Vontella Hess Buchholz Kimball papers

Collection

Identifier: MS 0264

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The Vontella Hess Buchholz Kimball papers (1931-1971) consist of correspondence, notebooks, and newspaper clippings concerning her work and interest in cosmetics and the Middle East. Vontella (1906-1971) was an active and independent woman with a desire to travel and learn. The collection consists of diaries, correspondence and newspaper articles that give us an insight to Vontella's life. The first two boxes in this collection date back to 1935 and consist of Vontella's travel journals, notebooks, and passports. Box three contains personal correspondence with family and friends she met through her travels, as well as correspondence with an organization called the American Friends of the Middle East. The last boxes have folders containing notes, papers, speeches, family history, and newspaper clippings.

Click here to view the digitized materials from boxes 1 and 2 or the links below.

Dates

1931-1971

Creator

Kimball, Vontella Hess, 1906-1971 (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

Vontella Hess Buchholz Kimball (1906-1971) was born in Farmington, Utah, to David Cornelius and Lois Kimball Hess. She was a great-granddaughter of Heber C. Kimball, a noted pioneer of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Vontella married S. H. Buchholz in 1926. The couple had one son, Stanley. She married Richard H. Kimball in 1938. When Vontella was seventeen years of age she enrolled at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City and was employed in the cosmetics department of Auerbach's, a local department store. Newspaper clippings show she was not only beautiful, but very skilled at her work and willing to teach others about cosmetics and fashion. Because of her talents and with the help of her mentor, Helena Rubenstein, she was sent to New York City to learn more about the make-up industry and later became the national education director of a large cosmetic firm called Tussy Cosmetics. In 1935, through her work, Vontella took her first trip abroad to deepen her knowledge of cosmetic techniques. Because of her experience, passion, and knowledge, Vontella often lectured on charm and beauty at business and social clubs, and she also gave classes at colleges, including Brigham Young University. A subject she frequently discussed was titled, "Beauty through the Ages."

In the course of her work, she visited Europe and the Middle East many times between 1935 and 1966. Vontella was impressed with the Arab world and the locations of the New Testament. She enjoyed visiting "every spot that Paul did" and wrote about being the first woman to enter the cave where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. Additionally, Vontella collected artifacts dating back to 3000 B.C.

Her admiration for the Arab world kept her in contact with the friends she encountered on her many trips. Later she gave lectures in the United States on traditional Arab attire and jewelry. She lectured for twenty years and then went to radio and television.

Vontella Kimball died in 1971.

Extent

4.75 Linear Feet (6 boxes)

Language of Materials

English

Arabic

Additional Description

Abstract

The Vontella Hess Buchholz Kimball papers (1931-1971) consist of correspondence, notebooks, and newspaper clippings concerning her activities as national education director of a large cosmetic firm and her interest in the Middle East. Vontella (1906-1971) was an active and independent woman with a desire to travel. She often lectured on charm and beauty at business and social clubs, and was also in demand as a speaker on traditional Arab attire and jewelry.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Boxes 1-5 (folders 1 and 2) were donated by Vontella Kimball's son, Stanley B. Kimball, in 1981 and 2001.

Folders 3 and 4 of box 5 and the contents of box 6 were donated by Violet Kimball, widow of Stanley B. Kimball, in 2004.

Related Materials

Forms part of the Aileen H. Clyde 20th Century Women's Legacy Archives.

Separated Materials

See also the Vontella Hess Bucholz Kimball photograph collection (P0093) in the Multimedia Division of Special Collections.

Processing Information

Processed by Alice Guss, Alison Rogers, and Karen Carver in 1981, 2001, and 2004.

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