"They Gave Us Keys"

Edith was included in the article "They Gave Us Keys" by Augusta Gienapp in Illinois Libraries 39, no.4 (April 1957): 109-115.

This article presented "glimpses into the lives of bibliophiles" whose names "have become familiar to us through the frequent use of well-known reference tools. Gienapp mentions that little is known about Edith...

Edith Granger, pp.112-113

“…Edith Granger leaves few clues for a more intimate glimpse of her life, and all facts concerned with but seven years, 1899-1906.” During that time, the Index was compiled and published (1904).

According to this article, Granger conceived the idea of a poetry index to facilitate “the search for stray selections and fugitive verse.” She was assisted by six or more co-workers and completed the work in two years.

What is most interesting about this article is the conclusion: “It is regrettable that so little is known about Edith Granger. We speculate as to what preceded or came after those fruitful years, for surely one with such endowments does not live in obscurity or lay down the tools when a work is completed. The Muses that inspired her also silenced her, and we pay tribute to her whose diligence and ingenuity has given a lasting monument.” While the article reads much like an obituary, it is important to note that this article was published five months before she died.

The full article is available below as a PDF.

Illinois libraries. v.39 no.4 1957. | Courtesy of HathiTrust https://hdl.handle.net/2027/uva.x030602282?urlappend=%3Bseq=3,https://hdl.handle.net/2027/uva.x030602282?urlappend=%3Bseq=3

Creative Commons Attribution: http://www.hathitrust.org/access_use#cc-by-4.0