Diaries of Treva Walkling, 1959 - 1997

This series, arranged chronologically, includes thirty-seven diaries with miscellaneous items gathered inside; one miscellaneous notebook (combination diary, address book, and ephemera); and one miscellaneous box from S and N Katz Jewelers, which held some of Ben Gettings’s ephemera. All material saved in the diaries has been kept in the original order and original diary to preserve integrity. Treva began her diary in 1959 and ended in July 1997 (with the exception of 1993). The ephemera Treva collected in her diaries includes, but is not limited to, receipts, death notices (obituaries), post cards and other correspondence, business cards, pens and pencils, newspaper clippings, doctor’s notes and prescriptions, auto related papers, work related receipts, and home related receipts.

The following are a sampling of Treva’s diary entries about everyday occurrences and important events, which will give researchers an idea as to what kind of information the diaries contain.

In the first year of Treva’s diary, 1959, she notes on January 27 that she was caught speeding on a trip to Florida, but was only given a warning. On February 17 of that first year, Treva began recording the daily amount of money she spent; this would become a constant in her diary entries. In January 1966, Treva discusses her partner, Ben Gettings’s, three week stay in the hospital for an undisclosed heart ailment. One year later, on January 3, 1967, Treva records the events of Ben’s last day (he died that afternoon). (Ben’s death certificate is in the Ephemera series, subseries 1.) On September 13, 1980, Treva records the death of her beloved brother, Pumpy Walkling. On March 21, 1989, Treva mentions her niece, Eve Carr (the collection donor), whom had a birthday cake sent to Treva at a church function. (This diary entry corresponds to pictures twenty-five through twenty-seven in the photographs series.) In the early 1990s, Treva’s diary entries become sparse, and are not kept daily. Her last three entries demonstrate this trend. On May 18, 1997, she notes that she was rear-ended while at a stoplight and her car could not be fixed. On May 23, she brought home a new car. On June 15, her last entry, Treva notes that while coming home from a birthday party she had another car accident.