Olive Bedford diaries

Comprises five diaries which have also been used as commonplace books. They were written by Mrs Olive Marjorie Bedford, nee Holliday, of Plantation House, Gildersome. She has written about archaeological, local, horticultural and topographical topics. The first diary is dated 1941-1947. Only the first 55 pages of the book were filled in and many are missing. The second diary is dated 1944-1958 and it contains two loose typescript papers, a manuscript letter from the University of Manchester dated 6 July 1949, with a pressed oak leaf and a typescript letter from P.M.S. which is undated, a manuscript letter dated 24 Sep 1959 from Martin Shand and a postcard dated 7 Dec 1957 from Shand. The third diary is dated 1946-1959 has newspaper cuttings pasted into it. There are also three loose leaves in Bedford's hand between the front pastedown and the first page. The fourth diary is dated 1952-1982 and contains loose newspaper cuttings and pasted in cuttings. It also contains loose typescript letters, four of which are from the Royal Horticultural Society to Bedford. The diary also contains two loose magazine cuttings and a manuscript note on a postcard. The fifth diary is dated 1967-1974. It contains newspaper cuttings, most of which are pasted in, but two are loose, with loose manuscript and typescript papers.

Olive Marjorie Holliday was born on 19 August 1905 in Gildersome, Yorkshire. Her father was Percy Oates Holliday a watch repairer, and her mother, Mary Jane Ventress. In the mid-twentieth century she lived in Plantation House, Wakefield Road, Gildersome, with her father.

Olive married Thomas Henry Booth Bedford, a lecturer in pharmacology, in September 1951. She died in 1997 in Leeds.

This collection has not been listed in detail and access to parts of it may be restricted under the Data Protection Act and other relevant legislation. If you would like to request access to any part of this collection, please contact Special Collections. Upon receipt of your request, a member of the team will discuss your requirements with you and review relevant material accordingly.

Formerly the property of Olive Bedford, the diaries were acquired for Special Collections with the assistance of R. S. Mortimer.

Material in this collection is in copyright. Photocopies or digital images can only be supplied by the Library for research or private study within the terms of copyright legislation. It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain the copyright holder's permission to reproduce for any other purpose. Guidance is available on tracing copyright status and ownership.