History

The Friendly Neighbors club was organized in September 1952 in the home of Edith Mouchka. The members were farm wives living near Deep River, Iowa who organized this group as a social and philanthropic forum for local women. Club meetings enabled the women to do community work, socialize, and share common interests in sewing, cooking, and gardening. Through monthly and annual dues as well as outside fundraisers, the club was able to donate money to the Poweshiek County Home and American Home Finding Association, an organization in Ottumwa, Iowa that places school age children in adoptive homes.

Scope and Content Note

The Friendly Neighbors Club (Deep River) records date from 1952 to 1992 and measure 3 linear inches. The records are arranged in three series: Correspondence, Minutes, and Photographs.

The Correspondence series contains club correspondence as well as a few personal letters to individual members. Included are various thank you notes from organizations that benefited from the club’s philanthropy.

There are many handwritten Minutes from monthly meetings, as well as a condensed version of the minutes that was printed monthly in the local newspaper. Attached to many of the monthly minutes is a financial record or sales slips from club purchases. Sales slips are also included in the undated minutes folder.

The Photographs series includes a partially bound scrapbook as well as individual photographs of the members. The scrapbook records the names of all the officers and their positions, the names and number of members in a given year, as well as any visitors who attended the monthly meetings. There are photographs of the club officers as well as photographs of special events sponsored by the club.

Box List

Box 1

Correspondence, 1956-1957 Minutes

1952-1965 (6 folders) 1970-1971 Undated

Photograph, 1992 Loose items removed from scrapbook, 1964-1968 and undated

Box 2

Scrapbook, 1952-1963