Nettie Lee Benson (January 15, 1905 – June 24, 1993) was an American teacher, librarian, and archivist in Texas. She worked at the Latin American Collection at the
University of Texas
The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...
for 34 years, later renamed as the
Benson Latin American Collection
The Nettie Lee Benson Latin American Collection is part of the University of Texas Library system in partnership with the Teresa Lozano Long Institute for Latin American Studies (LLILAS), located in Austin, Texas, and named for the historian and ...
in her honor. After 1949, she taught history and library science simultaneously with her work managing the Latin American Collection. She also co-founded a graduate program in library science for specialists in Latin America.
Early life
Nettie Lee Benson was born on January 15, 1905, in
Arcadia, Texas, to Jasper William and Vora Ann (Reddell) Benson. Her family moved to
Sinton, Texas
Sinton is a city in and the county seat of San Patricio County, Texas, United States. The population was 5,665 at the 2010 census. It was founded in 1886 and was named in honor of David Sinton, a influential business owner and rancher.
Geograph ...
, when she was about three years old.
The Bensons were a family of farmers, managing a small ranch and growing vegetables in the Sinton area. Nettie grew up with one sister, two older brothers, and three younger brothers. Her father, Jasper, known as "J. W.", also served as
San Patricio County's agricultural agent. Vora, her mother, had been a school teacher before marriage, and she regularly read books to her children. Yet Benson and her siblings participated in sports and performed music, with Benson playing the flute.
With a growing family and business, they moved to a large house with more land, where they maintained a herd of dairy cows and ran a nursery. J. W. grew citrus and palm trees, even
grafting
Grafting or graftage is a horticultural technique whereby tissues of plants are joined so as to continue their growth together. The upper part of the combined plant is called the scion () while the lower part is called the rootstock. The succ ...
plants to create hybrids, a skill he taught Nettie. Benson graduated as class
valedictorian
Valedictorian is an academic title for the highest-performing student of a graduating class of an academic institution.
The valedictorian is commonly determined by a numerical formula, generally an academic institution's grade point average (GPA) ...
at her local high school in 1922. She studied Spanish and participated in various extracurricular activities, while being an active member of the local Presbyterian church.
Career
Benson earned an academic scholarship and joined her sister Jennie at
Texas Presbyterian College Texas Presbyterian College, also known as Texas Presbyterian College for Girls was a women's college as well as high school in Milford, Texas. The college opened in 1902 with a donation of $25,000 and of land from the town of Milford.
The first pr ...
.
[Crawford and Ragsdale (1998), pp. 177178.] She enrolled at the
University of Texas
The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...
, where a course on
Spanish North American history given by
Charles W. Hackett in 1925 inspired her to pursue the study of Mexico.
[ The same year, she left the university and accepted a teaching position at the Instituto Inglés-Español in ]Monterrey, Mexico
Monterrey ( , ) is the capital and largest city of the northeastern state of Nuevo León, Mexico, and the third largest city in Mexico behind Guadalajara and Mexico City. Located at the foothills of the Sierra Madre Oriental, the city is anchor ...
, where she taught for two years. Returning to Austin
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...
, she completed her baccalaureate in 1929, graduating with honors.[ She taught for over a decade in ]Ingleside, Texas
Ingleside is a city in Nueces and San Patricio Counties in the U.S. state of Texas. Its population was 9,519 at the 2020 census.
Ingleside was the home to Naval Station Ingleside. On August 24, 2005, the BRAC Committee voted to close the base. ...
, after which she returned to the University of Texas in order to attend graduate school. She was still teaching school in Ingleside when she earned her master's degree in 1936. Her thesis was ''The Preconstitutional Regime of Venustiano Carranza, 1913–1917''. However, she moved to Austin in 1941 in order to help her nephew adjust as a new student at the University of Texas, after which she started a new career path with an increased focus on studying Latin American history.
In 1942 she began working at the Latin American Collection. While still enrolled as a graduate student, she gained expertise in library acquisitions
Library acquisitions is the department of a library responsible for the selection and purchase of materials or resources. The department may select vendors, negotiate consortium pricing, arrange for standing orders, and select individual titles or ...
and applied this knowledge during her travels throughout Latin America.[ Two years later she traveled south of the border to research the first years after ]Mexican Independence
The Mexican War of Independence ( es, Guerra de Independencia de México, links=no, 16 September 1810 – 27 September 1821) was an armed conflict and political process resulting in Mexico's independence from Spain. It was not a single, co ...
, studying the period between 1820 and 1824 as a subject for her dissertation. She wrote ''The Provincial Deputation in Mexico: Precursor of the Mexican Federal State'' while executing her demanding full-time job at the Latin American Collection. In June 1949, she finished the dissertation, which was published in Mexico City
Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...
as ''El Fondo de Cultura Económico'' and republished in 1992 as ''The Provincial Deputation in Mexico: Harbinger of Political Economy, Independence, and Federalism''.
In 1960, Benson expanded her career portfolio. While still employed as director of the Latin American Collection, she taught courses in library science
Library science (often termed library studies, bibliothecography, and library economy) is an interdisciplinary or multidisciplinary field that applies the practices, perspectives, and tools of management, information technology, education, an ...
and history. The same year, she accepted an appointment to the Latin American Cooperative Acquisitions Project
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of ...
(LACAP), which prompted her to travel throughout Latin America in search of books for libraries all over the United States. Meanwhile, she gained support from University of Texas president Harry Ransom, who approved a new library acquisitions' budget of $25,000. She also co-founded a master's degree program in library science at the university for Latin American specialists. Starting in 1964, she taught courses for this program until 1971.[ In 1969, she was tapped again for her expertise in Latin American acquisitions. She was invited to join as a member of the ]International Council of Modern Art
International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations".
International may also refer to:
Music Albums
* ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011
* ''International'' (New Order album), 2002
* ''International'' (The T ...
, where she was tasked with acquiring Latin American art books
Artists' books (or book arts or book objects) are works of art that utilize the form of the book. They are often published in small editions, though they are sometimes produced as one-of-a-kind objects.
Overview
Artists' books have employed a ...
for 23 repositories in the United States. Benson retired in 1975.
Personal life
Benson hosted many traveling guests at her home in Austin, including researchers and writers. She also opened her home to nieces and nephews who were attending the University of Texas.
Death and legacy
Mexico awarded Benson the Order of the Aztec Eagle
The Mexican Order of the Aztec Eagle ( es, Orden Mexicana del Águila Azteca) forms part of the Mexican Honours System and is the highest Mexican order awarded to foreigners in the country.
History
It was created by decree on December 29, 1933 ...
in 1979.
Benson died on June 24, 1993. The Benson Latin American Collection, the library that bears her name, has grown to include over 1 million circulating books, over 100,000 photographs, over 20,000 maps, over 8,000 linear feet of archival material, as well as a large collection of digital media and multimedia.[Gilland, et al (2019), p. 78.] In 1954, twelve years into her service as director of the collection, the repository held 67,000 volumes. At her retirement in 1975, the collection counted over 305,000 volumes.[Crawford and Ragsdale (1998), p. 180.]
Selected works
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References
Bibliography
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External links
Benson Latin American Collection
at the University of Texas Libraries
{{DEFAULTSORT:Benson, Nettie Lee
1905 births
1993 deaths
20th-century American historians
American librarians
American women librarians
American archivists
Female archivists
University of Texas alumni
People from Galveston County, Texas
People from San Patricio County, Texas
Academics from Texas
20th-century American women
Historians from Texas
University of Texas faculty