Lucia R. Briggs Papers

Collection

Identifier: MDC-MS-002

Staff Only

This collection includes the correspondence of Lucia R. Briggs, the second President of Milwaukee-Downer College, along with articles written about and by her. It also contains photographs documenting Briggs’s 30 year tenure at Milwaukee-Downer College.

Dates

1921-1990

Creator

Briggs, Lucia (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Property rights and copyright reside with Lawrence University. For uses beyond those allowed for fair use under U. S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.), please contact the University Archivist.

Extent

0.20 Linear Feet

Additional Description

Biographical or Historical Information

Lucia R. Briggs, president of Milwaukee-Downer College from 1921-1951, was born in 1887. As the daughter of LeBaron Russell Briggs, Dean of Harvard (1891-1902), of its Faculty of Arts and Science (1902-1925) and President of Radcliffe College (1903-1925), Briggs was experienced with campus life. After graduating from Radcliffe College in 1909, and going on to receive her M.A. in 1912, Briggs spent several years teaching on the East coast. During her 1921 inaugural address, Briggs pledged to continue the tradition of liberal arts at Milwaukee-Downer College. Like her predecessor, Ellen Sabin, Briggs valued the combination of a broad liberal arts curriculum along with the need for practical, professional training. Throughout her presidency, the endowment of the college significantly increased, student enrollment grew and new buildings were added to the Milwaukee campus. Under her tenure, the curriculum was increasingly strengthened and reorganized. Retiring from office in 1951, Briggs passed away nine years later on January 10, 1960.