By Cherie Acierno
Title: Appleton and Wolcott Family Collection, 1916-1993
Predominant Dates:1916-1921
ID: RG1/030
Creator: Appleton, Sybil (1899-1973)
Extent: 0.6 Cubic Feet. More info below.
Arrangement: This collection is partially processed. All material is arranged topically by folder title in Box 1, except for the photocopies of Wolcott’s photographic album, which are housed in an oversize box.
Date Acquired: 00/00/1994
Oliver Wolcott served with the American Field Service in 1916 during World War I, and his future wife Sybil Appleton served with the American Committee for Devastated France in 1921. The collection includes original and/or photocopied letters each wrote during their time abroad, high quality photocopies of photograph albums they each created, loose photographic prints and negatives, a collar insignia, and other photocopied documents.
The collection includes materials created and/or collected by Oliver Wolcott and Sybil Appleton, documenting their experiences in the American Field Service and American Committee for Devastated France, respectively, during World War I. Most of Oliver Wolcott’s materials are in their original formats, while most of the material related to Appleton consists of photocopies of originals.
Original Oliver Wolcott materials in the collection include the collar insignia of the French Automobile Service (red embroidery on brown felt) from 1916. The collection also includes original letters of Oliver Wolcott to his mother Edith Prescott during the same period. Other materials in the collection include a 1993 transcription of these letters, edited with an introduction by Wolcott’s son, Oliver Wolcott, Jr., a matted reproduction of a sepia-toned photograph of Wolcott in uniform in 1917, and high quality photocopies of pages from a photographic album depicting SSU 2 in World War I.
There is also an original handwritten diary containing entries from February to July 1916, when Wolcott served with Section Sanitaire [Etats-] Unis (SSU) 2 of the American Field Service (AFS.) During this period, he was stationed in or visited places such as Verdun, Bar-le-Duc, Souilly, and Revigny in France. The diary begins with a description of the boat voyage over to Europe with a group of other AFS drivers, and includes descriptions of locations they visited while overseas, troop movements, gas attacks, weaponry, aviation equipment, experiencing being shelled by German troops, interactions with both civilians and servicemen, and his time off-duty. This diary also contains straightforward and detailed descriptions of injuries and death.
Original Sybil Appleton materials in the collection include eleven photographic prints and eleven negatives taken by Appleton during the course of her work with the American Committee for Devastated France (ACDF) from March to August in 1921. Images include ruins, landscapes, and shots of a Croix-de-Guerre ceremony. The collection also includes a high quality photocopy of Appleton’s photo album, containing many images of women working in France with ACDF. There are photocopies of Appleton’s letters to her mother, written between March and August 1921, and a photocopy of Appleton’s diary from January-September 1921. The most detailed entries in the diary are dated before Appleton’s time in France. In France, Appleton made a few sporadic entries. Finally, there is a photocopy of a 1922 pamphlet describing the work of the American Committee for Devastated France, a photocopy of a 1922 note to Appleton from noted landscape designer Fletcher Steele, and a photocopy of an extract from 1921 Minutes of the Municipal Council of Mairie de Coucy-la-Ville, France, expressing happiness for the work completed by the Comité Américain pour les Régions Dévastées (known as the American Committee for Devastated France in English.)
Alternate Extent Statement: 1 box, 1 oversize folder
Access Restrictions: This collection is open for research. A digital copy of Wolcott’s diary can be accessed through the online finding aid. Researchers must consult the digital copy first; permission to access original item is required in advance. Cotton gloves are required for the handling of all photographic material.
Use Restrictions: Single photocopies may be made for research purposes. Permission to publish material from the collection must be submitted in writing to the AFS Archives. Researchers are responsible for determining any copyright questions.
Acquisition Method: The collection was donated to the Archives of the American Field Service and AFS Intercultural Programs by Oliver Wolcott, Jr.in 1993 and 1994.
Appraisal Information: No items were deaccessioned, separated, or removed from the collection.
Related Materials: See the American Committee for Devastated France Records, 1919-1926 (MC 026) at the Princeton University Mudd Manuscript Library for more information on Anne Morgan’s organization.
Preferred Citation: [Identification of item], [Date]; Appleton and Wolcott Family Collection; Archives of the American Field Service and AFS Intercultural Programs, New York, NY.
Processing Information: This collection was partially processed by AFS Archives staff at an unknown date and again by Cherie Acierno in 2011. Preliminary finding aid written by Cherie Acierno in May 2011 and encoded in EAD in May 2011 under the scope of the 2010-2011 Basic Processing grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission. Digitized diary added and finding aid updated by Shirra Rockwood in September 2016.
