Dates

• Majority of material found within 1800 - 2000

Extent

virtual collection Megabytes (A native of Indiana, Pennsylvania, Academy Award winning actor James “Jimmy” Mailtland Stewart (May 20, 1908-July 2, 1997) was the oldest child and only son of Alexander “Alec” Maitland Stewart (May 19, 1871-December 28, 1961) and his wife Elizabeth “Bessie” Ruth Jackson Stewart (March 16, 1875-August 2, 1953). James Stewart was born at his parents’ house at 975 Philadelphia Street in Indiana. His father owned the local hardware store, J.M. Stewart & Co., which was founded in 1848. James Stewart’s great-great-great grandfather was Fergus Moorhead who first arrived in Indiana County from Franklin County, Pennsylvania in 1772. For more information about the Moorhead family go to Manuscript Group 130: Logan Moorhead Collection, or visit the Historical and Genealogical Society of Indiana County. The Stewarts moved to 104 North 7th Street in Indiana when James Stewart was five years old, and they lived there until 1961. James Stewart’s first formal education began at the Model School in Wilson Hall at Indiana State Normal School, which later became Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP). Stewart attended school in Wilson Hall from first grade in 1915-1916 to ninth grade in 1923-1924. He then attended Mercersburg Academy from 1924 to 1928. Stewart enrolled at his father’s alma mater Princeton University, where he performed in theater productions. Stewart graduated from Princeton in 1932 with a degree in Economics. For more information about the film career and biography of American actor Jimmy Stewart, visit the Jimmy Stewart filmography. Perhaps his best known movies were “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” (1939), “The Philadelphia Story” (1940). When Stewart won the Academy Award for Best Actor in 1940, he sent his Oscar to his father who displayed it in his hardware store on Philadelphia Street in Indiana, Pennsylvania. During World War Two, Stewart served in the U.S. Army Air Corps and flew more than 20 combat missions over Nazi Germany. Returning to Hollywood after the war, James Stewart went onto star in “It’s a Wonderful Life” (1946), “Harvey” 1950, “Rear Window” (1954), and “Vertigo” (1958). James M. Stewart married Gloria Hatrick McLean (March 10, 1918-February 16, 1994) on August 9, 1949, and they had two children. On the occasion of Jimmy Stewart’s 87th birthday in 1995, the Jimmy Stewart Museum was dedicated. This virtual collection contains links to resources throughout the IUP Special Collections & University Archives including IUP Publications listing James Stewart as a student at the Model School and Campus Training School in Wilson Hall and other Manuscript Group Collections associated with James Stewart, and external sources such as the Jimmy Stewart Museum. Jimmy Stewart received an honorary degree from Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) in 1974. For more information about the Model School, see Record Group 19 University School and IUP Publications: https://www.iup.edu/archives/iup-publications/)

Language of Materials

English