Fanny E. Ratchford

Fannie Elizabeth Ratchford was a librarian at the University of Texas from 1919 to 1957, almost four decades dedicated to the conservation and promotion of the rare scholarly collections in her care. She was born on June 5^th, 1887 in Paint Rock, Texas and worked as a teacher while attending college. In 1905 she became a student at the University of Texas and returned in 1918 to finish her degree. After earning her master’s degree in 1921, she became an assistant at the Wrenn Library. The Wrenn Library was the foundation of the University’s rare book collection, and now resides in the Harry Ransom Center. Throughout her tenure at the library, Fannie Ratchford held many positions. From assistant to librarian to curator of rare books, she was a major part of nurturing and expanding the collection. While there, she worked to expand the collection of Brontë manuscripts and was able to produce a number of works, including Gondal’s Queen, that were valued contributions to Brontë scholarship. She wrote and edited numerous other works in a variety of fields including folklore, genealogy, and English Literature. She was also one of the four original members of the first Book Club of Texas, where she proposed titles for publication. Her work with print and her promotion of the collections in her care made lasting impacts on the scholarly community, and can be seen through her three separate Guggenheim fellowships in the field of English Literature, awarded in 1929, 1937, and 1957. She died on February 9^th, 1974 in Austin, Texas.