A native of Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina, Margaret Taylor Smith attended Duke University from 1943-1947. After graduating with a degree in sociology, Smith and her husband relocated to Birmingham, Michigan. Smith raised four children while taking an active part in her community through volunteer work and leadership. Smith's work as a research associate studying family life became the basis for a 1987 book, . Smith served as the chair of the Board of Trustees of the Kresge Foundation, a national organization that awards grants to support non-profit organizations. In addition, Smith continues her commitment to Duke University by holding leadership positions on multiple boards, by acting as a founding member and chair of the Council on Women's Studies, and by enabling the creation of the Sarah W. and George N. Taylor Endowment Fund for women's leadership and the Margaret Taylor Smith Endowed Directorship for Women's Studies. Mother, I Have Something to Tell You The Margaret Taylor Smith Papers contain materials dating from 1918 to 2010, with the bulk dating between 1980 and 2008. The collection documents Smith's voluntarism, leadership, and philanthropic activities at Duke University, especially in women's studies; her sociological research on American families, specifically relationships between mothers and children, that resulted in the publication of a book, ; her social and family life; and her professional activities and voluntarism, particularly at the Kresge Foundation. The collection is organized into five series: Duke University, , Personal Papers, Professional Voluntarism, and Additions. Mother I Have Something To Tell You Mother, I Have Something To Tell You
