Scope and Content Note
The Phillips / Mathée Collection spans the years 1900-2014, however only one item dates after 1972. The collection is a companion to the Warren G. Harding-Carrie Fulton Phillips Correspondence, a collection also held by the Manuscript Division. The papers center on Isabelle Phillips Mathée, daughter of Carrie Fulton Phillips, the paramour of Warren G. Harding, and Isabelle's husband, William Helmuth Mathée. Included are photographs of Isabelle and her mother, Carrie, letters from President Harding to William Helmuth Mathée, and correspondence, legal papers, and news clippings concerning the discovery in 1964 of the correspondence of Harding with Carrie Phillips and the subsequent legal proceedings. The final folder contains a statement from the four grandsons of Isabelle and William Mathée conveying their thoughts about these papers and the Warren G. Harding-Carrie Fulton Phillips Correspondence. The 2019 addition contains Isabelle's autograph book, signed by both her mother and Warren Harding, and three family photographs, including two with James Eaton Phillips.