Leanna Driftmier papers

Collection

Identifier: IWA0182

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Scope and Contents

The Leanna Driftmier papers date from 1954 to 1991 and measure 2 linear inches. The papers include photocopies of 110 letters written in support of Driftmier's candidacy for the 1954 Iowa Mother of the Year award, photocopies of two newspaper stories regarding Driftmier, photocopies of short family sketches probably taken from a scrapbook, and a reminiscence written by Driftmier's daughter Lucile Verness, "The Story of an American Family."

Dates

Creation: 1954-1991

Creator

Driftmier, Leanna Field, 1886-1976 (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

The papers are open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright held by the donor has been transferred to the University of Iowa.

However, copyright status for some collection materials may be unknown. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owner. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility and potential liability based on copyright infringement for any use rests exclusively and solely with the user. Users must properly acknowledge the Iowa Women’s Archives, The University of Iowa Libraries, as the source of the material. For further information, visit https://www.lib.uiowa.edu/sc/services/rights/

Biographical / Historical

Leanna Field Driftmier, radio broadcaster and founder of "Kitchen-Klatter," was born on April 3, 1886 in Shenandoah, Iowa. Upon finishing high school in 1905, she taught country school near Essex, Iowa. In 1906 she was asked to care for her grandparents in California. While there she attended Los Angeles State Normal College, resuming teaching in 1911 in San Bernardino, California. Returning to Iowa in 1912 for a family visit, she met Martin H. Driftmier whom she subsequently married in 1913. A widower, Martin Driftmier brought two children into the marriage. The Driftmiers ultimately raised seven children.

In 1926 Leanna Driftmier established her own homemaker program, "Kitchen-Klatter," on radio station KFNF in Shenandoah, Iowa. KFNF was owned by her brother, Henry Field, an early developer of hybrid seed and founder of the Henry Field Seed Company in Shenandoah. In this half-hour program Driftmier discussed her family, recipes, philosophy, and whatever news seemed worth sharing. Beamed to six midwestern states, "Kitchen-Klatter" became the longest-running homemaker program in the history of radio. Driftmier celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of the "Kitchen-Klatter" broadcasts in 1976. In 1954 Driftmier was the recipient of the Iowa Mother of the Year Award.

Extent

2.00 linear inches

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

Radio homemaker who broadcast the Kitchen Klatter program from the 1920s to the mid-1970s.

Method of Acquisition

The papers (donor no. 262) were donated by Margery Strom in 1995.

Related Materials

Evelyn Birkby Radio Homemakers Collection (IWA): Contains issues of Kitchen-Klatter Magazine, 1961-1983.

Gretchen Harshbarger papers (IWA): Harshbarger was Leanna Driftmier's niece.

Jessie Field Shambaugh papers(IWA): Shambaugh was Leanna Driftmier's sister.