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Papers of Mary Mellus (Mame) Tucker Clayton (1858-1899)

Description

Series IV, Papers of Mary Mellus (Mame) Tucker Clayton (1858-1899), 1871-1899, includes extensive correspondence with members of the Tucker family, as well as writings and printed material. The correspondence reflects the author's life span from childhood until her death at age forty-one. Writings are also included in this series; an early journal; records of the P.A.T. Association (Pickwick Amateur Theatrical Association), an amateur theatrical group made up of the Tucker children; and a composition book that includes notes on stage cues and directions and lines from productions in which she had roles during her theatrical career. Printed material in the collection is made up of bundles of scripts and small paperbound books, catalogues, and ephemera.

Details

Descriptive Terms

correspondence
theater (discipline)
theater companies
manuscripts (document genre)

Physical Description

Family papers (35 folders)

Collection Code

MS033

Collection Name

Tucker family papers

Reference Code

MS033.004

Places

Wiscasset (Lincoln county, Maine)

Record Details

Material Type

manuscripts (document genre)

Other People

Tucker, Mary Mellus, 1858-1899
Tucker, Richard Holbrook, 1816-1895
Tucker, Mary Geraldine, 1841-1922
Tucker, R. H. (Richard Hawley), 1859-1952
Stapleton, Martha Armstrong, 1861-1893
Tucker, William Armstrong, 1864-1926
Tucker, Jane Armstrong, 1866-1964

Description Level

Series

Historical/Biographical Note

Historical/Biographical Note

Richard and Mollie Tucker's eldest child, Mary Mellus Tucker (1858-1900), also known as “Mame,” went to a convent school in Whitfield (St. Joseph's) and a finishing school in Farmington, Maine. Mame returned to Wiscasset after she finished boarding school and developed a desire to become a professional actress, perhaps reflecting her long-time involvement with amateur theatricals. Her decision was not popular with her family, especially with her mother. Mame had a stage career of over twenty years during which she performed with several traveling companies, including the Buffalo Bill Combination during the 1882-1883 season. In April 1887, Mame married fellow actor Al Clayton; their marriage lasted five years. Mame died at age 42 while traveling on the road during a long string of performances with repertory companies.

Arrangement

Arrangement

This series is arranged into the following subseries:
Subseries A. Correspondence
Subseries B. Writings
Subseries C. Printed materials

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