Charlotte J. Odman, daughter of Gustaf A. and Ida T. Tornberg Odman, was born February 9, 1914 in Davenport, Iowa. She died at the age of 90 in Rock Island, Illinois, on September 14, 2004. She attended Augustana College from 1934 to 1938 and graduated with a degree in Economics and Commerce. She was a member of Alpha Kappa Sigma, an honorary sorority for students of the secretarial sciences.
Odman worked for the Augustana Book Concern in Rock Island, Illinois, and later at the Board of Publication of the Lutheran Church of America in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (she retired in 1982). She was the co-editor of the weekly Lutheran Companion and a co-author of The Home Altar, among other Lutheran publications.
While living in the Quad Cities area, Charlotte Odman was actively involved in the Black Hawk Hiking Club, Eva B. Clarkson Circle of Kings' Daughters, Friends of the Rock Island Library, Augustana Historical Society, American Scandinavian Association, Rock Island Women's Club, First Lutheran Church, and the Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. In Philadelphia, she volunteered at the American Swedish Historical Museum and the Medical College of Pennsylvania. |
The Charlotte Odman papers include personal postcards, her writings for the Augustana Book Concern, and her collected newspaper articles on World War II and other subjects. It consists of four series: Correspondence, Lutheran Church, Newspapers, and Miscellaneous.
The Correspondence, 1908-1990 series contains postcards addressed to members of the Odman family from Sweden, Canada, and California. Also included is a collection of holiday cards in both English and Swedish.
The Lutheran Church, 1947-1988 series contains editions of the weekly Lutheran Companion, The Home Altar, and other published materials Odman either authored or co-authored from 1947 to 1965.
The Newspapers, 1938-1976 series contains articles from Augustana College publications, articles about Rev. Dr. Ernest E. Ryden (co-editor of the Lutheran Companion), and articles about Augustana College faculty. Also included are selections from the Rock Island Argus from 1940 to 1945, including articles about the Rock Island Arsenal during World War II.
The Miscellaneous, 1958-1959 and undated series contains a newsletter and an "order of dedication" from the Augustana Book Concern. It also contains undated notes in Swedish and a black & white photograph.
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Box 1
Series I. Correspondence, 1908-1990
Postcards to Mr. and Mrs. Gust. Odman, 1908-1948
Postcards to Ida Odman, 1908-1955
Postcards to Charlotte Odman, 1945-1990
Postcards to various recipients, 1948, 1955, and undated
Un-addressed Postcards
Christmas and New Year's cards
Swedish Cards
Miscellaneous cards
Box 2
Series II. Lutheran Church, 1947-1988
Lutheran Companion, 1947-1955
Lutheran Companion, 1956-1961
Publications authored or edited by Odman, 1947-1965
The Home Altar, 1964-1974
Bulletins and flyers sent to Odman (some signed), 1950-1988
Series III. Newspapers, 1938-1976
Augustana Observer and Bulletin, 1938-1953
Ryden Articles, 1940-1969 scattered
Rock Island Argus, 1940-1945 [oversize: in Box 3]
Sydsvenska Dagbladet Snällposten (a Swedish-American newspaper), 1976
Series IV. Miscellaneous, 1958-1959 and undated
Augustana Book Concern, 1958-1959
Notes in Swedish on the death of Sisgrid Tornburg, Odman's cousin, n.d.
Unidentified photograph, n.d.
Box 3 [oversize]
Rock Island Argus for:
December 3, 1940, pages 5-6
March 17, 1941, pages 3-4, 9-10
March 29, 1941, one article
August 31, 1942, pages 1-2
October 13, 1942, pages 13-14
February 1, 1943, pages 1-2, 9-10
August 14, 1945, pages 1-10
August 16, 1945, pages 1-4, 9-12 |
