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The papers comprise personal correspondence between G Elton Mayo and his wife, Dorothea and his daughters, Patricia and Gael, 1913-1947. Dorothea Mayo expected her husband to write to her daily whenever he was away and the result is a series of diary style letters sent during their periods of separation. The fullest series are for 1922-1923 when Mayo visited the USA prior to settling in Philadelphia and for the period from 1929 to 1937 when Dorothea remained in England with their daughters.
The second series of correspondence comprises letters to his daughters while they continued their education at Bedales in England and during World War Two. The correspondence is mainly with his eldest daughter, Patricia, though there is some correspondence with Gael and also Patricia's first husband, Walter Goetz.
Both series of letters contain detail on Mayo's work and life at Harvard, including meetings with colleagues, lectures and research projects. In addition there is discussion of books, ideas and people which influenced his work and thinking. The World War Two letters include comments on the war from the USA and detail events leading to Gael's escape from behind German lines in France with her son and first husband.