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Boston College collection of Lady Gregory

 Collection
Collection MS-1995-028: Boston College collection of Lady Gregory

Dates

  • Creation: 1881-1932, undated

Scope and Contents

The Boston College collection of Lady Gregory includes correspondence, a typescript of "The Old Woman Remembers," and an article concerning Lady Gregory and her estate, Coole Park, in County Galway, Ireland.

Creator

Restrictions on access

Collection is open for research.

Restrictions on 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

Lady Gregory was born Isabella Augusta Persse on March 15, 1852, in Roxborough House in Galway, Ireland to Dudley Persse and Frances (Barry) Persse. She was educated at home and heavily influenced in her interests by her nurse, Mary Sheridan. In 1880 she married Sir William Gregory, who owned Coole Park, an estate in County Galway. They had one child, Robert Gregory, born in 1881. The couple was involved in the London literary scene and traveled around the world, including Egypt and Ceylon. She became romantically linked with the poet Wilfred Scawen Blunt in 1882 while in Egypt, and during this time she published her first work under her own name, Arabi and His Household (1882) as well as a series of poems called A Woman's Sonnets which appeared anonymously in a work of Blunt's.

In 1892, Sir William Gregory died and Lady Gregory edited his autobiography. In the 1890s she began to study Irish language and culture and became involved in the Irish nationalist movement. She collected Irish fairy tales and legends; composed poems, plays, and other literary works; and wrote pamphlets and articles concerning home rule. Lady Gregory befriended W. B. Yeats in 1896, and together they founded the Irish Literary Theatre in 1899. In 1918, her son, Robert Gregory, was killed in action in Italy while serving as a fighter pilot during World War I.

In 1927 Lady Gregory sold Coole Park to the Irish Forestry Commission but continued to live there. She died at home on May 22, 1932.

Source:

Patrick Maume. "Gregory, (Isabella) Augusta Lady Gregory Persse". Dictionary of Irish Biography. Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press, 2009 https://dib-cambridge-org.proxy.bc.edu/viewReadPage.do?articleId=a3622

Extent

0.25 Linear Feet (1 box)

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

This collection contains materials about late nineteenth and early twentieth century Irish author Lady Gregory. It includes correspondence, a typescript, and an article.

Arrangement

Alphabetical.

Provenance

Gift of Mary R. Barrett (1995) and purchase from George Robert Minkoff, Inc. (1999).

Title
Boston College Collection of Lady Gregory
Subtitle
1881-1932, undated
Status
Completed
Author
Annalisa Moretti
Date
April 2019
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Part of the John J. Burns Library Repository

Contact:
John J. Burns Library
Boston College
140 Commonwealth Avenue
Chestnut Hill MA 02467 United States
617-552-4861