Marion E. Wade Center facts for kids
The Marion E. Wade Center at Wheaton College (Illinois) is a special place for books, letters, and other items. It focuses on seven amazing writers from the United Kingdom. Four of these writers were part of a group called the Inklings. They are Owen Barfield, C. S. Lewis (who wrote The Chronicles of Narnia), J. R. R. Tolkien (who wrote The Lord of the Rings), and Charles Williams. The other authors are G. K. Chesterton, George MacDonald, and Dorothy L. Sayers. The center also has items about C. S. Lewis's wife, the poet Joy Davidman. The center is named after Marion E. Wade, who started a company called ServiceMaster.
The Wade Center is mainly a place for people to study these authors. Scholars from all over the world visit it. It has at least one copy of every book written by these authors. It also has many books, articles, and other materials about them. For example, it has the largest collection of Dorothy L. Sayers's writings anywhere. This includes 30,000 pages of her letters and documents. For some authors, the center even has family papers.
The center also has a museum. Here, you can see cool items and changing exhibits about the authors. These displays come from the center's huge collection of books, letters, and other special objects.
History of the Wade Center
The Wade Center was started in 1965 by Clyde S. Kilby. In 2001, a new building was finished on the edge of the Wheaton College campus. This new building became the home for the Wade Center. It has a bigger reading room, classrooms, and a larger area for exhibits. C. S. Lewis's dining-room table, which used to be used by visiting researchers, is now in the exhibits area. It is near the Wade's own special wardrobe, like the one in Narnia!
Clyde S. Kilby was the first director. After him, Lyle W. Dorsett led the center from 1983 to 1990. From 1994 to 2013, Christopher W. Mitchell was the director. He wrote a book called Through the Wardrobe and into the Mind of C. S. Lewis. After him, Marjorie Lamp Mead was the interim director from 2013 to 2018. She wrote A Reader's Guide Through the Wardrobe and A Reader's Guide To Caspian.
From July 2018, David Downing and Crystal Downing were co-directors. David C. Downing has written four books about C.S. Lewis. Crystal Downing has written two books about Dorothy Sayers. Since July 2024, Jim Beitler has been the director of the Wade Center. Marjorie Lamp Mead is now the associate director.
The center also holds special events about its authors. These include meetings for scholarly groups, book discussions, and classes.
