Mary Keegan Shuman papers
Scope and Contents
Papers consist of two scrapbooks created and maintained by Mary Keegan Shuman, the first president and longtime fundraiser for the Philomatheia Club, a women's auxiliary organization of Boston College. The first scrapbook, "Clippings regarding Philomatheia Club", documents early fundraising activities and social events of the organization. Materials primarily include news clippings, as well as event ephemera, such as fliers and programs. There is also a photograph of the Philomatheia Club officers at a flag-raising event at Boston College (1916).
The second scrapbook, "Mrs. E. A. Shuman's Personal Scrap Book", documents Shuman’s family and her interests in local politics, Massachusetts society, and activities of the Philomatheia Club and Boston College. Subjects include parties and events held at Shuman's Marblehead estate, "Mollhurst"; Philomatheia Club fundraising activities; and women's roles in volunteer and charity work. Materials consist of magazine and newspaper clippings, event ephemera, a small number of letters, and photographic portraits of Shuman, Martha Moore Avery, and Michael Joseph, SJ. Many of the clippings are from the local periodical North Shore Breeze. Also included is an edition of The Working Boy (1890), a quarterly magazine published by the Working Boys' Home, a charitable institution operated by the Xaverian Brothers in Newton Highlands, Massachusetts.
Dates
- Creation: 1890-1928
- Creation: Majority of material found within 1916 - 1918
Creator
- Shuman, Mary Keegan, 1874-1955 (Person)
Access Note
Collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
These materials are made available for use in research, teaching and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright Law. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Any materials used for academic research or otherwise should be fully credited with the source. The original authors may retain copyright to the materials.
Biographical note: Mary Keegan Shuman
Mary A. Keegan Shuman was born in 1874 in Salem, Massachusetts. She married Edwin Arthur Shuman, Boston philanthropist and head of the Boston clothing firm A. Shuman & Co., and together they had three children: E. Arthur Shuman, Jr., Francis K. Shuman, and Lillian Shuman (Burrows). In March 1915, under the direction of the Advisory Board of Athletics of Boston College, Shuman helped establish the Philomatheia Club, a Catholic women's auxiliary organization. She served as the club's first president and, after stepping down in 1918, remained an active member and prominent fundraiser. In 1919, Shuman was the president of the Ladies' Auxiliary Knights of Columbus Service House. She also participated in the women's suffrage movement. In 1920, she attended the Democratic National Convention as an alternate delegate representing Massachusetts. Shuman died in Brookline, Massachusetts, in 1955.
Sources:
"Edwin A. Shuman". The New York Times, January 8, 1942, https://nyti.ms/4j8eoFz.
"Mary A. Keegan". Ancestry.com, (accessed September 16, 2026), https://www.ancestrylibrary.com/family-tree/person/tree/87078765/person/152231592238/facts.
"Two Boston Women Slated for Democratic Convention". Boston Daily Globe, March 13, 1920, https://go.openathens.net/redirector/bc.edu?url=https://www.proquest.com/newspapers/two-boston-women-slated-democratic-convention/docview/503946088/se-2.
"Women to Muster 308 at Convention". The New York Times, June 27, 1920, https://nyti.ms/4rfRsWR.
Full Extent
4.8 Linear Feet (4 containers)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Papers of Mary Keegan Shuman, a nineteenth-century Boston socialite, suffragette, and the first president of the Philomatheia Club, a women's auxiliary organization of Boston College. The collection includes two scrapbooks containing event ephemera, correspondence, magazine and newspaper clippings, and photographs documenting the Club and the broader role of women in local volunteer and charitable work.
Arrangement
Alphabetical.
Provenance
Gift of Cianna Lee, 2025.
Processing Information
Large, loose items have been housed separately for preservation purposes. Scrapbooks are fragile; handle with care.
Source
- Lee, Cianna (Person)
- Title
- Mary Keegan Shuman Papers
- Subtitle
- 1890-1928 (bulk 1916-1918)
- Author
- Molly Aleshire
- Date
- 2026
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the John J. Burns Library Repository
John J. Burns Library
Boston College
140 Commonwealth Avenue
Chestnut Hill MA 02467 USA
617-552-4861
burns@bc.libanswers.com