Biographical and memorial materials, 1934 - 1987

The collection documents the life and career of Lois Pauline Dowdle (1889-1987), the wife of agricultural leader and publisher Cully A. Cobb.

Series 1, Personal, 1915-1987, includes documents, many photocopies, related to Mrs. Cobb’s travel, interest in ‘The Parsonage’ families and their careers, social events, and church involvement (including a religious poem written and autographed by General William Brougher), along with biographical and memorial materials. Among the correspondence is a letter from Mrs. Cobb to Mamie Eisenhower, encouraging her and her husband to join a church, along with the First Lady’s reply. This series also includes photocopies of a scrapbook related to the Cobb Institute of Archaeology at Mississippi State University.

Series 2, Professional, 1904-1976, documents Mrs. Cobb’s education and work with the American Institute of Home Grown Fats and Oils, Association of Southern Agricultural Workers, and Southern Ruralist, including some of her own publications.

Visual materials include a photograph of Mrs. Cobb sitting in front of her home, the Briar Patch.

Some documents in the collection appear to have been damaged by fire, possibly the one at the Cobbs’ home, the Briar Patch, but readability is not affected.

The collection is related closely to the Cobb Ruralist Press papers and the Cully A. Cobb papers. All three collections overlap in subject matter and in chronological period.