DARWIN D. MARTIN 1931 Correspondence

Pine Mountain Settlement School
Series 05: GOVERNANCE – Board of Trustees
Darwin D. Martin 
Trustee 19 … – 1932 ??

DARWIN D. MARTIN 1931 CORRESPONDENCE

Reservoir with heavy run-off. [ kingman_031b]

TAGS: Darwin D. Martin 1931 Correspondence, PMSS Board of Trustees, Boy’s House, Mary Rockwell Hook, Hubert Hadley, Dr. Alfreda Withington, road conditions, Katherine Pettit, Evelyn K. Wells, Dr. Louisa Martin, Pine Mountain movie, the reservoir, Pleasant Hill Academy

DARWIN D. MARTIN 1931 CORRESPONDENCE provides images and contents of 1931 letters to and from Darwin D. Martin, a member of the Board of Trustees at Pine Mountain Settlement School, 1920-1933, and a generous contributor to and consultant for the School. He was an executive of the Larkin Co. in Buffalo, New York.

CONTENTS: Darwin D. Martin 1931 Correspondence

[P1050708 & P1050709] March 7, 1931. Handwritten letter to Evelyn Wells from Mrs. Inghram D. (Mary Rockwell) Hook, Kansas City, MO. Pages 1 & 2. Regarding Boy’s House [upper] porch: “…The porch never did belong to the house…remove the eye sore….” Hook suggests a small balcony instead.

[P1050710] March 11, 1931. Typewritten letter to Mr. [Hubert] Hadley [PMSS Director] from  Mr. Martin in Buffalo, NY. Martin quotes an update from Dr. [Alfreda] Withington concerning improved road conditions over Pine Mountain and from PMSS to Big Laurel. Martin asks for confirmation and details concerning this “good news.” Also asked whether Hadley called a doctor during Withington’s absence.

[P1050711] May 1, 1931. Carbon copy of letter to Dr. Louisa Martin in New Orleans, LA. from Evelyn K. Wells, PMSS Acting Director. Wells thanks Martin for package of seeds; “Miss Pettit is no longer connected with the school except as a very valued trustee. She is sailing today for South America on an extended trip….”

[P1050712] June 2, 1931. Carbon copy of letter to Mr. Martin in Buffalo, NY, from Evelyn K. Wells, PMSS Acting Director. Wells asks whether Helen de Long sent Martin the Pine Mountain movie. “It has two speaking appointments this summer,” with Miss Kitty Russel of Grosse Pointe Village, MI, and Mrs. James R. Joy of Plainfield, NJ. Russel wants to show it at a Pine Mountain Assn. meeting.

[P1050713] July 15, 1931. Carbon copy of letter to Mr. Martin in Buffalo, NY, from Glyn Morris, PMSS Director.  Enclosing a copy of letter to Mrs. Holton. Morris describes problems with the reservoir; may get money from the Emory Estate through Dr. [James] Livingood; describes recommendations from an engineer from The Wisconsin Steel Company at Benham. Plans to take money from the “Flood Letter” excess receipts saved by Miss Melville for this kind of emergency.

[P1050714] & [P1050715] August 7, 1931. Carbon copy of letter to Mr. Martin in Buffalo, NY, from Glyn Morris, PMSS Director. Pages 1 & 2. Morris updated Martin on the work on the reservoir, almost completed after 2 weeks; took out 75 tons of gravel and rock to increase the capacity; cost will probably exceed $650 due to charges by the Inter-Mountain Coal & Lumber Co. that owns the railroad; the engineer from Benham supervised the laying of the concrete bottom. Stated advanatages of a road over the mountain.

Morris thanked Martin for letter re: Pleasant Hill Academy; has meetings with Mr. Fogel, the school’s new head. “One phase of the work at Pleasant Hill developed by Mr. Elder is “The Atmosphere of Controlled Freedom. This interests me particularly and is one of the ideals which I should like very much to see developed here.”

Plans to visit Hon. D.C. Jones at Harlan. “…I believe that by this time he has been put right in the matter of which you speak. One certainly needs a tolerant and understanding attitude to work here….'”

[P1050716] August 18, 1931. Carbon copy of letter to Mr. Martin in Buffalo, NY, from Glyn Morris, PMSS Director. Work on reservoir has been competed; walls were built so that they can be made taller in the future; Morris hired a young man from the theological seminary who is helping Mr. [Peder] Moller & Mr. [Oscar] Kneller with teaching agriculture.

[1050717] November 6, 1931. Carbon copy of letter to Mr. Martin in Buffalo, NY, from Glyn Morris, PMSS Director. Morris will issue a monthly bulletin at Martin’s suggestion; encloses a copy of a letter from the KY Utilities Co.; Morris has asked the County Schools Superintendents in the area for a list of their high schools to help with selection of PMSS students; Morris will use one of the rooms at the Medical Settlement “as a school for educating some of the older boys down at Big Laurel, with a view of having them come to Pine Mountain.

[1050718] December 16, 1931. Carbon copy of letter to Morris, PMSS Director, from Martin in Buffalo, NY.  Martin circulated a plan “a la Antioch” proposed by Miss Melville and waits for Board suggestion. As of now, “The school is still maintaining 5th and 6th grades and is still rejecting applicants of whatever age who can not matriculate for 5th grade.”

GALLERY: Darwin D. Martin 1931 Correspondence

(Gallery 1 to be discarded when 1931 folder images are fully scanned.)

See Also: DARWIN D. MARTIN – Biography

Back To: DARWIN D. MARTIN Correspondence Guide