Elizabeth Belle Drewry (1907 – January 5, 2000) was an American

archivist An archivist is an information professional who assesses, collects, organizes, preserves, maintains control over, and provides access to records and archives determined to have long-term value. The records maintained by an archivist can cons ...

, recognized for her long career at the

National Archives National archives are the archives of a country. The concept evolved in various nations at the dawn of modernity based on the impact of nationalism upon bureaucratic processes of paperwork retention. Conceptual development From the Middle Ages i ...

and the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum. The first woman to become the head of a Presidential library, she was an expert in American World War I history and published ''Historical Units of the First World War'' (1942). In 1965, she received a Federal Women's Award, presented personally by President

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, under whom he had served a ...

for her work at the National Archives.

Education

Drewry was a native of

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, and a graduate of Holy Cross High School. She went on to attend

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...

, where she earned a bachelor's and master's degree, and then

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

, where she earned her doctorate. Her thesis dealt with ''Episodes in westward expansion as reflected in the writings of General James Wilkinson, 1784-1806.''

Career

Drewry began her career as the head of the history department at Penn Hall Junior College in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. In 1936, she joined the National Archives as a reference supervisor. She spent a quarter of a century with the agency, ending her federal career as chief of the records retirement branch of the Office of Records Management. During the 1950s, she spearheaded an effort to introduce a uniform records retention and disposal system. Drewry was a specialist in World War I history. Her book, ''Historical Units of the First World War'', was published in 1942 by the Government Printing Office. She also served as an adviser to the Thomas A. Edison Foundation. After

Herman Kahn Herman Kahn (February 15, 1922 – July 7, 1983) was an American physicist and a founding member of the Hudson Institute, regarded as one of the preeminent futurists of the latter part of the twentieth century. He originally came to prominence ...

left the Library to take up a post as Special Assistant to the Archivist of the United States, Drewry stepped into the role of Director. She was the first woman to head a Presidential Library, and served there from 1961 to 1969. From 1963 to 1967 she served as a Council Member of the

Society of American Archivists The Society of American Archivists is the oldest and largest archivist Voluntary association, association in North America, serving the educational and informational needs of more than 5,000 individual archivist and institutional members. Establi ...

(SAA). She was one of only fourteen women to hold an elected office in the SAA before 1972, when the committee on the Status of Women in the Archival Profession was formed. Drewry was instrumental in the effort to raise funds to expand the Library to house

Eleanor Roosevelt Anna Eleanor Roosevelt ( ; October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the longest-serving First Lady of the United States, first lady of the United States, during her husband Franklin D ...

's papers; construction was completed in 1972. After her retirement from the Library, Drewry spent several years as the director of a girls summer camp in Chambersburg, Camp Robin Hood.

Awards and honors

* Federal Women's Award * Fellow, Society of American Archivists

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Drewry, Elizabeth American women archivists 1907 births 2000 deaths Cornell University alumni Fellows of the Society of American Archivists