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Library » Elizebeth Smith Friedman Collection


COLLECTIONS

Elizebeth Smith Friedman Collection

One of the twentieth century’s leading cryptologists, Elizebeth Smith Friedman was born on August 26, 1892 in Huntington, Indiana. Elizebeth grew up in Huntington on her parent’s farm before leaving to attend Wooster College in 1913. Following two years at Wooster, Elizebeth transferred to Hillsdale College to be closer to her ailing mother where she completed a BA in 1915. While in college the young Elizebeth became engrossed in the Shakespeare-Bacon controversy over the authorship of Shakespearean works. She took a job with Mrs. Elizabeth Wells Gallop in Geneva, Illinois at the Riverbank Laboratories owned by Colonel George Fabyan to work on deciphering this literary mystery. It was at Riverbank that Elizebeth met her future husband, William F. Friedman, who was working as a geneticist at the time. The couple married on May 21, 1917.

During the First World War, the Friedmans acted as directors of an unofficial code-breaking team employed by the National Government. In 1920 the Friedmans moved to Washington, D.C. where Mrs. Friedman took a post with the War Department. She later worked for the Department of the Navy, the Treasury Department, where she helped break smugglers’ codes during Prohibition and acted as a narcotics agent in the 1930s, and the International Monetary Fund in the 1940s. Elizebeth Friedman died on October 31, 1980 in North Plainsfield, New Jersey at the age of 88.

The Friedman Collection: An Analytical Guide  is a painstakingly thorough inventory researched and written by Virginia Military Institute Professor Rose Mary Sheldon.

Elizebeth Friedman Interviews

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Elizebeth Friedman Memoirs

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Barbara Friedman, Age 1
One of the Drives at Riverbank
William F. Friedman, Elizebeth S. Friedman, and John Ramsay Friedman, Aged 9 1/2
“Four Pi Phis at a House Party”
“To Elizebeth with Love;” A Portrait of Floyd Orup
“To My Dear Aunt Betty from Baby Meryl”
“To Our Bestest Friends, Billy and Elizebeth;” A Portrait of Hildur and Floyd Orup
A Cipher Based on Musical Notes
A Cipher Chart in Italian with Notes
A Garage at Riverbank
A Group of Four Women, Including Elizebeth S. Friedman’s Mother, Sopha Strock Smith
A Group of People Around William F. Friedman’s Bust at a Memorial Service for Friedman
A Group, Including William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman, Celebrating the Release of The Shakespearean Ciphers Examined, in a Bookstore
A Message to Bill Gold about the True Author of His Column and Shakespeare; Bill Gold’s Column on the Cipher Contained in The Shakespearean Ciphers Examined
A Postcard of a Flora-Covered Walkway at Riverbank Laboratories
A Postcard of a Scenic View of Riverbank Laboratories
A Print of Two Famous Pages from The Northumberland Manuscript
A View from a Window at Riverbank
A View of the Windmill in which Elizebeth S. Friedman and William F. Friedman Lived at Riverbank
A Young Peggy Spillman
Announcement of the Birth of John Ramsay Friedman
Barbara (Age 6) and John Ramsay (Age 3) Friedman
Barbara and Chris Atchison with a Bicycle for Two
Barbara and John Ramsay Friedman
Barbara and John Ramsay Friedman at the Zoo
Barbara and John Ramsay Friedman in front of a Monument
Barbara and John Ramsay Friedman Playing in the Yard
Barbara as an Indian Princess in a School Play
Barbara at a Washtub
Barbara Friedman in a Stroller
Barbara Friedman and “Skipper” Snow on the Banks of the Potomac River on Christmas Day
Barbara Friedman at 6 Months
Barbara Friedman Atchison’s Son, Nathaniel Christopher Atchison
Barbara Friedman in a Fur Coat on a Winter Day
Barbara Friedman in a White Dress
Barbara Friedman in a White Hat
Barbara Friedman in Panama
Barbara Friedman Looking at a Book
Barbara Friedman Looking at a Book on a Wagon
Barbara Friedman on a Walk on Christmas Day
Barbara Friedman Posing in front of a Screen
Barbara Friedman sitting in a Chair
Barbara Friedman Sitting in a Chair at Radcliffe College
Barbara Friedman Sitting on a Stool
Barbara Friedman Sitting on a Swing
Barbara Friedman with a Playmate
Barbara Friedman, Age 13 Months
Barbara Friedman, Age 14 1/2 Months, in the Bathtub
Barbara Friedman, Age 14 1/2 Months, On Christmas Day 1924
Barbara Friedman, Age 6 1/2 Months, in a Pram
Barbara Friedman, Age 6 1/2 Months, in a Pram
Barbara Standing in the Water at St. George’s Island
Barbara’s Wedding
Bride and Groom William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman
Bride and Groom William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman
Cambridge University Press Booth Exhibit
Christmas Card from the Smith Family
Christmas Card, Signed Laubros and Helen
Cover of The Works of George Dalgarno of Aberdeen
Discussions in the Friedman Collection at the Marshall Library
Dr. Ramsay Spillman, Margaret Spillman, and Elizebeth S. Friedman in a Garden
Edna Smith Dinieus and Elizebeth S. Friedman on an Excursion in Great Falls
Edna Smith Dinieus and Elizebeth S. Friedman Outside on a Cold Winter Day
Edna Smith Dinieus in the Harbor
Edna Smith Dinieus Reading in a Chair
Edna Smith Dinieus Standing in front of a Brick Building
Edna Smith Dinieus Standing on a Sidewalk
Edna Smith Dinieus Standing with “Nickie” in a Garden
Edna Smith Dinieus Walking
Edna Smith Dinieus with an Older Gentleman, Presumably Her Husband, and a Boy, Presumably Her Grandson
Elizabeth Wells Gallup at Her Desk
Elizebeth S. Friedman and an Unidentified Woman
Elizebeth S. Friedman and An Unidentified Woman at a Memorial Service for William F. Friedman
Elizebeth S. Friedman and an Unidentified Woman Picking Flowers
Elizebeth S. Friedman and an Unidentified Woman Standing in a Pathway
Elizebeth S. Friedman and Edna Smith Dinieus on a Park Bench
Elizebeth S. Friedman and Edna Smith Dinieus Standing behind a Bush
Elizebeth S. Friedman and Family Members at James Smith’s House
Elizebeth S. Friedman and Four Unidentified Women at Riverbank Laboratories
Elizebeth S. Friedman and Jean Ramsay at a Tidal Basin
Elizebeth S. Friedman and John Ramsay at a Memorial Service for William F. Friedman
Elizebeth S. Friedman and John Ramsay Friedman on Christmas Day
Elizebeth S. Friedman and Others Aboard the SS Leviathan
Elizebeth S. Friedman and Robert Wilson, President of Standard Oil of Indiana at a Dinner Given for Mary B. Clubs
Elizebeth S. Friedman and Rosa Trust Friedman in George Fabyan’s Japanese Garden at Riverbank Laboratories
Elizebeth S. Friedman and Staffers at the International Telegraph Conference in Brussels
Elizebeth S. Friedman and Three Unidentified Men around William F. Friedman’s Bust at a Memorial Service for Friedman
Elizebeth S. Friedman and William F. Friedman with Professor and Mrs. Edmund Morgan at their House in the Alpes
Elizebeth S. Friedman at Riverbank Laboratories
Elizebeth S. Friedman Departs from Washington for the South, to Appear in Federal Court
Elizebeth S. Friedman in a Garden
Elizebeth S. Friedman in a Garden
Elizebeth S. Friedman in a Garden
Elizebeth S. Friedman in Convalescence Following the Birth of Barbara Friedman
Elizebeth S. Friedman in front of a Gate
Elizebeth S. Friedman in front of a Portrait of Herself
Elizebeth S. Friedman in front of the Lincoln Memorial
Elizebeth S. Friedman in the Back Garden of Her Capitol Hill House
Elizebeth S. Friedman in William F. Friedman’s Study
Elizebeth S. Friedman on a Bicycle at Riverbank Laboratories
Elizebeth S. Friedman on the Fox River
Elizebeth S. Friedman on the Grounds of Riverbank Laboratories
Elizebeth S. Friedman on the Grounds of Riverbank Laboratories
Elizebeth S. Friedman Outside a Country House
Elizebeth S. Friedman Reading
Elizebeth S. Friedman Receives Her Honorary Degree from Hillsdale College
Elizebeth S. Friedman Sits in a Scripps-Booth
Elizebeth S. Friedman Sitting on a Bench
Elizebeth S. Friedman Talking with Staff at the Marshall Library
Elizebeth S. Friedman with a Bike at Riverbank Laboratories
Elizebeth S. Friedman with An Unidentified Man at a Memorial Service for William F. Friedman
Elizebeth S. Friedman with An Unidentified Woman
Elizebeth S. Friedman with An Unidentified Woman
Elizebeth S. Friedman with George Fabyan at Riverbank Laboratories
Elizebeth S. Friedman with Helen R.D. Parker, and Mr. and Mrs. Johnson at the Cosmos Club Garden
Elizebeth S. Friedman with Her Children, Barbara and John Ramsay
Elizebeth S. Friedman Working at a Desk
Elizebeth S. Friedman, Elizabeth Wells Gallup, Kate Wells, Jess Reem Buell, Flo Gosma Wilson, Ruth Mallory, and J.A. Powell in a field at Riverbank Laboratories
Elizebeth S. Friedman, Glen, and Jess on the Coast of Lake Ontario
Elizebeth S. Friedman, Ingrid Arlene Smith, and John Oxley Smith on a Set of Stairs
Elizebeth S. Friedman, Jess Reem Buell, Flo Gosma Wilson, and Ruth Mallory Carpenter Laying in the Grass at Riverbank Laboratories
Elizebeth S. Friedman, Jess Reem Buell, Flo Gosma Wilson, and Ruth Mallory in front of a Tree at Riverbank Laboratories
Elizebeth S. Friedman, Jess Reem Buell, Flo Gosma Wilson, and Ruth Mallory on a Staircase at Riverbank Laboratories
Elizebeth S. Friedman, John Ramsay Friedman, Barbara Friedman, and Four Unidentified People at a Memorial Service for William F. Friedman
Elizebeth S. Friedman, Laurellen Curwell, Dr. Ramsay Spellman, and Margaret Spellman Standing in front of a House
Elizebeth S. Friedman, Nellie Fabyan, Miss. Cumming, Mrs. Trout (Nellie Fabyan’s Sister) on the farm at Riverbank Laboratories
Elizebeth S. Friedman, Rosa Trust Friedman, and Stanley Friedman in George Fabyan’s Japanese Garden at Riverbank Laboratories
Elizebeth S. Friedman, the Deputy Director of the NSA, and Mr. Nachman, the Sculptor Who Made the Bust of Friedman at a Memorial Service for William F. Friedman
Elizebeth S. Friedman’s Uniformed Services Identification and Privilege Card
Elizebeth Smith (Later Friedman) and Dorothy Crain in front of a Tree
Elizebeth Smith (Later Friedman) in a Garden
Elizebeth Smith (Later Friedman), Kate Wells, and Elizabeth Gallup Wells in front of a fence at Riverbank Laboratories
Family Photos from Christmas Day
Family Portrait of James, Lois, John, and Mark Smith
Filmstrip of Barbara Friedman
Filmstrip of Barbara Friedman
Filmstrip of Children at a Fence
Four Unidentified People Swimming in a Pool at Riverbank Laboratories
Friedman Family Portrait
George C. Marshall’s Gravestone
George Fabyan Sitting in the “Hell Chair” at Riverbank Laboratories
George Fabyan’s Japanese Garden at Riverbank
George Fabyan’s Japanese Garden at Riverbank Laboratories
George Fabyan’s Japanese Garden at Riverbank Laboratories
Green Mansions, the Friedmans’ Home from 1923-1925
Group Photo of the Mounties of Vancouver, British Columbia
High School or College Aged Elizebeth Smith
Hildur Orup and Elizebeth S. Friedman on the Bank of the Potomac River
Ignatius Donnelly’s Cipher to the Second Part of King Henry the Fourth
Jo Woodring, Judy Woodring, Jane Woodring, Barbara Friedman, and John Ramsay Friedman in Rock Creek Park
John Oxley Smith, Son of James and Lois Smith
John Ramsay Friedman and Four Unidentified People at a Memorial Service for William F. Friedman
John Ramsay Friedman and Sidney Fain in the Front Yard
John Ramsay Friedman in a Chair
John Ramsay Friedman, Elizebeth S. Friedman, Vanessa Friedman, and John Ramsay Friedman’s Wife in William F. Friedman’s Garden
Mark Lyle Smith, Son of James and Lois Smith
Mary Ware and Elizebeth S. Friedman in a Garden
Mildred Eggleston, Elizebeth S. Friedman’s Roommate at Hillsdale College, Standing in a Garden
Mrs. Curwell, Barbara and John Ramsay Friedman, Taken While William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman were in Europe
Nathaniel Christopher Atchison
Nathaniel Christopher Atchison with his Maternal Grandparents, Elizebeth S. Friedman and William F. Friedman
Negative Elizebeth S. Friedman and an Unidentified Woman Standing in front of a Wall
Negative of a Woman Holding an Infant
Negative of an Unidentified Child
Negative of an Unidentified Child
Negative of an Unidentified Child
Negative of Barbara Friedman
Negative of Elizebeth S. Friedman and an Unidentified Woman Sitting in a Field
Negative of Elizebeth S. Friedman and an Unidentified Woman Sitting in Rocking Chairs
Negative of Elizebeth S. Friedman and an Unidentified Woman Sitting on a Lawn
Negative of Elizebeth S. Friedman Holding an Infant
Negative of Elizebeth S. Friedman in a Garden
Negative of Elizebeth S. Friedman in front of a Tree
Negative of Elizebeth S. Friedman Sitting Against a Tree
Negative of Elizebeth S. Friedman Sitting in a Chair
Negative of William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman Sitting on a Rock in Great Falls
Negative of William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman Standing Together
Negatives of an Unidentified Child
Negatives of an Unidentified Child
Negatives of an Unidentified Man and Child
Negatives of Unidentified Children
Negatives of Unidentified Children
Negatives of Unidentified Children
Negatives of Unidentified Children
Negatives of Unidentified Children
Negatives of Unidentified Children
Negatives of William F. Friedman with Barbara Friedman
Nicholas Freygang Atchison, Son of Barbara Friedman
Nita and Nellie Curwell sitting in the Grass
Olive, Miss Cromwell, and Tortino
Oversized: World War I Cryptographers, Including William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman
Passage from Julius Caesar with Notes by Dr. Wallace Cunningham “Proving” that Bacon Wrote Shakespeare
Portrait of an Unidentified Man in Military Regalia, Addressed to Elizebeth S. Friedman
Portrait of Barbara Friedman
Portrait of Barbara Friedman
Portrait of Barbara Friedman
Portrait of Boris Hagelin
Portrait of Edna (Enda) Smith Dinieus
Portrait of Edna Smith Dinieus
Portrait of Elizebeth S. Friedman
Portrait of Elizebeth S. Friedman
Portrait of Elizebeth S. Friedman
Portrait of Harriet Wickham
Portrait of Ignatius Donnelly
Postcard of Elizebeth S. Friedman at Riverbank Laboratories
Postcard of the lodge at Riverbank, where Elizebeth S. Friedman first stayed when she visited
Postcard of the Riverbank Grounds
Postcard of William F. Friedman, Elizebeth S. Friedman, and Three Unidentified People in a Field from William F. Friedman to Ruth Trust Friedman
Presentation of the Medal for Merit to William F. Friedman
Print of a Page from The Tempest
Prints of Code Symbols
Professor Jesse F. Mack, Jess Reem Buell, Flo Gosma Wilson, Ruth Mallory Carpenter, Mrs. Mack, an Elizebeth S. Friedman at a House Party in Geneva, Illinois
Reproductions of Coded Letters from the Library of Congress
Robert Gordon and Elizebeth S. Friedman at a Desk
Ruth Mallory and Flo Gosma Wilson on a Staircase
The BBC Interviews Elizebeth S. Friedman in William F. Friedman’s Library
The Early Group at Riverbank
The Entrance to Riverbank Laboratories
The Farewell Party for General Canine
The Friedmans’ House at 310 Second Street in Washington, D.C. (Bought 1952, Sold 1971)
The Friedmans’ House at Pomonkey Point
The Mounties’ Barracks in Vancouver, British Columbia
The RCM Police Visit the British Queen
The Riverbank Grounds
The Riverbank Grounds
The Shakespearean Ciphers Examined
The Windmill in Which William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman Lived at Riverbank
Unidentified Girl Standing in a Field Holding a Bouquet of Black-Eyed Susans
Unidentified Woman Sitting by a Pool at Riverbank
Unidentified Woman Standing in a Garden
Warren G. Harding’s Inauguration
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman at a Cambridge University Press Reception in Honor of the Release of The Shakespearean Ciphers Examined
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman at the Mediterranean with Lady Carola Mannerheim
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman at the Peabody Institute Library
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman at the Rune-Stone at Gripsholm Castle
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman in a Hotel Lobby in Stockholm
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman in front of a House
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman in front of a House at Riverbank Laboratories
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman in front of the Wythe House
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman in front of Their House
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman in Sweden
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman in the Back Garden of their Capitol Hill House
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman in their canoe on the Potomac River
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman in their Library Study
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman in their Library Study, Featured in Time Magazine, 1957 May 14, and on the Book Jacket of The Shakespearean Ciphers Examined
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman in Various Parts of Visby, Sweden
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman on a Boat During their Trip to Norway
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman on an Excursion
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman on the Grounds of Riverbank Laboratories
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman on the Grounds of Riverbank Laboratories
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman on the Steps of the U.S. Supreme Court Building
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman Sitting in a Field
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman Sitting in a Garden
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth S. Friedman’s Marriage Certificate
William F. Friedman and Elizebeth Smith on the Grounds of Riverbank Laboratories
William F. Friedman with His Children, Barbara and John Ramsay Friedman
William F. Friedman, Elizebeth S. Friedman and a Large Group of Men and Women
William F. Friedman, Elizebeth S. Friedman, and An Unidentified Man
William F. Friedman, Elizebeth S. Friedman, and Annie Hagelin on A Set of Steps in Switzerland
William F. Friedman, Elizebeth S. Friedman, and Barbara Friedman Sitting on the Front Steps
William F. Friedman, Elizebeth S. Friedman, and Captain Powell Sitting on a porch at Riverbank Laboratories
William F. Friedman, Elizebeth S. Friedman, and Edna Smith Dinieus in the Garden
William F. Friedman, Elizebeth S. Friedman, and Vera Filby in the Friedmans’ Library
William F. Friedman, Elizebeth S. Friedman, and William’s Sister, “Libbie” Friedman Sit on a Bench
William F. Friedman, in Uniform, Poses With Elizebeth S. Friedman in a Field
William F. Friedman, in uniform, poses with Elizebeth S. Friedman on a deck at Riverbank Laboratories
William F. Friedman, John Oxley Smith, and Ingrid Arlene Smith on a Set of Stairs
William F. Friedman’s Mother, Rosa Trust Friedman with her son, Stanley Friedman, and Elizebeth S. Friedman at Riverbank
William F. Friedman’s Mother, Rosa Trust Friedman with her son, Stanley Friedman, and Elizebeth S. Friedman in Fabyan’s Japanese Garden at Riverbank
William F. Friedman’s Mother, Rosa Trust Friedman with her son, Stanley Friedman, and Elizebeth S. Friedman on a Bench at Riverbank
William F. Friedman’s Mother, Rosa Trust Friedman, and Elizebeth S. Friedman at Riverbank
William F. Friedman’s Mother, Rosa Trust Friedman, and Elizebeth S. Friedman at Riverbank
William F. Friedman’s Mother, Rosa Trust Friedman, with her son, Stanley Friedman, and Elizebeth S. Friedman

Collection Formats:

War Department Chiefs and Executives, October 19,
Collection: F. Gorham Brigham Collection

Documents


Organization Chart Offices of the Chief of Staff, Deputy Chief of Staff & Secretary, General Staff, September 15,
Collection: F. Gorham Brigham Collection

Documents


Organization Chart Offices of the Chief of Staff, Deputy Chief of Staff & Secretariat, General Staff, March 1,
Collection: F. Gorham Brigham Collection

Documents


Statistics Branch War Department General Staff organization chart
Collection: F. Gorham Brigham Collection

Documents


Secretariat, War Department General Staff, June 7,
Call Number: GCM 7890 Collection: F. Gorham Brigham Collection, George C. Marshall Photographs

Photographs


Handshake after award from Gen. George C. Marshall, 1945
Collection: F. Gorham Brigham Collection

Photographs


Legion of Merit awarded by Gen. George C. Marshall, 1945
Collection: F. Gorham Brigham Collection

Photographs

Legion of Merit awarded by Gen. George C. Marshall


Newspaper clipping of Pershing attending Brown-Marshall Wedding, October 12,
Collection: George Catlett Marshall and Katherine Tupper Marshall Collection

Notice of Marshall-Brown wedding


Invitation list to wedding of Katherine T. Brown and Lt. Col. George C. Marshall, 1930
Collection: George Catlett Marshall and Katherine Tupper Marshall Collection

Documents

Inivtation list to the wedding of Katherine T. Brown and Lt. Col. George C. Marshall


Marshall Day at Virginia Military Institute, May 15,
Author: Virginia Military Institute
Collection: George C. Marshall Collection

Documents

Marshall Day Virginia Military Institute


Collection Number: 237 LL
Date: 1913-1985
Collection Size: 22 boxes
 
 Collection Guide
 Collection Guide 2
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