Dates

• Majority of material found within 1900 - 1974

Extent

11 boxes Linear Feet (Lois Lenski (October 14, 1893-September 11, 1974) was an author and illustrator of children’s literature. Lenski was born in Springfield, Ohio, and she completed her BS in Education and received a teaching certificate from Ohio State University in 1915. She attended Westminster School of Art in London, England. In the following years, she moved to New York City, and later to London and Italy to study art and work as an assistant to artist Arthur Covey (June 13, 1877 – February 5, 1960), whom she married in 1921. After becoming a successful illustrator, publishers encouraged Lenski to write about her drawings. Lenski began to write and illustrate children’s books, starting with Skipping Village (1927). A noted author and artist of children's books, Lois Lenski received numerous literary awards for her work, including the John Newberry Medal for Strawberry Girl (1946). She illustrated all of her own works, and she illustrated 57 children's books by other authors. Due to declining health in the 1940s, Lenski and her family left Connecticut and moved to Louisiana and later Florida. Her experiences there would serve as the basis for her “regional” books, describing children’s lives in the American South. Lenski’s final publication was her autobiography in 1972. This collection includes books and articles by/about Lois Lenski, biographies, awards, personal letters and postcards, mostly dating from the 1940s, 1950, and 1960s. )

Language of Materials

English