Karl Maeser and Valeria Cheney Pack papers

Collection

Identifier: ACCN 1993

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The Karl Maeser and Valeria Cheney Pack papers (1847-1998) consist of correspondence, school work, church materials, genealogy, financial materials, newspaper clippings, and materials related to the Western Pharmacal Company. The school materials relate to the educations of Valeria Cheney, Karl Maeser Pack, and their daughter, Evelyn Pack (Mrs. Alf Engen). The church materials include journals and logs from Karl Maeser Pack's L.D.S. mission. The genealogical materials include biographies of several family members as well as an extensive collection of pedigree charts and family group records.

The 2012 addendum (boxes 30-34 consists of materials similar to those previously donated. These boxes were briefly located in the Alan Engen Papers, and may be marked as such.

The 2013 addendum (boxes 35-47) consists mainly of an extensive collection of correspondence between Karl Maeser Pack (KMP) and Valeria Cheney Pack (VCP), nee Valeria Evelyn Cheney (VEC), as well as a limited amount of correspondence between Evelyn Pack (EP, Ms. Alf Engen) and her father, KMP. Box 46 contains a number of pressed flowers removed from the correspondence. These flowers are over 100 years old and require special handling.

Dates

1847-1998

Creator

Pack, Karl Maeser, 1890-1949 (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

Twenty-four hour advanced notice encouraged. Materials must be used on-site. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.

Conditions Governing Use

The library does not claim to control copyright for all materials in the collection. An individual depicted in a reproduction has privacy rights as outlined in Title 45 CFR, part 46 (Protection of Human Subjects). For further information, please review the J. Willard Marriott Library’s Use Agreement and Reproduction Request forms.

Biographical Sketch

Karl Maeser Pack (1890-1949) was born in Woods Cross, Utah, to Walker Xenophon Pack and Bertha Marie Charlotte Zahler. He spent three years serving as a missionary for the L.D.S. Church in the Swiss-German Mission and was one of the last missionaries to leave the mission after World War I began. In 1916, he married Valeria Cheney. Karl Maeser Pack worked as an elementary school teacher, an insurance salesman, and an entomologist for the U.S. government. He later obtained a degree in pharmacy from the Capitol College of Pharmacy and established the Western Pharmacal Company. He was also a partner in the Alf Engen Company which was established with his daughter, Evelyn, and her husband, Alf Engen. He was actively involved in church and community organizations, including the Kiwanis Club, until his death in 1949.

Valeria Cheney Pack (1891-1985) was born in Centerville, Utah, to William Evans Cheney and Rosena Lucas. She attended the Latter-day Saints' University. She was known for her writing and for her musical abilities on the piano and organ. Karl Maeser and Valeria Cheney Pack had five daughters, Evelyn (Mrs. Alf Engen), Mariel (Mrs. David Gardner), Rosalind, Aleen Amanda, and Karla Mae (Mrs. Donald Bennion). After Karl Maeser Pack's death, Valeria Cheney Pack assumed management of Western Pharmacal Company and was an active partner in the Alf Engen Company. She was a member of the Davis Stake Genealogical Committee and extensively researched her family history. She was also actively involved in church and community activities until her death in 1985.