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  Manuscript Division  Women in Community Service Records

Women in Community Service Records

 Collection
Identifier: MSS85405

Scope and Content Note

The records of the organization Women in Community Service span the years 1965-2006, with the bulk of the material dating from 1966 to 2000. The records contain administrative material, digital files, newspaper clippings, publications, and scrapbooks. The records are in English.

Women in Community Service was a national nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting economic independence for women in poverty. The chiefly volunteer staff primarily recruited young women for the Job Corps program. The limited administrative information consists of board of directors meeting minutes, financial records, and reports. Newspaper and magazine clippings cover the activities of the organization. An oversize item, the Rosa Parks Award, was given to the organization in recognition of extraordinary acts of ordinary people.

A section of publications consists of material published by Women in Community Service, including bulletins, magazines, workbooks, public relations packets, and a book, The Story of WICS . A series of scrapbooks pertains chiefly to National WICS Day activities in the various states. Material includes newspaper clippings, correspondence, photographs, and printed ephemera. Among the correspondence are two letters from Lady Bird Johnson accepting the honorary chairmanship of National WICS Day for 1966 and 1967. The scrapbooks also include material about the founder of the organization, Mary A. Hallaren.

The digital files include remarks for the memorial Mass of Mary A. Hallaren, the final report from a strategic retreat, customizable forms and newsletters, the working draft of a training guide, a photograph of volunteers, and a series of photographs from a photographic shoot.

Dates

  • Creation: 1965-2006
  • Creation: Majority of material found within 1966-2000

Language of Materials

Collection material in English

Access and Restrictions

The Women in Community Service Records are open to research. Many collections are stored off-site and advance notice is needed to retrieve these items for research use. Access to digital content is available onsite only in the Manuscript Division Reading Room and requires advanced notice. Researchers are advised to contact the Manuscript Division Reading Room prior to visiting. Digital content in the Women in Community Service Records is also viewable onsite via a Stacks terminal at https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/ms010297stacks.mss85405. Consult Manuscript Reading Room staff in advance regarding access.

Copyright Status

Materials from the Women in Community Service Records are governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.) and other applicable international copyright laws.

Administrative History

Administrative History

1964
Founded as a War on Poverty initiative by a volunteer coalition of four women's groups, the National Council of Catholic Women, Church Women United, National Council of Jewish Women, and National Council of Negro Women
1969
American GI Forum Women became the fifth sponsor group
2007
Women in Community Service National Office dissolved operations

Extent

2,800 items
8 containers
1 oversize
3.2 linear feet
58 digital files (115.75MB)

Abstract

National nonprofit organization dedicated to reducing the number of women and children in poverty by promoting economic independence. Correspondence, reports, remarks, photographs, and a training guide in both physical and digital formats. Materials in physical formats also include minutes, reports, publications, printed matter, and scrapbooks.

Arrangement of the Papers

This collection is arranged alphabetically by type of material and therein alphabetically.

Technical Requirements

Digital files were created in a Windows operating system, version is unknown. The content is primarily image files in .jpg format and text files in .doc and .pdf formats. Specialized software is not required to access these files.

Acquisition Information

The records of the organization Women in Community Service were given to the Library of Congress by Ruth Herman in 2008.

Transfers

Items have been transferred from the Manuscript Division to other custodial divisions of the Library. Videotapes and DVDs have been transferred to the Motion Picture, Broadcasting, and Recorded Sound Division. Some photographs were transferred to the Prints and Photographs Division. All transfers are identified in these divisions as part of the Women in Community Service Records. Patrons are encouraged to contact these divisions in advance of a research visit.

Processing History

The records of the organization Women in Community Service were arranged and described by Donna Ellis in 2011. The finding aid was updated and encoded by Melinda K. Friend in 2021.

Digital files were received as part of the Women in Community Service Records on a variety of storage media, each of which was assigned a unique Digital ID number. Use the Digital ID number to request access copies of the files associated with each media. A description of the standard processes taken on all born digital records can be found in the Processing History Note: Born Digital Collections Material at https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.digital.

Title
Women in Community Service Records
Subtitle
A Finding Aid to the Collection in the Library of Congress
Author
Prepared by Manuscript Division staff
Date
2021
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Part of the Manuscript Division Repository

Contact:
Manuscript Reading Room
101 Independence Ave, SE
James Madison Building, LM 101
Washington, DC 20540-4683
(202) 707-5387