University of New England - Innovation for a Healthier Planet

Maggie Lewis collection of May Sarton memorabilia, 1983–1995

Full finding aid (pdf)

Collection Scope and Content

The collection is mainly letters from May Sarton to Maggie Lewis. It also includes several poems and poem broadsides Sarton sent to Lewis, as well as polaroids of Sarton and her house, and the program from Sarton’s funeral service.

Biographical/Historical Note

Marguerite “Maggie” Lewis was born in Birmington, Alabama in 1921. She grew up in Bronxville, New York and graduated from Brooklyn College. Ms. Lewis made her Broadway debut at 20 years old, and went on to act in nine Broadway plays. In the 1950s, she decided to end her acting career and pursue her lifelong interest in visual arts. In 1966, she moved from New York City to Sag Harbor, Maine, where she purchased a waterfront farmhouse on Glover Street. Built between 1930 and 1960, it lacked both running water and electricity. Semi-retired by this time, Ms. Lewis added a potting shed and a greenhouse and devoted herself to gardening and caring for her beloved poodles. She also cooked professionally, wrote magazine articles about cooking, and sold cookies and antiques to cover renovation costs. She eventually built a new house on the property and subsequently moved to her final residence, an apartment on Main Street, in 2004. By 1990, she became an ordained minister. Friends reported that, despite failing health, she dressed for her 87th birthday in a chic pantsuit and gold lame sneakers. Lewis died in 2008.