Mary Frances Hickman Minton (1920-2006), widely known as Mosse, wrote some 200 memoirs. Many of these were as a participant in groups of amateur writers in retirement homes taking her course (see Shearings) on writing personal histories. Her philosophy was that the most honest and enjoyable writing came from focusing on small elements, not trying to craft a grand mythology. You will get the idea as you look through her titles. On the last day of her life, her husband Paul, son Roland (me), and daughter-in-law Jan took turns reading some of these memoirs to her. She had been non-verbal for a while, but we thought that she took pleasure in the stories and memories. Years later, these stories and glimpses into her life and mind are a great gift. She was loving, intelligent, a daydreamer, and a wonderful teacher. You will find some stories repeated, sometimes with interesting variations. As the saying goes, it’s all true, but it might not have happened that way. My favorite memoir is usually the most recent one read. However, I can especially recommend “It Started with Alethea” for her inquisitive mind and inclusive nature, “6543” and “Mentors” for the great love of her life, and “Chaucer” for a wonderful teaching success (such successes need to be celebrated more when we know about them!). For your convenience, the full set is arranged alphabetically, then by time frame, then by person referenced (Mother is Mattie Dunlap Hickman, Daddy is Willett J Hickman).
ALPHABETICAL BY TITLE:
A: A Drama Student A Family Story A Taste of London Alaska Alf All Pleasure An Early Date Ardmore Aunt Nannie
B: Back When Backyard Drama Baking Appliances Baseball Birth Order Bodleian Library Books Border Impressions Bread Bridges
C: Camping Out Carolina Inn Cars Chapel Hill First Days Chapel Hill Chapel Chaucer Chili Christ Church Christmas in Portland Christmas on Llano Street Cleaning Closets Collections Computerized Court Cookbooks Cultural Writing
D: Daddy’s Biscuits Danforth Associates Daydreaming Differences Directions Disasters Discrimination Dishes Doak Doc and Ruth Drive-Ins Dust Memories Dust Storms Dwight and Mary
E: Easter Eating Out Education in Dentistry Electric Train Entertaining Baby ESL Expository Writing Eyeglasses
F: Favorite Teachers Fearless in Seattle First Class First Home First Job First Love Fishing Floods Foggy Memories
G: Games George Through Seventh George With Sugah Gerrit Spaanbroek Going Home Going to College Great Moment Grits Gym
H-I: Hair Pooling Hats Henny Caldwell Home Art Hoover Dam House Beautiful Housing Criteria Ima Honaker Herron It Started with Alethea Jelley
J-K: Jascha Heifetz John E Mitchell Company Journey to Oxford Just Wait Knees Knitting
L: Let’s Dance Let’s Go For a Ride Lide Spragins Little Things Llano Lost Pen Pals Lost Luggage Lynchburg
M: Mamie Mansour, Khaled and Mohammed Marie Dishman Martha Jordan Mary Vee Menopause Mentors Mid-College Miss Santerre Model Student Money Morningside Moving to Richmond Mud My Favorite Season My Hero My Highchair Tray My Pig My SMU Smith My Stint with the P-TA Myra Brown Mysteries
N: Names Nancy Ingram Neighborhood Vandalism Nostalgia
O: Oak Ridge Adventures Odds and Ends On Being a Mother On Being an Instructor Orange Bobcat Our Back Porch
P: Peaches and Cream Pets Piano Lessons Prepare to Move Princeton Avenue Purefoy Road
R: Railroad Stations Reading Recital Red River Red Regionalism Ren Reservations Retreading Robert E Lee Grade School Robin Roland’s Games Rosedale Street
S: Salem Witches Saltillo San Francisco Sanger Brothers Serapes Service Sewing Shearings Sherman Shoes Signs in England Silversmithing Sleep-Over Slim Skirts SMU Library Snoopy Socks Spelling Spousal Advice Streetcars Sunday School Superstitions Supper Sydnor and Hundley Symphony
T: Telling Your Story Thanksgiving Memories The Alfred Jewel The Cost of Things The Morning News The Rector’s Wife The Roller Coaster The Tale of the Lonesome Pine The Time a Man Grabbed Me Then and Now Thomas Roland Three Stooges To the Border Tradition Trains Traveling Adventures Traveling Plans Trees Trouble To the Border Twins
U-V: UNC Uncle Tom VCU Victory Garden V-J Day
W: Washington Senators Wedding Gifts What Were You Doing When Winter Warmth Writing Prompts
Y-#: Yale Boulevard Year of the Bee 18D 6543
BY TIME FRAME:
1920s: A Family Story Alf Ardmore Aunt Nannie Backyard Drama Christmas on Llano Street Daddy’s Biscuits Easter Entertaining Baby
Fishing Games Hair Pooling Just Wait Let’s Go For a Ride Llano Lost Pen Pals Mamie Model Student Money Morningside Mud
My Favorite Season My Hero My Highchair Tray Odds and Ends Our Back Porch Peaches and Cream Pets Princeton Avenue Red River
R E Lee Grade School Robin Sanger Brothers Sherman Spelling Supper Thanksgiving Memories Then and Now Trees Trouble Winter Warmth
1930s: An Early Date Baking Appliances Birth Order Bread Camping Out Chapel Drive-Ins Dust Memories Dust Storms Electric Train
First Love Going to College Gym It All Started with Alethea Jelley Let’s Dance Marie Dishman Mary Vee Myra Brown
Piano Lessons Reading Recitals Red Sleep-Over Streetcars Sunday School Twins Uncle Tom
1940s: Back When Cars Christmas in Portland Disasters Doak Doc and Ruth Eating Out Favorite Teachers First Home First Job Going Home
Great Moment Hoover Dam Housing Criteria Ima Honaker Herron Jascha Heifetz John E Mitchell Company Lide Spragins Mid-College
Model Student My SMU Smith Railroad Stations Retreading Saltillo Serapes SMU Library Socks Spelling Spousal Advice Symphony
The Morning News Victory Garden V-J Day Washington Senators What Were You Doing When 18D 6543
1950s: Carolina Inn Chapel Hill First Days Chapel Hill Discrimination Expository Writing Eyeglasses Foggy Memories Gerrit Spaanbroek
Henny Caldwell House Beautiful Martha Jordan Menopause Mentors Mysteries Purefoy Road Rosedale Street UNC Yale Boulevard
1960s: Alaska Border Impressions Danforth Associates Dishes Dwight and Mary Fearless in Seattle Floods George Thru 7th George with Sugah
Home Art Luggage Miss Santerre My Stint with P-TA Nancy Ingram Oak Ridge Adventures On Being a Mother Pets Prepare to Move
Recitals Reservations Roland’s Games Silversmithing Snoopy The Three Stooges To the Border Traveling Adventures Traveling Plans
1970-80s: A Drama Student Bridges of Richmond Cleaning Closets Cookbooks Cultural Writing Education in Dentistry ESL Knees Lynchburg
Mansour Moving to Richmond Orange Bobcat Salem Witches San Francisco Sydnor and Hundley Thanksgiving Memories The Roller Coaster
The Tale of the Lonesome Pine The Time a Man Grabbed Me Trees VCU Wedding Gifts
1990s +: A Taste of London Bodleian Library Books Chaucer Chili Christ Church Computerized Court First Class Journey to Oxford Little Things
My Pig Neighborhood Vandalism Nostalgia Ren Signs in England Telling Your Story The Alfred Jewel Writing Prompts Year of the Bee
Multiple: All Pleasure Baseball Collections Daydreaming Differences Directions Eyeglasses Grits Hats Knitting Lost Names On Being Instructor
Regionalism Service Sewing Shoes Slim Skirts Spelling Superstitions The Cost of Things The Rector’s Wife Thomas Roland Traditions Trains
BY PERSON:
Paul: Alaska Back When Baseball Border Impressions Bridges Carolina Inn Cars Chapel Hill First Days Chapel Hill Christmas in Portland Collections Cookbooks Danforth Associates Directions Disasters Dishes Doak Doc and Ruth Dwight and Mary Eating Out
Education in Dentistry Eyeglasses First Home Floods Foggy Memories George Through Seventh George With Sugah Going Home Hats
Henny Caldwell Hoover Dam House Beautiful Housing Criteria Ima Honaker Herron John E Mitchell Company Journey to Oxford Knees
Lide Spragins Luggage Menopause Mentors Mid-College Moving to Richmond Nostalgia Oak Ridge Adventures Pets Purefoy Road
Railroad Stations Reading Retreading Roland’s Games Rosedale Street Silversmithing SMU Library Snoopy Socks Spousal Advice
The Cost of Things The Morning News The Roller Coaster The Tale of the Lonesome Pine The Time a Man Grabbed Me Three Stooges
To the Border Trains Traveling Adventures UNC VCU V-J Day Washington Senators Yale Boulevard Year of the Bee 18D 6543
Mother: A Family Story All Pleasure Bread Collections Cookbooks Daddy’s Biscuits Differences Directions Drive-Ins Easter
Electric Train Entertaining Baby Fishing Hair Pooling Jascha Heifetz Knitting Let’s Go For a Ride Llano Lost Mamie Model Student
My Favorite Season My Highchair Tray Our Back Porch Peaches and Cream Princeton Avenue Reading Recitals Red Sanger Brothers Sewing Sherman Superstitions Supper Thanksgiving Memories Tradition Trouble Twins
Daddy: A Family Story All Pleasure Backyard Drama Christmas on Llano Street Daddy’s Biscuits Directions Drive-Ins Electric Train
Entertaining Baby Games Hats Just Wait Let’s Go For a Ride Llano Mamie My Favorite Season My Highchair Tray Our Back Porch
Peaches and Cream Pets Princeton Avenue Recitals Sherman Supper Thanksgiving Memories Twins Uncle Tom Victory Garden
Mamie: All Pleasure Entertaining Baby Knitting Llano Mamie Spelling
Aunt Nannie: Aunt Nannie Bread Trains
Uncle Tom: Easter Princeton Avenue Uncle Tom
Martha: Baking Appliances Birth Order Bread Camping Out Christmas on Llano Street Collections Differences Easter First Job
Floods Games Going Home Hair Pooling Let’s Go For a Ride Llano Luggage My Highchair Tray Our Back Porch Pets Piano Lessons
Prepare to Move Recitals Sherman Tradition Twins Winter Warmth
Brother: Birth Order Camping Out Easter Electric Train Games Let’s Go For a Ride My Highchair Tray Sherman The Cost of Things
Trains Twins Wedding Gifts Winter Warmth
Ruth: An Early Date Carolina Inn Prepare to Move Twins Victory Garden
Thomas Roland: Alaska An Early Date Carolina Inn Electric Train Fearless in Seattle Thomas Roland Twins
George: Alaska Border Impressions Chili Dishes Dwight and Mary Fearless in Seattle George Through Seventh George With Sugah
Luggage Menopause Oak Ridge Adventures On Being a Mother Pets Piano Lessons Recitals Regionalism Rosedale Street Snoopy
Three Stooges To the Border Tradition Trains Traveling Adventures Traveling Plans Washington Senators
Roland: Alaska Baseball Border Impressions Dishes Dwight and Mary George With Sugah Knees Lost Luggage Menopause Miss Santerre Oak Ridge Adventures On Being a Mother Pets Piano Lessons Recitals Regionalism Roland’s Games Rosedale Street Snoopy The Time a Man Grabbed Me
Three Stooges To the Border Tradition Traveling Adventures Traveling Plans Washington Senators
Caldwells: Chapel Hill First Days Chapel Hill Gerrit Spaanbroek Henny Caldwell Mentors Purefoy Road
Doc Young: Back When Doc and Ruth Going Home
Brocks: Dwight and Mary Snoopy
Hugh Holman: Chapel Hill Mysteries Purefoy Road UNC
Edgar Elmore: An Early Date Let’s Dance Peaches and Cream
Myra Brown: Favorite Teachers Going to College Gym Myra Brown