Hazel Baker Denton Papers, MS 97-03. Special Collections, UNLV Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
Donated by Ralph Denton, 1997.
Alexis Rajnoor, August 1998.
This collection is open for research.
For permission to reproduce or publish from this collection, please contact the Director of Special Collections.
Hazel Baker Denton was born in Monroe, Utah on June 25, 1887. She graduated from Ogden High School in 1907, at which time she was given her Teachers Certificate. Denton moved to Prince Mine in Nevada in 1914 to teach in a one room all-grade school, then to Caliente, Nevada, in 1916, to teach the first and second grades. It was here that she met Floyd Howard Denton of Nebraska, a saloon owner and future under-sheriff of Caliente. They married in 1916 and had four children: Lewis, Henrietta Marie, Betty Jeanne and Ralph.
Denton's love of education was rewarded in 1931 when she received a Nevada Life Diploma. After more than forty years’ service, she retired from teaching in 1952. In addition to her achievements in the classroom, Denton was an accomplished writer. Her published work is comprised of several newspaper columns including "Caliente all the Time" (1937-1939) and "While the Toast Burns" (1948-1953). In 1955, she published her book, Ironing Day, a collection of poetry essays and short stories. To honor her grandmother, Jeanne Marie Rio, Denton used the initials "JMR" as a pen name on much of her work.
Denton's civic and professional activities were considerable. She served as President of the Lincoln County Board of Education for twelve years and as Director for the National Education Association of Nevada from 1933-1936. She also served as President of the Nevada Federation of Women's Clubs (1944-1946) and the Lincoln County Classroom Teacher's Association (1948-1949). She was elected as a Democrat to the Nevada State Assembly in 1952 and was re-elected in 1954. During her time in the Assembly, she introduced bills and resolutions that were intended to improve free public libraries and state parks.
Hazel Denton died in Las Vegas on January 30, 1962 at the age of 74.
The focus of this collection is the personal life and writings of Hazel Baker Denton. It spans from 1907 to 1955 and consists of two series: a Writing Series and a Personal Series. The Writing Series contains all of Denton's written work, both published and manuscript (drafts for a book and college papers for example), and demonstrates her growth as a writer and the relative position of professional women in society during the time she was writing.
Denton's columns appeared in several Lincoln County newspapers from approximately 1937 to 1953. Most of this work is in the society columns "Caliente All the Time" and "While the Toast Burns." She also wrote "The Tidewater Sketches," a column that tells of her summer in Washington, D.C. attending Wilson Teachers College. Denton's book Ironing Day is included in this series along with correspondence from the publisher and written drafts of the book.
This collection is beneficial to a researcher interested in the history of Lincoln County and the social structure of a small, struggling family in a western town. This collection also provides a personal view of the life of a working mother in the 1930's and 1940's. In addition, it furnishes information on a woman in politics in the 1950s.
The Denton collection is arranged chronologically within each box and box 7 includes three scrapbooks. It consists of two series:
Photographs removed from the collection are in UNLV Special Collections Photograph Collection 0312.
For related topics and further information see the following collections:
Eileen Brookman Collection, MS 95-14
Clarabelle Decker Collection, MS 86-09
The Writing Series contains all of Denton's written work, both published and manuscript (drafts for a book and college papers for example), and demonstrates her growth as a writer and the relative position of professional women in society during the time she was writing. Denton's columns appeared in several Lincoln County newspapers from approximately 1937 to 1953. Most of this work is in the society columns "Caliente All the Time" and "While the Toast Burns." She also wrote "The Tidewater Sketches," a column that tells of her summer in Washington, D.C. attending Wilson Teachers College. Denton's book Ironing Day is included in this series along with correspondence from the publisher and written drafts of the book.
The personal series consists of journals, correspondence and family artifacts including three scrapbooks. Though some of the journals and diaries do record personal feelings and thoughts, for the most part they are comments on daily activities. Three journals represent the years Denton served as an Assemblywoman for the Nevada State Legislature. Also included is family biographical information.