Scope and Content Note
The papers of Rilma Oxley Buckman (1915-2015) span the years 1885-2015, with the bulk of the material dating from 1945 to 2001. The collection documents Buckman’s activities working in the American Red Cross and the Eighth United States Army, as well as her family, personal life and interests, and other aspects of her career in social welfare. The papers are in English.
A major part of the collection is made up of correspondence between Buckman and her parents, 1945-1947. Most of the letters relate to her activities while working for the American Red Cross and the Eighth United States Army, military government in Japan. Although she worked in Japan three months after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, only a few letters describe the country after the bombings. Also featured in the files are her efforts as club director of the Red Cross to organize a recreation and service club Eleventh United States Airborne soldiers in Sendai, Japan, and her tenure as assistant social welfare officer for the Eighth United States Army, military government where she worked on social welfare activities. In addition, a 1950 travel journal chronicles Buckman's journey on the Alaska-Canadian (ALCAN) highway with a friend shortly after the highway opened to the public.
The collection also documents her work for the Federation of Community Planning and her activism against the Vietnam War, including her arrest at a Pentagon protest. The papers also include her memoir, Tales of a Vintage Vermonter, and family papers consisting of recollections, obituaries, newspaper clippings, and photographs.