Guide to the David Schell Collection

Record Group 084

Date Span: ca 1905-1936

Extent : 116 items

Biographical / Historical Sketch: Dr. David Schell, family and psychological counselor from Selma, Alabama, heard Dr. Marty Olliff speak about the Archives of Wiregrass History and Culture on the Carolyn Hutchinson "Community Affairs" radio program over Troy Public Radio, June 18, 2007. His great aunt had given a collection of women's magazines (ca. 1905-1936) to Dr. Schell before she passed away. He provided these to the Archives of Wiregrass History and Culture (after 2012, the Wiregrass Archives).

Schell's "Aunt Lizzie" was his great-great aunt Elizabeth A. Coon (nee “Niece”) of Hickory County, Missouri. Though at one time she and her husband, Austin Coon, lived in Independence, MO, they moved to the unincorporated village of Galmy, near Wheatland and Hermitage, MO.

Three of the magazines in this collection--American Woman, Comfort, Good Stories--were published in Augusta, ME, a hotbed for pulp press monthlies designed primarily to entertain rural women and to advertise mail order goods. Between 1869 and 1912, Augusta was the "mail order magazine capital of the country," publishing 17 titles that by 1906 accounted for 1/3 of value of manufactured goods in that city. This according to Phyllis von Herrich's website "Women's History Trail, Augusta, Maine, 2002. http://dll.umaine.edu/historytrail/site14.html [Website inactive, saved by Internet Archive Wayback Machine, version February 18, 2003 here: https://web.archive.org/web/20030218054010/http://dll.umaine.edu/historytrail/site14.html].

Comfort had the largest circulation of these magazines. William Gannett created it in 1888 as a way to market his patent medicine "Oxien." Comfort was the first American magazine to reach ½ million circulation (1895) and in 1905 affirmed its circulation at 1 million. Frank L. Mott, who's History of American Magazines is the standard source, calls Comfort a "cheap miscellany for the home," with items of interest for everyone in the family.
Neither New York nor Chicago would allow themselves to be left out of this magazine market. Dr. Schnell's collection also contains Illustrated Stories published by Edwin F. Nason in NYC and Woman's World out of Chicago.

Scope/Content: Consists of popular magazines from the first 1/3 of the 20th century and a number of loose pages of advertisements and covers, the latter retained for their illustrations.
Titles:

The American Woman
Comfort
Good Stories
The Illustrated Companion
McCalls (4 issues)
Woman's World

Organization: Arranged by Title, then chronologically. Many gaps in the sequences.

Provenance: Dr. Schell's great-great aunt, "Aunt Lizzy," kept these magazines in her attic until she sold her farm in Missouri, then gave them to Dr. Schell's wife. After hearing a public radio program about the AWHC, Dr. Schell contacted Dr. Marty Olliff and gave the magazines to the AWHC.

Preferred Citation: David Schell Collection, RG 084, Wiregrass Archives, Troy University Dothan Campus, Dothan, AL.

Access Limits: Open per donor agreement and as published materials

INVENTORY

File I.D.				File Label
084	07-0720	001	001	Illustrated Companion: Oct. 1924
084	07-0720	001	002	Illustrated Companion: Feb. 1912
084	07-0720	001	003	Illustrated Companion: Mar. - Nov. 1907 - Bound
084	07-0720	001	004	Illustrated Companion: Jun. 1927
084	07-0720	001	005	Illustrated Companion: Jan. - Dec. 1910 - Bound
084	07-0720	001	006	Illustrated Companion: Mar. 1915
084	07-0720	001	007	Illustrated Companion: Jul. 1912
084	07-0720	001	008	Illustrated Companion: Jun. 1912
084	07-0720	001	009	Illustrated Companion: May 1912
084	07-0720	001	010	Illustrated Companion: Aug. 1912
084	07-0720	001	011	Illustrated Companion: Oct. 1912
084	07-0720	001	012	Illustrated Companion: Sep. 1912
084	07-0720	001	013	Illustrated Companion: Nov. 1912
084	07-0720	001	014	Illustrated Companion: Nov. 1915
084	07-0720	001	015	Illustrated Companion: Oct. 1915
084	07-0720	001	016	Illustrated Companion: Sep. 1915
084	07-0720	001	017	Illustrated Companion: Aug. 1915
084	07-0720	001	018	Illustrated Companion: May 1915
084	07-0720	001	019	Illustrated Companion: Feb. 1915
084	07-0720	001	020	Illustrated Companion: Jul. 1915
084	07-0720	001	021	Illustrated Companion: Jun. 1915
084	07-0720	002	001	Illustrated Companion: Sep. 1923
084	07-0720	002	002	Illustrated Companion: Oct. 1925
084	07-0720	002	003	Illustrated Companion: Nov. 1925
084	07-0720	002	004	Illustrated Companion: Apr. 1926
084	07-0720	002	005	Illustrated Companion: Aug. 1925
084	07-0720	002	006	Illustrated Companion: Aug. 1924
084	07-0720	002	007	Illustrated Companion: Aug. 1913
084	07-0720	002	008	Illustrated Companion: Jun. 1925
084	07-0720	002	009	Illustrated Companion: Feb. 1926
084	07-0720	002	010	Illustrated Companion: Jul. 1913
084	07-0720	002	011	Illustrated Companion: Nov. 1913
084	07-0720	002	012	Illustrated Companion: Feb. 1913
084	07-0720	002	013	Illustrated Companion: Jul. 1927
084	07-0720	002	014	Illustrated Companion: Aug. 1927
084	07-0720	002	015	Illustrated Companion: Jun. 1913
084	07-0720	002	016	Illustrated Companion: Jan. 1915
084	07-0720	002	017	Illustrated Companion: Apr. 1915
084	07-0720	002	018	Illustrated Companion: Dec. 1915
084	07-0720	002	019	Illustrated Companion: Sep. 1913
084	07-0720	002	020	Illustrated Companion: Oct. 1913
084	07-0720	002	021	Illustrated Companion: Oct. 1916
084	07-0720	002	022	Illustrated Companion: Sep. 1916
084	07-0720	002	023	Illustrated Companion: Jan. - Dec. 1911 - Bound
084	07-0720	002	024	Illustrated Companion: Sep. 1924
084	07-0720	002	025	Illustrated Companion: Mar. 1913
084	07-0720	002	026	Illustrated Companion: Jul. 1917
084	07-0720	002	027	Illustrated Companion: Dec. 1916
084	07-0720	002	028	Illustrated Companion: Aug. 1925
084	07-0720	002	029	Illustrated Companion: Jul. 1925
084	07-0720	002	030	Illustrated Companion: Apr. 1925
084	07-0720	002	031	Illustrated Companion: May 1925
084	07-0720	002	032	Illustrated Companion: Jun. 1925
084	07-0720	002	033	Illustrated Companion: Feb. 1925
084	07-0720	002	034	Illustrated Companion: Mar. 1925
084	07-0720	002	035	Illustrated Companion: Sep. 1914
084	07-0720	003	001	Street & Smith's Love Story Magazine n.d.
084	07-0720	003	002	McCall's Magazine: Jul. 1910
084	07-0720	003	003	McCall's Magazine: Oct. 1917
084	07-0720	003	004	McCall's Magazine: Feb. 1910
084	07-0720	003	005	McCall's Magazine: Jan. 1904
084	07-0720	003	006	Gentlewoman: Oct. 1936
084	07-0720	003	007	American Needle Woman: Aug. 1924
084	07-0720	003	008	Good Stories: Apr. 1922
084	07-0720	003	009	Good Stories: Nov. 1932
084	07-0720	003	010	Good Stories: Feb. 1932
084	07-0720	003	011	Good Stories: Sep. 1931
084	07-0720	003	012	Good Stories: Oct. 1932
084	07-0720	003	013	Good Stories: Feb. 1930
084	07-0720	003	014	Good Stories: Oct. 1929
084	07-0720	003	015	Good Stories: Aug. 1922
084	07-0720	003	016	Good Stories: Nov. 1925
084	07-0720	003	017	Good Stories: Jun. 1915
084	07-0720	003	018	Good Stories: Sep. 1929
084	07-0720	003	019	Good Stories: Mar. 1928
084	07-0720	003	020	Good Stories: Sep. 1922
084	07-0720	003	021	Women's World: Feb. 1912
084	07-0720	003	022	Women's World: Jan. 1916
084	07-0720	003	023	Women's World: Mar. 1912
084	07-0720	003	024	Women's World: Oct. 1911
084	07-0720	003	025	Women's World: Jun. 1928
084	07-0720	003	026	Women's World: Jul. 1913
084	07-0720	003	027	Women's World: Nov. 1928
084	07-0720	003	028	Women's World: Dec. 1924
084	07-0720	003	029	Women's World: Oct. 1924 [Cover Only}
084	07-0720	003	030	Women's World: Jan. 1925
084	07-0720	003	031	Women's World: Jul. 1925
084	07-0720	003	032	Women's World: Oct. 1915
084	07-0720	003	033	Women's World: Aug. 1911 [Cover Only]
084	07-0720	003	034	Women's World: Dec. 1924 [Cover Only]
084	07-0720	003	035	Women's World: Nov. 1911
084	07-0720	003	036	Women's World: Oct. 1915 [Cover Only]
084	07-0720	003	037	Women's World: May 1915
084	07-0720	003	038	Women's World: Apr. 1929
084	07-0720	003	039	Women's World: Aug. 1928
084	07-0720	003	040	Women's World: [Advertisement] 1915
084	07-0720	004	001	Grit: May 1949
084	07-0720	004	002	How to Make Cornhusk Dolls: 1973
084	07-0720	004	003	Woman's World [Incomplete - 4 leaves] [Variations in Salt Pork] n.d.
084	07-0720	004	004	Advertisement: Dromedary Dates / Victrola n.d.
084	07-0720	004	005	Advertisement: Wilbur's Stock Food / Palmolive Soap n.d.
084	07-0720	004	006	Advertisement: Kellogg's Corn Flakes / Old Dutch Cleanser n.d.
084	07-0720	004	007	Advertisement: Instant Postom Cereal n.d.
084	07-0720	004	008	Advertisement: Colgate [Gifts] / Christmas Surprise Coupon n.d.
084	07-0720	004	009	Advertisement: Fairbank's Gold Dust / Perfection Oil Cook Stoves n.d.
084	07-0720	004	010	Modern Priscilla, The: Jun. 1917
084	07-0720	005	001	American Women: Jan. 1916
084	07-0720	005	002	American Women: Jan. - Dec. 1910 - Bound
084	07-0720	005	003	American Women: Jan - Dec. 1907 - Bound
084	07-0720	005	004	American Women: Oct. 1912
084	07-0720	005	005	American Women: Jan. - Dec. 1909 - Bound
084	07-0720	005	006	American Women: Jan. - Dec. 1905 - Bound
084	07-0720	005	007	American Women: Jan. - Dec. 1908 - Bound
084	07-0720	006	001	Comfort: Jan. 1909
084	07-0720	006	002	Comfort: Jun. 1917
08	07-0720	006	003	Comfort: Jan. - Dec. 1909 - Bound

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Wiregrass Archives
Troy University Dothan Campus
Everett 128
502 University Dr.
Dothan, AL 36303

Phone: 334-983-6556 x21327
Email: wiregrassarchives@troy.edu