Fatherless Children of France Collection

The Fatherless Children of France was an organization formed by American women in October 1915 with the objective to provide relief to the French children orphaned by the First World War. There were thirty-six chapters or committees throughout the country including New York City and Boston. The organization supported the work of the Orphelinat des Armẻes, a French society formed in Paris at the beginning of the First World War, by advertising subscriptions of $35.650 a year. The money raised by these subscriptions went directly to the French orphans to supplement the stipends provided by the French government.

While the subscriptions were successful, an auction was organized to raise additional funds. Anna O’Neill Johnson of the Boston Committee devised and directed the plan of asking well-known people of the period to contribute to a “book,” which would be auctioned. Each was asked to contribute a manuscript, an autograph, an artwork, a photograph, etc. on a uniform piece of paper, which was provided. These contributions were compiled into a volume called “Their Book.” The initial plan was to bind the contributions into a single volume but due to the size and nature of some of the contributions, it was not feasible. Instead, Mary Crease Sears designed a morocco case to hold the collection and a portfolio was created for the oversize artwork. The contributions were to be sold separately and an auction cataloged was created by the American Art Association. This new plan provoked outrage from many of the contributors and from Mrs. Johnson herself. She arranged to purchase the entire collection before the planned auction took place. Mrs. Johnson maintained the collection until she donated it to Holy Cross in 1953.