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Inventory


Banham, Katharine M., 1897-1995
     Papers, 1910-1995

Extent: 26.0 linear ft.
  • 18.0 records boxes
  • 2.0 flat boxes
    • Restrictions
    Access to and use of student records is regulated by FERPA.
    A95-84, 1 folder of the donor's correspondence is closed until 2003 except by permission of the donor.

    Finding aids
    Inventory in the repository.

    Historical/biographical note
    Katharine May Banham, clinical and developmental psychologist was born 26 May, 1897, Sheffield, England and died 7 May, 1995, in Buckinghamshire, England. She was Associate Professor of Psychology at Duke University from 1946-1967. Her special interest was mental development in infancy and early childhood, with particular emphasis on social and emotional development. She was the author of The Social and Emotional Development of the Child (1931) and numerous articles and psychological tests.

    Dr. Banham was the daughter of William W. and Katherine Howard Banham. She was educated at University of Manchester (England), B.S., 1919, and completed requirements for the M.S. at Cambridge University (England) in 1921, though this institution did not award degrees to women at that time. She received an M.A. from the University of Toronto (Canada) in 1923 and the Ph.D. from University of Montreal in 1934 (cum laude); she was the first women to be awarded a Ph.D from this university.

    Prior to receiving her doctorate, she worked as a lecturer in psychology at the University of Toronto from 1921-1924, practiced as a psychologist for the Canadian National Committee for Mental Health, and held several positions at McGill University in Toronto. In 1936, she went to England for a position as Senior Psychologist on the City of Leicester's Education Committee, returning to Canada in 1942 to become clinical psychologist for the Montreal Mental Hygiene Institute. During this period, she published a number of articles on child psychology, along with several rating scales and tests. In 1943, Dr. Banham became Acting Director of the Division of Psychological Services for the Iowa Board of Control of State Institutions.

    In 1946, after working briefly in New Jersey, she was appointed to the Duke University faculty of psychology as Associate Professor. While at Duke, she held several temporary appointments elsewhere. She was appointed Senior Psychologist at the North Carolina Board of Public Welfare in 1950, held summer positions at the New Jersey Children's Home Society (1948), and Children's Services of Cleveland, Ohio (1950); she was a visiting professor at University of British Columbia, Vancouver, B.C. in 1960 and 1962.

    In addition to teaching at Duke, Banham cofounded the Duke University Nursery School in 1946, with Dr. Wally Reichenberg-Hackett, helped to establish the Duke Film Society and the Duke Institute for Learning in Retirement, served in various faculty committees (a folder list of these is located within the description of the Duke Activities series), developed a freshman counseling program, and created psychology courses in the area of infant and child development. She retired from Duke in 1967 as Professor Emerita, and became head psychologist for the Infant Program at the North Carolina Cerebral Palsy Hospital, later called Lenox Baker Hospital.

    Outside of the Duke community, Banham helped to establish many organizations including the Child Guidance Clinic of Durham; the Committee for Successful Aging; the North Carolina Psychological Association; the Altrusa Club, an all-women philanthropic organization; the French Club; and the Photographic Arts Society of Durham. She was a member and officer of many professional organizations in the United States and abroad (a folder list of these is located in the Agency and Club Participation series description).

    She established and funded the Alice C. Hundley Piano Student Award in 1970, for promising piano players between twelve and fourteen years old and the Anne McDougall Memorial Award for Women in 1985, for women students to pursue study in the broad area of psychology whose education has been interrupted or who have not had the opportunity for college education. Honors and awards received by her include the N.C. Cerebral Palsy Award for Merit, 1972, as well as certificates and awards of recognition and merit from regional, national, and international organizations.

    Professionally, she was a Fellow of the British Psychological Society and the American Psychological Society, and a member of the International Council of Psychologists, the North Carolina Psychological Association, the North Carolina Mental Health Association, the Gerontological Association, and the Southeastern Psychological Association. Published in both English and French, her major works include The Social and Emotional Development of the Preschool Child, (Kegan Paul, London, 1931) and Ring and Peg Tests of Behavior Development, (Psychometric Affiliates, Chicago, 1965).


    Organization and arrangement
    Five series:
    1. Academic and professional psychology, 1916-1986, 10.4 lin. ft.
    2. Duke activities, 1946-1986, 4.4 lin. ft.
    3. Agencies and clubs, 1924-1986, 3.4 lin. ft.
    4. Correspondence, 1920-1995, 3.9 lin. ft.
    5. Personal files, 1910-1986, 3.9 lin. ft.
    Click here for series descriptions

    Contents

    The Katharine May Banham Papers consist of correspondence, photographs, journals, course notes, audio tapes, research notes, and other papers spanning the years between 1910 and 1995, with the bulk occurring between 1945 and 1984. The main subject areas include Banham's contribution to the profession, her participation in the Duke community, and the Durham community as well as regional, national, and international communities and agencies.

    These papers include her master's theses and dissertation work, professional and academic writings, case files, and data documenting psychological experiments that culminated in the development of tests, as well as research articles and one monograph; transcripts of talks and addresses; translations of French psychological texts, teaching materials; administrative records of and records documenting her role in various civic and academic clubs and organizations; professional and personal correspondence; and personal materials including art, photographs, memorabilia, poetry and other personal writings, diaries, biographical information, legal documents, and tapes and transcripts of an oral history interview done in 1980.

    The collection chiefly reflects Banham's career as a woman psychologist during a period when there was little support for women in professional or academic careers. The papers document Banham's research and teaching in three countries; her contributions in the areas of child psychology and geriatrics, particularly human social and emotional development; functioning and development of cerebral palsied and other handicapped children; the history and especially the development of psychological testing of children and adults; and parapsychological phenomena. Research and teaching materials are located within the Academic and Professional Psychology series and Duke Activities series. Materials relevant to Banham's professional development are scattered throughout all five series.

    The collection is also important for the perspective it offers on the Duke University Psychology Department and the Woman's College of the 1940's to the 1960's. Information related to both as well as her role in the Admissions and scholarships Committees among other faculty committees (see the folder list located in the description of Duke Activities series), the Duke Preschool, the Duke Film Society, and the Duke Institute for Learning in Retirement can be found primarily in the Duke Activities series. Materials regarding the development and teaching of an infant and child psychology curriculum and a series of correspondence with graduate students are also of special interest and can be found in the Duke Activities series. Other materials relating to her contributions to the Duke Community are located in the Academic and Professional Psychology series, the Correspondence series, and the Personal Files series.

    Banham's contribution to the city of Durham is reflected in the Agency and Club Participation series with the most in-depth materials relating to her role in establishing the French Club, the Photographic Arts Society, the Altrusa Club, and the Committee for Successful Aging (which became the Golden Age Society and finally, the Coordinating Council for Senior Citizens), and, to a lesser degree, in the Academic and Professional Psychology series, specifically in her role as one of the founding psychologists of the Durham Child Guidance Clinic. Banham co-founded the North Carolina Psychological Association in addition to being an active member and officer of other regional, national, and international organizations such as the League of Women Voters, the American Association of University Women, and the International Council of Women Psychologists.

    Banham's life was defined by her professional and academic commitments and so her closest relationships were with her colleagues and the many individuals to whom she gave her time and the benefit of her professional skills. The Correspondence and Personal files series best reflect her tireless efforts on behalf of the people with whom she come into contact. Her papers are particularly useful as they document the period of the 1920's through the 1960's in England, Canada, and especially the United States from the perspective of a highly educated professional woman.

    Source of acquisition
    Donation from Katharine Banham, November 1977. A77-214, 22 cubic foot boxes.
    Donation from Katharine Banham, after June, 1986. A92-97, 33 cubic foot boxes.
    Donation from Ruth A Baker, Dept. of Psychology, Duke University, 17 August 1995. A95-84, 2 folders of correspondence.

    Notes
    Processing completed November, 1996 by Laura Micham.


    Banham, Katharine M., 1897-1995. Papers, 1910-1995
    Updated on 10/06/99.
    (c) 1999, Duke University Archives