Fifty-seven manuscripts, 1916-1969, of Zaidee Aldrich Simms Cole (1882-1968), granddaughter of William Gilmore Simms and sister of Mary C. Simms Oliphant, reveal that this descendant of one of South Carolina’s leading literary figures also tried her hand at writing a novel. While Zaidee Cole’s efforts to publish her novel ultimately met with disappointment, her unpublished annotated manuscript, along with the copy submitted to the publisher, is included in this collection.

“Fly By Night” is the story of Jane Randolph, a wealthy Virginia socialite bereft of home and wealth following the death of her father, “Father always was a dreamer and I don’t doubt that he thought in some way he could redeem the place.... I feel sure, when Mr. Blume came to say he intended foreclosing the mortgage, Father’s heart stopped beating. He was sitting with his head against the wing of the chair, just as if he had fallen asleep, with the most peaceful look, which gives one some comfort.”

Correspondence and financial materials comprise the remainder of this collection. One file is filled with condolence letters that Zaidee received after the death of her husband, Col. Robert Boyd Cole (1882-1949). Another contains financial information, mainly papers concerning Zaidee’s death and the disposition of her estate.

An interesting travel¬ogue, composed sometime in the 1960s, recounts her daughter-in-law Julia’s sixteen-day automobile trip in her “Buick Skylark Vistadome station wagon” with three children and two poodles from Fort Hood, Texas, to Managua, Nicaragua.