote of one of his contemporaries, the English literary figure Samuel Johnson....
. She also wrote Bernard Shaw and Alfred Douglas: A Correspondence and developed an Oscar Wilde
Oscar Wilde
Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish writer and poet. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of London's most popular playwrights in the early 1890s...
collection that was second in size only to that of the University of California
University of California
The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
. She donated this collection to the British Library
British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom, and is the world's largest library in terms of total number of items. The library is a major research library, holding over 150 million items from every country in the world, in virtually all known languages and in many formats,...
to form the Lady Eccles Oscar Wilde Collection
Lady Eccles Oscar Wilde Collection
The Lady Eccles Oscar Wilde Collection is a special collection of materials by, about and associated with the novelist and playwright Oscar Wilde, donated to the British Library by The Lady Eccles.-External link:*...
there. The collection relating to Samuel Johnson and his circle was bequeathed to Houghton Library
Houghton Library
Houghton Library is the primary repository for rare books and manuscripts at Harvard University. It is part of the Harvard College Library within the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Houghton is located on the south side of Harvard Yard, next to Widener Library.- History :Harvard's first...
at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
.
Eccles Centre
Mary Hyde married David Eccles, 1st Viscount EcclesDavid Eccles, 1st Viscount Eccles
David McAdam Eccles, 1st Baron Eccles and 1st Viscount Eccles, CH, KCVO, MP, PC was an English Conservative politician....
in 1984, becoming Mary, Viscountess Eccles. They founded the Eccles Centre for American Studies at the British Library
British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom, and is the world's largest library in terms of total number of items. The library is a major research library, holding over 150 million items from every country in the world, in virtually all known languages and in many formats,...
in 1992 as Lord Eccles had previously been its Chairman.
Honours
Lady Eccles was made an Honorary Fellow of Samuel Johnson's college at OxfordUniversity of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
, Pembroke College
Pembroke College, Oxford
Pembroke College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England, located in Pembroke Square. As of 2009, Pembroke had an estimated financial endowment of £44.9 million.-History:...
.
She was also Benjamin Franklin Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts
Royal Society of Arts
The Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufacturers and Commerce is a British multi-disciplinary institution, based in London. The name Royal Society of Arts is frequently used for brevity...
.
She was a member of The Roxburghe Club
Roxburghe Club
The Roxburghe Club was formed on 17 June 1812 by leading bibliophiles, at the time the library of the Duke of Roxburghe was auctioned. It took 45 days to sell the entire collection. The first edition of Boccaccio's Decameron, printed by Chrisopher Valdarfer of Venice in 1471, was sold to the...
, an exclusive society of bibliophiles, from 1985-2003.
External Links
- The Donald and Mary Hyde Collection of Dr. Samuel Johnson at Houghton Library
- The papers of Mary Eccles at Houghton Library