Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use

The copyright status of this collection is unknown. Copyright restrictions may apply. Contact Special Collections and University Archives for assistance in determining the use of these materials.

Reproduction or digitization of materials for personal or research use can be requested using our reproduction/digitization form: http://bit.ly/scuareproduction .

Reproduction or digitization of materials for publication or exhibit use can be requested using our publication/exhibition form: http://bit.ly/scuapublication . Please contact Special Collections and University Archives (specref@vt.edu or 540-231-6308) if you need assistance with forms or to submit a completed form.

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Preferred Citation

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], S. Maria Elliott Family Collection, 1826-1942, Ms2022-068, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Source of Acquisition

This collection was purchased by Special Collections and University Archives in 2019.

Processing Information

The processing, arrangement, and description of the S. Maria Elliott Family Collection was completed in October 2022.

Family History

According to S. Maria Elliott's family notes, Edmund Elliott initially traveled to Barbados from Salisbury, England, possibly as an indentured servant, before moving to Salisbury, Massachusetts, in 1652. Elliott records a son named John Elliott, a grandson named David Elliot, a great-grandson named Jonathan Elliott, and a great-great-grandson named Reverend Moses Elliott (1775-1849). One of his sermons is included in the collection, as is a letter to his son, which speaks at length for Elliott's fondness of New England's natural landscape.

Rev. Moses Elliott was the father of Moses Elliott (1814-1880). The younger Moses and his wife Sarah (1822-1857) had three children: Richard Moses (1844-1908), Sarah Lois (1850-1889), and Sophronia Maria (S. Maria, 1854-1942).

Sophronia Maria (S. Maria) Elliott was born in Baldwinsville, Massachusetts, on February 18, 1854. She became a professor of home economics at Simmons College in Boston, Massachusetts. She and Ellen H. Richards co-authored The Chemistry of Home Economics (1914), and Maria was the sole author of Home Bacteriology (1907) and Household Hygiene (1911). In 1914, she received an honorary Master of Arts degree from Brown University for her work on scientific housekeeping. Maria was a member of the New England Home Economics Association and the Massachusetts Home Economics Association, the First Baptist Church, the Ministers and Missionaries Benefit Board of the Northern Baptist Convention, and the Womans City Club of Boston. She died on March 14, 1942.

Richard Moses Elliott was born in Massachusetts on April 20, 1844. He studied at the Connecticut Literary Insitution until 1866 and taught music until 1868, when he departed to attend Brown University. He graduated from Brown University in 1872. He pursued a long career in music education in Boston. Richard was a member of the New England Historic Genealogical Society, the Cecilia Club, and the Harvard Musical Association. He died in New Hampshire on September 3, 1908.

(Please note: Elliott is sometimes written Elliot.)

External Sources:

The Journal of Home Economics, Volume 15. 1923. Page 464. https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Journal_of_Home_Economics/ILdOAAAAYAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=s.+maria+elliot&pg=PA463&printsec=frontcover

S. Maria Elliott. Household Hygiene. 1911. https://www.google.com/books/edition/Elliot_S_Maria_Household_hygiene/ej1MAQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0

S. Maria Elliott. Household Bacteriology. 1907. https://www.google.com/books/edition/Elliot_S_Maria_Household_bacteriology/WD1MAQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0

Find A Grave. "Sophronia Maria Elliott." Accessed October 19, 2022. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/128647503/sophronia-maria-elliott

Proceedings of the New England Historic Genealogical Society. 1909. https://www.google.com/books/edition/Proceedings_of_the_New_England_Historic/Ax8yAQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=richard%20elliot

Find A Grave. "Richard Moses Elliott." Accessed September 14, 2023. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/128647342/richard-moses-elliott

Find A Grave. "Rev Moses Elliott." Accessed October 19, 2022. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/128645669/moses-elliott

Find A Grave. "Deacon Moses Elliott." Accessed October 19, 2022. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/128647126/moses-elliott

Scope and Content

This collection contains the personal papers of the Elliott and Elliot family of Massachusetts. Materials relate to the professional and personal lives of S. Maria Elliott and her family members, especially Rev. Moses Elliot [sic] and Richard M. Elliott. Items include a sermon, notes, correspondence, education records, and photographs.

Arrangement

The collection is arranged by subject.

Related Material

Virginia Tech Special Collections and University Archives has a copy of S. Maria Elliott and Ellen H. Richards's book The chemistry of cooking and cleaning : a manual for house keepers , Boston : Whitcomb and Barrows, 1907, call number TX531.R53 1907 Spec Small.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Family histories
• History of Food and Drink
• Home economics
• Photographs
• Women in higher education

Rights Statement for Archival Description

The guide to the S. Maria Elliott by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 ( https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/ ).

General

Originally, this collection was processed as S. Maria Elliot Family Collection, but during a later review, it was determined that she used the spelling Elliott, which is the preferred spelling throughout the collection. Some documents use Eliot, and these are spelled as such in the inventory below.