The University of Iowa Libraries

In the 1940s, Allen Bogue, chairman of the History Department at the State University of Iowa (now the University of Iowa), thought that a greater effort should be made to preserve historical manuscripts and records in the state of Iowa. Therefore, the History Department hired George Sheets, a retired journalist who had worked for the Des Moines Register and Tribune, to travel the state and solicit manuscript collections for the University of Iowa Libraries. The Des Moines Registerand Tribune also apparently put out a call for reports on women's community activities in 1947 or 1948. Before their transfer to the Iowa Women's Archives, the Women's Activities Reports were part of the George Sheets collection in the Special Collections Department at the University of Iowa.

The Women's Activities Reports records date from 1946 to 1948 and measure 2.5 linear inches. The records are arranged alphabetically by town. A chart in the first folder lists the names of the towns represented, the town's 1998 population, the county in which each town is located, and name of the woman who submitted each report.

The collection consists of thirty-seven reports, which vary greatly in length, detail, organization, and topics addressed. Many describe the women's organizations or the outstanding women in their towns or counties; others discuss specific projects women have undertaken such as the building of a church or library; some include town and county history. Some reports are handwritten, but most are typed; they are from all parts of the state, and towns of every size. The report on Cedar Falls contains only a description of the Wednesday Club. The report from Lake Park starts with the names of "good scrub women, without the help of these capable women, many of the homes would suffer when the wife takes up interests outside the home." Many reports allude to the effects of change and progress on women and their families. The town of Lenox is most thoroughly represented, with nineteen biographical sketches of prominent Lenox women written by Esther Dixon, along with several poems and songs written by Dixon.

Access: The records are open for research.

Use: Copyright held by the donor has not been transferred to The University of Iowa.

Acquisition: The records were transferred from the Special Collections Department in 1999.

Preferred Citation: Women's Activities Reports, Iowa Women's Archives, The University of Iowa Libraries, Iowa City.

Repository:	Iowa Women's Archives
Address:	100 Main Library University of Iowa Libraries Iowa City, IA 52242
Phone:	319-335-5068
Curator:	Kären Mason
Email:	lib-women@uiowa.edu
Website:	http://www.lib.uiowa.edu/iwa

This collection is indexed under the following subject terms.

Geographic Names:
Iowa