Guide to the Papers of Sir Harold White and Lady Elizabeth White, 1911-1992

Summary

Collection number:

MS 7599

Creator:

White, Harold Leslie, Sir

Extent:

(116 ms boxes + 1 large folio box + 1 elephant folio)

Language:

English

Preferred citation:

Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Sir Harold White and Lady Elizabeth White, National Library of Australia, MS 7599, [series and/or folder number]'.

Availability:

Available

Access conditions:

Part available for research; part not available for research. Not for loan.

Background

Content Summary:

These papers document several broad areas of activity in the lives and careers of Sir Harold White and Lady Elizabeth White. Broadly, they encompass Sir Harold White's extensive career in the Commonwealth Parliamentary Library and the National Library of Australia, his ongoing professional and community interests after retirement, shared papers of both Sir Harold and Lady Elizabeth of a personal nature, and papers associated with Lady Elizabeth White's community work and activities.

The papers on the professional aspects of Sir Harold's life represent both internal Library operations and its development as well as his external representation on outside bodies. Particularly well documented are his official overseas tours, offices he held in the Australian Institute of Librarians, representation on international bodies including UNESCO and IFLA, various government committees such as the National Film Board and Commonwealth Archives Committees, and external bodies such as the Canberra University College Council. There are also many papers concerning the development of the 1960 National Library Act and the construction and opening of the permanent Library building. His involvement after retirment on the editorial board of the Australian Encyclopaedia and the National Memorials Committee are also well represented.

Sir Harold's personal papers include school prize books and an extensive run of diaries. His papers from his roles with the Australian National Review and the Canberra Society of Arts and Literature provide insight into life in early Canberra.

The joint personal papers of Sir Harold and Lady Elizabeth include correspondence with family and a wide circle friends, photographs, and papers on their large garden at 27 Mugga Way, Red Hill. Of note is an extensive run of letters from their daughter Judith White (later Judith Robinson and Judith Robinson-Valery), extending from her schooling and university study and through her career as an academic in Cambridge, Sydney and Paris.

Lady Elizabeth's personal papers include personal appointment and travel diaries, speeches and writing, and papers from her work in the care of the elderly in Canberra, involvement in women's groups, and membership of public speaking organisations such as the Penguin Club and Rostrum. Of interest among her writings is a small series of lectures she gave on hospitality to the YWCA of Canberra in 1972.

Biographical Note:

Harold Leslie White was born on 14 June 1905 in Numurkah, Victoria, the third child of James and Beatrice White. He was educated at Invergordon State School, Wesley College (Melbourne) and the University of Melbourne and graduated with a Masters degree with first class honours in French. He was recruited to the Commonwealth Parliamentary Library in 1923 at the instigation of his headmaster, a friend of the first Parliamentary Librarian Arthur Wadsworth. He was appointed deputy librarian in 1927.

On 18 October 1930 he married Elizabeth Wilson at the Chapel of Queen's College, Melbourne, where White had resided as a student. Harold and Elizabeth White were among the first residents of Red Hill, where they took up a three-acre block at 27 Mugga Way. They had four children, David (1931-2004), Judith (1933-2010), John (1935-2006), and Katharine (1937- ).

In 1939 White received a grant from the Carnegie Corporation to conduct an extensive study tour of libraries in the United States and Europe. He succeeded Kenneth Binns as Parliamentary Librarian in 1947, retaining this role jointly with that of National Librarian after the establishment of the National Library of Australia in 1960. He relinquished the former role in 1968, and retired as National Librarian in 1970. He was a member of the National Film Board and the Commonwealth Archives Committee (1947-1970) and chairman of the UNESCO Committee on Drama, Theatre and Literature (1951-1958). During the 1960s he undertook extensive travel to Asia to expand the National Library's collecting activities in that region.

White was active in the Canberra community promoting the arts and education through bodies such as the Canberra Society of Arts and Literature, University Association of Canberra, and the Humanities Research Council. He was a founding member of the Australian Institute of Librarians in 1937, and literary editor of the Australian National Review, a monthly magazine of the late 1930s edited by William Farmer Whyte. He was also an active member of the Rotary Club of Canberra.

Following his retirement he served as UNESCO Consultant advising on the establishment of a national library in Malaysia, the advisory board for the Australian Encyclopaedia, and the National Memorials Committee. He was appointed CBE in 1962 for service to government, and was knighted in 1970. The National Library of Australia's fellowship scheme was named in his honour in 1985. He died on 31 August 1992.

Elizabeth Ogilvie White (nee Wilson) was born in Melbourne on 16 December 1907, daughter of Richard and Annie Wilson, and was educated at Tintern Girls' Grammar School and Presbyterian Ladies' College Melbourne. Upon matriculation she worked as a teacher and governess.

She married Harold Leslie White on 18 October 1930 at Queen's College Chapel. They took up a three-acre block at 27 Mugga Way, Red Hill, where they established a large garden. They had four children, David (1931-2004), Judith (1933-2010), John (1935-2006), and Katharine (1937- ).

Elizabeth White was active in community affairs for most of her life, particularly in women's organisations and the care of Canberra's elderly. As a member of the National Council of Women she was involved in the establishment of the Thursday Club (later the Senior Citizens' Club) and the construction of its permanent building in Turner. She played an important role in the establishment of the Goodwin Homes in Ainslie. Active in public speaking societies, she was awarded life membership of the Penguin Club. She was also a member of the Women's International Club, the Inger Rice Foundation, and the Pan Pacific and South East Asia Association.

Elizabeth White was honoured by an OBE in 1962 for service to the community. She died on 18 June 1988.

Provenance:

The original consignment of MS 7599 was collected from the home of Sir Harold White by Library staff in 1988. A number of further instalments were subsequently received from Sir Harold and members of his family.

Conditions Governing Access:

Not available for research. Not for loan.

Conditions Governing Use:

Permission is required to copy Sir Harold White and Lady Elizabeth White's copyright material for research purposes.

Preferred citation:

Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Sir Harold White and Lady Elizabeth White, National Library of Australia, MS 7599, [series and/or folder number]'.

Location of this collection:

National Library of Australia

Parkes Place

Canberra ACT 2600, Australia

Contact:

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