Series 3 - Correspondence

0.65 m of textual records

The correspondence in this series has been received in three separate accruals and consists both of personal and professional correspondence. The arrangement is primarily chronological. The correspondence in B2002-0016 is restricted primarily to the years 1933-1935and is all personal; there are two slim files covering the years 1945 to 1991

Correspondence found in B2003-0012 begins with mainly inward correspondence received by Harding le Riche from family members, especially his mother, brothers and friends while away at the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg from 1934 to 1936. Included is a course notebook that includes some diary entries for 1933. Up to 1941, personal and professional correspondence is filed separately but after this date it is interfiled.

There is a run of correspondence for the years 1939-1944, the years during which le Riche was completing his medical studies and gaining professional experience. Beginning in 1942, there are a large number of letters from Margaret Cardross; he married her in December 1943. The volume of correspondence picks up in 1945 when he moved to Knysna, Cape Province, where he established the first health centre for Whites and Euroafricans. The number of letters increased whenever he was separated from his wife, particularly while he was taking his doctorate in public health at Harvard (1949-1950) and during the months he was in Canada (September 1951 to March 1952) prior to bringing over his family. After the latter date, the number of personal letters decreases. There is a steady stream of correspondence for the next forty-five years, with the professional component decreasing after le Riche’s retirement in 1984. Scattered throughout these files are many letters to the editor, some of which were published (the published versions can be found in the scrapbooks in Series 1 and in a file, “letters to the editor”, in Series 6). Beginning in 1997, the number of letters on file decreases rapidly, with the last few being from the year 2000.

Correspondence in B2006-0004 is separated between personal and professional. While there is some personal correspondence beginning in the 1930s and onwards, the bulk of the letters date from the mid 1980s to 2004. There are correspondence files for the 1980s and 1990s from specific family members in South Africa including the Corder Family, Jill Hamilton (Margaret LeRiche’s sister), John Grant (Margaret LeRiche’s brother) and Henriette Louw. Starting in 1990, there are more general files containing Christmas letters from family and friends. Professional correspondence in this accession dates from 1998-2005.

1933-1991: B2002-0016/004(01)-(14)
1935: B2002-0016/001P(04)
1934-1945: B2003-0012/006(02)-(09)
1939: B2003-0012.(01)
1946-1961: B2003-0012/007(01)-(15)
1962-1975: B2003-0012/008(01)-(14)
1976-1984: B2003-0012/009(01)-(09)
1985-2000: B2003-0012/010(01)-(13)
1930-2001: B2006-0004/002(01)-(30)
1998-2004: B2006-0004/003(01)-(05)

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