Helen Hooker O'Malley Roelofs Papers

Collection — Container: Box 1

Identifier: A.1993.062-A.1993.062.1

Scope and Contents

This collection primarily consists of materials for the United Workers of Greenwich between 1907-1915. Of particular interest there might be the collection of annual reports, along with correspondence regarding the land and house given to the United Workers by Sarah Bruce as a site for the day care center also referenced in the materials. There is also a sizable personal collection, including several photograph albums predominantly of her Fortfield gardens, an album of the Fortfield show of Irish art which includes detailed inventories of works in each picture, and other pamphlets and publications regarding exhibitions by Helen. Of particular interest here might be a circa 1916 album including images of Helen attending the Wabanaki school, founded by Ernest Thompson Seton.

Dates

Creation: Majority of material found in 1907-1915, 1984-1993

Conditions Governing Access

There are no conditions governing access to this material

Biographical / Historical

Helen Hooker O'Malley Roelofs, sometimes also called just Helen Hooker, was an artist born in Greenwich in 1905. Most of her work was produced while in Ireland during the last 20 years of her life. She had lived there with her first husband, writer Ernie O’Malley, and their three children before their divorce in 1952. Roelofs settled back in Greenwich after returning from Ireland with her two eldest children, marrying her second husband Richard Roelofs in 1956. She returned to Ireland regularly in her later years moving often between Greenwich, Dublin, and Mayo. Despite producing most of her work in Ireland, where her sculptures and paintings are mostly held in trust at the University of Limerick, she was still very attached to Greenwich. (Source: https://library.bc.edu/past/libraries/about/exhibits/burns/sculptured-lives.html)