At the time of her death, Mrs. Ball was preparing to publish a book on the life and ancestry of Mary Ball Washington. She struggled during her later years, however, and never completed the project. A portion of the research files she used for this project are represented in this collection. Mount Vernon received this material from Alison Burdick, Vice Regent for Delaware, sometime around March 1965 after she sorted through the collection and weeded some of its content. A report written by Mrs. Burdick (now copied and filed with this collection) explains how the papers were organized when she received them, what type of information was contained in them, and why she disposed of “80-85% of the material.” The majority of the collection consists of notes, transcriptions, and genealogical tables or charts drafted by Mrs. Ball while researching. Several letters and clippings are also interspersed throughout. Most of the notes and compilation of the collection probably occurred circa 1911-1912 when she visited England, however, the letters and clippings have varied dates.
