Skip to main content

Shelly J. Williamson papers

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSS 2666

Scope and Contents

Contains diaries and scrapbooks created by Williamson. Williamson's diaries and scrapbooks, which chronicle many aspects of her life and include images, postcards, and other memorabilia from numerous trips, vacations, and outings. Includes her personal and church records, which document her battle with cancer and multiple personality disorder, as well as programs from ecclesiastical meetings, ward and stake telephone directories and announcements. Religious materials also pertain to her mission. Collection also contains correspondence, educational records and documents, employment records and history, as well as audiotapes, day books, and photographs. Many of her files also include newspaper clippings and articles. Dated 1945-2003.

Dates

  • 1945-2003

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

Restrictions Apply. All collection materials will become available at the time of Shelly Williamson's death.

Conditions Governing Use

It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances. Permission to publish material from Shelly J. Williamson papers must be obtained from the Supervisor of Reference Services and/or the Special Collections Board of Curators.

No collection materials are to be digitized or electronically reproduced.

Biographical History

Shelly J. Williamson (1945 - ) was a public school teacher and librarian. Born and raised in Tennessee, Williamson has lived in New York, Maryland, California, and Utah.

Shelly J. Williamson was born Martha Grace Shortt on July 31, 1945, in Rogersville, Hawkins County, Tennessee, to Nathaniel Delaney and Mildred Mae Tompson Shortt. Shelly has changed her name twice from Martha Grace Shortt to Martha Grace Montgomery in 1987 and again to Shelly Jean Williamson in 1993. Williamson was raised in Rogersville, where she was a student and a high school cheerleader. She entered Methodist Hospital School of Nursing in Memphis, Tennessee, on a scholarship in 1963. In 1965, she changed education paths. Williamson entered East Tennessee State University in Johnson City, Tennessee, where she studied Elementary Education until 1966. While studying at ETSU, she met Joe Gueron. They were married in 1966. Williamson again switched schools, and in 1969 she graduated from the University of Maryland in College Park with a B.A. in History. That same year, she and Joe decided to divorce.

Williamson lived and worked in New York State briefly before entering law school at the University of Maryland in 1970. She left law school after one semester because of illness. In 1974, she re-entered school, this time at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. There, she earned an M.S. in library science.

In October 1976, Williamson met missionaries from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She became a member of the Church on January 1, 1977. Since her baptism, Williamson has been a devout Latter-day Saint who allows her deep faith in God to influence all aspects of her life.

Williamson worked as a librarian in Tennessee elementary schools and public libraries until 1985, when she left to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She served in the Anaheim California Mission from April 1985 to November 1985 and in the Salt Lake City North Mission from November 1985 to February 1986.

After her mission, Williamson held a variety of jobs in northern Utah including: cataloger at Dugway Proving Ground in Tooele, Utah and in the Historical Department of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah; adjunct faculty at Salt Lake Community College in Salt Lake City, Utah; office manager at BAR/BRI of Utah East Salt Lake City, Utah; independent study course materials specialist at the University of Utah Bookstore in Salt Lake City, Utah; department secretary for Army ROTC at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, Utah; vault coordinator at LDS Motion Picture Studio in Provo, Utah; and Section 8 housing specialist at the Housing Authority of Utah County in Provo, Utah.

Many of Shelly's experiences have been influenced by her medical history. She is a survivor of both multiple personality disorder and cancer.

Extent

21 cartons (21 linear ft.)

2 oversize boxes (2 linear ft.)

2 boxes (1 linear ft.)

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

The Shelly J. Williamson papers are divided into nine archival series: Diaries and Scrapbooks; Personal Records; Church; Personal Correspondence; Education; Employment; Audiotapes; Calendars and Day Books; Photographs. The nine series contain information about many aspects of Ms. Williamson's life. Types of material include: diaries and scrapbooks, personal correspondence, and photographs.

Arrangement

Contains nine series: 1. Diaries and scrapbooks, 1977-2003. 2. Personal papers, 1945-2003. 3. Church materials, 1981-2002. 4. Personal correspondence, 1977-2002. 5. Education materials, 1951-1993. 6. Employment papers, 1987-2003. 7. Audiotapes, 1985-1988. 8. Calendars and day books, 1979-2003. 9. Photographs, 1952-2003.

Other Finding Aids

A more detailed finding aid is available in print in the repository.

Other Finding Aids

File-level inventory available online. http://files.lib.byu.edu/ead/XML/MSS2666.xml

Custodial History

Donated by Shelley J. Williamson in 2003.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Donated; Shelley J. Williamson; 2003.

Appraisal

LDS, Utah, and Western American women (20th Century Western and Mormon Manuscripts collection development policy 5.VII, August 2007.)

Shelley J. Williamson is a Mormon woman who has lived in Utah.

Processing Information

Processed; John M. Murphy and Caitlin E. Shirts; September 2003. Additional carton (carton 21) processed; Kelsey Samuelsen, student manuscript processor, May 2012.

Title
Register of Shelly J. Williamson papers
Status
Completed
Author
John M. Murphy and Caitlin E. Shirts
Date
September 2003
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid written in English in Latin script.
Sponsor
Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) grant, 2007-2008

Repository Details

Part of the L. Tom Perry Special Collections Repository

Contact:
1130 HBLL
Brigham Young University
Provo Utah 84602 United States