Funding for preparing this
finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Historical
Publications and Records Commission. Funding for encoding the finding aid was
awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Biographical Note
Arminda Fix was born October 1, 1872 in Walla Walla, Washington, the
third of eight children born to early Walla Walla pioneers Andrew J. Fix and
Nancy Sanders Fix. She entered Whitman Academy in 1891 and attended Whitman
College from 1894-1899, receiving a B.S. in 1899. She subsequently attended
library school in New York and studied at Columbia University and the
University of Washington.
Fix became the first librarian of Whitman College in 1899, a post she
held until 1916. Her duties included supervising academy students during study
hours, running the bookstore, and day to day library operations. She later
worked at the Walla Walla Public Library.
Fix had a passion for writing and oration. Her poetry was often
published in programs for local events. She was renowned for her speeches given
regularly at local club meetings and gatherings, and she kept a diary regularly
from 1889 to 1907 and sporadically from 1933 to 1957.
Fix was active in several local organizations, including the Daughters
of the Pioneers of Washington, the Narcissa Prentiss Chapter of the Daughters
of the American Revolution, the Walla Walla and Washington State Historical
Societies, the YWCA, the Delta Gamma Sorority, the Delphian Cultural Club, and
the Walla Walla Garden Club. She served as an officer in several of these
organizations, and was recognized locally for her service.
Fix died March 22, 1965 in Walla Walla.
Content Description
The richest sources of documentation in the collection are Fix’s early
diaries, which describe her life as a resident of Walla Walla and a Whitman
College student and staff member from 1889-1893 and 1902-1907. In them, she
describes her work, social activities and relationships with family, friends,
and coworkers. Transcriptions of most of the diaries from this period are
available for use.
The collection also contains a small correspondence series; of
particular interest are Fix’s letters to her sister. Other items include
handwritten poems and poem fragments, papers from her student years at Whitman
College, nearly 70 photographs, postcard collection primarily featuring images
of Walla Walla, the American West and Canada, and Whitman College and Walla
Walla ephemera.
Fix , Sanders, and Goodwin family papers round out the collection.
Use of the Collection
Restrictions on Access :
Collection is open for research.
Restrictions on Use :
Researchers are responsible for using in accordance with 17 U.S.C.
Copyright not transferred to Whitman College.
Preferred Citation :
Arminda Fix Family Papers, Whitman College and Northwest Archives.
Administrative Information
Arrangement :
Arranged by series; diaries are organized chronologically; most other
series are organized alphabetically.
Acquisition Information :
Mrs. Dorothy Cassen donated the collection to the Archives in 1980 and
added additional materials in 1988.
Detailed Description of the Collection
The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in
the collection.
Series 1: Correspondence, 1896-1934
0.4 linear feet ( 1 box)
The richest documentation in this small series consists of the
letters written by Arminda Fix to her sister during her time in New York.
Fix’s early diaries describe her life as a resident of Walla
Walla, a Whitman College student, and a Whitman College faculty member from
1889-1893 and 1902-1907. In them, she describes her work, social activities and
relationships with family, friends, and coworkers. Transcriptions of most of
the diaries from this period are available for use.
Handwritten notes for speeches delivered from the 1920s through
the 1950s provide insight into the proceedings of Walla Walla women’s club
meetings. Fix’s speeches cover a wide variety of topics, ranging from book
reviews to advice on gardening to didactic talks on academic subjects. In two
speeches, “A Dream Come True,” and “Turning the Pages,” Fix discusses her
career as a librarian. “The Daughter of Pioneers” speech contains useful
information about Fix’s childhood.
Container(s)
Description
Dates
Box/Folder
4/2
“Advertisements”
undated
4/3
“Airways and Highways,” delivered
to the Delphinian Culture Club
1940s
4/4
“Alaska”
undated
4/5
“The Antiquity of
Flowers”
undated
4/6
“
The Art of Walt Disney by Robert
D. Field,” delivered to the Delphian Culture Club
1944
4/7
“As the Books Told It by Solemn
‘n Serious”
undated
4/8
“Audubon”
undated
4/9
“Cactus and Other Desert
Vegetation”
undated
4/10
“Carl Sandberg”
undated
4/11
“Christmas Legends and Customs in
Other Lands”
undated
4/12
“Chrysanthemums,” delivered to
the Walla Walla Garden Club
1954
4/13
“The Daughter of
Pioneers”
undated
4/14
“A Dream Come True”
undated
4/15
“A Fantasy of the
Books”
undated
4/16
“Flower Legends”
1940
4/17
“Flower Legends,” delivered to
the Walla Walla Garden Club
1953
4/18
“Friendship,” delivered to the
Martha Circle
1949
4/19
“Gandhi”
undated
4/20
“Garden Club Christmas Party,”
delivered to the Walla Walla Garden Club
1946
4/21
“Herb Cookery, “ delivered to the
Walla Walla Garden Club
1952
4/22
“Hodge-Podge, or Rambling
Ruminations”
undated
5/1
“Indian Legends”
undated
5/2
“Indian Legends and
Myths”
undated
5/3
“Kentucky Is My Land”
undated
5/4
“Latin America”
undated
5/5
“Let’s Keep
Christmas”
undated
5/6
“
The Lion and the Throne by
Catherine Drinker Bower”
undated
5/7
“Little America”
undated
5/8
“
The Littlest Angel by Charles
Tazewell”
undated
5/9
“Mothers’ Day”
1957
5/10
“Nova Scotia”
undated
5/11
“One of My Dreams”
undated
5/12
“Our Yankee Heritage”
1955
5/13
“Over the Garden
Fence”
undated
5/14
“Pioneer History,” Delivered to
the D.A.R.
1955
5/15
“Pioneer Park of Walla Walla,”
delivered to the Walla Walla Garden Club
1957
5/16
“Rain Making,” delivered to the
Delphian Culture Club
1952
5/17
“Research [on Whitman
Mission]”
undated
5/18
“Reveries of an Old
Maid”
undated
5/19
“This Is the Centennial Year of
the Great Migration of 1843 into the Northwest”
1943
5/20
“Thoughts on the
Seasons”
undated
5/21
“
Time for Tapioca by Charlotte
Stryker”
undated
6/1
“Tumwater 1845-1945”
undated
6/2
“Turning the Pages”
undated
6/3
“We Lived with Peter”
undated
6/4
“Weather,” delivered to the
Delphian Culture Club
1951
6/5
“Whitman College
Library”
undated
6/6
“Youth Evangelism” Delivered to
the Rachel Circle
1953
6/7
Untitled, delivered to the Walla
Walla Garden Club
1956
6/8
Untitled, delivered to the Walla
Walla Pioneer and Historical Society
1953
6/9
Untitled, delivered to the Walla
Walla Pioneer and Historical Society
1957
6/10
Untitled, delivered to the Walla
Walla Pioneer and Historical Society
The bulk of the family records document land ownership and include
patents, abstracts of title, deeds, and property tax receipts. The family
papers also include final settlement of the will of Andrew J. Fix, clippings
about members of the Fix and Sanders family, and genealogical research notes
created by Arminda Fix and her cousin Lillie White of Bloomington, Indiana.
This collection is indexed under the following headings in the online
catalog. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons, or
places should search the catalog using these headings.
