Possessing a familial background within the field of education, Harriet E. Foley excelled in the discipline of library sciences for nearly three decades. After obtaining a Bachelor of Arts in education from the College of Mount St. Joseph in 1957, she began her longstanding tenure with the Carlisle Public Schools in Ohio, where she first served as an elementary school teacher of fifth grade students for four years. Between 1961 and 1963, she subsequently thrived as a secondary school teacher of French. During this time, Ms. Foley also excelled as a school librarian from 1961 until her retirement from education in 1982.
While attending to her vocational duties, Ms. Foley completed additional studies at the University of Kentucky, from which she earned a Master of Science in library science in 1961. She then completed postgraduate coursework at Kent State University in the mid-1960s. In addition to her formal education, Ms. Foley also holds a certification in library science and is a certified teacher of elementary education in the State of Ohio. Most notably, she was inducted into the Franklin High School Hall of Fame in 2003 and was named Citizen of the Year in her current residence in Franklin, Ohio, in 2007.
Contributing her expertise to the written word, Ms. Foley was the editor of “Franklin in the Great Miami Valley” in 1982 and 2004. She co-authored such books as “150-Year History of Saint Mary Church, 1868-2018,” “History of Saint Mary Parish, 1867-1967” and “Foleys from County Clare, Ireland,” publishing the lattermost book in 1994. Furthermore, she authored “The History of Franklin on the Great Miami River” and edited both “Carlisle, the Jersey Settlement in Ohio, 1800-1980” and “Carlisle, the Jersey Settlement in Ohio, 1800-1900.” She has always exemplified an interest in genealogy and, thus, applied her passion to her work in literature. She has traced her lineage back 25 generations to Charlemagne.
Outside of her primary endeavors, Ms. Foley has served as the secretary of the Conover Health Center since 2017, for which she is a past trustee. Likewise, she was a trustee and secretary of the Carlisle Federal Credit Union between 1962 and 2008 and was affiliated with numerous committees with the Otterbein-Lebanon Retirement Community between 1990 and 1998. To remain abreast of developments in her areas of expertise, Ms. Foley is a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Warren County Genealogical Society, serving both organizations as treasurer beginning in 1988 and 1994, respectively. Furthermore, she is a lifetime member of the Franklin Area Historical Society and the Ohio Retired Teachers Association and a longstanding member of the American Library Association.
Among the many highlights of her career, Ms. Foley is exceptionally proud of co-writing, alongside her husband, “Foleys from County Clare, Ireland,” a 300-page book that she gifted to all their nieces and nephews as wedding presents. Looking forward, Ms. Foley intends to continue enjoying her retirement, studying genealogy and attending her local church.
