When I was considering subjects for this paper the figure of Sophonisba Breckinridge stuck out to me because in Herring’s over 900-page book, her name was only mentioned once. I knew that she must have accomplished something remarkable to be included, even if it was only briefly.
Portrait of Sophonisba Breckinridge [U Chicago]
After my initial search for secondary sources, I pinpointed the Montevideo Conference as the key event from Breckinridge’s life I wanted to center in my research. However, I did not want to limit myself to sources only about the conference. So, I divided my search into different periods: before the conference, during and after the conference. This way, I would be able to spend my time wisely while not excluding sources that may be helpful down the road.
Throughout my search, including both primary and secondary sources, I found the software Zotero to be especially helpful. As a student with dyslexia, Zotero is a great resource as it organizes my sources in one place and has many features such as being able to access sources with reverse white on black print. Additionally, the annotation and note features allow me to color code and organize information in one document, which helps me to manage some of the difficulties I experience as a student with dyslexia.
I used Zotero to look back at my secondary sources, anticipating that they would help me find primary sources. I first consulted the bibliography found in Anya Jabour’s biography of Breckinridge. Jabour’s bibliography cited a collection of letters and other documents from Breckinridge that were housed in the Library of Congress. However, when I attempted to access the documents, I found that they were only available in person and through special request. Next, I tried locating the letters and documents through another source. I searched the Dickinson Library catalogue and the data base JSTOR with no results. Then, I found the archives from the University of Chicago, where Breckinridge studied and taught. I was excited to see that the University of Chicago archive not only included letters from Breckinridge, but also her autobiography. However, I encountered the same problem I did with the Library of Congress: the archives were not digitized and only available in person.
Next, I returned to Jabour’s bibliography, as I knew she had referenced the letters in her book, and looked for quoted material from the Breckinridge papers. This search was successful, and I found several places in her book where Jabour directly quoted material from letters and other primary sources from Breckinridge. These sources provided added context, however I found that the quotes Jabour selected did not yield all the information I wanted to include.
However, I was not ready to give up on the letters yet, so I went to the library circulation desk and asked for help using the Inter Library Loan (ILL) system to try and locate copies of the letters, documents and autobiography. The ILL department got back to me the next day, with the unfortunate news that it would not be possible to get access to the documents online, and that my only option would be to go in person, which I was not able to do.
Next, I turned to the databases found through the Dickinson College Library. I searched for databases focused on Latin America, due to the location of the Montevideo Conference in Uruguay. Additionally, I speak Spanish and did not want to restrict my search to only English sources. I identified Confidential Print as the most helpful database. By searching for the Montevideo Conference, I identified the book South and Central America: Further Correspondence from 1933, which included letters and details about the Montevideo Conference and the involvement of Breckinridge.
Next, I looked to JSTOR, a data base that had been helpful in the past, for more primary sources that focused on both Breckinridge and the conference. My search was successful and I identified a newspaper article discussing both the conference and Breckinridge’s involvement. Next, I found an obituary of Breckinridge, also published in a newspaper, that provided insight into her work at the conference, but also her goals and aspirations.
Portrait of Sumner Welles [Congress]
After finding these sources, I decided to follow the advice of Professor Pinsker and cast my focus towards other prominent figures at the Montevideo Conference, namely Secretary of State Cordell Hull and Assistant Secretary of State Sumner Welles. I repeated the same process that I had begun with Breckinridge and first searched the footnotes from Herring’s book citing the historian, Irwin F. Gellman. Then, I took the mentions I found, in works by Herring and Gellman, input them into the library catalogue, and then the databases. This searched produced the memoirs of Cordell Hull, which I was able to access through the legal database Hein Online.
Portrait of Cordell Hull [Congress]
I then stored the primary sources I had found into Zotero and organized them by project and source type. This allowed me to reference them and access my materials easily as I began to look for gaps in my research. After I have identified these gaps, I plan to use the same methods I used before to find sources to fill them.
Throughout my research I was able to explore many of the resources at Dickinson that I had not known about before such at the ILL network, which will continue to serve me throughout my time here. Before this research project I had the false perception that primary sources were easier to find than secondary sources, and I dedicated less time to them. However, this experience taught me that they need just as much time, if not more because often primary sources are difficult to access, even if they are easier to find.
Bibliography
Cox, George Howland. “Was the Seventh Pan American Conference a Success?” World Affairs 97, no. 1. 1934: 38–44. [JSTOR]
Breckinridge, Sophonisba P. Papers, [Box 1, Folder 19], Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library. [U Chicago]
Breckinridge, Sophonisba P. Papers, [Box 1, Folder 23], Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library. [U Chicago]
Breckinridge, Sophonisba P. Breckinridge Papers, Aug.-Dec. 1933, [Box 749, Reel 10], Breckinridge Family Papers, MSS13698. Manuscript Division. [Congress]
Hull Cordell. Memoirs of Cordell Hull. New York Macmillan, 1948. [Hein]
“International Conference Delegates.” The Compass 15, no. 3. 1933: 1–2. [JSTOR]
Lenroot, Katharine F. “Sophonisba Preston Breckinridge, Social Pioneer.” Social Service Review 23, no. 1. 1949: 88–92. [JSTOR]
“South and Central America: Further Correspondence [Folder 30].” Confidential Print: Latin America, 1833-1969, 1933. [Confidential Print]