University of Chicago Library Guide to the Lalitha Chandrasekhar Papers 1920-2013 © 2018 University of Chicago Library Table of Contents Descriptive Summary 3 Information on Use 3 Access 3 Citation 3 Biographical Note 4 Scope Note 6 Related Resources 8 Subject Headings 8 INVENTORY 8 Series I: Personal 8 Series II: Correspondence 43 Series III: Diaries and Chronological files 78 Subseries 1: General files 78 Subseries 2: Card file boxes 92 Series IV: Writing 93 Subseries 1: Essays 94 Subseries 2: Talks 102 Subseries 3: Notes 103 Series V: Politics and Social Justice 112 Series VI: Writings by Others 119 Subseries 1: Writings by and about S. Chandrasekhar 120 Subseries 2: Articles and booklets 122 Subseries 3: Periodicals, reports, and compilations 125 Series VII: Audiovisual 135 Subseries 1: Photographic material 135 Subseries 2: Audio and video 148 Series VIII: Oversize 150 Series IX: Artifacts and Framed Items 180 Series X: Restricted 182 Subseries 1: Financial records 183 Subseries 2: Student records 185 Descriptive Summary Identifier ICU.SPCL.CHANDRASEKHARL Title Chandrasekhar, Lalitha. Papers Date 1920-2013 Size 169.25 linear feet (214 boxes, 2 objects) Repository Special Collections Research Center University of Chicago Library 1100 East 57th Street Chicago, Illinois 60637 U.S.A. Abstract Lalitha Chandrasekhar (1910-2013) was married to Nobel Prize winning astrophysicist and longtime University of Chicago professor Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar. She was born in Madras, India and spent much of her childhood there. The Chandrasekhars moved to Williams Bay, Wisconsin in late 1936 when he accepted a position at the University of Chicago's Yerkes Observatory. They remained there until 1964, when they moved to Chicago. The Lalitha Chandrasekhar Papers document her life in Williams Bay and Chicago and her travels, mostly in India, the United States, and Europe. They contain personal material such as ephemera from arts organizations and extensive clippings files; correspondence; detailed diaries and chronological files; writing, including essays and notes for talks; material documenting her involvement with progressive political campaigns and contributions to organizations promoting various social justice causes; photographs, negatives, and a small amount of other audiovisual material; and miscellaneous artifacts and framed items. Information on Use Access The collection is open for research, with the exception of Series X, which contains material to which access is restricted. Subseries 1 contains financial material that is restricted for 50 years from the record’s date of creation. Subseries 2 contains student material that is restricted for 80 years from the record’s date of creation. The audio and video recordings in Series VII do not contain access copies. Researchers should consult with staff before requesting this material. Citation 3 When quoting material from this collection, the preferred citation is: Chandrasekhar, Lalitha. Papers, [Box #, Folder #], Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library Biographical Note Lalitha Chandrasekhar was born Doraiswamy Lalithambal in Madras, India in 1910. Her actual day of birth was September 28, but due to a clerical early in her childhood she was officially assigned the birthday of October 15, and she continued to celebrate that day as her birthday for the rest of her life. She was the third of four daughters of Savitri and S. Doraiswamy – her older sisters were Kanthamani and Shantha, and her younger sister was Radha. Lalitha spent much of her childhood in Madras as part of a joint family unit, surrounded by grandparents, aunts, and cousins from her mother’s side of the family. Her father was a medical officer in the Indian Army and served in the first world war, so he was away for much of her childhood. Lalitha’s mother was one of five daughters, and Lalitha’s aunts Subbalakshmi, Balam, Swarnam and Nithya played important roles in Lalitha’s life. After her father returned from the war, Lalitha, her parents, and her sister Shantha spent a short amount of time in Bangalore, where her father was stationed at an army hospital. However, her parents were concerned about her education, and she soon returned to Madras to continue with school. A short time later, her father passed away as a result of injuries suffered during the war, and the family returned to Madras and first settled back at the family home, known as Ananda Villas. As a result of her husband’s death from war injuries, Lalitha’s mother was given a pension and financial assistance for her children’s education. Some time later, she used money from the pension to purchase a home in Mylapore, which she called Sri Villas. After renting it out for a few years, the extended family moved there. They later built and moved to a larger set of homes, which they called “The Colony,” nearby. Lalitha’s family valued education greatly, and she began attending school at the age of three. Her family’s focus on formal education for women was unique for the time and originated in the experiences of her oldest aunt, Subbalakshmi, who was widowed at a very young age. Instead of following the traditional customs of the time for young widows, Lalitha’s grandparents chose to go to great lengths to see that Subbalakshmi was able to pursue an education. She ultimately graduated from college and subsequently worked to support young widows and promote education for women in Southern India. After Subbalakshmi received a formal education, the pattern continued with her younger sisters and then with the next generation of women in the family, which included Lalitha and her sisters. In 1931, Lalitha completed a BA Honours in Physics at Presidency College in Madras. In an autobiographical essay (“Little Sister: Part II”) she writes that her interest in physics was inspired by two main two sources – the excitement in India over the awarding of the Noble Prize to C.V. Raman and her interest in the scientist Marie Curie. Her family background and the atmosphere in which she grew up also encouraged her to enter a field that was not traditionally available to women. After graduating, she wanted very much to go to England to continue her studies. 4 However, her mother would not agree to this, so she remained in India and completed an LT (teaching degree) from the University of Madras and Lady Willingdon Training College in 1932. She spent the next few years teaching at various institutions, including National High School at Mylapore, Madras, where she taught physics, chemistry, math, and physical education and Lady Hardinge Medical College in New Delhi, where she taught physics. She spent a short time working in a scientific lab at Presidency College and earned a Master’s Degree in Physics in 1934, and then became headmistress of a middle school at Karaikindi. In 1935, she began working in a lab at the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore. On September 11, 1936, Lalitha married Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, known as Chandra. They had met years earlier when both were physics students at Presidency College and continued their correspondence from 1930-1936 while he spent six years in Europe, mostly at Cambridge University. After their marriage, they spent a short time in England and then moved to Williams Bay, Wisconsin, where Chandra had accepted a position at the University of Chicago’s Yerkes Observatory. The Chandrasekhars lived in Williams Bay until 1964, when they moved to Chicago. Chandra remained at the University of Chicago for his entire career, where he was a highly respected theoretical astrophysicist. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1983. For the first few years she was in Williams Bay, Lalitha attended lectures given by her husband and other scientists at Yerkes Observatory. However, after a few years she gave up her scientific studies. She felt that they would not be fruitful if she was only able to attend to them on a part- time basis, and her highest priority was to support her husband in his scientific career. For the nearly sixty years of her married life, Lalitha took primary responsibility for managing the Chandrasekhar household so her husband could focus on his academic work. Lalitha also developed her own interests and pursuits and made her own contributions to the communities she was a part of. In an effort to correct stereotypes and misperceptions about India that she often encountered in America, she traveled around the Williams Bay area and gave lectures on India to local women’s groups, schools, and church groups, covering topics such as music, history, political and economic conditions, and culture. In addition to lecturing, she would often sing or perform on the veena, an Indian musical instrument. In the 1950s she was also involved in the American Association of University Women and various local book discussion groups. In the early 1950s, Lalitha became a member of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin and began to devote significant efforts to supporting this cause. She collected donations, made telephone calls, knocked on doors, attended rallies, and distributed campaign material on behalf of the candidates she supported. Her enthusiasm for Adlai Stevenson, the Democratic candidate for President in 1952 and 1956, played a large role in the Chandrasekhars’ decision to become American citizens, which they did on October 13, 1953. Her active involvement with the Democratic Party lessened after the 1950s, but she was a lifelong supporter of progressive causes. After the Chandrasekhars moved to Chicago, she became involved in the Civic Disarmament 5 Committee and League of Women Voters, continued to support select political candidates, took art classes, and refocused her efforts on her writing. She continued to provide financial support to progressive political candidates and organizations that promoted social justice issues for the rest of her life.