University of New England - Innovation for a Healthier Planet

The Arctic Resources

The Maine Women Writers Collection holds significant collections of manuscript material and printed books that explore the world’s Arctic regions, with the most significant holdings being on Greenland and Alaska.

Archival Material

Marie Ahnighito Peary papers, 1862-1995

Personal scrapbooks, journals, and diaries from Peary Stafford’s childhood through adulthood which document her life as the daughter of a famous explorer and her own fame as a child born in the Arctic during the late 19th century. Correspondence with Josephine Diebitsch Peary and relating to Admiral Peary’s era and his accomplishments, as well as letters from George Borup, Viljhalmur Stefansson, and William Herbert Hobbs.

Josephine Diebitsch Peary papers, 1861-2003

Historic items including four scrapbooks compiled by Rear Admiral and Mrs. Peary’s daughter Marie Peary Stafford which chronicle the story of their lives, focusing on Josephine Peary. Also contains letters of correspondence between Josephine and Robert as early as 1884, publication and speech manuscripts, early personal and historic photographs of all family members, travel diaries, newspaper and magazine articles, ephemera, and biographical information.

Lael Morgan papers, 1936-2017

Morgan worked as a photojournalist at the Juneau Alaska Empire and covered crime and politics for the Fairbanks News Miner. She served as roving reporter and photographer for Alaska Northwest Publishing and was assigned to visit every Alaska village named in the Alaska Native Land Claims Settlement. With business partner Kent Sturgis, she established Epicenter Press in 1988, a regional house that was to become the major publisher of Alaska titles.