Scrapbooking: A look at Olive Biggar’s journey

Olive Biggar’s scrapbook is a powerful tool that invites an audience to take a look at her life. She records a part of her high school journey leading to college life with different types of memorabilia. Her report cards show that Olive earned most E’s and G’s in school (E’s represent 90-100%; G’s represent 80-90%), so it seems that Olive was quite the stellar student (page 24).

Page 24 of Olivia’s scrapbook, her report cards. Photo provided by the Newcomb College Scrapbook Collection at Tulane University. 

Come to find out after more investigation that she was in the top 20 percentile of her class throughout her earlier years of school. Her old history exams – examinations from ancient history, medieval and modern European history, and American History and Civil Government – make me wonder if we had a history buff on her hands. Her choice in curriculum would says so. (page 26). Olive also shows her strength as a student with the letters that she displays (pages 13, 14, 17, 50). Specifically, one letter from Goucher College’s dean invites Olive to an organization and ceremony (page 13).

Olive’s invitation to the student organization and athletic association on page 13.  Photo provided by the Newcomb College Scrapbook Collection at Tulane University. 

Most likely, these letters were sent to Olive to recruit her, but she was also interested in attending Goucher. She cut and pasted an article on Goucher’s credentials titled “Goucher Finds Itself” written by Charles A. Selden (page 18). Goucher College was a college for women and one of the six class-one colleges. 

Article “Goucher Finds Itself” on page 18. Photo provided by the Newcomb College Scrapbook Collection at Tulane University. 

Additionally, it seems very evident that Olive cherishes the relationships she has with people and hopes to keep in touch with them when she goes off to college. How do I know this? Well, she has an entire table listings with her friends’ information (page 7-10) sharing their friend, home addresses, birthday, ambition, a photo drawing and their happy thoughts. One of her friends expressed how much they enjoyed taking physics with Olive (page 10). I presume that Olive reflected on the words her friends wrote to remember the happy memories she shared with them. In reverse, the effort that others have shown with Olive is evident as well. Through the birthday greetings (page 87), New Years invitations (page 90), graduation letters and gifts (page 152) Olive included, it can be assumed that her family and friends loved being around and keeping in touch with Olive just as much as she did.

Birthday greetings that Olive received on Page 87 and New Year’s celebration and ceremony invitation on Page 90, respectively. Photo provided by the Newcomb College Scrapbook Collection at Tulane University. 

Throughout her scrapbook, Olive also includes tickets, handbooks, dance recital and class play programs, so she was not just academically inclined, but she also loves to keep busy and stay involved. In fact,  her dance recital lineup (page 70), her various Class Play Programs (pages 58, 96) and the lyric theatre lineups (pages 162-175) were just some of the performances she participated in.

Olive’s dance recital program on page 70. Photo provided by the Newcomb College Scrapbook Collection at Tulane University.

Olive’s high school play program on page 58 and various of Olive’s class play programs on page 96. Photos provided by the Newcomb College Scrapbook Collection at Tulane University.

2 of Olive’s Lyric Theatre programs on page 162. Photos provided by the Newcomb College Scrapbook Collection at Tulane University.

When looking at her lyric theatre lineup, it seems apparent that Olive was also a singer. Not only is it possible that Olive liked performing herself, but I presume that she also liked to watch other people perform too due to the football tickets (page 91), Metropolitan Opera House program (page 218) and the Jolson’s Theatre program for an Art Musical (page 231).

The Metra Opera House program on page 218. Photos provided by the Newcomb College Scrapbook Collection at Tulane University.

And in the end, Olive graduated from Goucher College with a bachelor’s degree (page 287). Following college, it looks like Olive earned her certification in social work from Tulane University in 1927 (page 289).

Olive’s graduation certification from Goucher on page 287 and Olive’s certification from Tulane for Social Work on page 289, respectively. Photos provided by the Newcomb College Scrapbook Collection at Tulane University.

In the end of her scrapbook, there are empty calendars, blank tables and open areas for photographs (pages 270-275). Maybe those blanks pages mean that Olive wanted her journey to remain alive, even though her book had to come to an end!

[Editor’s Note: This article was captured as part of the class “Media Histories” taught by Vicki Mayer in collaboration with the Office of Alumni Affairs at Tulane University. It was originally published on September 10, 2014 and has been edited and updated for clarity.]