ELWYN B. ROBINSON DEPARTMENT OF SPECIAL COLLECTIONS
CHESTER FRITZ LIBRARY
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH DAKOTA
GRAND FORKS, NORTH DAKOTA 58202

VERA KELSEY PAPERS

COLLECTION: OGL#106

DATES: 1920-1972

SIZE: One linear foot

INTRODUCTION

ACQUISITION: The acquisition records for the Vera Kelsey Papers are unavailable.

ACCESS: Available for inspection under the rules and regulations of the Department of Special Collections.

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

Audrey Vera Kelsey was born on January 10, 1892 in Winnipeg, Canada and raised in Grand Forks, ND. She attended grade school and high school in Grand Forks. She received her B.A. in sociology from UND in 1914. She then went to Brown University for her M.A. in sociology. She returned to UND as an Assistant in English from 1915 to 1917. She then became an Instructor in English at the University of Washington until 1920. At that time Vera traveled to China. From 1920 to 1925 she was a feature writer for the North China Daily News and also authored the first industrial survey of central China. She returned to America and continued writing freelance for different American magazines. She then took an interest in Latin America. She co-authored Four Keys to Guatemala and authored Seven Keys to Brazil, Brazil in Capitals, Maria Rosa and Six Great Men of Brazil. Besides writing about foreign countries, Vera wrote Red River Runs North!, a history of the Red River Valley, and several other mystery novels. She died on May 20, 1961 at the age of 69.

SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE

The Vera Kelsey Papers contain manuscripts of several of her books, correspondence, newspaper clippings, photocopies of Alumni Review articles about her, two short stories by Vera that appeared in Brazilian American, and a letter from Mrs. Harry Wood Andrews (the probable donor of the newspaper clippings) to the University of North Dakota.

BOX AND FOLDER INVENTORY

Box 1

Folder 1.  Vera Kelsey's manuscript of Japanese and Chinese Letters 1920-1923

       2.  Vera Kelsey's manuscript of Brazilian Frontier

       3.  Vera Kelsey's manuscript of Industry in China (1924)

Box 2

Folder 1.  Vera Kelsey's manuscript of Red River Runs North (part one of two) 
           (Published in 1951)

       2.  Vera Kelsey's manuscript of Red River Runs North (part two of two) 
           (Published in 1951)

       3.  Book of the Brazilian American with two short stories written by Vera 
           Kelsey 

       4.  Travel guides/tour brochures for Brazil, undated

       5.  Correspondence, 1922-1959

       6.  Photocopies of Alumni Review articles pertaining to Vera Kelsey, 
           1927-1961

       7.  Letter from Mrs. Harry Wood Andrews to the University of North Dakota, 
           1972

       8.  Newspaper Clippings, 1937-1959 and undated

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