IOWA FEDERATION OF WOMEN'S CLUBS
RECORDS, 1853-1978
QUANTITY: 3 linear feet
Acquisition: The records (donor no. 1028) were donated by the organization in 2006.
Access: The papers are open for research.
Copyright: Copyright held by the donor has not been transferred to the University of Iowa.
Preferred Citation: Box #, Iowa Federation of Women's Clubs Records, Iowa Women’s Archives, The University of Iowa Libraries, Iowa City.
Photographs: None.
Audiovisual: None.
Processed by: June Silliman and Karissa Haugeberg, 2008.
Iowa Women's Archives
100 Main Library
University of Iowa Libraries
Iowa City, Iowa 52242
Phone: 319-335-5068
Fax: 319-335-5900
E-mail the Iowa Women's Archives
History
The Iowa Federation of Women's Clubs was organized in 1893, in Des Moines, Iowa. Eighty-eight delegates from thirty-seven state organizations, including literary societies and suffrage clubs, attended the organizational meeting. According to the organization's first constitution, the mission of the Iowa Federation of Women's Clubs was to "bring into communication with one another the various Women's Clubs throughout the State, that they may compare methods of work and become mutually helpful." The volunteer service organization was nondenominational and nonpartisan. The Iowa Federation of Women's Clubs was incorporated in 1914, and was admitted to the General Federation of Women's Clubs in 1923. By the 1920s, the organization had 810 clubs with over 40,000 members across Iowa. Dues-paying members supported a variety of civic projects, including raising money for public libraries, lobbying on behalf of child labor laws, sponsoring college scholarships for Iowa women, and promoting patriotism in public schools. Elected officers represented Iowa at national conventions of the Federation of Women's Clubs. The General Federation of Women's Clubs took a special interest in international issues; members participated in diplomatic missions to South America during the early 1940s. In the 1970s, the Iowa Federation of Women's Clubs supported the state Equal Rights Amendment. In 2008, members of the organization continued to volunteer on issues ranging from world peace and health promotion to the arts, the preservation of the environment, and civic engagement.
Scope and Content Note
The Iowa Federation of Women's Clubs records date from 1853 to 1978 and measure 3 linear feet. The bulk of the collection consists of annual yearbooks, which list club officers, meeting agendas, and committees. The collection includes scrapbooks, meeting minutes, and newsletters. When the collection was donated to the Archives, muslin was wrapped around the older materials. The cloth can be found at the end of the collection.
Box List
Box 1
History, 1853-1988
Charter clubs, 1895-1938 (2 ledgers)
Conventions, 1897-1935
Box 2
Convention proceedings notebook, 1939-1943 (2 folders)
Cookbook, Tripoli recipes, 1880-2005
Council meeting, 1940
Minutes, 1935-1937 ( 3 folders)
Box 3
Minutes, 1937-1939
Newsletters, The Iowa Clubwoman, 1955-1961
Record book, 1923-1938
Secretary’s record book, 1920-1928
Box 4
Treasurer’s book, 1893-1903
Scrapbooks, 1899-1920 (2 books)
Box 5
Scrapbook of clippings, 1920 and earlier
Yearbooks, 1911-1920 (10 yearbooks)
Box 6
Yearbooks, 1921-1935 (11 yearbooks)
Box 7
Yearbooks, 1935-1943 (6 yearbooks)
Box 8
Yearbooks, 1943-1978 (16 yearbooks)
Muslin in which items were wrapped when delivered to Archives
For more information about this collection contact the Iowa Women's Archives.
Iowa Women’s Archives, University of Iowa Libraries, Iowa City IA 52242.
Please send comments to: lib-women@uiowa.edu
URL: http://www.lib.uiowa.edu/iwa
Page created June 2008
