>Tom.Reding at 15:53, 15 November 2020

2020-11-15T15:53:18Z

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'''Catherine Galbraith''' (née '''Catherine Merriam Atwater'''; January 19, 1913 – October 1, 2008) was an [[United States|American]] author who was the wife of economist and author [[John Kenneth Galbraith]], and the mother of four sons: diplomat and political analyst, [[Peter W. Galbraith]], economist [[James K. Galbraith]], attorney J. Alan Galbraith, and Douglas Galbraith who died in childhood of leukemia.<ref name="GlobeObit"/>

==Life and career==
Catherine, also known as Kitty, was born in [[New York City, New York]], the daughter of Alice Caroline (née Merriam) and Charles Woodard Atwater,<ref>http://www.wesleyan.edu/libr/schome/FAs/at1000-145.xml</ref> a lawyer who later served as the [[Consul General]] for [[Siam]] and the granddaughter of [[Wilbur Olin Atwater]], the inventor of the [[calorimeter]] and chemist known for his studies of human metabolism and nutrition.

Galbraith attended [[Smith College]], spending her junior year at the [[University of Paris|Sorbonne]], and obtaining her bachelor's degree in [[Romance languages]] from Smith in 1934. She then took graduate courses in [[German language]] at the [[University of Munich]], where she lived in the same rooming house-dormitory as [[Unity Mitford]], a girlfriend of [[Adolf Hitler]].<ref name="GlobeObit"/> She was awarded a [[Master of Arts]] degree from [[Radcliffe College]] in 1936.<ref name="GlobeObit">{{cite news|url=http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/obituaries/articles/2008/10/04/catherine_galbraith_at_97_transformed_economist_husbands_life_and_career/?s_campaign=8315|title=Catherine Galbraith, at 97; transformed economist-husband's life and career |last=Lawrence|first=J. M.|date=2008-10-04|publisher=The Boston Globe }}</ref><ref name=Wedding/> Galbraith was fluent in [[Hindi]] and several other languages.<ref name="GlobeObit"/>

She was introduced to her future husband at a café while she was a graduate student at Radcliffe. The couple married on September 17, 1937, at the Reformed Church of [[North Hempstead, New York]].<ref name="Wedding">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1937/09/18/archives/manhasset-bridal-for-miss-atwater-daughter-of-consul-general-for.html|title=Manhasset Bridal For Miss Atwater; Daughter of Consul General for Siam in New York Wed to John K. Galbraith|last=Staff|date=1937-09-17|work=The New York Times }}</ref> The newlyweds were to sail on the [[MV Britannic (1929)|MV ''Britannic'']] to London, where J.K. Galbraith had plans to spend the year as a research fellow at the [[University of Cambridge]] studying under economist [[John Maynard Keynes]],<ref name=Wedding/> but Keynes was struck with a heart attack. Instead, Kitty introduced John to Europe, driving through the countryside and visiting towns and cathedrals.<ref name="GlobeObit"/>

Before World War II, she worked as a researcher at both the [[Library of Congress]] and the [[United States Department of Justice]].<ref name="GlobeObit"/>

Her son James wrote an essay while in fourth grade about the work his parents did, which included a detailed description of his father's job and concluded that "Mother doesn't do much". In response, Galbraith wrote an article in the May 1963 issue of ''[[The Atlantic Monthly]]'', titled "'Mother Doesn't Do Much':The Ambassador's Wife in India", describing her role in running the household and entertaining distinguished guests.<ref>{{cite journal|url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/theatlantic/access/66738651.html?dids=66738651:66738651&FMT=CITE&FMTS=CITE:PAGE&type=current&date=May+1963&author=GALBRAITH%2C+CATHERINE+A.&pub=The+Atlantic+(1932-1971)&edition=&startpage=47&desc=%22Mother+Doesn%27t+Do+Much%22%3A+The+Ambassador%27s+Wife+in+India|last=Galbraith|first=Catherine A.|date=May 1963|title='Mother Doesn't Do Much': The Ambassador's Wife in India|journal=The Atlantic Monthly|page=47 }}</ref>

She co-authored a book ''India; Now and Through Time'' with Rama Mehta, the wife of an Indian diplomat in 1972, which was intended to introduce children ages 10–14 to the culture and life of India. The book includes personal anecdotes as well as photographs, and was described by [[Joseph Lelyveld]] of ''[[The New York Times]]'' as a "graceful and accurate book" that makes the reader wish for more stories.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1972/02/27/archives/india-now-and-through-time-by-catherine-atwater-galbraith-and-rama.html|title=Book Review: India; Now and Through Time, by Catherine Atwater Galbraith and Rama Mehta|last=Lelyveld|first=Joseph|date=1972-02-27|work=The New York Times }}</ref>

For more than two decades, the Galbraiths held an annual party after the [[Harvard University]] commencement that often included Nobel prize laureates and heads of state. [[Benazir Bhutto]] visited the Galbraiths during her freshman year at Harvard in 1969 and was a guest when she gave the commencement address in 1989.<ref name="GlobeObit"/>

Galbraith died at age 95 on October 1, 2008, of a [[myocardial infarction|heart attack]] at Mount Auburn Hospital. Her husband died in 2006 at age 97, the two having been married 68 years.<ref name="GlobeObit"/>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:RAD.SCHL:sch01429 Papers of Catherine Atwater Galbraith, 1912-2008.] [http://radcliffe.harvard.edu/schlesinger-library Schlesinger Library], Radcliffe Institute, Harvard University.

{{John Kenneth Galbraith}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Galbraith, Catherine}}
[[Category:1913 births]]
[[Category:2008 deaths]]
[[Category:Writers from New York City]]
[[Category:Radcliffe College alumni]]
[[Category:University of Paris alumni]]
[[Category:Academics of the University of Cambridge]]
[[Category:Smith College alumni]]
[[Category:Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich alumni]]

Catherine Galbraith - Revision history

>Tom.Reding at 15:53, 15 November 2020