| Creator | Helman, Edith |
| Title | Edith Fishtine Helman papers |
| Dates | 1905-1994 |
| Identification | MS 157 |
| Quantity | 2.5 linear feet (1 manuscript container, 1 half manuscript container, 1 document tube, 1 record carton) |
| Collection Abstract | This collection documents the life of Edith Fishtine Helman and consists mainly of materials pertaining to the scholarly aspects of her career, 1933-1980. A large portion of the collection, including personal papers, research, and writings, is in Spanish. There is little material concerning her career as a professor at Simmons College or her personal life, although the collection includes personal letters, curriculum vitae, honors and awards, and photographs of Helman and her husband. The bulk of the material consists of her research and writings on Spanish authors Jorge Guillén, Jovellanos, and Pedro Salinas, and the Spanish artist Goya. The collection includes copies of many of her books, articles, reviews, and translations. |
| Historical Abstract | Edith Fishtine Helman was born in Boston, MA on September 19, 1905. She studied at Simmons College, Boston University College of Liberal Arts (where she received her A.B. in 1925), the University of Paris in Sorbonne, Radcliffe College, and Bryn Mawr College (where she completed her Masters and Doctoral degrees between 1927 and 1930). Helman taught Spanish and French at Bryn Mawr before joining the Simmons College faculty as an Assistant Professor of Spanish in 1932. In 1938 she married Boston lawyer Bernard Helman. During her career, Edith Helman traveled extensively in South America and Spain. She received numerous grants and fellowships which supported her research on Spanish Enlightenment thinkers and writers. She lectured at Tufts University, Wellesley College, and at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Helman wrote and edited numerous articles and books about Spanish artists and poets, including Goya and Pedro Salinas. Her career was distinguished by membership in a number of academic societies, including the Hispanic Society of America, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Phi Beta Kappa, the National Romance Language Honor Society, the Collegium of Distinguished Alumni of the College of Liberal Arts at Boston University, and the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Spain. She retired from Simmons College in January, 1971. Helman died on March 31, 1994. |
| Language | Material in English and Spanish. |
| Location | Collection may be stored offsite. Please contact Archives staff for more information. |
Collection is open.
Copyright for materials resides with the creators of the items in question, unless otherwise designated.
Please contact the College Archivist with requests to publish any material from the collection.
[Identification of item: description and date], Edith Fishtine Helman papers, MS 157, Simmons College Archives, Boston, MA, USA.
The Edith Fishtine Helman papers were donated to the Simmons College Archives in 1995.
Accession number: 1995.011
Processed by Patrick T. Collins, Fall 2005
Supervised by Donna Webber, Fall 2005
This collection guide was encoded as part of the LEADS project by Arthur Liu, March 2013
Edith Fishtine Helman was born in Boston, Massachusetts on September 19, 1905, to Kallman Fishtine and Rose Esther Fishtine, immigrants from Russia. Helman attended Boston public schools through high school and then enrolled at Simmons College for one year in 1921. She then transferred to Boston University College of Liberal Arts where she completed her undergraduate education and received her A.B. in 1925. She spent the next year studying at the University of Paris, Sorbonne. She studied at Radcliffe College from 1926 to 1927 and then completed her Masters and Doctoral degrees at Bryn Mawr between 1927 and 1930. Helman joined the faculty at Simmons College in 1932 as an Assistant Professor of Spanish after having served as an instructor of French and Spanish at Bryn Mawr. In 1938, she married the prominent Boston lawyer Bernard Helman (? - 1968). They moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, and split their time between Cambridge and a vacation home in Rockport, Massachusetts.
While a member of the Simmons faculty Helman traveled extensively in South America and Spain. Twice, in 1934 and 1962, she received grants from the American Council of Learned Societies for study in Spain. In the spring of 1940, Helman won a fellowship offered by Pan-American Airlines through the U.S. State Department to study at the Universidad de San Marcos in Peru. In 1949-1950 she received the Alice Freeman Palmer Fellowship for research in Spain on Spanish Enlightenment thinkers and writers. She held the Guggenheim Fellowship from 1965 to 1966 to again study the Spanish Enlightenment in Spain. Helman also lectured in New York, at Tufts University, Wellesley College, and the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. In 1963 she helped establish the Bush Art at Simmons College. The purpose of this fund was to create a permanent art collection for Simmons in honor of Lyle Bush, Associate Professor of Art Emerita.
Helman wrote and edited a number of articles and books about the Spanish artist Goya, among them Trasmundo de Goya in 1963 and Jovellanos y Goya in 1970. Helman worked with Norma Farber to translate a number of poems by the Mexican poet Pedro Salinas. She was also a member of a number of scholarly and academic societies and groups. In In 1953 she was elected a member of the Hispanic Society of America. In 1956 she was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Helman became a member of Phi Beta Kappa at Boston University in May of 1967.
Helman retired from Simmons College in January of 1971 as Professor of Spanish Emeritus. After her retirement she continued to receive honors and memberships in distinguished organizations. In April of 1971 she was elected to honorary membership in the National Romance Language Honor Society. In 1972 Helman received an honorary doctorate from Simmons College. She was elected to the Collegium of Distinguished Alumni of the College of Liberal Arts at Boston University on March 30, 1974. In June of 1977 she was elected to the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Spain. Edith Helman died on March 31, 1994.
The Edith Fishtine Helman Collection consists mainly of materials pertaining to the scholarly aspects of her life and career, 1933-1980. A large portion of this collection, including some personal papers, research, and writings is written in Spanish. There is little concerning her career as a professor at Simmons College, or her personal life. Of particular note are a number of signed poems to Helman by poet May Sarton.
Series I consists of personal and biographical documents about Helman. These documents include personal letters, various biographical documents, curriculum vitae, and honors, awards, and certificates Helman received. Helman's diploma from Bryn Mawr (193) is included. Also included is information concerning donations of art made by Helman as well as some items of memorabilia.
Series II includes Helman's research and writings from 1933-1993 as well as her correspondence with her various publishers. Helman's research consists of notes on and photocopies of the works (mainly in Spanish) of the authors Jorge Guillén, Jovellanos, and Pedro Salinas. Helman's writings include copies of many of her books, articles, and reviews. Her writings also cover José Cadalso, Francisco Goya, Leandro Fernández de Moratín, Nicolás Fernández de Moratín, and Juan Valera. There are also a number of translations which Helman worked on with Norma Farber.
Series III contains photographs of Helman and her husband from the 1930s to the 1980s. There is a large portrait of a young child which could possibly be Helman. A number of the photographs in the collection show her husband Bernard and Helman together at their home in Rockport, Massachusetts. Some of the photos are dated; however these labels reflect different dates for photos which appear to have been taken at the same time.
These and related materials may be found under the following headings in online catalogs.
Collection is arranged into 3 series:
Consists of personal and biographical documents about Helman. These documents include personal letters, various biographical documents, curriculum vitae, and honors, awards, and certificates Helman received. Also included is information concerning donations of art made by Helman as well as some items of memorabilia.
Box 1
Tube 3
Box 1
Includes Helman's research and writings from 1933-1993 as well as her correspondence with her various publishers. Helman's research consists of notes on and photocopies of the works (mainly in Spanish) of the authors Jorge Guillén, Jovellanos, and Pedro Salinas. Helman's writings include copies of many of her books, articles, and reviews. There are also a number of translations which Helman worked on with Norma Farber.
Box 1
Box 1, Folder 18
Carton 4
Carton 4
Carton 4
Box 2
Box 2, Folder 22
Carton 4
Box 2
Contains photographs of Helman and her husband from the 1930s to the 1980s. There is a large portrait of a young child which could possibly be Helman. A number of the photographs in the collection show her husband Bernard and Helman together at their home in Rockport, Massachusetts. Some of the photos are dated; however these labels reflect different dates for photos which appear to have been taken at the same time.
Box 2, Folder 30
