On Sept. 19, the Saint Mary’s Cushwa-Leighton Library received a call from one of the sons of Lenore Hennebry Madden '61 who said he had three boxes of donations from his mother to give to the library. According to librarian Jill Hobgood '83, they would’ve never guessed what was in those boxes: stacks of first-edition Charles Dickens’ books, as well as letters, drawings and books from Dickens’ own private collection.
“This was a very lovely gift from an alum … And it is not only a wonderful gift, it's really going to enrich the class life of the English department,” Hobgood said.
She explained the English department uses books from the library’s rare book collection often for their classes, which will be the new home for these novels. Some of the titles within the donation include “A Christmas Carol,” “Bleakhouse,” “Little Dorrit,” “The Mystery of Edwin Drood,” “American Notes” and "Pictures from Italy.” English professor and director of the writing and tutoring center Jennifer Juskiewicz ‘09 is particularly excited to show students these sources as both books and as a part of publishing history.
“I think something that people don't always realize about things like first editions is they're not just, you know, an early printing of the story, but they're also a representation of the period in which they were made,” Juskiewicz said. “They’re cultural objects … so there were ads for all sorts of products that they were trying to sell at the time … by being able to engage with these objects, they show what material culture was like and how it was interacting with what we now see as canonical, untouchable texts.”
According to Hobgood, Madden was a librarian herself and had collected these Dickens items over the course of her lifetime.
“The family remembered that she had always wanted them to come here, so they called us. It was unsolicited; the daughter called us and said, ‘Mom had these books, and she always wanted them to go to you. Would you like them?’ They fit beautifully in our collection,” Hobgood said.
Hobgood said Madden’s daughter, Lenore Madden McCarter '88, dropped off additional boxes of rare books or collectible items the next week for the library.
McCarter said her mother had always planned to donate her collection to Saint Mary’s in gratitude and love for her alma mater.
“[Madden] hoped SMC would use the books she loved to teach about Dickens, the Victorian Era and the social disparity he depicted. She made the gift because her heart has always been at Saint Mary’s College. She trusted the library to care for the collection but in the end she knew the books should be used to teach, not sit on a shelf,” McCarter said.
Madden studied English at Saint Mary’s and lived in Holy Cross and Le Mans Halls. She married John Madden '59 in 1961 and had five children, three of whom are Notre Dame alumni, and one a Saint Mary’s alumna. She is survived by her children and 17 grandchildren, including four Notre Dame alumni.
“Mom's appreciation of Charles Dickens stemmed from her love of a well crafted novel, her appreciation of his precise character development and his social commentary,” McCarter said. “Her collection started when our father gifted her a first edition for Christmas one year … Annual trips to the Goodman Theatre to see “A Christmas Carol” and even a visit to The Old Curiosity Shop were her way of making sure we all learned about the characters she loved so much.”
Once cataloged, the entire collection of books and other paraphernalia will be available to students and visitors to view and study by appointment with the library. According to Hobgood, the library tries to have a “living rare book collection that actively supports classes and student work, in addition to being cared for and preserved for future use.”
Hobgood explained the College’s collection of rare books stems from donations from alumnae or sisters from the Congregation of the Sisters of the Holy Cross, and explained some of these donations have made the collection quite notable.
“We have one of the best collections of Dante in the country … it was given mostly as a gift by the family of one of the sisters in her honor,” Hobgood said.
Juskiewicz pointed out, however, that the library doesn’t currently have a dedicated space for using the rare book collection, which is on the library’s wish list for funding.
“Saint Mary’s doesn't currently have a good place to engage with our rare books collection because they built the ARO [Accessibility Resource Office] downstairs. So, it would be lovely to have a place where we could more easily have students and visitors engage with our entire rare book collection, and it would be lovely for it to be in this building,” Juskiewicz said.
Hobgood expressed gratitude and appreciation for the gift on behalf of the library and the College, calling the donation “a lovely legacy to their mother and an appreciation of her knowledge and passion for literature.”
